Goodness Revealed

This is Part 2 of 2 from a sermon on Goodness, the second in "The Transcendentals" series preached at Summit Church (Naples) in January 2026. It has been lightly edited for publishing. Click here to listen to the audio.  

Jesus responds to the man, saying, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good” (Matthew 19:17).

At first glance, his answer seems puzzling. Is he denying his divinity? No. This man approached Jesus as a Rabbi, and in Rabbinic tradition, answering a question with a question forced the discussion deeper.

Jesus presses deeper into the question, moving it from a question about some good thing that must be done, and to the nature of goodness itself. We see this in his answer to the man: he doesn’t say, “There is only one who does good”; he says, “There is only one who is good.”

To say someone or something is good is to highlight the nature of goodness itself. It speaks to essence, or in philosophical terms, the ontology of good.

Jesus is telling this man that God is goodness itself.

Goodness Revealed

In Exodus 3:14, God discloses his nature, “I am who I am,” revealing that he is not merely a being—he is being itself. This means that everything that exists, exists because God exists.

And because it is better to exist than not to exist, existence is good. Therefore, God is the highest and the most supreme good.

Our minds can’t even comprehend non-existence. Everything we think and imagine exists—even if only in our mind—because we exist.

This isn’t just philosophy—here’s why it matters: 1 Timothy 4:4-5 teaches that everything God created is good because it flows from Him. Understanding this is a path to a good life.

We wake each day and rejoice in the goodness of breath in our lungs.

We work another day and celebrate the goodness of purpose and provision.

We hold the hand of a loved one and understand the goodness of family, friends, relationship.

When we don’t recognize the good, we grow cynical, embittered, increasingly angry—and we often can’t identify why.

Gratitude is the recognition of God’s goodness to me personally. God is good, his existence is good, and everything that flows from him is good. Therefore, any good in our lives directly flows from him.

A Better Way to Think of Commands

Look what Jesus says, “If you would enter life, keep the commandments” (Matthew 19:17).

The path to a good life is to keep his commands, because like other gifts from God, they flow from his nature. His commands are objectively good, and tell us what is good.

Consider a few and what they communicate:

• Don’t murder—life is good.

• Don’t commit adultery—faithfulness is good.

• Don’t steal—hard work is good.

• Don’t lie—truth is good.

• Honor your parents—order, structure, boundaries are good.

You may wonder if anyone needed to tell us this, because these seem like self-evident basics to life. Every culture understands these commands. 

And that is true, but it’s because God has arranged the moral furniture of the universe in such a way that, through common sense, we can discern certain principles of goodness.

But here is the problem of the human condition: While I might know the first principles of goodness, I suppress them, ignore them, and manipulate them.

This is why the Bible says, “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened” (Romans 1:21).

Even if we know some good through common sense, we can’t know the perfect or complete good apart from God’s revelation to us.

This young man thought he was doing great; he is on the road to goodness. But then Jesus said, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.”

We can have a relatively good life on earth by keeping the moral laws, but the highest good, which is obtained in heaven, only comes with complete devotion to Jesus.

Goodness is Complete Devotion to Jesus

There’s more to Jesus’ charge to this man than initially meets the eye. On the surface, Jesus is dealing with the young man’s relationship with money. But on the deeper level, he is dealing with the man’s incomplete understanding of good.

Money, wealth, and possessions are not inherently evil. If all created things flow from God, and God is supremely good, then every thing is good to the degree that it participates in him.

Simply giving away one’s possessions is not necessarily virtuous. Colossians 3:14 tells us to “put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.” But it’s possible to give something away without love.

Instead, when Jesus commanded this man to give away his possessions, he was exposing the man’s inadequate understanding of goodness. The young man’s response—to walk away sorrowful—communicated a lot about what he truly thought was good.  

Jesus revealed the good life is only found in complete devotion to God through Christ. The most perfect good is to love God.

If we look for ultimate goodness, truth, and beauty anywhere besides Christ we will be sorely disappointed. In him, they find their fullness and completion.

In him, we see perfect good—he kept all the commands.

In him, we see the complete truth—his words and life comport with reality.

In him, we see total beauty—on a bloody cross and empty tomb, peace and harmony are restored.

And when we follow him with devotion, loving him above all, we find eternal life—a life that is compelling and complete.