Title: Trusting God’s Goodness
Speaker: David Rocchi
Date: 5th April 2026
Location: Dunedin, New Zealand
Summary:
“God is not looking for excuses to be bad to us. He is looking for excuses to be good to us.”
This episode works through Psalm 34:8 and its invitation to taste and see that the Lord is good. The idea is simple but easy to lose hold of: God is good, and he wants to be good to you personally. Most of us can agree that God has been good to others while quietly assuming we are the exception. This teaching sets out to remove that doubt for good.
Building from Romans 5 and Ephesians 2, the case is made that the clearest evidence of God’s goodness is already settled. Christ died for us while we were still opposed to God, which means the goodness was never earned and never can be. It is given freely. From there the episode moves through Psalm 139, Jeremiah 29 and Isaiah 46 to show how constantly God thinks about us and how he intends to carry us from beginning to end, through every stage and every kind of trouble.
The closing section is practical. Mistakes and failures do not cancel God’s goodness, and the way back is repentance, not self punishment. The response God asks for is thanks and praise, poured out in prayer and shared openly with others. Confidence in God’s goodness makes the whole walk lighter, calmer and far more free from worry.
Key Points:
- God’s goodness is not a general idea about the world. It is his settled intention toward you personally, and you are not the exception.
- The death of Christ is the proof. It happened while we were still sinners, so God’s favour was never earned and cannot be lost through failure.
- Assurance of God’s goodness changes how we face trouble. Trials can be met with confidence rather than dread when we trust the outcome is in good hands.
- The Holy Spirit is what makes this real to us. We do not reason our way into it. It is revealed in prayer and settled in the heart.
- Mistakes are not the end of the matter. Confess, turn around, come back, and stop punishing yourself where God has already forgiven.
- The right response is thanks and praise, offered daily in private prayer and spoken openly to others.
Reference Scriptures:
- Psalm 34:8
- Romans 5:1-5
- Romans 5:8
- Ephesians 2:4-7
- Exodus 33-34
- 1 Corinthians 2:9-10
- Psalm 139:17-18
- Jeremiah 29:11
- Isaiah 46:3-4
- Isaiah 44:21-22
- 1 John 1:9
- Psalm 107:1, 8, 15, 21, 31
- Psalm 31:19
- Psalm 27:13-14