The Goodness of God | Pastor Josh Turner

Devotional

Day 1: The Hound of Heaven Dragging Us Home

The Holy Spirit doesn’t merely invite—He relentlessly pursues. Like a parent chasing a wandering child, God’s Spirit drags us toward grace even when we resist. This divine pursuit isn’t based on our worthiness but on God’s stubborn love. Every moment of conviction, every unexplained pull toward hope, every restless ache for meaning is His kindness in motion. Salvation begins not with our decision, but with His determination to rescue. [17:54]

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.” (John 6:44, NIV)

Reflection: Where have you sensed the Holy Spirit gently “dragging” you toward Jesus lately? What resistance have you felt, and what would surrender look like?

Day 2: When Unbelief Dresses as Responsibility

Worry often masquerades as stewardship. The pastor’s fear for his daughter’s future exposed a deeper doubt: Does God truly care? Our anxiety about provision, relationships, or purpose often roots in unbelief—a quiet suspicion that God isn’t as good as He claims. The Holy Spirit convicts not to shame, but to free us from self-made prisons of distrust. [24:19]

“When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me.” (John 16:8-11, NIV)

Reflection: What practical worry have you been carrying that actually reveals unbelief? How might trusting God’s goodness reshape your next step?

Day 3: UNO Cards and the Gifts That Matter

Spiritual gifts aren’t party tricks—they’re tools for building others up. Like the misguided small group using UNO cards for “prophecy,” we often distort the Spirit’s gifts into self-focused spectacles. True gifts—teaching, serving, healing, encouraging—flow from humility and aim to make Jesus known. Their purpose isn’t personal glory but collective growth. [13:39]

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. […] Just as a body, though one, has many parts, so it is with Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:4-12, NIV)

Reflection: Which spiritual gift do you undervalue in yourself or others? How could using it selflessly strengthen your community this week?

Day 4: Fruit, Not Farm Stands

The Spirit’s fruit isn’t a pick-and-choose buffet. Love, joy, peace—these aren’t separate virtues but facets of one reality: Christ’s character growing in us. Like a single apple containing sweetness, tartness, and crunch, the Spirit’s work in us shapes holistic Christlikeness. Maturity isn’t mastering one trait but yielding to the full harvest. [36:04]

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23, NIV)

Reflection: Which “fruit flavor” feels underdeveloped in you? What daily choice could nurture its growth?

Day 5: Altars as Response, Not Ritual

Physical responses—walking an aisle, raising a hand—aren’t empty traditions. They’re love letters to our forgetful hearts. When the Spirit stirs, embodied obedience (like the pastor’s tattooed reminder) anchors fleeting feelings to lasting change. Every step toward the altar is a declaration: “I choose to remember what You won’t let me forget.” [41:23]

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20, NIV)

Reflection: What recent prompting have you intellectualized instead of acting on? What small, physical step could you take today to obey?

Sermon Summary

Psalm 23:6 sets the anchor by saying God’s goodness and unfailing love pursue. That goodness sends a person, not an idea. Jesus promises the Advocate, the Spirit of truth, who will come from the Father and testify about the Son. Acts 1 names the gift again and ties it to power for witness from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. If the Spirit is gift and power, the question lands hard: why do so many treat him like Jesus’ weird brother and hope he doesn’t show up? The tension breaks two ways. Mystery makes modern people itchy. The Trinity and the Spirit’s work do not flatten into quick answers. Scripture holds mystery, and mystery should make awe. If changing oil in a 4Runner baffles, the sovereign God should not fit in the glove box of human certainty. The second problem is not the Spirit. People are weird. Uno-card prophecies do not rewrite who the Spirit is.

God’s design does not shift. The Spirit brings a spiritual awakening. First Corinthians 12:3 and John 6:44 say no one calls Jesus Lord except by the Spirit, and no one comes unless the Father draws. The Greek nuance lands like a surprise. Draw reads like drag. The hound of heaven does not lose the scent. Salvation is a gift from start to finish, so boasting dies.

The Spirit also brings conviction. Jesus names three targets in John 16. First, sin. Healthy conviction means God is not done. As intimacy grows, sins turn subtle. Fleshly stuff gives way to quiet rot like envy and bitterness that can wear church clothes. Underneath sits the sin of unbelief. Fear about the future or grasping for coping breaks out of a root that mutters, God, you don’t love like I do. The Spirit answers with a second target, righteousness. The standard is vertical, not horizontal comparison or personal truth. The gospel does not stop at forgiveness. By union with Christ, believers become the righteousness of God. Life then moves from righteousness, not toward it as if it could be earned. The third target is coming judgment. History is not drifting. Jesus will return, and the saved are sent, not seated.

The Spirit gives gifts. First Corinthians 12 says the same Spirit distributes, and every believer receives for the common good. Gifts do not rank people, they build the body. Finally, the Spirit produces one fruit with nine traits. Not a farmer’s market. One life growing toward Christlikeness. Kindness, self-control, gentleness and the rest mark where the Spirit has been at work, and repentance keeps the soil soft.

Key Takeaways

1. Lean into holy mystery Mystery in Scripture is not a problem to fix but a place to worship. The Trinity and the Spirit’s work outrun quick takes, and that gap is supposed to produce awe, not avoidance. Let the wonder that the same Spirit who raised Jesus lives in ordinary clay move the heart toward trust. Curiosity can be faith’s servant, not its enemy. [10:14]
2. The Spirit awakens and drags No one muscles into the kingdom. The Spirit draws, better yet drags, stubborn hearts to Jesus, the hound of heaven who refuses to quit. Salvation starts with pursuit, so gratitude replaces swagger and hope rises for the hardest cases. If God chased then, God still chases now. [18:44]
3. Conviction exposes deep unbelief Conviction is a mercy that signals God is still forming saints. As closeness with God increases, sins go from loud to quiet, from flesh to spirit, and the root often is unbelief about God’s goodness. Naming that root lets grace go deeper than behavior management. Repentance then becomes oxygen, not punishment. [22:33]
4. Righteousness in Christ fuels obedience The righteous standard is vertical, and no one clears it by hustle. By union with Jesus, believers are declared righteous, and life now runs on gratitude, not earning. Working from acceptance keeps zeal from turning into anxiety and holiness from turning into self-worship. [27:34]
5. Gifts serve the body, not ego The Spirit is the source, so bragging dies at the door. Gifts are given for the common good, not personal platforms, and comparison poisons what God meant to be nourishment. Aim the gift outward and it will grow; aim it inward and it will sour. [32:51]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:18] - Honoring pastors and healthy house
[02:53] - Meet the family and backstory
[05:39] - Goodness of God and Psalm 23:6
[06:39] - Promise of the Spirit in Scripture
[08:42] - Why many avoid the Spirit
[10:14] - Leaning into holy mystery
[12:22] - People are weird, Spirit isn’t
[15:38] - Church as encounter with God
[16:53] - Spiritual awakening: drawn to Jesus
[19:56] - Conviction, unbelief, and repentance
[27:34] - Righteousness of Christ, not earned
[30:40] - Gifts given for the body
[35:47] - One fruit, nine attributes
[39:24] - Call to commit and respond

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Acts 1:1-9 (ESV)
In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

Observation questions

According to Acts 1:8, what does Jesus say the Holy Spirit will empower believers to do?
The sermon mentions that the Greek word for “draw” in John 6:44 actually means “drag” ([18:44]). How does this nuance change the way we understand the Spirit’s role in salvation?
What three specific things does the Holy Spirit convict the world of, according to John 16:8-11?
The sermon states that spiritual gifts are “for the body, not ego” ([32:51]). How does 1 Corinthians 12:7 support this idea?

Interpretation questions

Why might Jesus emphasize the Holy Spirit as a “gift” (Acts 1:4-5) rather than merely a source of power? How does this shape our relationship with Him?
The sermon describes conviction as a “mercy” that signals God is still working on us ([22:33]). How does this perspective differ from viewing conviction as shame or punishment?
If the “fruit of the Spirit” is singular (Galatians 5:22-23), how does this challenge the idea of selectively cultivating certain traits like kindness while neglecting others like self-control?

Application questions

The Holy Spirit’s work includes mystery that invites awe rather than answers ([10:14]). What practical step could you take this week to embrace holy mystery in your faith (e.g., prayer, study, silence)?
The sermon links subtle sins like envy or bitterness to unbelief in God’s goodness ([22:33]). What quiet sin have you recently struggled with, and how might addressing its root of unbelief change your response?
Spiritual gifts are meant to serve others, not boost personal status ([32:51]). How could you use your gifts this month to intentionally build up someone in your community?
The “fruit of the Spirit” grows through repentance and soft soil ([27:34]). Which fruit feels hardest to cultivate right now, and what daily habit could help you depend on the Spirit in that area?
If the Spirit’s conviction is a sign God isn’t done with us ([20:42]), how might you create space to regularly ask Him, “Where am I resisting Your work in my life?”
The sermon warns against comparing our righteousness to others ([25:12]). What would it look like to replace horizontal comparisons with gratitude for Christ’s vertical gift this week?