No Good Thing Withheld (Psalm 84:11)

“The Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from them that love Him” (Psalm 84:11).

I think I heard someone say that all life and energy on earth comes from the sun. Whether true or not, I know it is true of the Sun of Righteousness, Jesus Christ our Lord, our great God and Savior (Mal. 4:2; Col. 1:16; John 1:1-3; Heb. 1:1-3, 8-11; Titus 1:3-4; 2:13; 3:4, 6). Without doubt, therefore, scripture emphatically says “the Lord [our] God is a sun and shield.” Moreover, “in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). If the Lord our God did not hold us in His thoughts, we would not only cease to exist, but we would cease to have any record of any existence. Only because God actively wills our existence and upholds our being do we have one.

In body and soul, this is true of all men. But what is not true of all men is that the Lord gives grace and glory. It is not true that the Lord our God will not withhold any good thing from all men. From Psalm 84:11, He will not withhold any good thing from those that love Him. Not all men love Him. Those that do love Him, love Him because He first loved them (1 John 4:19). “Without Me,” said our all-sufficient Savior, “you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

If the Lord our God will not withhold any good thing from us, then He will give us faith and love in Christ. He will give all good things to us. He emphatically states this is so. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3; 2:8-9). To His purchased, gathered people He therefore says, “All things are yours” (1 Cor. 3:21-23; Eph. 1:22-23). He will not withhold any good thing from those that love Him. Should we not therefore be embolden to ask Him to do as He has said, and give to us all good things in Christ? And is there any good thing to be found in all of this vast universe that is not in Christ Jesus? Is there anything lacking in Christ (Col. 2:9-10)?! To ask is to answer.

Two things are joined to make the case of God’s blessings to His people complete. First, He will not withhold any good thing from us. Second, He will work all things together for our good, whether those things are good or bad in themselves, He will turn all evil to our good!! He pronounced creation “very good” in the beginning. By our sin that creation is now cursed. All men obviously benefit from creation. But to turn the most egregious intent and malicious motives and pernicious words and devious actions of men and devils for our good, that is to “more than conquer” our enemies (Rom. 8:37)! It is to make the hostile intents, words and actions of men and devils to redound to the glory of God and the salvation and good of His people (Psa. 76:10; Psa. 46:1-3)! He will withhold nothing good from us. He will work all things together for our good. But not for all men: only for those that love God, those which are “the called” according to His purpose.

This is the key and spring and certainty of all: “His purpose.” In Psalm 84:11 and Romans 8:28-39 the action is all God’s. It is all God’s design. It is all God’s purpose. We are the objects of His saving mercy, grace and blessing. This is why we love Him.

Someone once said “There are two kinds of people in this world: the righteous and the wicked. The righteous all think they are wicked; the wicked all think they are righteous.” I believe that is so (Matt. 25:37-40, 44; Luke 18:9-14). And I believe to keep trembling souls from becoming self-absorbed, wondering if they are among those that love God, and to glorify His name in our salvation, the next verse, Romans 8:29-30, immediately directs our attention to the purpose of God from eternity and the work of God in time. “For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30). The purpose is God’s. The word and promise is God’s. The work is God’s. His name is at stake: He staked Himself to it all. He will do all His pleasure, all His thoughts, all His will (Isa. 14:24; Psa. 33:11; 115:3; 135:6; Dan. 4:35; Isa. 46:9-11). If we love God, it is because He first loved us. This is one of the good things He has not withheld from us. Or rather, if God loved us, He will therefore draw us with life-giving, enabling grace to believe and love Him (1 John 4:19; Jer. 31:3; John 15:5, 16).

​Now, can we trust our great God and Father, who, when we were enemies, reconciled us to Himself by the death of His Son (Rom. 5:10)? Can we  trust our great God and Savior, who, when we were yet sinners, died for us (Rom. 5:6-9; Gal. 2:20; Rev. 1:5)? Can we trust the Holy Spirit of God and of Christ, that when we were dead in sins, for His great love wherewith He loved us, raised us from spiritual death to life? When we were dead in sins, Christ came to dwell in us (Eph. 2:4)! He gave us life with every grace to believe and hope in Him, even to love Him. Do I live? I live by the faith of the Son of God who so loved me that He gave Himself for me (Gal. 2:20)?! Do I have any warrant to think and believe so? Yes! He came to save sinners (1 Tim. 1:13-15)! He died the just for the unjust (1 Pet. 3:18)! He justifies the ungodly (Rom. 4:5)! Only ungodly sinners need this Savior!!! With life-giving power, He Himself entreats sinners to look to Him (Isa. 45:22), come to Him (John 6:37; Matt. 20:28), to find their rest in Him! To deny that I am a sinner is to think as a reprobate. It is to disqualify myself from this Savior! Yet even this faith and trust and hope in Him who is all-sufficient to save the vilest sort of sinner -- even and especially these graces come from Him! Therefore, “I will arise and go to Jesus” (from the Hymn, 'Come Ye Sinners'). This is our God (Isa. 25:9)! This is our Lord (John 20:28)! He is our Savior. He will not withhold one good thing from them that love Him. And He will work all things, whether good or bad, for our good. I must trust Him! O, Lord, Giver of all grace and glory and all good things, give me this precious faith in your Son, to love Him!

Rick Warta