God is good to all
- Rita Egolf
- 13 hours ago
- 5 min read
It’s easy to fall into a “believers-only” view of God’s goodness, meaning that the Lord reserves every kindness for His people and treats unbelievers only with judgment. But Scripture tells a different story. Again and again, God shows real, tangible kindness to people who do not love Him, honor Him, or even acknowledge Him. Theologians have often called this overflow of divine kindness common grace.
Wayne Grudem defines common grace as “the grace of God by which he gives people innumerable blessings that are not part of salvation. Common refers to something that is common to all people and is not restricted to believers or the elect only” (Grudem, 657). This definition is helpful because it keeps two truths together: (1) these blessings are genuinely from God, and (2) they are distinct from saving grace. Common grace does not forgive sin or regenerate the heart, but it does display God’s benevolence, patience, and generosity in the world.
This category is worth exploring because it trains our spiritual eyesight. It helps believers interpret the world accurately. God is not only holy and just; He is also kind, even to those who reject Him. And when we see that clearly, it produces humility, gratitude, and a more compassionate posture toward the lost.
God Gives General Blessings to All Mankind
One obvious expression of common grace is God’s everyday provision in creation.
Matthew 5:45 and Acts 14:17 speak of God giving rain, sunshine, and fruitful seasons. Jesus explicitly says these gifts are given to “the just and the unjust” (Matt 5:45). In other words, the harvest does not come only to the worshiper; it also comes to the rebel. Meals, laughter, meaningful relationships, artistic beauty, and the satisfaction of honest work are not mere coincidences. They are part of the Creator’s generosity, scattered broadly across humanity.
Psalm 145:9 summarizes this wide kindness: “The Lord is good to all, and His mercies are over all His works.” There is no qualification in the psalm’s context that narrows God’s goodness to believers only. God delights to do good as a reflection of His character. So even in a fallen world, people still experience joys that echo Eden: friendship, love, beauty, joy, community, creativity, and the daily rhythms that make life enjoyable. None of these factors means humanity is spiritually fine; it simply means God is mercifully generous.
This aspect of God’s kindness also helps explain something we observe constantly: unbelievers can be genuinely gifted, wise in certain areas, loving toward their families, and capable of building beautiful things. Those abilities do not prove saving faith; they testify to a Creator who continues to supply good gifts in a broken world.
God Provides Restraint of Sin in the World
Another crucial part of common grace is God’s restraint of evil.
Without restraint, mankind would plunge rapidly into the depths of depravity. Genesis paints a sobering picture of the post-Fall world: “Every intention of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil continually” (Gen 6:5). Even after the flood, God still says, “The intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Gen 8:21). Paul adds that mankind naturally “suppresses the truth” (Rom 1:18) and does not welcome the things of God (1 Cor 2:14). Scripture is realistic: humanity has an inward bend toward sin.
And yet, the world is not as evil as it could be. Why? Because God restrains it.
Genesis 6:3 indicates that God’s Spirit “strives” with man. Satan is not allowed unchecked freedom to destroy (Job 1:12; 2:6). God has also designed civil government to function as a real-world check on lawlessness (Rom 13:1–4). Even the Tower of Babel (Gen 11:1–9) resulted in the spreading of nations, which also serves as a form of mutual restraint in a fallen world.
Second Thessalonians 2:7 speaks of a present restraint upon lawlessness: “He who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.” Many interpreters connect this restraint to the Spirit's work in the present age. Regardless of the specifics, the overall message remains unmistakable: God never allows evil to operate unchecked. He restrains it, and that restraint is mercy.
This understanding matters because it helps Christians interpret social stability, justice systems, and even the presence of ordinary decency among unbelievers. These are not proof that man is basically good, but they are evidence that God is actively restraining what man would otherwise become.
God Convicts the World of Sin (God is good to all)
A third aspect of common grace—often overlooked—is God’s convicting work in the world.
John 16:8–11 speaks of the Holy Spirit’s ministry of conviction. He convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. This conviction is itself a mercy. It is God pressing truth upon the heart, confronting self-deception, and warning sinners that their path is deadly. Even when people resist that conviction, the very fact that they feel moral weight, guilt, fear, and the nagging awareness of accountability points to God’s kindness.
Related to this is the conscience, God’s built-in warning system that can accuse or defend (cf. the concept in Romans 2). Conscience is not a savior, but it is a restraint and a witness. It testifies that humans are moral creatures living under a moral governor. When people feel the sting of guilt or the uneasy awareness that “this isn’t right,” that discomfort can be a gift meant to lead them toward repentance rather than deeper denial.
In this way, common grace doesn’t merely make life pleasant; it can also make sin feel heavy at times. And in reality, that heaviness can be a great mercy.
Why This Matters for Christians
Thinking clearly about common grace protects us from several mistakes:
It keeps us from envy. When unbelievers prosper, we don’t need to interpret it as God “forgetting justice.” God often gives real blessings to the unjust (at least for a time) out of kindness and patience.
It cultivates humility. We remember that every good gift in our lives is a form of mercy. If we are saved, that is special grace, but even before salvation, God was kind to us in countless ways.
It shapes compassion and evangelism. God’s kindness is meant to lead people toward repentance, not complacency (Rom 2:4). When we see His patience with the lost, we become more patient and compassionate ourselves.
It deepens worship. Common grace shows that God’s goodness is not fragile. He remains generous even when He is rejected. This is an awe-inspiring aspect of God’s character.
Conclusion
Common grace is a worthy topic for Christian meditation because it magnifies the character of God. The Lord’s kindness extends across all creation—even to those who are undeserving and even to those who resist Him. Every sunrise, every meal, every restraint of evil, and every pricking of conscience is a reminder that God is not only just, but He is profoundly patient and good.
And that goodness should lead us somewhere. It should move believers toward gratitude rather than cynicism, toward compassion, and toward worship of the great God we serve. If God is this kind in a world of rebellion, how much more should His people reflect that kindness as we call others to the saving grace found in Jesus Christ? Praise the Lord, for He is good, and His mercy reaches farther than we often realize.
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