As stated in my previous post, God is incomprehensible. However, he has given us His word so that we may know him as much as we possibly can. Therefore, God is knowable. Limiting God to a number of attributes can be dangerous. It can cause people to only see God in light of the characteristics that describe him. We still need to remember, God is INCOMPREHENSIBLE. These attributes, which are found in God's Word, give us a glimpse of what God is like. They allow us to understand him and they help us build a correct mindset and worldview based on who he is. I will not list all the attributes of God, because that would take a long time. However, I will list a few that will help guide our studies and give us a solid foundation of who God is as we study his word. So, here we go:
1. God is Sovereign: God is in control and nothing surprises Him! He knows all things and declares and/or wills all things. Nothing can take God off guard. Not even our decisions as humans who have wills and desires. God is in charge of EVERYTHING! Think about that for a moment...If God isn't in charge of everything and there is something that can take God by surprise, then how can he be God? We believe as the bible states, God is sovereign. -Isaiah 46:10 [10] declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ (ESV) 2. God is righteous and just: God is right. God doesn't just do right things. OF course thats true. But God is righteous, so from His very nature He is right and all he commands, does, and doesn't do is right. Because he is righteous, he must also be just. Just means that God gives people exactly what they deserve. He doesn't turn his eye towards ANY sin. Because He is just and always demands justice for any wrong (because He is ALWAYS right!), he rightly punishes sin. If God ignored ANY wrong, he wouldn't be just. He would be wrong. He is not wrong, nor unjust! God is always right and always just. Here are a few passages that tell us about God's righteousness and justice. -Psalm 145:17 [17] The LORD is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works. (ESV) -Psalm 89:14 [14] Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you. (ESV) 3. God is Holy: When the bible mentions holiness, it means to be set apart. God is not like humans. God is spirit and his ways are higher than our ways and his thoughts are more higher than our thoughts. We are made in His image, but we are not like God. That was a lie that was told to Eve in Genesis 3. God is far different than us. His character is perfect, His ways are perfect, His thoughts are perfect, And because He is perfect, we should realize how imperfect we are when we think about His holiness. -1 Peter 1:16 [16] since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” (ESV) -Revelation 4:8 [8] And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” (ESV) -God is Love: Love is an action word of deep affection. God is Love as the bible clearly teaches. God didn't become love, because God doesn't change. God has always been love. Even before he created you and me, he has always been love. So, if God has always been love then who was he loving before you and me? Well, this helps clarify the trinity. From eternity past God has always been love. The three members of the Godhead (otherwise known as the Trinity) have always been in relationship with one another. This relationship has been out of perfect submission and love. The Father has always loved the Son. The Son has always loved the Father. The Father has always loved the Spirit and the Spirit has always loved the Father. The Son has always loved the Spirit and the Spirit has always loved the Son. We see this loved expressed in creation and in the salvation of sinners. God is three and God is love! -1 John 4:8-10 [8] Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. [9] In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. [10] In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (ESV) Thanks for reading! Next week (hopefully!!!), we will look at who we are in comparison to God.
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Based on my last post, we know there is a God. So, who is he? What is he like? How do we know Him? Those are tough questions to answer! And really, God is incomprehensible, which means we can never FULLY know God, because he is that amazing! But, there is good news....he has revealed himself to us in a way in which we can know him in part. And by in part, I mean, as sinful humans, we can know him as much as our finite minds can comprehend. To know who God is and what he is like, we have to look to the Bible to get answers. Some may say..."why the bible?". To that, I would say because it is His Word and how He has revealed himself to His creation. For more on why the Bible is His Word, come out to The Point every Wednesday (especially in March). We are going to begin an Apologetics study soon and answer some of these tough questions. Now, back to the point! God has clearly shown us who he is through the word. So, lets look at His word to learn a little about who God is...
1. There is only ONE God....Deuteronomy 6:4 - [4] “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. (ESV) We believe that there is only one God. Although He exists as three eternal persons, we do not believe in polytheism (many gods). As Christians we believe that there is one source of ultimate truth, one sustainer, one creator. There cannot be more than one god, because by definition God is the supreme, authority of creation. If there were more than one god, there would not be an ultimate authority. 2. God exists eternally in 3 persons...This is the kicker! Much debate and heresy has been raised over this issue. God is trinity. That doesn't mean that there are 3 gods! This means that from eternity past to eternity future, God has always existed in perfect submission and love in three distinct persons. He has always existed as Father, Son, and Spirit. Each of these three persons is equally God, however, its important to remember, there is only ONE God! That can get confusing, but when you read the bible and understand God's plan for creation, you see the trinity! You see the distinctness of each member of the trinity, yet you also see the unity within the trinity, and the submission that each plays. God is love...We all know that. Love is an action. God has always been love. He didn't become love when he created the world! That would mean that he is dependent upon something else in order to be Love. And we know, God doesn't depend on anything! If that were the case, He wouldn't be God. Back to the point. If God has always been love, and love is an action, then God must have been loving someone from eternity past! Who was he loving? In this question, we see the trinity and the union among the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father was loving the Son and the Spirit. The Son was loving the Father and the Son. And, the Spirit was loving the Son and the Father! God is Love. The word "trinity" is nowhere in the bible. This is why there has been so much false teaching about this topic. However, we see the trinity at work throughout the bible. In fact, you don't have to read far before you see the trinity at work! Genesis 1:1-3 -[1] In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. [2] The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3] And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. (ESV) In those 3 verses, we see the entire Trinity at Work. We see the Father in vs. 1, The Spirit in vs. 2, and the Son in vs. 3. You may ask how we see the Son in vs. 3? Well, the Son is the Word (John 1:1). We see the trinity throughout the bible. Here are a few more passages in which you can see the trinity...Matthew 28:19, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 2 Corinthians 13:14. In the next post, we will continue to look at who God is and some specific attributes of God. For more info on the trinity visit these web pages: carm.org/cut-trinity, www.desiringgod.org/articles/what-is-the-doctrine-of-the-trinity, s3.amazonaws.com/Challies_VisualTheology/Trinity_LowRes.jpg, |
AuthorJoe Burrows Archives
May 2017
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