|
[Uniqueness of
God] [Who is God?] [Inhabits
Eternity] [The Creator]
[Providence of God] [Holiness,
Wrath, Goodness, Mercy and Grace]
And even attempting to summarize a view of the more
important aspects of the biblical presentation of God.
It is not that the Bible is unclear about the nature of God; rather, it
is that we are so limited and our ability to even begin to understand the also
create four of the universe.
The Uniqueness of God
The first aspect that we should consider is the uniqueness
of God. Guide is utterly unique as
there is not like him. God even
challenges mankind by saying,
To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be
equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath
created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them
all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power;
not one faileth. (Isaiah 40:25-26).
The people of God know that he is unlike anything or anyone
else, for He is the Creator of all that is.
He is unique, absolute, and one-of-a-kind. Note where Jeremiah said
Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O
Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee,
O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the
wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto
thee. (Jeremiah 10: 6-7).
The Psalmist proclaimed that God humbles himself even to
look on things that take place in heaven, let alone on the earth.
Here is one who is so far above our imaginations of him as to defy
definition. There is none like him,
none at all. The question of
"who is like him" must be left unanswered, for the answer is too
obvious to even consider. Isaiah's
prophecy exhausted their reaches of human language to describe the incredible,
solitary glory of the MITI Jehovah, and still he fell short.
Think one that when he says in the 40th chapter,
Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his
hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the
earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a
balance? Who hath directed the spirit of the Lord, or being his counseller
hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught
him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the
way of understanding? Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are
counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a
very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts
thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as
nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom
then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? (Isaiah 40:
12-18).
We should not take Isaiah's references to God's hands or
eyes literally, but in the language it is quite obvious that would be a gross
misreading of the intention of Isaiah. None
of the questions asked by Isaiah can be answered; they are purely rhetorical in
nature. No one but God has measured
the waters in the hollow of his hand, and there is nothing or no one to compare
Him with. This is the true God of
the Bible, who is unique and totally different.
He has never been instructed because he has always had all knowledge;
indeed, he created all knowledge.
As we examine what the Bible teaches about the one true
God, it is important to compare the biblical God with the false gods who might
have been created by man. Invariably, religions that glorify man minimize God.
It is important to recognize that Christianity is unique in that God is
all-powerful while man himself is considered but a minuscule portion of his
creation.
Who is God?
When she says spoke to the woman by the well in some area,
he spoke a truth that was known to all. He
said, "God is spirit" (John 4-24).
Yes, the King James version has "guide is a spirit" in its
translation. But the original Greek
can allow for either translation. Guide
is not just a spirit among many spirits, but he is spirit.
The woman had attempted to engage the Lord in a debate as to where people
were supposed to worship God; in Jerusalem "as the Jews said, or in Mount
Gerizim as the Samaritans claimed. Jesus’
response was that worship is performed by those who truly no God, and it takes
place wherever they are. Worship is
not limited only to Jerusalem, or to any other location. Why? How could
God be worshiped anywhere? Because
God is spirit, and a spiritual being is not limited by physical constraints such
as temples or locations.
When the Lord Jesus appeared to the disciples after his
resurrection, they thought they were seeing a "spirit".
But the risen Jesus speaks to them and corrects their misunderstanding,
And he said to them, why are you troubled?
And why these thoughts arise in your hearts?
Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see;
for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. (Mark 24:39)
If God then is a spirit to, then he is not limited to a
body of flesh and bones. Does the
Bible teaches otherwise? No, a
clearly teaches that God is a spiritual being another physical ones in his true
nature. Our pride may stand in the
way of artfully recognizing this truth, but it is truth all the saying,
Whither shall I go from thy Spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
If I ascend into heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in hell,
behold, thou art there, If
I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of
the sea, even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
If I say, Surely, the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be
light about me. Yea, the darkness
hideth not from thee, but the night shineth as the day; the darkness and the
light are both alike to thee. (Psalm 139:7-12).
This passage is not simply mean that God's influence else
heaven and Earth so that God is no more present with them then the sun is truly
present in a room in which its light shines.
The true God of the Bible is not limited in his presence in this world to
simply having an influence that acts like a giant computer that gathers
information while he himself is and send in doing something else.
He is far above such a concept.
Guide is infinite, limitless in his being.
This is one of the many ways in which we as man are different from God.
The God is God, and man is his creation.
Guide is infinite, unlimited, Colonel, while man is finite, limited in
time, and finite. Guide is never
intended us to be anything other than we are-of his creations, and he never has
been anything other than who he is, the one true God.
The next concept is probably the most amazing truth about
God in the Bible; at least it causes me to bow in all can wonder every time I
consider it. The God has said,
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that
the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth
not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding
(Isaiah 40: 28).
Jehovah is the everlasting God. This is not simply teaching that God has eternally been God,
although this is certainly true. The
concept is not simply that God has been God for a very long time.
If we look at what these chapters in Isaiah teach, we will discover that
God is, in fact, the create four of time itself.
Isaiah 41:4 presents this truth, and I shall return to this passage at a
later point.
God is the one who “inhabits eternity."
The Lord inhabits eternity likely inhabits a house.
Just as we build houses, so God created eternity itself-time.
He is active in time, the just as we are not limited to our houses, so he
is not limited to time. The God of
the Bible exists outside of time! How
else could God be the creator of all that exists?
Everything that takes place in time is a present reality to God.
When these kinds of incredible facts of God's existence are proclaimed to
them who are still in rebellion against him, they frequently mock and laugh; but
the truth remains the truth in spite of their scorn.
God is the great "I AM." He
is always the "I AM" - his existence is in eternal present. There is no future to God; no past either.
He is just as much present at the burning bush of Exodus 3 as he is with
us right now.
A God like this scares some people, I believe, because we
cannot put him at a safe distance from us.
Not only is God present everywhere, but he is also with us everywhere
throughout all-time instantaneously. This
extends the concept of omnipresence that most of us have regarding God.
While most believers would certainly agree that the Lord is everywhere
present instantaneously (omnipresent), it is a new concept to many that he is
also present throughout the all of time instantaneously as well!
God says,
“Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, and
his redeemer, the Lord of Hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and beside
me there is no God.” (Isaiah 44:6)
The implication of the teaching that God is everywhere
presents a new understanding of the Christian concept of God.
God is not some kind of "ethereal nothingness" or some kind of
"fuzzy, nebulous force" that no one can know or understand.
We can see that despite the incredibly high and lofty position in the
universe occupied by our heavenly Father, he has condescended to have a
relationship with man through Jesus Christ, a fact that is even the more
remarkable when we realize the true nature of God!
But in a more practical sense, if God is not locked in time and if time
is actually one of his creations so that he rules over it and is not ruled by
it, then God truly is unchanging. Since
God does not experience a progression of time, then how could he change?
So the Christian concept of the changelessness of God comes directly from
the Scriptures that teach that God is eternal and is the creator of all that he
is. This allowed the Psalmist to
write,
Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the
earth, and the heavens are the work of thy hands.
They shall perish, but thou shalt endure; year, all of them shall wax
old like a garment; like a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be
changed. But thou art the same,
and thy years shall have no end. (Psalm 102:25-27).
And in Jesus added,
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from
above, and cometh down from the father of lights, with whom is no
variableness, neither shadow of turning.
(James 1:17).
The fact that God is unchanging is certainly one of the
most comforting trees presented by the Bible.
While we may be awestruck at his immutability, we can rejoice that God is
the eternal God, the unchanging God. He
will not be something different tomorrow then he is today.
We can trust that since God is just in merciful today, he will be just
and merciful tomorrow. God is not
someone who changes or progresses throughout eternity, this concept is
antithetical to Scripture, for it implies that God would be someone different
tomorrow then he is today. I have
confidence that my salvation is assured because it is based upon the words of an
unchanging eternal God.
The God of the Bible is perfect. He lacks nothing, needs nothing, and is dependent upon
nothing and no one. If he were to
change or evolve, then he could not be perfect for that which is changing and
evolving is either moving toward perfection (which shows that at present time it
is not perfect), or away from perfection. But
God is complete, perfect, and unchanging.
Some might say that since the Bible indicates that God is
"doing" this or that, then He must be acting in time.
While this is true, he is not locked into time, nor is He experiencing a
progression of time. Since God created all that is, then he is also the one who
has determined what will take place within time.
What we see as God’s "actions" in time is simply the result
of God's eternal decrees made even before the world was made.
God has determined all things that take place in this universe, and his
"actions" in time as we experience them are really the reality of what
he determined before time itself existed. While
some Christians may believe that theology is dry and boring, pondering the also
nature of the God of creation is probably one of the most exciting things that
can be so tough.
God's decrees, his eternal decisions about how we will rule
his creations, are seen in Scripture. Paul
wrote to the Ephesians about the salvation that was theirs, and in speaking of
how the salvation was given to them solely by God and not as a result of
anything that they might have done; not as a result of their works or
worthiness. She described God in a
wonderful way;
In whom we have obtained an inheritance, being
predestined according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the
council of his own will. (Ephesians
1: 11).
God is called the one who "worketh all things after
the council of his own will." All
things happen on the basis of God's will, in God's decision.
God is not merely reacting to man and doing his best to keep things in
the right direction. Rather God is in control, working things out as he
determines.
That God has a purpose in all things is seen as well in
those passages in Isaiah that read,
Produce your cause, saith the Lord, to bring
forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob.
Let them bring them for, and show us what shall happen; let them show
the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, and knows the
latter end of them; or declare us things to come. Show us the things that are to come here after; that we may
know that ye are God's; yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and
behold it together. (Isaiah 41:21-23)
In challenging the false gods, our heavenly Father laid
down to challenges in the above passage. One
challenge is rather obvious where the Lord asks them to reveal what is to happen
in the future. False gods cannot
predict the future since they don't know what the future is.
Only the true God who has created all things and who is not limited by
time can know the future. Many Christians have never given much thought has two how God
can know what is to happen; it is just assume that he does.
God knows the future because he has created time and all that would
happen in it. He knows the future
because he determined to future when he created all things, he is present in all
points of time so he is in the future justice much as he is here in the present,
and so he is able to relate to future events as something that only the true God
can do.
The second challenge is a little more difficult to
appreciate. The challenge is to
know the reasons why things happened to way they did; what is the purpose of
certain events – for we need to remember,
And we know that all things work together for
good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his
purpose. (Romans 8:28)
How often do we experience things, especially things that
seem to have no apparent good purpose, and have no idea has two why God would
allow them to happen. But God knows
if we do not for he has a purpose in all things.
Both of these are challenges that demonstrate God's
sovereign nature in determining what ever comes to pass.
If God did not have this nature, then he could not speak of the purposes
of past events, nor could he speak of things that are yet to come.
For the God of the Bible, there is nothing unsure about tomorrow for He
is there as certainly as He is with us today.
There are no "ifs" to divide knowledge; what is to happen does
not depend upon man's actions. What
a tremendous God! And how very
different from what songwriters describe. For
example, at W. Cleon Skousen in his book, The First 2,000 Years,
It is apparent from these and other scriptures
that the present exalted position of our heavenly Father was gradually built
up. His glory in power is
something which he slowly acquired until today "all things about in
humble reference." But since
God "acquired" the honor and sustaining influence of "all
things" it follows as a corollary that if you should ever do anything to
violate the confidence for "since the justice" of these
intelligences, they would promptly withdraw their support, and the
"power" of God would disintegrate.
That is what Mormon and Alma meant when they specifically stated that
if God should change or acts contrary to truth or justice "he would cease
to be God." Our heavenly
Father can do only those things which the intelligences under him are
voluntarily willing to support him in accomplishing.
Way that is contrary to his very nature, the reason for
this is surely vastly different from what this author would have us believe.
God's power is in no way dependent upon some community of
"intelligences" that pass judgment on God's actions!
God's power has eternally made his hand he did not acquired over ages of
time and change. Rather than the
dependent upon "intelligences," the God of Scripture has eternally in
the omnipotent, self-sustaining create for.
All things are dependent upon God, and not the other way around!
There is no question that the God of Israel claims to be
the maker and framer of the entire universe.
As the solemnest said,
"The heavens are thine; the Earth also is
thine; as for the world and the fullness thereof, thou hast founded them.”
(Psalms 89:11).
And in so doing, he was reiterating what was known to
Israel from the very beginning: "in the beginning God created the heavens
and the Earth" (Genesis 1: 1). From
the earliest history of Israel the creator-ship and the resultant ownership by
God of the entire universe was confessed. Indeed,
Deuteronomy 10:14 says,
"Behold, the heavens and the
heavens of heavens belong to Lord thy God, the Earth also, with all that therein
is.
Again, in a section of Isaiah
where the false gods are exposed as roads and the true God is exposed, the
concept of God being creator it is emphasized over and over again.
For example, Isaiah 42:5 is representative of many of these passages:
"With saith God, the Lord, he
who created the heavens, and stretched them out; he who spread forth the Earth,
and that which cometh out of it; he who giveth breath onto the people upon it,
and spirited to them that walk in it."
The language used by God here cannot and anyway be limited.
The heavens, all the stars, planets, galaxies, and indeed the entire
universe, is the creation of God. Additionally,
every human being is the creation of God; He makes them alive, gives them
breath, and is the creator of their spirit as well.
The prophet Zechariah also relates this same message:
"The burden of the word of the Lord for
Israel, saith the Lord, who stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the
foundation of the Earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him."
(Zechariah 12:1).
In God's "stretching forth" the heavens is
clearly the reference to the creation of the heavens; he is "laying the
foundation of the Earth" is clearly in reference to the creation of the
Earth; so, he is "forming the spirit of man" refers to the creation of
the spirit of man. Spiritual beings
are created simply by the word of his power.
In other words, the Lord of the Bible is the great creator, not simply an
"organizer" of "pre-existing matter," nor a being that is
limited to procreation to create spiritual beings. There is nothing that was not created by God.
Notice that some Christians do not believe this concept today; for
instance, Joseph Smith – the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (Mormons) claimed that God "never had the power to create
the spirit of man at all" (Teachings Of The Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 304)
It naturally follows that since God created everything that
it is, then he has the perfect right to rule over everything.
If I were to create something, then I have control over that something.
It is mine by right. In this
same way, God, as the creator, has the perfect and complete right to do with his
creation as he sees fit. Few
biblical truths are hated more by man than the fact that God created the
universe and that he reigns over it, and can do with it simply as he pleases.
But a few truths are more clearly taught in the Bible, either.
For example, God is called the "King" over and over again in
Scripture. He who is teen rules over his kingdom, and God's kingdom is
his creation. The authors of
Scripture clearly understood this truth:
"Wherefore, David blessed the
Lord before all the congregation; and David said, blessed be thou, Lord God of
Israel, our Father forever and ever. Thine,
0 Lord, is the greatest, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the
majesty; for all that is in the heavens and the Earth is thine.
Thine is the kingdom, 0 Lord, and thou art exalted as head above
all." (2 Chronicles 29:10-11).
“The Lord is King forever and
ever; the heathen are perished out of his land.” (Psalm 10:16).
The king of an ancient nation was the supreme authority
over that nation. The Kings word
could not be challenged; his plans cannot be questioned.
Similarly, God it is the supreme authority over his creation. While many
people today do not appreciate the concept of an "ultimate authority"
(preferring our own supposed "personal freedom"), the Bible is very
clear that God as the creator in king over all that is, is sovereign over all
that is. God will accomplish
everything that he intends, and his purposes cannot be frustrated or deterred in
anyway by anything-including the well of man!
There are many passages throughout the Bible to do with this truth.
For example, the solemnest road,
"But our God is in the
heavens; he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased."
(Psalm 115:3).
"Whatsoever the Lord pleased,
that did he and having, and in the Earth, indices, and all the places."
(Psalm 135:6).
Understanding that God is sovereign over all that is
represented common theme of the wisdom writer of the proverbs as well.
Notice these passages,
"There are many devices and
man's heart; nevertheless, the council of the Lord, that shall stand."
(Proverbs 19:21).
"Man's goings are of the
Lord; how can man, then, understand his own way?
(Proverbs 20:24).
But Isaiah provides us with some of the richest
understanding about the nature of God, and here, specifically about his
sovereignty. Directly after God's
direct statement concerning modesty isn't,
"I, even I, am the Lord, and beside me there
is no savior. I have declared, and
have saved, and I have shown, when there was no strange god among you;
therefore, ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, that I am God. Yea, before the day was, I am he; and there is none that can
deliver out of my hands; I will work, and who shall let it?
(Isaiah 43:11-13).
That last phrase might be rendered in modern terms, "I
act, and who can reverse (or hinder) it?"
In other words, when God determines to do something, when he decides to
act, who can possibly stop him? Certainly,
this represents a rhetorical question for there is no answer; no one can stop
God from accomplishing exactly what he wills.
Earlier in Isaiah, reread,
"For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who
shall until it? And his hand is
stretched out, and who shall turn it back?
(Isaiah 14:27).
Furthermore, the Lord says in Isaiah,
"I am the Lord, and there is none else, there
is no God beside me. I formed a
light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; I, the Lord, do all
these things. (Isaiah 45:5,7).
The term "evil" that is used here is in contrast
with the term" or "distress."
But, the intention of God in assuring these things is very clear; whether
it be peace or prosperity, or calamity and disaster, God is in control of what
takes place. There scratch that
this is absolutely necessary if anything is to going to have any meaning or
purpose, and we have already seen that all things are purposeful.
God is working out of his will in the world even if we're not sharp
enough to figure out exactly how God will be glorified in each separate event
that takes place.
"Remember the former things of old; for I am
God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the
end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done,
saying, my counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure" (Isaiah
46:9-10).
The true guide is able to "declare the end from the
beginning" long before the end has even come into view.
In other words, God is able to declare what is going to take place in the
future. He is able to do this
because he has already determined everything that will take place throughout all
time. God is the sovereign king of
all that is. This majestic person to man's worship that is undertaken in
truth. This is why it is so
important to understand the true nature of God; how else can one worship the
Lord in truth?
One of the truths that flows from God being the creator of
all that is, and from his "inhabiting eternity" as we have seen is
that he is omniscient; that is, that he has all knowledge.
God does not "acquire" this knowledge overtime through some
process of learning through eternal progression as some religions might teach;
rather, he has all knowledge because he has created all things.
Everything there is to know it exists only because God allows it to exist
and sustains it. All that he is has
been and existence because in God's eternal wisdom he has already planned for
it. How then could there be
anything that he does not know? Not
only this, but if God were to "learn" something, then he would change,
and we have already seen that God is changeless.
As God claimed,
"Behold, the former things
are come to pass, and new things do I declare; before they spring for I tell you
of them." (Isaiah 42: 9).
Here is a God he knows and understands all things.
The Psalmist understood this tremendous truth,
"Thou knowest my downsitting and mine
uprising; thou understandest my thought afar off.
Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my
ways. For there is no a word in my
tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand
upon me. Such knowledge is too
wonderful for me; it is high, and I cannot attain unto it. (Psalm 139:2-6).
For Psalm, the fact that God knows all about them is very
frightening. But for one who
worships this God, it should be very comforting.
As the writer to the Hebrews wrote,
"Neither is there any creature that is not
manifest in his site, but all things are naked and opened onto the eyes of him
with whom we have to do." (Hebrews
4:13).
God has all knowledge; there's nothing that he does not
know. Furthermore, God also knows
everything that we will say, think, or do; and he has known everything about us
from the beginning of eternity. It
is very important to know and to trust the true God of the entire Universe who
has infinite power and knowledge of all that has been and all that will be.
Some believe that the Christian concept of God is that he
is a very nebulous entity, and that believe in a God who has flesh and bonus is
more humane, "concrete" and perhaps more "logical."
Yet, the Bible is very clear in proclaiming the eternal, infinite, and
limitless nature of Jehovah. Furthermore,
Scriptures also declare that God is intimately involved in all that takes place
here on earth. He is working out of
his purpose in the lives of men and in the courses of donations.
He is working discount from eternity past. The psalmist expressed it like this,
"Let all the earth to fear the Lord; let all
the inhabitants of the world's stand in all of him. For he spoke, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood
fast. The Lord bringing the counsel
of the heathen to naught; he maketh the devices of the people of no effect.
The counsel of the Lord standeth forever, the thoughts of his heart to
all generations." (Psalm 33: 8-11).
It seems that many are willing to confess this kind of
"the general sovereignty" to God, but if you are willing to go as far
as a Scriptures go in describing the control of God over one particular area;
the very actions of men themselves. When
the truth of God begins to impinge upon man’s supposed "freedom”, he
often responds with intense hatred and misunderstanding.
The Bible however is very clear on the subject.
For example, when Abimelech took Abraham's wife at Gerar, God kept him
from sinning in the matter. The
Bible says,
“And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know
thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from
sinning against me; therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.”
(Genesis 20:6).
This passage clearly indicates that God with health a
righteous man from sinning! This is
a God who is not simply taken up with the "big things" but who is
involved in each and every happening on earth in and heavens above.
This is because God is the creator of all things including time in all
the actions therein. His private and show activity in this world is the result of
his eternal plant and decree. This
is the tremendous God whom we worship.
There is one further example of God's providence; Isaiah
10: 5-7. Here are guide uses and
evil people, the Assyrians, to punish his people, and how he does so in such a
just righteous way as to be able to hold the wicked Assyrians responsible for
their behavior,
"O Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in
whose hand is mine indignation. I
will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath
will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread
them down like the mire of the streets. Howbeit,
he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to
destroy and cut off nations not a few.”
The Assyrians came against Israel and destroyed her; they
had no idea they were fulfilling God’s plan for the nations.
Yet, at the same time, they were to be held responsible for what they
did. The Assyrians were incredibly
wicked people – brutal and harsh. God
used their brutality to accomplish His goals, His plans, and in so doing showed
His holiness and power!
If all we knew about the Lord was that he is in control of
all things and that he is our creator, we might have some reason for despair
before we would know how much we have rebelled against him.
But God has revealed much more about himself then adjusted this; he has
revealed his unchanging nature, his absolute sovereignty over all things, and
how God saves man and brings them into a proper relationship with himself.
First we need to understand God's holiness and his absolute
wrath against sin. The God of the
Bible is holy. The Scriptures again
are very clear on this fact,
"Give unto the Lord the glory
to unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”
(Psalm 29: 2).
“Thy testimonies are very sure;
holiness becometh thine house, O Lord, forever.” (Psalm 93: 5).
This absolute holiness and eternal nature of God has
revealed in the Bible is in contrast to other concepts of God which are believed
by religions that denigrate God and elevate man.
For example, Orson Pratt from his book, The Seer, once said,
"The God's who dwell in the heaven from which
are spirits came, are beings who have been redeemed from the grave in the world
which existed before the foundations of this earth were laid.
They and heavenly body which they now inhabit were once in a fallen
state. And us, as their world was
exalted from a temporal to an eternal state, they were exalted also, from
falling man to celestial guides to inhabit their heaven forever and ever."
The holy eternal God who sits upon the throne in Isaiah 6
was once a fallen, sinful creature upon another planet?
I do not believe that this is what the Bible teaches.
This is not the God of the Christian faith.
God's holiness is simply not limited to his moral
perfection; his holiness is related is well to his absolute utter uniqueness.
This holiness is completely separate and distinct, and cannot be confused
with creation itself. It is
impossible for one to be to create all that exists, and to himself be a created
being. Furthermore, to be a created being would mean that at least
for a time, God would be dependent upon some other creator. If God were once a man like us, then we would know that at
least for a time He was not entirely separate or unique – and this is not the
God of the Bible.
Because God is holy, he cannot abide the presence of evil.
Evil, even though it exists with his permission, and functions to survey
purpose, is still abhorred by him. He
must punish evil if he is to be just. God
is not limited however by what we think is justice.
Often, we are simply wrong in our ideas.
God loves righteousness and justice, and it is this love that results in
wrath against sin. Many in today's
world believe that this concept is antiquated, but they do not have the
slightest idea of what God is truly like-his eternal nature, holiness, and
purity-and they are even less likely to honestly admit the depth and wickedness
of their own personal sin and corruption. Show
me a person who is unconcerned about God's punishment of sin and I will show you
a person who does not know God or themselves very well at all.
"God judges the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every
day." (Psalm 7:11).
God's wrath is responsible for many of the judgments that take place in
our world; of course, we do not see this for we do not see his hand in control
of the wind or of the waves, but it is true nonetheless.
In light of God's holiness and his wrath against sin,
weekends then began to recognize the incredible depth of God's Mercy and Grace
and having anything to do it all with centers, let alone providing away for them
to have forgiveness and eternal life! But
to properly discuss God's Grace and Mercy, we must also understand him who is
Mercy, Grace, and truth, the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are bound to except God's truth about himself; we cannot
"edit" Him down to fit into our limited concepts.
Even someone as tremendously knowledgeable as the apostle Paul, when he
finished reviewing God's works in his world, had to simply to throw up his hands
and say,
“Oh, the depths of the riches both of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor? Or
who has given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again?
For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory
forever. Amen.” (Rom.
11:33-36).
[Top] |