Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Christian Essentials: Who is God



Genesis 1:1 
In the beginning, God………………...................…
John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.


At no time in the bible does God attempt to prove His existence.

The Essence of God
To speak of the essence of God is to speak about who God really is. By essence we mean "being". The word essence is derived from the Latin verb "to be" and is in turn a translation of the Greek word ousia, which also means "being". More than having being or existence, God is being. He makes this clear to all when He proclaims His name Jehovah (or Jahweh) to Moses and explains its meaning:

Then God said to Moses, "I shall be who I am. This is what you will tell the sons of Israel: 'I am sent me to you.'" And God also said to Moses, "Thus you will say to the sons of Israel: 'the Lord [the "is"], the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob sent me to you.' This is My name forever, and this is how you are to think about me for all generations."     Exodus 3:14-15

Infinity: God is infinite and eternal in His existence and nature, unlimited and unbounded in every positive way:

Psalm 90:2 
  Before the mountains were born Or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.

When firmly grasped, God's infinity - infinity in every way and according to any conceivable true standard - is a clarifying concept, illuminating His abilities. God's infinite nature will always be more than the highest, the best and the purest that the human mind can comprehend.

The Hebrew concept of infinity or eternity:

From everlasting to everlasting
From horizon to horizon.


The Greek concept of time.



The Hebrew concept of time was centered around  the events of human life and God’s interaction with people. The Greeks might say, “Time is the medium for God’s saving acts.” The Hebrews might say, “Time is the sequence of God’s saving acts.” For the Hebrews, there was no time that existed as a substance or force or dimension, as the Greek sentence implies. There were only real events that occurred, and men measured and marked life by their relationships to these. Unlike a modern American, a Hebrew would not say, “I don’t have enough time” as though time were like so many coins in a pocket or so much liquid in a glass. Hebrews did not engage in discussions about whether time really existed or if they could “feel” time. The reason is clear. Time was not a thing or object for the Hebrews of the Old Testament.

For the Jews, God gave a cycle of annual feasts and holy days linked to the astronomical calendar. The feasts and how they were connected to past feasts and their relationship to Yahweh were how they viewed time.
So the idea of eternal life was viewed more as an event in a relationship 
than as a period of time.



God is Spirit:
God is spirit, and those who worship Him must do so in [His] Spirit and in [His] truth.      John 4:24 










          God is Immeasurable:
Shall God really dwell on earth? Behold, the heavens -- even the entire universe -- cannot contain You! How much less this temple I have built. 1st Kings 8:27

         God's being transcends space. He is not limited or bounded by spatial issues or concerns. God is not subject to space in any way. God is not confined by space - God created space and employs it however He desires.

         God is Unique:
"With whom will you compare Me that I should be equal [to him]?" says the Holy One.   Isaiah 40:25

  ……..that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other. Isaiah 45:6 

God is Omnipotent:
Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Does any miracle lie beyond my power?   Jeremiah 32:27
God is all-powerful, irrespective of matter. He can effect anything He desires in the material realm. Therefore there is no deed, nor was there ever, nor will there ever be which God is unable to do, small or great.

God is Omniscient:
I am God -- there exists no other One;  [I am] God -- and nothing like Me exists.  Since the [very] beginning, I have been making known the end; Since [eternity] past, things that have not yet been done.   Isaiah 46:9b-10

God is all-knowing, irrespective of time. He can effect anything He desires in the temporal realm. Therefore God knows, always has known and always will know everything, the end from the beginning.

God is Omnipresent:
•Where shall I go from your Spirit?
•Or where shall I flee from before you?
•If I should ascend to heaven, you are there.
•If I should make my bed in Sheol, there you are.
•If I should wing my way to where the sun rises in the east, or take up residence beyond the furthest reaches of the western sea,
•Even there you would lead me by the hand, you would hold me fast with your [strong] right hand.  Psalm 139:7-10

God is ever-present, irrespective of space. He can effect anything He desires in the spatial realm. Therefore God has the ability, has always had and always will have, to be anywhere and everywhere, local and universal.
God is Immutable:  
Malachi 3:6 
  “I am the LORD, and I do not change.
God is unchanging with respect to character yet He can change tactics when dealing with humans.





Perfection: God is perfect in His character, irreproachable and blameless in every possible way.
So be perfect, as your Father in Heaven is perfect.  Matthew 5:48
•When firmly grasped, God's perfection - perfection in every way and according to any conceivable true standard - is a clarifying concept, illuminating His motives. God's perfect character will never be less than the highest, the best and the purest that the human mind can comprehend.

God is Good:
The Lord is good to everyone, His kindness extends to everything He has made.  Psalm 145:9
God's character is good (Hebrew tobh: bvu); it is the antithesis of evil.
God is Holy:
   But just as He who has called you is holy, you too should be entirely holy in your behavior. For the scripture says:  Be holy, for I am holy. 1st Peter 1:15-16

        God's character is holy; it is completely separate from evil. In His holiness, God can never compromise His perfect standards for any reason. Therefore His commitment to condemning evil and rewarding good is inviolable.




 God is Faithful and True:
O Lord, thou art my God.
I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name.
For thou hast done wonderful things.
Thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.       Isaiah 25:1 

God is Sovereign:

But the Lord shall be seated as king forever: He sets up His throne for judgement, to judge the world in righteousness, to render justice to its peoples.   Psalm 9:7-8
        Sovereignty comes from God's perfect character. No one else has a legitimate right to rule over the universe. He is the absolute sovereign within His own creation, and therefore the one Person to whom all honor is due. 

For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. Deut. 4:24

For the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Ex 34:14

He is a jealous God and does not want to share His honor and glory with false gods. 





 God is Love:
Whoever does not have love, does not know God, for God is love.     1st John 4:8
        Having love for His creatures, is a natural consequence of God's goodness. Out of the intrinsic goodness of His character, God loves us with a perfect love, desiring to help us in our sinful state.

God is Just:

Psalm 92:15 (NLT)
…………. “The LORD is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!” 

 Demanding justice for His creatures is a natural consequence of God's holiness. Out of the intrinsic holiness of His character, God must deal with us in perfect justice, righteously condemning us in our sinful state. However, He does not overlook His goodness and love in the process and abandon us to our sins (as evil suggests He will). For God found a way to treat us as righteous without compromising His character, and did so through the gift and sacrifice of His only Son on our behalf. 

God is Merciful:

Titus 3:5 (NKJV) 
 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

        Psalm 100:5 (NKJV) For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

God is Life: 

I am the way: the truth and the life.     John 14:6
        Saving the lives of His creatures, is a natural consequence of God's truth and faithfulness. Out of the intrinsic veracity and trustworthiness of His character, God honors His gracious and merciful promise to restore us to Himself and thereby to eternal life, delivering us from the condemnation of death accruing to us in our sinful state.





OK, but who created God. Where did he come from?














Yeah, but why would a “good” God create evil and allow it in the world?
















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