GOD is ..........

GOD is ....

The term "attribute" is intended to mean the property, the quality, and the characteristic of a person or thing. In reference to God, the term "attributes" points to what God is. Attributes answer the question of what God is like in nature, in essence, and in substance, that which is His peculiar possession in distinction from all other persons or things. In the strictest sense of the word, "God is spirit" (John 4:24 NASB), that is, in the sense of defining His substance, and His attributes are the various aspects of spirit.
All that God is like is not discovered by a study of those attributes that are specifically declared of Him in the Bible. This pointed statement is therefore in order: the Bible not only sets forth characteristics of nature in His possession, but it also displays characteristics of nature in performance. However, for the study to which this book is limited, the emphasis will be laid on possession, and only an occasional reference will be made to performance. This book is primarily concerned with what God is, and not what God does. For all that God does must issue from what God is.
In general, so far as this study is concerned, it is fair to say that there are six great classes of attributes. These may be stated as follows:
1. God is personality: that is, He is spirit, living, intelligent, purposive, active, free, self-conscious, and emotional.
2. God is unity: that is, He is one in nature, essence, and substance.
3. God is greatness: that is, He is self-existent, eternal, unchangeable, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, perfect, infinite, incomprehensible.
4. God is goodness: that is, He is holy, true, love, righteous, faithful, and merciful.
5. God is Christ-likeness: that is, completely and perfectly, He is like Christ.
6. God is tri-unity: that is, God is three equal persons subsisting in one essence.
An effort will now be made to bring each one of these six main areas into clearer view.
I. God is personal being. By this terminology it is affirmed that He is personal in the infinite sense in which man is personal in the finite sense, for man was created in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26-27). However, the identification of the elements or characteristics which combine to produce what is designated as personal is not easy. Most men define a person as a moral and rational creature who possesses self-consciousness and self-determination. This is true of God, and it is true in an infinite and incomprehensible sense. Whatever is observed as being true in man, that distinguishes him as a person, should not be made the complete standard by which the personality of God is measured.
The very first verse in the Bible makes it clear that God is an uncreated personality. For in the beginning God already was existing (Gen. 1:1). All other personalities are creations. They are of necessity finite creations, and at best, only mere shadows of the infinite personality. There are resemblances in the finite of the infinite, but even in the largest sense they are only faint resemblances. It is therefore correct to say that the personality of God is archetypical, that is, primal and inherent, while the personality of man is derived from God. The personality of man is not identical with the personality of God, but it does contain faint traces of similarity.
It is most important to recognize that the personality of God is differentiated from material creation. Even though God created personal beings with whom He shares traces of similarity, God is completely distinguished from material and impersonal creation. Since He existed before matter, He cannot be identified as matter. He is not impersonal stuff. He is therefore not in any sense to be identified with the material universe. The philosophy of pantheism, which declares that all is God and God is all, is false. God is not the sun, or the moon, or the stars, or the earth, or any other item or aspect of material creation.
The fact of personality in God makes it possible for man to enter into a fellowship with God and worship Him. In this respect there is an essential affi-nity of man with God. Inasmuch as spirit is the essential substance of personality, it was upon the basis of this fact that Christ said to the Samaritan woman, "God is spirit; and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:24 NASB). Men can approach this infinite personality and experience response. "I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill" (Ps. 3:4). Psalm 34 describes the interaction of a finite person with an infinite person, all of this made possible because of the similarity of the characteristic called personality.
II. God is one being. As to nature, essence or substance, that is, God is a unity. But even more than that, God is not only one in the numerical sense, but He is also one in the integral and the essential sense. It may be truly affirmed that God is one in thought, emotion, purpose, and action, yet that is not the point involved when it is affirmed that God is one. The oneness of God is the essential substance out of which there comes thought, emotion, purpose, and action. Note, then, at least three things constituting the oneness of God.
In the first place, God is one in the numerical sense. In this respect there is a denial of the existence of any other God. Moses emphasized this in his final discourse to Israel on the plains of Moab amidst the polytheism of that day. "Hear, 0 Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord" (Deut. 6:4). Fifteen hundred years later, Paul affirmed this amidst the polytheism of Greece. "We know...that there is none other God but one" (1 Cor. 8:4). This is what constitutes absolute monotheism. The God of the Bible insists on being known as "the only true God" (John 17:3; 5:44) and that "beside me there is no God" (Isa. 44:6).
In the second place, the unity of God encompasses the totality of His being. By this it means that the divine nature is undivided and indivisible. This in no sense comes into conflict with the triune personality of God. When Jesus declared, "I and my Father are one," He was not talking of purpose or will, although this was true, but He was pointing to essential substance and being. The Father is God, and in this same respect Christ was claiming that the Son is God, and that they are both the same God. This meaning was so clearly recognized by the Jews that they concluded that His claims constituted blasphemy and He was therefore worthy of death (John 10:31).
In the third place, the unity of God must be understood in the most absolute sense. In this respect the Bible teaches that there is but one God, whether He is being considered in the moral or positional sense. It was quite prevalent among the pagan nations given to polytheism to hold to a god of good and a god of evil, hence espousing dualism. Some believe that Isaiah 45:7 was intended to correct any such notion with respect to the true God. "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil. I the Lord do all these things." "Evil" in this verse, therefore, has reference to physical evil and not moral evil. There were others, however, who believed in many gods, and considered one to be the highest in position. Against this notion Paul spoke out, "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) But to us there is but one God" (1 Cor. 8:5-6).
On this point, it must be concluded that at least in a threefold approach to the subject at hand, there can be no other reasoned outcome than that God is one as the Scriptures declare. Looking at the matter philosophically, the unity of God must be placed over against a multiplicity of gods as a logical necessity. As creator of the universe, if God were not one there could be no such thing as a universe, for the issue would be a multiverse. And on the moral and spiritual side, departure from the unity of God and endorsement of polytheism was an effort on the part of fallen men to escape allegiance to the one true God.
III. God is greatness. Greatness in relation to God is twofold: meta-physical and moral. For this study, a line of demarcation is being drawn between the metaphysical attributes and the moral attributes, not because it is possible in the ultimate sense to keep them separate, but because in classification there seems to be a closer relationship within the two groups. The metaphysical attributes will be treated under the title of greatness, while the moral attributes will be treated under the title of goodness. Certain attributes of God draw a picture of greatness. They are meta-physical in the sense that they are above and beyond and behind the physical manifestations of God. They depict the greatness of God in Himself and in relation to the universe, to intelligent creatures, and to men. To name those attributes, they are as follows: self-existent, eternal, unchangeable, omni-present, omniscient, omnipotent, perfect, infinite, and incomprehensible.
The names of God contribute to the description of the greatness of God. In the Old Testament there is one name that is especially prominent, the name "Almighty." It appears for the first time in Gen. 17:1, and then repeatedly for a total of 48 times. Thirty-one appearances of the word are found in the book of Job. In every case some element of the greatness of God is displayed. In relation to the immensity of the created universe, it is most prominent in Job 40:2. But such aspects as protection from this God (Psa. 91:1), destruction proceeding from Him (Isa. 13:6; Joel 1:15), and His greatness as represented by the cherubim also appear (Ezek. 1:24; 10:5). For a total of nine times, the Greek word for Almighty appears in the New Testament. This is the equivalent for the Hebrew expression in the Old Testament. Except for one time (2 Cor. 6:18), the remaining eight appearances are in the book of Revelation (1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7,14; 19:15; 21:22). In every case it is the greatness of this God that is displayed, and therefore the terror He inspires as He marches forward to the ultimate triumph. In addition to this word, the term "Majesty" also appears in the New Testament (Heb. 1:3; 8:1; Jude 25; 2 Pet. 1:16). The essential significance of the word is greatness in some one of several aspects, such as superbness, glory, splendor, magnificence, mighty power.
IV. God is goodness. Now it is time to consider those attributes of greatness which are more aptly described as moral goodness. Whereas the attributes of metaphysical greatness have to do with His being or substances, the attributes of goodness have to do with His character. There are six in all: holy, true, love, righteous, faithful, merciful. The first three are more specifically in relation to God Himself. The final three grow out of the first three, and have largely to do with His relation to others. In comprehending the meaning of these six attributes, they sum up almost completely what men think of when they conceive the goodness of God.
From Genesis through the entire Bible, there is an increasing testimony that God is good. He approves His own works in creation as good (Gen. 1:4,31). And it follows that good things must proceed from a source of goodness. Jethro witnessed the goodness of God to Israel and proclaimed it (Ex. 18:9). For the new task Moses would undertake, there was need for a new vision of the Lord. So God promised Moses that He would have all His goodness pass before him (Exod. 33:18-19). He fulfilled the promise (Exod. 34:6). Paul points the finger of indictment at the lost for despising the riches of God's goodness (Rom. 2:4).
In that singular encounter of the rich young ruler with Christ, the Lord Jesus calls him to witness to his grievous error in addressing Him as "good master," or admit that He is God, for "there is none good but one, that is God" (Matt.19:17). In this instance, the positive degree of the adjective carries the superlative sense. God is good in the supreme sense, and any reference to Him in the area of goodness admits of no degrees. This intrinsic excellence in relation to Himself will ultimately become expressive in grace toward others.
V. God is Christlikeness. This is a distinct idea in the Biblical doctrine of God. It centers in the incarnation. While it is true that other religions have purported to incorporate into their structures so-called incarnations, they are not in any sense in the class with the Biblical doctrine of the incarnation. At this point, however, the incarnation is not the subject of discussion. The material on this paper is designed to answer the question of what God is like. And it is also important, therefore, to understand that the subject at hand is the doctrine of God, not the doctrine of Christ. Later it will be pointed out that Christ is God, not merely like God. Since this is the doctrine of God, this investigation is concerned with material that clearly sets forth information concerning God. Inasmuch as the Bible text insists that Christ unfolds truth about God, then this is a legitimate point for consideration. In the fourth Gospel, the writer says, "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18). The word "declared" bears on the point at hand. From the Greek word underlying the English text comes the English word "exegesis." Literally, this word means to lead out and unfold. The text is therefore affirming that Christ leads out and unfolds God as a teacher does his subject. On the basis of this declaration, it follows that Christ in His person is like God, and to learn of God all one needs do is look at Christ, for Christ leads out and unfolds the truth about God in His own person. After declaring, "I am... the truth" (John 14:6), it was Philip who addressed a request to Christ. "Shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us" (John 14:8). To which Christ replied, "Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?" (John 14:9). On the strength of these clear passages of Scripture, it may be safely affirmed that God is like Christ, and any contemplation of the person of Christ will usher the inquirer into the presence of God and the truth about God.
VI. God is tri-unity. This categorical statement may appear illogical to any reader who is confronted for the first time with this truth. The foregoing discussion makes such an effort to emphasize the unity of God, that the reader is now surprised to discover something about God that seems to be in contradiction. At first glance, the title "tri-unity" may appear to be a mistake, since the more common term is "trinity." But the expression "trinity" lays emphasis upon the three persons in the Godhead to the exclusion of the one essence, whereas the word "tri-unity" includes both ideas, and therefore insists upon a trinity of persons in the one divine essence.
The importance of this divine reality dare not be underestimated. Of all the propositions relating to God, this one is the fundamental of the fundamentals of the Christian faith. This differentiates the Christian faith from all other faiths. Without this doctrine there could be no Divine Savior and no Divine Holy Spirit. Without this truth there could be no incarnation of God in human flesh. There could be no transaction between persons of the Godhead in atonement. And there could be no God of eternal love. It follows that all the distinctive truths of Christianity are wrapped up in this great fact. "Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (1 Tim. 3:16).
When Christ became flesh, the tri-unity of God came into full view. In the doctrine of God, tri-unity comes last. This marks progress in revelation. This progress is not from imperfection to perfection, for at every stage in revelation the body of truth was perfect, though at that point it was incomplete. God revealed truth in the same proportion that men were prepared and able to receive it. When at last Christ came, men were then amply prepared and able to receive the crowning truth in the doctrine of God, the tri-unity of God. But this does not mean that there is no revelation concerning the tri-unity of God in the Old Testament. The facts are that this great truth is woven into the very warp and woof of the Old Testament Scriptures, except for the fact that it is not clearly seen because men are not sufficiently prepared to recognize it. The Hebrew word for God in the opening verse of Genesis is plural in number, though it is used with a singular verb. This occurs over and over again in the Old Testament. Notice the use of the word "us" in connection with the creation of man (Gen. 1:26), and his expulsion from the garden (Gen. 3:22). It would appear that the issues were so important that there was need for divine consultation in the Godhead. The answer to the critics of this doctrine is that the complete revelation of the tri-unity of God was given in deeds rather than words. Godly Jews believed in a God who dwelt in heaven. When Christ came, these very Jews recognized Him as God. The coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was recognized as something different from the Father or from Christ, and when these men wrote the New Testament there was no conscious effort to formulate a doctrine of the tri-unity of God. All they did was to record what happened. "0 the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out" (Rom. 11:33). To seal this truth to each believer at the outset of his experience of salvation, he is baptized "into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matt. 28:19), a trinity of divine persons all contributing to his salvation.