Wednesday, December 2, 2009

He Is Not Like Us

Forming and shaping God into our image is a very popular thing to do these days. If you want your cause to have more weight, say that God is for it and try to find a verse (though usually out of context) to support it. We forget that we are shaped into God's image and that a major responsibility humans carry is to be image-bearers. This can be tricky to think about because at the end of the day, we know that we often don't do a good job at reflecting God. There are attributes of God, things that are a part of His essence that we share, known as communicable attributes. Things such as: love, kindness, knowledge, etc. These are attributes of God that He shares with us. There are some things about God though that show us that He is not like us. These things teach us a great deal about God's richness. These three things about God, when understood, provoke deeper understanding and worship of Him.

3 Attributes of God that remind us that He is not like us:

1. God is Eternal - God has no beginning and no end. He does not live in successive moments of time, but instead sees all time equally vividly, yet God sees in time and acts in time. God is transcendent in that He is bigger than time and space. No one has given him life, and no one can take away that life. God has life in himself. Before the world was made, God needed nothing to make him happy or to make him God, he is self-existent and self-sufficient. God has it all, without beginning and without ending. (Psalm 90:1-2)


2. God is Holy - The Bible speaks of a lot of God's holiness. To be holy means to be different from all else - to be unique or separate or set apart. An important element of God's holiness is that He is completely separate from all that is wrong or impure or sinful. He has life that cannot be stained by anything bad. Because God is truth He cannot lie or believe a lie. Because God is faithful He cannot go back on His word or break a promise. Because God is righteous, He cannot do what is evil or consider the evil that others do as okay or acceptable. He is holy, and so he is separated from anything that is contrary to his own life as God. (Isaiah 6:3; Exodus 15:11)

3. God is Unchangeable - God is God, and this means He cannot be less than who He is as God, just as He cannot be other than who He is as God. God has every quality within his own life as God, and because of this, He simply cannot change for the better or for the worse. God is the same today as He was yesterday or 5,000 years ago. God is who He ever is, and nothing in the very character of God can change. He can be relied on, trusted, and followed, for He does not sway like the trees with every passing wind. (Psalm 102:25-27)

Considering that God is eternal, holy, and unchangeable should bring us to both praise for God's greatness and trust because of the faithfulness of His character. We can count on Him. He has all power, wisdom, and goodness. Knowing these things lead us to honor Him, worship Him, trust Him, and humble ourselves before Him. He is not like us.

3 comments:

  1. This way of thinking about God has become popular in our "have it ur way" society. Thanks Burger King!! Our culture wants so badly to make God fit into our image of what is just, while forgetting we dont have the authority to decide any of these things. I love the three points you made about God. They remind us of God's character, and show us the problem we all face. We are an imperfect people serving a perfect God.

    Personally I am concerned about the distorted truths about God that are being taught and passed around in our culture and CHURCHES. God is ALL the things you listed. Furthermore, I thank him that God is not anything like us! He is not wicked and weak. He is strong and faithful. I love the true picture of God, he gives me hope. The "buddy God" he has been "shaped" to be sounds weak and changeable and barely worthy of being followed.

    This one made me think. It was great

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love how God is eternal, and yet chooses to dwell with us in the present time. So many times I find myself worrying about the future or dwelling in the past and yet forget to choose to hang out with the creater of the universe, the author of the past and the future, who has chose to spend the present time with me.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great points guys.

    Ryan, distorted truths of God and his gospel have been happening from the very beginning. We must be faithful to portray the fullness of who God is as revealed through His Word.

    Brad, I too find great encouragement to know that God is in control of my destiny and I'm blessed to have the eternal God dwell near to me. No greater feeling.

    ReplyDelete