GOD’S
ATTRIBUTES
“What comes into our minds when we think about
God is the most important thing about us.”
“We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of
God” – A.W. Tozer.
With reference to a definition of God, it is probable that nothing more
comprehensive or biblical has been formed than that incorporated into the
Westminster Confession of Faith (1643 –
1646). This confession declares:
“There is but one only living and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection, a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions (the state or capacity of being acted on or controlled by external agents or forces), immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute, working all things according to the counsel of His own immutable and most righteous will, for His own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him; and withal most just and terrible in His judgments, hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty.
God has all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of Himself; and is alone in and unto Himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures which He has made, nor deriving any glory from them, but only manifesting His own glory in, by, unto, and upon them; He is the alone foundation of all being, of Whom, through Whom, and to Whom, are all things; and has most sovereign dominion over them, to do by them, for them, and upon them, whatsoever Himself pleaseth. In His sight all things are open and manifest; His knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent of the creature, so as nothing is to Him contingent or uncertain. He is most holy in all His counsels, in all His works, and in all His commands. To Him is due from angels and men, and every other creature, whatsoever worship, service, or obedience, He is pleased to require of them.
In unity of the Godhead there are three persons of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Spirit eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son.”
We will define an attribute of God as: whatever
God has in any way revealed as being true of Himself. An attribute, then, is not a part of God; it
is how He is. The divine attributes are
what we know to be true of God. He does
not possess them as qualities; they are how God is as He reveals Himself to His
creatures. These attributes are so
interrelated and interdependent that the exact placing of some of them is
difficult if not wholly impossible. Yet
they blend harmoniously with each other in the unity of the one Being,
God. In Him, His attributes are all
pervasive, and each of them is infinite and without limitation.
God’s attributes are not isolated traits of His
character but facets of His unitary being.
They are no things-in-themselves, but rather thoughts by which we think
of God, aspects of a perfect whole, names given to
whatever we know to be true of the Godhead.
To have a correct understanding of the attributes, it is necessary that
we see them all as one. We can think of
them separately, but they cannot be separated.
I think that almost every heresy that has
afflicted the church through the years has arisen from believing about God
things that are not true, or from over-emphasizing certain true things so as to
obscure other things equally true.
God is a Person with those faculties and
constituent elements which belong to personality. These faculties and elements in God are
perfect to an infinite degree. The
elements which combine to form personality are: intellect, sensibility/emotion,
and will; but all of these acting together require a freedom both of external
action and of choice of ends toward which action is directed. Intellect must direct, sensibility must
desire, and will must determine in the direction of
rational ends.
And God has all three: intellect (Psa. 147:5; Acts
The will of God expresses primarily His
attributes of self-determination by which He acts in accordance with His
eternal power and Godhead. Though God’s will cannot be limited in any sense, His perfections insure
that He will never do anything that is incompatible with His nature.
Those who know their God have: great energy for
God; great thoughts of God; great boldness for God; and great contentment in
God.
The Hebrew word “adon”
means “lord” in the sense of a superior, master, or owner. It’s also used as a
term of respect. The plural form “Adonay” refers only
to God and is translated as “Lord”. Both the singular and plural forms of “adon” when referring to God capitalize the first letter,
“L”, in the English translation, “Lord”.
The Hebrew word “Yhwh”
or “Yahweh” (later written as “Jehovah”)
is translated as “LORD” (all capitalized
letters) and is God’s personal revealed name. It’s derived from an old form
of the Hebrew meaning “to be”. The word stresses existence, with the meaning
being “I am”, emphasizing the unchanging nature of God, particularly His
unchanging commitment to His people.
The word “kyrios” is
translated “lord” in English. In ordinary speech it was simply a term of
respect, like “sir”, or emphasizing superior position, as “master” or “owner”.
When referring to God or Jesus, it’s translated as “Lord”. However, not
everyone who refers to Jesus as “kyrios” in the
Gospels acknowledges His deity and so uses the term as a divine name. But in
Acts and the Epistles, the term affirms Jesus’ lordship or deity (e.g., Phil. 2:5, 6, 11; Col. 2:6, 9; Acts
The Hebrew words “el”, “eloha”,
and “elohim” mean “god” or “mighty one”. To
distinguish the one true God of the Old Testament from the pagan gods, “elohim” is often linked with other descriptive terms that
set Him apart from pagan deities. These linked terms include: “Most High” (Gen. 14:18, 19), “Almighty” (Gen. 17:1), “holy” (Isa. 5:16), “righteous” (Isa.
45:21), “Everlasting” (Gen. 21:33),
“truth” (Psa. 31:5), “of heaven on
high” (Psa. 136:26), “God of gods” (Dan. 11:36), “Creator (Gen. 1:1), “Savior” (Psa. 106:21), “judge” (Psa. 50:6), “just” (Isa. 30:18), “present everywhere” (Psa. 139:7-10), “living” (Jer.
10:10). The Greek word for “God” is “theos” – Dr.
L. Richards’ Expository Dictionary of Bible Words.
The Self-Existence of God
God, instead of having origin or
being created, is Self-Existent. He had
neither origin nor was created. God said
that He is the, “I Am that I Am”, the self-existent Self. The name, “I Am” expresses active
manifestation of existence. He has His
Being of Himself, and has no dependence upon any other. God designated Himself by this name as the
absolute God. He has an independent
existence by the very nature of His Being.
God does not depend for His existence on anyone outside Himself. What does God say about Himself in the
following passages?
Exodus 3:13-15
[“I AM” is the Hebrew word “YHWH”. It speaks of God’s self-existence. It is rendered by the word “LORD”, vs. 15. It
has the meaning of “The God who is always present” or “I Am”.].
Psalm 90:1, 2
John 5:26
[“life” – eternal, spiritual life. This was given to the
person of Jesus as a human being through the Holy Spirit, since as “the Word”,
Christ always had life eternally.].
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What possible meaning can
the self-existence of God have for me in a world such as this and in times such
as these?
If God had an origin or was
created, what would that imply about Him?
How would that affect you
or your relationship to Him?
Would your lifestyle be any
different if God was created or had an origin?
Knowing that God is
self-existent, what impact should that now have on your thinking and actions?
Why?
The Self-Sufficiency of God
That God is Self-sufficient is
spoken of by Jesus Christ when He said, “The Father has life in Himself.” God is what He is in Himself (Jn.
Whatever God is, and all that God is, He is in Himself. All life is in and from God. God has a voluntary relation to everything He
has made, but has no necessary relation to anything outside of Himself. To God alone nothing is necessary. But every created thing to stay alive needs some other created thing and all things need
God.
Almighty God, just because He is
almighty, needs no support. God does not
need our help or our defense. God was
under no constraint, no obligation, and no necessity to create. What does God say about Himself in the
following passages?
Nehemiah 9:6
Acts
Colossians 1:16, 17
[Other
passages to consider are: Job 35:7, 8; Eph.
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If
God was not self-sufficient, what would that imply about Him?
How
would that affect you?
Will
the fact that God is self-sufficient change your thinking and/or activities in
any way?
How,
and why?
The Eternity of God
That God is eternal means that He is
the endless Being, from everlasting past to
everlasting future. He appears at the
beginning and end of time simultaneously.
For God, everything that will happen
has already happened. He sees the end
and the beginning in one view. God is in
no way conditioned by time. He is free
to act in relation to time or to act outside its limitations.
God exists without beginning or
end. It is the infinitude of God in
relation to duration. He is above the
limitations of time. Time has no
existence in and by itself, and is but an inseparable accompaniment of created
existence. He is the eternal, “I
Am.” Because God lives in an everlasting
now, He has no past and no future. What
does God say about Himself in the following passages?
Genesis 21:33
Psalm 90:2
Psalm 93:2
Isaiah 43:13
[Other
passages to consider are: Deut. 33:27; Isa. 44:6].
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If
God was not eternal, how would that affect your life?
How
would you act or think differently?
Because
God is eternal, what affect should this have on your values in life? Why?
How
does it affect your view of death? And life after death? Why?
God’s Infinitude
God is infinite, limitless. He knows no bounds, and is measureless. God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must
work. Because God’s nature is infinite,
everything that flows out of it is infinite also. God’s infinity relates itself to all His
attributes in that they are what they are to an infinite degree, or without
termination. He transcends all
limitations which time or space imposes.
Infinity is unlimited extent of
space, duration, or quantity. As
designating an essential attribute, the term refers to His unlimited existence,
capacity, energy, and perfections. The
word infinity, though not appearing in Scripture, is an appropriate term to
express certain biblical revelations concerning God (such as His power, knowledge, etc.). God alone is the only infinite existence; the
infinite Spirit. What does God say
about Himself in the following passages?
Job 11:7-10
Psalm 139:3-10
Psalm 147:5
[Other
passages to consider are: Psa. 145:3; Isa. 40:12-31; Rom.
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What
difference would it make to you if God was not infinite?
Would
your life be changed in any way? How,
and why?
Because
God is infinite, how is this going to affect your thinking and/or actions in
life?
Why?
The Immutability of God
To say that God is immutable is to
say that He never differs from Himself.
God is devoid of all change in His Being, perfections, purpose, and
promises. All suggestions of change
attributed to God in Scripture are figures of speech, an accommodation to our
human viewpoint. In Genesis 6:6 and 1
Sam. 15:11, 35, the word “repented” means “sorrowed”.
The concept of a growing or
developing God is not found in the Scriptures.
God cannot change for the better.
He is perfectly holy, and has never been less holy than He is now or
ever will be. Nor can God change for the
worse.
Only a being composed of parts may
change, for change is basically a shift in the relation of the parts of a whole
or the admission of some foreign element into the original composition. Since God is self-existent, He is not
composed. There are in Him no parts to
be altered. And since He is self-sufficient,
nothing can enter His being from without.
All that God is He has always been, and all
that He has been and is He will ever be.
God changes not. He is eternal
permanence.
Immutability is not, however, to be
confused with immobility (being fixed). God acts, and His
actions vary with reference to different ends.
His actions toward the same person change according to the changed
attitude of those persons toward Him (Jonah
3:9, 10; Ezek. 33:7-19). This,
however, is not what is meant by immutability.
What does God say about Himself in the following passages?
1 Samuel 15:29
Malachi 3:6
James 1:17
[Other
passages to consider are: Num. 23:19; Heb. 6:13, 17, 18].
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How
does God’s immutability relate to your: comfort,
security, encouragement to pray, salvation?
How
would your life be any different if God was not immutable, and why?
In
light of the fact that God is immutable, what changes do you expect to take
place in your life, and why?
God’s Faithfulness
That God is faithful means that He
is trustworthy, reliable, stable, and steady.
He will certainly fulfill His promises, as well as execute His threats
against sin.
Upon God’s faithfulness rests our
whole hope of future blessedness. Only
as He is faithful will His covenants stand and His promises be honored. What does God say about Himself in the
following passages?
Deuteronomy 7:9
Psalm 36:5
1 Corinthians 1:9
[Other
passages to consider are: Psa. 89:1, 2, 5, 8, 24, 33, 34; 119:90; 1 Thes. 5:24;
Heb. 10:23].
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If
God was not faithful, how would that affect your life (be specific)?
Because
God is faithful, can you claim the following promises of God with confidence?
1
Pet. 5:7 Jas. 1:5
2
Tim. 1:7 1
Cor.
Phil.
4:6, 7 Heb.
13:5
God’s Omniscience
That God is omniscient means that He
perfectly knows Himself (1 Cor.
God has never learned from anyone (Isa. 40:13, 14; Rom.
Psalm 147:5
Isaiah 46:9, 10
Hebrews 4:13
[Other
passages to consider are: Psa. 139:2-4; Matt. 6:4, 8, 32].
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If
God was not all-knowing, how would that affect or change your life, and why?
Would
you feel more comfortable, at peace, secure, confident, bold, excited, loved,
obedient, motivated, honest, accepted, less worried, or careless? And why?
How
should your realizing that God is all-knowing affect your life, and why?
God’s Omnipotence
That
God is omnipotent means that He has all power.
God possesses what no other creature can: an incomprehensible plentitude
of power, and potency that is absolute.
In God, power is a creative attribute,
it is the energy that brings creation out of mere nothing. Nature itself gives evidence of the eternal
power of the Godhead (Rom.
Since God is infinite and also has power, then whatever
He has must be without limit; therefore God has limitless power. Also, since God is the self-existent Creator,
who is the source of all the power there is (and
since a source must at least be equal to anything that emanates from it),
then God is of necessity equal to all the power there is, therefore
omnipotent. The divine ability to bring
a universe into existence out of nothing by volition is the grand manifestation
of power.
By ascribing to God absolute power, it is not meant that
God is free from all the restraints of reason and morality, but that He is able
to do everything that is in harmony with His wise, holy, and perfect nature (Matt. 23:19; Heb. 6:18). What is said of God in the following
passages?
Genesis 17:1
Revelation 1:8
Revelation 19:6
[Other
passages to consider are: Jer. 32:17; Mk. 14:62; Rom.
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If
God was not all-powerful, how would this affect your life, and why?
How
should knowing that God is all-powerful affect or change your life?
[Knowing that God is omnipotent should give hope to
the despondent and strength to the weak.
Nothing is too hard for God.]
Does
this increase your trust in God? Why?
God’s Wisdom
Wisdom, as an attribute of God, implies correct judgment
and the right use of knowledge. God is
wise in Himself, and all the shining wisdom of men or angels is but a
reflection of that uncreated brilliance which streams from the throne of the
Majesty in the heavens.
In the Scriptures, wisdom, when used of God and good men,
always carries a strong moral connotation.
It is conceived as being pure, loving, and good (Jas.
Job 9:4
Daniel 2:20
Romans 11:33
[Other
passages to consider are: Prov. 3:19; Jer. 51:15].
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If
God was not wise, how would this affect or change your life, and why?
How
should your realizing that God is all-wise affect your life, and why?
[Knowing that God is
all-wise allows us to trust Him in the dark and to know that all things are
working together for good to those who love God and are called according to His
purpose (Rom. 8:28). Therefore, we can
rest in assurance in the circumstances in which we find ourselves, even though
outwardly they look grim.].
Is
this your attitude? Why?
God’s Omnipresence
Few other truths are taught in the Scriptures with as
great clarity as the doctrine of the divine omnipresence. God is everywhere here, close to everything,
next to everyone. He is everywhere
present. If space is defined by bounds,
He exceeds it by infinity. God is free
from the laws or limitations of space, and omnipresence is an attribute He
alone has. It is essential to the right
conception of God in this respect that we avoid all materialistic notions of
His presence which confuse God with everything and thus leads to Pantheism (that everything is God).
God is (a) Spirit (Jn.
1 Kings
Psalm
139:7-10
Jeremiah
23:23, 24
[Other passages to consider are: Isa. 57:15;
Eph. 4:6; Acts 7:48, 49].
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If God was not everywhere present, how would this affect or
change your life, and why?
Would you sin more? Worry
more? Be less
secure? Less
bold/confident?
Be less obedient? More
comfortable? Less at
peace? Less
encouraged?
[This truth, God’s omnipresence, is
to the convinced Christian a source of deep comfort in sorrow and of steadfast
assurance in all the varied experiences of his life. And the certainty that God is always near us,
present in all parts of His world, closer to us than our thoughts, should
maintain us in a state of high moral happiness most of the time. To reasonable men, the omnipresence of God
becomes a power to stay the impulse to wrong action. And we should have no fear, knowing that God
is already there wherever we go.].
God’s
Goodness
The goodness
of God is that which disposes Him to be kind, cordial, benevolent, holy, and
full of good will toward men. He is
tenderhearted and of quick sympathy, and His unfailing attitude toward all
moral beings is open, frank, and friendly.
By His nature, God is inclined to bestow blessedness and He takes holy
pleasure in the happiness of His people.
Divine goodness, as one of God’s attributes, is self-caused, infinite,
perfect, and eternal. God embraces all
His creatures and secures their welfare, for He is morally perfect and
gloriously generous. “Good” in Scripture
is not an abstract quality, nor is it a secular human ideal; “good” means first
and foremost what God is; then what He does, creates, commands, and gives, and
finally what He approves in the lives of His creatures. It is not that the biblical writers assess
God in terms of a prior concept of goodness, but rather that, contemplating the
supreme glory of God’s perfections, they apply to Him the ordinary word for
acknowledging worth. They define good in
terms of God; not vice versa.
Accordingly, the biblical position is that God, and God alone, is good
without qualification (Mk.
Not only are all God’s gifts good,
both in intention and in effect, but also that all good is in fact God’s gift (Jas.
2
Chronicles 30:18
Psalm
119:68
Mark
[Other passages to consider are: Psa. 25:8;
34:8; 100:5; 145:9].
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If
God was not good, how would that affect the way you live, and why?
[Good works are good from three
standpoints: they are done (1) in accordance with a right standard (biblical
principles – 2 Tim.
God’s Grace
In God, mercy and grace are one; but
as they reach us they are seen as two, related but not identical. Grace is God’s goodness directed toward human
debt and demerit. It is by His grace
that God imputes merit where none previously existed and declares no debt to be
where one had been before. Grace is the
good pleasure of God that inclines Him to bestow benefits upon the
undeserving. It is a self-existent
principle inherent in the divine nature and appears to us as a self-caused
bent, or inclination to pity the wretched, spare the guilty, welcome the
outcast, and bring into favor those who were before under just disapproval or
dislike. Grace in redemption is never
disassociated from Jesus Christ (Eph.
1:5-7; Jn.
Grace bestows Christ’s merit and
standing forever to the believer. It
speaks of undeserved favor; unearned or unmerited favor. What is said of God in the following
passages?
2 Timothy 1:9
1 Peter 5:10
1 Corinthians
15:10
[Other passages to consider are: Isa. 26:10;
Eph. 1:5, 6; Gal. 1:15;
If
God was not a God of grace, what affect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is a God of grace, how will that change the way you think and live?
God’s
Love
The words “God is love” mean that
love is an essential attribute of God.
Love is something true of God, but it is not God. Equating love with God is a major mistake
which has produced much unsound religious philosophy. Love wills the good of all and never wills harm
or evil to any. It considers nothing its
own, but gives all freely to the object of its affection. Another characteristic of love is that it
takes pleasure in its object. Love is
active, creative (Rom. 5:8; 1 Jn.
The highest disclosure and most
complete proof of divine love is in redemption (
2 Corinthians 13:11
1 John 4:7-10
1 John 4:16
If
God was not a God of love, what affect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is a loving God, how will that change the way you think and live?
God’s Holiness
Holy is the way God is. To be holy, God does not conform to a
standard of moral excellence or some law but rather all moral law, excellence,
and perfection have their eternal and unchangeable basis in God’s own nature (1 Sam. 2:2; Rev. 15:4). It is the outshining of all that God is. He is absolutely holy with an infinite,
incomprehensible fullness of purity (1
Jn. 3:3) that is incapable of being other than it is. The English word “holy” is derived from the
Anglo-Saxon word meaning “well” or “whole”.
So it is that God’s concern for His universe is its moral health, and
whatever is contrary to this is necessarily under His eternal displeasure. Holiness is God’s intellectual and moral
splendor, the ethical purity in virtue of which He delights in good and hates
evil. The holiness of God, the wrath of
God, and the health of the creation are inseparably united. God’s holiness is active. As a primary motive, it incites all that He
does. The holiness of God is intrinsic,
uncreated, and untarnishable. It is the
very basis and force of His hatred of that which is evil. Holiness is entire freedom from moral evil
and is absolute moral perfection.
Holiness indicates sanctity or separation from all that is sinful or
impure, or morally imperfect. It denotes
God’s separateness from the creation and elevation above it. What is said of God in the following
passages?
1 Samuel 2:2;
Exodus 15:11
Psalm 99:9
[Other
passages to consider are: 1 Pet. 1:16; Isa. 6:3; 57:15; Rev. 4:8; Psa. 111:9;
Matt. 5:48].
If
God were not holy, what affect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is holy, how will that change your thinking and actions?
Will
it cause you to fear God, or be more holy yourself in both thought and deed? Why?
God’s Sovereignty
God’s sovereignty is the attribute
by which He rules His entire creation (His
supreme rulership), because He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and absolutely
free. God must be free to do whatever He
wills to do, anywhere at any time, to carry out His eternal purpose in every
single detail without interference. God
is said to be absolutely free because no one and no thing can hinder Him or
compel Him or stop Him. God is under no
external restraint whatsoever. He is
able to do as He pleases always, everywhere, forever. God is in absolute authority. He is the Supreme Dispenser of all
events. All forms of existence are within the scope of
His dominion.
While a complete explanation of the
origin of sin eludes us, there are a few things we do know. One of which is that in His sovereign wisdom
God has permitted evil to exist. What
is said of God in the following passages?
1 Samuel 2:6-8
1 Chronicles 29:11, 12
Isaiah 14:24; 46:9, 10
[Other
passages to consider are: 1 Tim. 6:15; Deut.
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If
God was not sovereign, what affect would that have on your life? Why?
Because
God is sovereign, how will that change your thinking and actions? Why?
God’s Wrath
The wrath of God is eternal
detestation of all unrighteousness. And
because God is holy, He hates all sin; and because He hates all sin, His anger
burns against the sinner.
Indifference to sin would be a moral
blemish, and since there is no moral blemish in the nature/character of God,
God must hate sin and judge it, thus expressing His wrath toward it.
God’s wrath is the displeasure and
indignation of Divine judgment against evil.
It is the holiness of God stirred into activity against sin. God is angry against sin because it is
rebellion against His authority, a wrong done to His sovereignty. What is said of God in the following
passages?
Psalm
Romans 1:18
Nahum 1:2
[Other passages to consider
are: Ex. 22:22-24; Deut. 6:14, 15; Psa. 78:17, 21, 49, 50; 95:10, 11; Ezek.
25:12-14; Eph. 5:5, 6].
We
can not serve God properly unless there is reverence for His Majesty and godly
fear of His righteous anger (Heb.
What
difference would it make to you if God was not a God of wrath, and why?
Because
God is a God of wrath, how will that change the way you think and live?
God’s Truthfulness
Apart from the truth in God, there
would be no certainty whatsoever in life.
He abides by His promise and executes every threat or warning He has
made. Truth in God is surety that what
He has disclosed is according to the nature of things and that His disclosures
may be depended upon with complete certainty.
God’s very being is in accordance with fact or reality, as is what He
speaks. What is said of God in the
following passages?
Psalm 31:5
Isaiah 65:16
Titus 1:2
[Other
passages to consider are: Num. 23:19; Psa. 33:4; Jn. 17:17; Rev. 6:10; 15:3].
If
God was not true/truth, what affect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is true/truth, how will that change your thinking and actions?
[Knowing that God is true
gives me certainty in life, and I need not wander in comfortless perplexity not
knowing from where I came or where I am going.
I can expect God to come through on His promises, which gives me
confidence and boldness, security, and assurance.].
Does
the fact that God is true/truth do the same for you? Why?
God’s Forgiveness
God’s forgiveness is His taking away
the sin that makes people guilty. Thus
God releases people from guilt and from punishment. Divine forgiveness does not overlook sin or
dismiss it lightly. Rather, forgiveness
is an act of God by which He deals, not only with our guilt but with sins
themselves. The Old Testament links
forgiveness with sacrifices of atonement, which covered over sin or ritual
defilement. The New Testament relates
forgiveness to Jesus’ sacrificial death.
The basis on which God forgives sin and remains righteous has been
provided by Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself as an atonement to which the Old
Testament offerings merely pointed. What
is said of God in the following passages?
Nehemiah 9:17
Psalm 99:8
1 John 1:9
[Other passages to consider are: Num. 14:18;
2 Chron. 7:14; Psa. 65:3; 86:5; Dan. 9:9; Col. 2:13, 14].
If
God was not forgiving, what affect would that have on the way you lived?
Why?
Because
God is forgiving, how will that change the way you think and live?
Why?
God’s Patience
God’s patience is a part of the
Divine goodness and mercy, yet differs from both. God’s slowness to anger is a branch of His
mercy. It differs from mercy in that
mercy considers the person as miserable, while patience considers the person as
criminal; mercy pities him in his misery, while patience bears with the sin
which produced the misery.
Patience is that power of control
which God exercises over Himself, causing Him to bear with the wicked and
forbear so long in punishing him.
The patience of God is that excellency which causes Him to sustain great injuries
without immediately avenging Himself; His power of self-restraint. What is said of God in the following
passages?
Psalm 145:8
Jonah 4:2
Romans 2:4
[Other
passages to consider are: Num.
If
God was not patient, what affect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is patient, how will that change the way you think and live?
God’s Justice and Righteousness
God’s justice and righteousness are
scarcely to be distinguished from each other.
The same word in the original (Heb.
“tsaddiq”) becomes in English justice or
righteous, almost, one would suspect, at the whim of the translator. Justice embodies the idea of moral
equity/fairness. Judgment is the
application of equity/fairness to moral situations and may be favorable or
unfavorable according to whether the one under examination has been equitable
or inequitable in heart and conduct.
Justice, when used of God, is a name we give to the way God is, nothing
more; and when God acts justly He is not doing so to conform to an independent
criterion, but simply acting like Himself in a given
situation. God is His own self-existent
principle of moral equity/fairness, and when He sentences evil men or rewards
the righteous, He simply acts like Himself from within, uninfluenced by
anything that is not Himself.
God has absolute right and authority
over His creatures, and has a perfect right to dispose of all His works as it
may please Him. God’s justice is a
necessary outflow from the holiness of God.
The sentences He pronounces, the rewards He bestows, the penalties He
inflicts, are all righteous.
Righteousness is being and doing
right. It is divine holiness applied to
moral government. What is said of God
in the following passages?
Psalm 97:1, 2
Isaiah 45:21
Daniel 4:37
[Other
passages to consider are: Dan. 9:7; Rom.
If
God was not just and righteous, what affect would that have on the way you
live?
Why?
Because
God is righteous and just, how will that change the way you think and live?
God’s Mercy
Mercy, as an attribute of God, is
the infinite and inexhaustible energy within the divine nature which disposes
God to be actively compassionate. Both
the Old and the New Testaments proclaim the mercy of God, but the Old has more
than 4 times as much to say about it as the New does. Mercy is the goodness of God confronting
human suffering and guilt. It is a form
of love determined by the state or condition of its objects. Their state is one of need and suffering,
while they may be unworthy or ill-deserving.
Mercy is at once the disposition of love respecting such, and the kindly
ministry of love for their relief. Mercy
means lovingkindness, especially in relation to human unworthiness and
defection or waywardness from God. Mercy
is concerned for man, as he is miserable.
What is said of God in the following passages?
Psalm 103:8-14
Ephesians 2:4-6
Nehemiah 9:30,
31
[Other passages to
consider are: 1 Pet. 1:3; Lk. 6:36; Titus 3:4, 5; 2 Sam. 24:10-14; Psa. 86:15;
145:8; Rom.
If
God was not merciful, what effect would that have on your life, and why?
Because
God is merciful, how will that change the way you think and live?