How does the Bible describe God? part 3

Welcome again, my dear reader. This is part 3 of a series of seven articles that address the question, How does the Bible describe God? So let us continue from where we stopped in the previous article.

15. God is love

The Bible teaches that God is love. We read this in 1 John 4:8. The scripture says:

“He who does not love does not know God, for GOD IS LOVE.”

God’s love for humanity motivated Him to send His only begotten Son to die for the sins of man. This is recorded in John 3:16, which is perhaps the most famous scripture in the Bible. It says

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

The love of God for humanity is also echoed in 1 John 4:10, that says

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

God’s love for Israel (Jacob) is revealed in Malachi 1:2, which says

“’I have loved you,’ says the LORD. ‘Yet you say, ‘In what way have You loved us?’ Was Esau Jacob’s brother?’ Says the LORD. ‘YET JACOB, I HAVE LOVED;’”

Similarly, Hosea 11:1 captures God’s love for Israel by stating:

“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.”

God’s love for the Church of Christ is captured in John 16:27, which says

“For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came from God.”

These words were spoken by Jesus Christ to His disciples moments before He was arrested and crucified.

Lesson for us: Given God’s love for us, the Bible encourages us to walk in love. We are to love each other unconditionally, just as God loved us unconditionally. In fact, the Bible tells us that you cannot say you love God, whom you cannot see, while you hate your brother, whom you see (1 John 4:20–21). Thus, the only way to show that you love God is by FIRST loving your brother. Given the fallen state of man, this may at times be very difficult, but it is NOT IMPOSSIBLE.

In Ephesians 5:1-2, the Apostle Paul encourages every believer to imitate Christ by walking in love toward one another. The scripture says:

“Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And WALK IN LOVE, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”

16. God is mighty

The Bible describes God as being mighty. This means that God is powerful.

In the book of Deuteronomy 10:17, the Bible says

“For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, Mighty and Awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe.”

Also, in Job 36:5, the scriptures tell us about God’s might in the following manner:

“Behold, God is mighty, but despises no one; He is mighty in strength of understanding.”

This verse implies that despite possessing a mighty understanding, God still treats everyone equally (Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11).

The Bible also tells us that it was by His mighty understanding that God created the world, as recorded in Jeremiah 10:12, which says

“He has made the earth by His power, established the world by His wisdom, and stretched out the heavens at His discretion.”

Lesson for us: The might of God is unparalleled. No one and nothing can prevail against Him in battle. The strength of His hands is incomparable to none. So with Him on our side, we can rest assured that nothing will oppose us and that we will succeed.

17. The Bible describes God as omnipotent

This means that God is all-powerful. The power of God is well explained in Jeremiah 32:17–19. It says

“Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by YOUR GREAT POWER and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. You show lovingkindness to thousands, and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them—the Great, the Mighty God, whose name is the LORD of hosts. You are GREAT IN COUNSEL and MIGHTY IN WORK, for Your eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, to give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings.”

God’s mighty power was responsible for the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave. This is recorded in Ephesians 1:19–21, which says

“and what is the exceeding greatness of His power towards us who believe, according to the WORKING OF HIS MIGHTY POWER WHICH HE WORKED IN CHRIST WHEN HE RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD AND SEATED HIM AT HIS RIGHT HAND IN THE HEAVENLY PLACES” 

Lesson for us: It was by the might of God that the heavens and the earth were created. In addition, the might of God makes Him excel in wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Furthermore, it was the mighty hand of God that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.

All these great acts point to an all-powerful or omnipotent God. A God who knows NO IMPOSSIBILITY.

18. The Bible describes God as omnipresent

This means that God is everywhere. God describes His omnipresent nature in Jeremiah 23:24 in the following manner:

“Can anyone hide himself in secret places, so I shall not see him? Says the LORD; ‘Do I NOT FILL HEAVEN AND EARTH.’”

When God says that He fills heaven and earth, it simply means that there is no place in this universe that can hide you from His presence.

Another scripture that talks of the omnipresent nature of God is Proverbs 15:3. It says

“The EYES OF THE LORD ARE IN EVERY PLACE, keeping watch on the evil and the good.”

This means that God’s eyes are everywhere, observing the deeds of all the inhabitants of the earth.

More scriptures that describe the omnipresent nature of God include

Hebrews 4:13

“And there is no creature hidden from His sight, BUT ALL THINGS ARE NAKED AND OPEN TO THE EYES OF HIM to whom we must give account.”

Proverbs 5:21

“For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He ponders all his paths.”

Lesson for us: As believers, we should always keep in mind that God sees everything that happens in our daily lives. This includes all that we do, all the places we visit, and every intention in our hearts.

David, the Psalmist, captured the omnipresent nature of God so well when he penned Psalms 139:7–12. It says

“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall fall on me, even the night shall be light about me; indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to You,”

Remember, a day is coming when we shall all stand before the LORD, God of heaven, to give an account of all that we did while on earth. Whatever we shall say is already recorded in heaven, so there will be NO LYING, just the TRUTH!

19. The Bible describes God as omniscient

This means that God knows everything. God is all-knowing because He can see everything that goes on in the heavens and on earth.

The omniscient nature of God is captured in 1 John 3:20, as follows:

“For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart and KNOWS ALL THINGS.”

The all-knowing attribute of God is also captured in Psalm 139:1-4 in the following manner:

“O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You understand my thoughts from afar. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and you are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O LORD, YOU KNOW IT ALTOGETHER.”

In other words, as far as our lives are concerned, nothing is hidden from the eyes of God.

God knows all the secrets in the world and only reveals them to whomever He wishes. This fact is captured in Deuteronomy 29:29, which says

“The SECRET THINGS BELONG TO THE Lord, OUR God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

This is why He revealed to Joseph and Daniel the meaning of the dreams of Pharaoh and King Nebuchadnezzar.

From the Bible, we also learn that God knows the future beforehand. That is why He sent His prophets to the children of Israel to inform them concerning future events, whether good or bad. This was to ensure that they were not caught unaware.

Christ Jesus enabled John the Revelator to write the book of Revelation, which highlights the events that will take place before the end of the world. We read this in Revelation 1:1–2, which says

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things that must shortly take place And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.”

Lesson for us: When we are stranded, not knowing what to do, we should seek God’s counsel. The Bible advises us not to rely on our wisdom alone because, at times, it may mislead us. Since God knows all that lies ahead, He is the only one who is better placed to lead us in the right direction. Proverbs 3:5 puts it this way:

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

20. God is righteous

The Bible describes God as righteous. This means that God always upholds what is right.

We read this in the book of Daniel 9:14, which says

“Therefore the LORD has kept the disaster in mind and brought it upon us; for the LORD our God IS RIGHTEOUS in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice.”

In fact, the Bible tells us that righteousness is one of the foundations upon which the throne of God is established. The other one is justice. This is recorded in Psalm 89:14, which says

“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; mercy and truth go before Your face.”

Another scripture that tells us God is righteous is Deuteronomy 32:4. It says

“He is the Rock; His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice; He is a God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.”

From the above-quoted scriptures, we learn that the righteousness of God goes hand in hand with justice. For there to be justice, the right thing must always be done. And because God always does what is right, justice automatically follows.

Lesson for us: As born-again Christians, we should endeavor to do the right thing, no matter the cost. In fact, Jesus taught that we should prioritize seeking the Kingdom of God and ITS RIGHTEOUSNESS above everything else. We read this in Matthew 6:31–33, which says

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we EAT?’ or ‘what shall we DRINK?’ or ‘what shall we WEAR?’ For after all these things, the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD and HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, and all these things shall be added to you.”

In short, Jesus implies that our priority should not be food, drink, clothing, or the material things of this world, but instead, we should strive to do what is right at all times.

21. God is Spirit

The Bible describes God as a Spirit being. This means that we cannot see God with our physical eyes. In the book of John 4:24, Jesus told Nicodemus that God is Spirit. It says

“God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

In 2 Corinthians 3:17, the Apostle Paul also writes about God being a Spirit by stating:

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

Lesson for us: Given that God is Spirit, our Christian walk should be Spirit-led in order to connect with Him. We find this advice in Galatians 5:16–18. It says

“I say then: walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.”

What does it mean to walk in the flesh? It means leading a lifestyle of adultery, contentions, dissensions, drunkenness, envy, fornication, hatred, heresies, jealousies, murders, outbursts of wrath, revelries, selfish ambition, and the like (Galatians 5:19–21).

On the other hand, walking in the Spirit means leading a lifestyle of faithfulness, gentleness, goodness, joy, kindness, longsuffering, love, self-control, and the like (Galatians 5:22–23).

Conclusion

This article is the third in a series of seven that discuss how the Bible describes God. To read Part 2 of the article, kindly click the link provided below. Through these articles, we seek to examine what the Bible says about the attributes, character, nature, and traits of God. The main goal of this article is to deepen the reader’s understanding of the topic under discussion. It also seeks to add to the already-existing body of knowledge about the attributes and nature of God. It is my sincere hope that you will find it helpful. Thank you, and God bless you.

Related Post: How does the Bible describe God? part 2

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In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,

Amen!”

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Benediction

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The Lord make His face shine upon you,

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(Numbers 6:24-26)

Shalom. Source: https://www.biblegateway.com/