We’ve spent all year looking at a redo for godliness. But what did we learn? This daily devotional reviews who God is.
To read devotions in the Redo for Godliness series, click the appropriate button below.
Last year, I had a definite plan on how I was going to tie everything up at the end of the year. I knew about how many posts it would be. (I know. It is always more than I imagine.)
This year, I am still debating. So, I think I am going to start now and see where it goes.
With the newsletters, we’ve been organizing the nuggets by the three prongs of godliness. I’ve played a little loose with the categories over the year.
But we do have to start with our relationship with God. To do that, we found out Who God really is. This will put it into context for the rest of the devotions.
We are going to have to break this into two devotions. We’ll do the connections and application at the end of the next devotion.
Let's Put It into Context
We talked a lot about Who God is and what makes up His character. He has a lot of attributes. Some seemed distinct, but some seemed to be interwoven with the others.
A Spirit and Transcendent
- Because God is a Spirit, He transcends time and space and is superior to whatever being we put Him in a line up with – angel, Satan, demon, human.
God is a spirit. Because He is a Spirit, God could be a Creator, “… the LORD alone” (Deut. 6: 4 NLT), eternal, self-sufficient, unchangeable, omnipresent, and perfect. Since He is a Spirit, one way we worship God by praying to Him (Attributes of God: A Spirit).
Right now, we have no context to determine what God as a Spirit is. But really, that isn’t where God wants us to focus our thoughts (Attributes of God: A Spirit).
God transcends time and space, yet He chooses to live in us when we imitate His character (Attributes of God: Transcendent). We are alive only because of God’s provision. He can function fine without us. The thing that is amazing is that He doesn’t want to be without us. He wants a strong, loving relationship with us (Attributes of God: Eternal and Infinite).
God transcends whatever corner we try to stick Him in. He is superior to whatever being we put Him in a line up with – angel, Satan, demon, human (Attributes of God: Transcendent).
Because God is invisible, we worship Him in Spirit and truth. God’s spirituality removes barriers to our worship. Even though we use physical attributes like rock and fortresses to describe Who He is, when we spiritually worship God, we gain a deeper meaning (Attributes of God: A Spirit).
God’s thoughts and ways are transcendent to ours, but we must try to imitate Him (Attributes of God: Transcendent). He may be different from us right now: but one day, we will be as He is. We need to worship Him now in preparation for eternity (Attributes of God: A Spirit).
Mysterious and Incomprehensible
- Because God is mysterious and incomprehensible, He does keep secrets from us but reveals to us as we either need to know or as we grow to be able to comprehend.
God does keep secrets from us. Satan made Adam and Eve to believe that that was not acceptable. God shouldn’t be allowed to keep secrets from us in the gospel according to Satan (Attributes of God: Mysterious and Incomprehensible).
Other things are only secrets until God reveals them. He reveals to us as we either need to know them or as we grow to be able to comprehend them (Attributes of God: Mysterious and Incomprehensible).
When we feel we must know everything that God knows — that He shouldn’t keep secrets from us — we are not acknowledging His sovereignty. We are elevating ourselves to a place we were never meant to be (Attributes of God: Mysterious and Incomprehensible).
We need to accept that we will not understand everything that God does. God withholds the things from us that we don’t need to know or can’t know. Science isn’t going to figure everything out. No, we don’t need to know everything. We need to trust Him (Attributes of God: Mysterious and Incomprehensible).
Omnipotent, Omniscient, and Omnipresent
- God’s omnipotence means God’s power is never ending and goes beyond what we can imagine, making nothing easy or hard for God.
- God’s omniscience means wisdom is part of God’s essence, making Him alone wise as He does not have to acquire wisdom.
- God’s omnipresence means there is no place that God is not.
God’s power is never ending and goes beyond what we can imagine. Nothing is easy or hard for God. God is able to do everything with ease. Things are either done or not done with Him. That takes it out of whether God can do it. It firmly puts it into it is God’s choice on what to do (Attributes of God: Omnipotent and Powerful).
God is powerful, but He is not a dictator. He allows us to make our own decisions. We will have to pay the consequences of those decisions, but He doesn’t force Himself on us.
God is powerful and can and will provide for us whether we ask Him to or not. He will provide in the way that is best for us (Attributes of God: Omnipotent and Powerful).
Wisdom is part of God’s essence. God alone is wise as He does not have to acquire wisdom (Attributes of God: Omniscient and All-Knowing).
God’s wisdom can be seen throughout creation. His governance of man and nature show His greatness. God’s wisdom is sufficient that it puts Him in control (Attributes of God: Omniscient and All-Knowing).
Most importantly for us, we see God’s wisdom in His dealings with fallen mankind. He not only brings glory to Himself, but He also brings redemption and goodness to mankind (Attributes of God: Omniscient and All-Knowing).
God had, has, and will always have the knowledge, wisdom, and control of His creation because His plan was always in place. He knows from beginning to end. He understands all. His Will will be accomplished (Attributes of God: Omniscient and All-Knowing).
God is all-encompassing. There is no place that God is not (Attributes of God: Omnipresent).
If God is going to be perfect, He has to be omnipresent. God has to exist through all time and space. This enhances Him being perfect. If He is perfect, He should be eternal. If God is not omnipresent and eternal, then His perfection and His power will be limited. It can feel like, if God is not there, He has never existed. God has to be present to act. He has to be present to create and to sustain the creation. His wisdom must be present (Attributes of God: Omnipresent).
We know God is a thinker and a planner. He doesn’t just spontaneously do something. It is part of God’s omniscience. He knows all — past, present, and future (Attributes of God: Transcendent).
Eternal, Self-Existent, and Unchangeable
- Because God is eternal, He inhabits eternity and will continue to rule His creation throughout eternity.
- God is self-existent because He was not created by another and is accountable to no other entity.
- God’s unchangeability means He hasn’t changed His mind or His character since before the foundation of the world and won’t for the rest of eternity.
God inhabits eternity and will continue to rule His creation throughout eternity. He occupies eternity, not just lives eternally. That makes it more of a space than a time (Attributes of God: Transcendent; Attributes of God: Eternal and Infinite).
God is Ruler over all things and will be for eternity. He is Sovereign God. From Him all other life flows (Attributes of God: Eternal and Infinite).
God hasn’t changed His mind since before the foundation of the world. We know He won’t for the rest of eternity. Not only can He not change, but He also made the promise never to change if He could. His covenant is secure. Instead of holding the worldview that it would be better if God changed, we actually benefit that He is unchangeable (Attributes of God: Unchangeable and Immutable).
We generally think that God’s immutability means we don’t have to guess what He is thinking on a subject any given day. It also means that He can’t be corrupted. That means He won’t fail (Attributes of God: Unchangeable and Immutable).
God’s immutability makes Him dependable. He doesn’t change His mind to manipulate us into doing what He wants. That God is unchanging allows us to build a strong foundation on His Word (Attributes of God: Unchangeable and Immutable).
We tend to think that constant change is detrimental to us. That shifting landscape, though, can help us grow closer to God. It can identify areas on which we need to work (Attributes of God: Unchangeable and Immutable).
God is self-sufficient because He is blessed. He was not created by another entity — He has life within Himself. He has life because of His essence. This essence He possesses is blessedness (Attributes of God: Self-Sufficient).
God has all the ingredients to be happy. He has the knowledge and power to feel that emotion. His wisdom can direct those. He has the goodness as the foundation for happiness and the moral character to make Him a perfect Being (Attributes of God: Self-Sufficient).
God is self-sufficient because He can do it all — far more than we mere humans can do. There is nothing to which God can be measured. He is much higher than anything. God is self-sufficient because He is in control. He doesn’t need anyone to bring things about. He can (Attributes of God: Self-Sufficient).
Sovereign and Pure
• God’s sovereignty means He has supreme power, giving Him control over all things without accountability to a higher power.
• God’s purity stems from the fact that He cannot sin.
Sovereign God is clothed by His moral character (Attributes of God: Sovereignty).
God is Sovereign because of His purity (Attributes of God: Sovereignty). He is pure, faithful, and blameless in what He does because He is pure, faithful, and blameless (Attributes of God: Purity).
We have to remember that God won’t do anything that is not in His nature. He will remain pure (Attributes of God: Omnipotent and Powerful). God is holy and pure, so He cannot tolerate anything less — sin. He loves us, so He can offer us salvation. But there is one unpardonable sin, which I think is unbelief. If we can’t give up our sin and won’t submit our lives to Him, God can’t forgive that. God can’t alter His purity to accept our impurities. He can’t reconcile Himself to sin (Attributes of God: Purity).
There is a difference between God’s power and His authority. God has the strength and the power to do all the things He is doing. God has the authority to do what He does. Sovereignty means supreme power, giving God the right to control things. And God is definitely in control of the universe. He created it, and He hasn’t put its control in our hands (Attributes of God: Sovereignty).
Over all of God’s power, over His strength and holiness is His love. God loves us (Attributes of God: Sovereignty). Our Sovereign God is unique in His forgiveness and His works (Attributes of God: Unified and One).
Sovereign and Father is almost like a continuum. The majesty and splendor that is on the Ruler’s side, and love and tenderness is on the Father’s side. Power is offset by love and grace. But it isn’t so much a continuum. God does fall at one point one day and on the other side the next. God is at all points at all times (Attributes of God: Unified and One).
Unified and Three in One
• The Trinity is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, three distinct Persons within one indivisible Divine nature.
Scriptures are very clear that there is only one God. There can only be one infinite, omnipotent being that gives life to others. God has no rival or equal (Attributes of God: Unified and One).
No proof has been given that there is more than one god. If there were more than one god doing the creating, it wouldn’t work. Both would not be termed the Highest or the Most Excellent (Attributes of God: Unified and One).
No, there is no one like God. He created mankind, knowing we would disobey. The Plan of Salvation was always Plan A (Attributes of God: Unified and One).
We can take comfort in the fact that, when we grab hold of God’s promises, we won’t be destroyed either. We no longer have to fear the fury of hell when we submit our lives to Him (Attributes of God: Unchangeable and Immutable).
We would never have been told to go proclaim the gospel “… in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt. 28: 19 CSB) if they were not Three in One (Attributes of God: Three in One).
In the next devotion, we will review the remaining attributes of God.
Father God. You are almighty. We praise Your name. Help us to learn more of Your character so that we can imitate You. Amen.
What do you think?
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