God With A Capital "G" (Part 3 of 6) By Allan Turner (http://allanturner.com/)
God Is Omniscient
When one considers passages like Isaiah 46:9,10; Psalm 147:5; Romans 11:33; and I John 3:20, one comes to appreciate the fact that there never was a time when the self-existent, eternal, and infinite God of all creation knew less or more than He does right now. God, because of who He is, never learns and never forgets. This characteristic is called omniscience. Omniscience is not anything like the knowledge man possesses. Man, by his very nature, cannot know some things. God, on the other hand, knows all things, and does so because He is "He who is" (Exodus 3:14).
Nevertheless, some are willing to argue that there are things that even an all-knowing God cannot know. These argue that the future free will acts of men and women cannot be known by God because they have not yet happened. God, according to this position, cannot know what cannot be known, and the future, contingent, free will choices of men and women cannot be known. But, can this be true? What is it that the self-existent, eternal, and infinite God cannot know? There is, of course, absolutely nothing that such a being could not know, for He transcends the flow of time and sees the past, present, and future in a kind of eternal now. (For an in-depth study of the contrast between these two positions, see the Green-Turner debate that took place in Gospel Anchor magazine a few years back [Discussion On The Foreknowledge Of God, Vol. XVI, Nos. 3,4,5,6].)
Only a being with the infinite characteristics and attributes of God could be all-knowing. Consequently, it is omniscience that God uses to challenge those who claim to be gods, but who are, in fact, no gods (Isaiah 42:8,9; 43:3-7; 44:7,8; 45:20,21; 48:3-7). Surely, praise, honor, and eternal glory belong to the one and only true God, who said, "I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done" (Isaiah 46:9,10).
God Is Omnipotent
Since God is self-existent, eternal, omnipresent, and omniscient, it comes to us as no surprise that He is also omnipotent or all-powerful. In fact, if God is infinite in His relationship to time, space, and knowledge, it only follows that He is omnipotent as well. In the New Testament, this truth is taught in Matthew 19:26 and Revelation 19:6. In the Old Testament, when God appeared to Abraham, He said, "I am God Almighty" (Genesis 17:1). In Jeremiah 32:27, God says: "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?" For God, of course, "nothing is impossible" (Luke 1:37). Finally, God's omnipotence is grounded in the fact of creation: "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" (Jeremiah 32:17).
God Is Immutable
Given the nature of God, there is no chance that He can ever be anything other that what He is. This can be inferred from His self-existent, eternal, and infinite nature. His nature or essence cannot change, but is eternally the same, incorruptible (Romans 1:23) and immortal (I Timothy 6:16). In other words, He is unchangeable or immutable (Psalm 102:25-27; Malachi 3:6; James 1:17). What does this mean? It means that the Self-Existent One cannot be not self-existent; it means that the Eternal One cannot be not eternal; it means that the Infinite One cannot be not infinite; etc. God, ontologically speaking (i.e., by the nature of His being), cannot be anything else; if He were, He would not be God!
Included in God's unchangeable or immutable nature are His moral attributes, for His moral character is no less a part of His essence than are His power and wisdom. What this means is that God has always been, and always will be, the holy, righteous, and gracious God that He is right this moment. His goodness has not been developed, and will never be altered. From everlasting to everlasting, He is the same in character, infallible and immutable (Numbers 23:19).
Of course, it must be kept in mind that the immutability of God's nature does not mean that He cannot interact with His creation. In fact, the Bible teaches that the Almighty has agreed to, and does, interact with His creation in time. Such interaction is genuine and not pretended. God has agreed to be influenced by His creation. Whether or not I can explain this in view of God's immutable nature is not the point. I cannot even understand it; how, then, can I explain it? In truth, it is not my responsibility to explain it; it is, instead, my responsibility to believe, teach, and defend it. If I had to be able to understand and explain everything about God, especially those things He has not chosen to reveal to me, before I could believe in Him, I and every other finite creature could have no choice but to remain in unbelief. The Aristotelian or classical view of God as "the Unmoved Mover," who is, in turn, unrelated to the world, impassive, and unconcerned, is, in my opinion, as ridiculous and it is un-Biblical.
As we've said, it is not possible that the essence of God could be anything other than what it has been, is, and always will be. If this essence were to change, then God would no longer be God. As a matter of fact, it is impossible to make distinctions between God, His essence, and His attributes. "I AM THAT I AM" or "He who is" (Exodus 3:14) exists as a self-existent (Romans 1:23; I Timothy 6:16; John 5:26), eternal (Deuteronomy 33:27), infinite (Psalm 139:7-10; Isaiah 46:9,10; Jeremiah 32:27), immutable (Psalm 102:25-27; Malachi 3:6; James 1:17) Spirit (John 4:24). If He ceased to be any of these, He could not be God. In other words, God's essence (i.e., that which makes Him what He is) could not be anything other than what it is; and that which makes God what He is, of course, is His attributes. Therefore, it is never correct to think of God apart from His essence or attributes. In other words, God does not have an essence; He is His essence, and He does not have attributes; He is His attributes.
Useless Religion by Allen Dvorak (Reprinted from The
Beacon)
In the days of the prophet Amos, the people of Israel were offering
sacrifices of thanksgiving to the Lord, observing the festivals
commanded in the Law of Moses, bringing their freewill and peace
offerings and their tithes, and filling the temple with songs
of praise to Him (Amos 4:4-5; 5:21-23; 8:3, 5). And yet God was
not pleased with them! Why not?
In his preaching Amos identified many of the sins of the people.
The poor were oppressed and cheated by the rich (Amos 4:1; 5:11;
8:4-6); the righteous could not receive justice in the courts
of the land (Amos 2:6; 5:12) and the affluent were materialistic
(Amos 4:1-3; 6:4-7), that is, concerned only about their material
things. Idolatry and sexual immorality were rampant (Amos 4:4;
2:7-8). How could the same people who were worshipping the Lord
with sacrifices and religious festivals also commit such acts?
The answer is that the people of Israel had separated their religious
service to God from their daily lives. They offered a ritualistic
worship to God which did not reflect heartfelt allegiance and
then immediately returned to the sinful practices of their daily
lives. For them, religion was only something to be practiced in
the presence of a priest, on specific days or in a special place.
The rest of the time they violated God's commandments regarding
justice, righteousness and purity without remorse. What was God's
reaction to such conduct? "I hate, I despise your feast days,
And I do not savor your sacred assemblies. Though you offer Me
burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them,
Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings. Take away from
Me the noise of your songs, For I will not hear the melody of
your stringed instruments. But let justice run down like water,
And righteousness like a mighty stream" (Amos 5:21-24).
God desires that we worship Him, but devotion to God which does
not affect our daily conduct is useless religion. The Bible confirms
that God has never been interested in receiving ritualistic religion
divorced from daily life. We cannot live like a child of the devil
from Monday to Saturday and then slip in among the sons of God
on Sunday and expect that God will not notice, that He will accept
our worship (1 John 3:8-10)! Even the irreligious recognize the
inconsistency (hypocrisy?) in those who worship God on Sunday
and cheat their clients on Monday, break the law on Tuesday, abuse
their children on Wednesday, etc.
Mindless devotion to ritual does not make us better people nor
glorify our Creator (read Matthew 23:23 for a clear application
of this principle). We must "die" to the sinful practices
of the world and allow Christ to live in us, not only on Sunday,
but every day (Galatians 2:20)!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Be ye fishers of men - you catch them and He'll clean them.
Deciding not to choose Jesus is still making a choice.
God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.
If God is your co-pilot - swap seats.
God loves knee-mail
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