WHAT IS GOD LIKE
THEOLOGY PROPER — Lesson 1: The Personality of God
“The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God. For this reason the most portentous fact about any person is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like. … The heaviest obligation lying upon the Christian Church today is to purify and elevate her concept of God until it is once more worth of Him—and of her. In all her prayers and labors this should have first place. We do the greatest service to the next generation of Christians by passing on to them undimmed and undiminished that noble concept of God which we received from our Hebrew and Christian fathers of generations past. This will prove of greater value to them than anything that art or science can devise.” – A.W. Tozer
--What is personality?
It is elusive to come up with a good definition of personality. How can personality be differentiated from traits, for example? Do animals have personality? Much depends upon the definition. Personality does not mean having one characteristic of personality. Otherwise, we are left with no distinction among any life forms (which, by the way, is exactly what the radical environmentalists wish to do!).
--The predicate and the adjectives
Important subjects like God require that we be careful with our use of words. This is why even grammar becomes important to our study.
There is one predicate regarding personality. It is that all beings having personality are a spirit. The spirit is the metaphysical substance of a being’s essence. We will study seven adjectives which will help us define what we mean by “spirit.” Those adjectives are: living, intelligent, purposive, active, free, self-conscious, and emotional.
--Therefore, in describing God’s personality, we can say:
God is a living, intelligent, purposive, active, free, self-conscious, emotional Spirit
The Lord our God is but one only living and true God; whose subsistence is in and of Himself, infinite in being and perfection; whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but Himself; a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions, who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; who is immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, every way infinite, most holy, most wise, 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. – London Baptist Confession of Faith, Ch 2 Paragraph 1
I. God is living
Deuteronomy 5:26 For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of fire as we have, and has still lived?
Psalm 42:2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
1 Timothy 4:10 For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
--What it means:
Life means energy, activity, movement (Strong). Life is energy of mind (Aristotle). God can do things which the non-living cannot do.
--Practical value:
Pantheism is out, if God is actually alive. So is all idolatry involving inanimate objects (including astrology).
(see also: Joshua 3:10-17; 1 Samuel 17:26; 2 Kings 19:4; Psalm 84:2; Jeremiah 10:10-13; Daniel 6:26-27; Hebrews 10:30-31; Revelation 7:2)
Matt Maher lyrics, Christ is Risen (video, 4:55)
Oh death! Where is your sting?
Oh hell! Where is your victory?
Oh Church! Come stand in the light!
Our God is not dead, he's alive! he's alive!
II. God is intelligent
1 Samuel 2:3 Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.
Proverbs 3:19-20 The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens; by his knowledge the deeps broke open, and the clouds drop down the dew.
Romans 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
(see also Job 38:1ff; Psalm 103:14; 104:24; Isaiah 29:16; Ephesians 3:10)
--What it means: God possesses intelligence of the highest kind. Note some of the terms used to describe God’s intelligence:
knowledge: perception of facts as they are
understanding: insight into the meaning of facts
wisdom: ability to place the facts in proper relation to other facts and use them for good ends
John Flavel: An Exposition of the Assembly’s Shorter Catechism, Of God’s Wisdom
Q. 1. How manifold is the Wisdom of God?
A. There is a personal and essential wisdom of God; the personal wisdom os the Son of God. 1 Corinthians 1:24. Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Colossians 2:3. In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. The essential wisdom of God, is the essence of God; of which this Question speaks.
Q. 2. What is the Essential wisdom of God?
A. The Essential wisdom of God, is his most exact and perfect knowledge of himself, and all his Creatures, and his ordering and disposing them in the most convenient manner, to the Glory of his own Name. Ephesians 1:11. According to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.
“What varieties has man found out in buildings, attires, husbandry, navigation, sculpture, and painting! ...What millions of inventions has he [in] arms, engines, stratagems, and the like! What thousands of medicines for the health…of eloquent phrases to delight, of verses for pleasure, of musical inventions and instruments! ...How large is capacity of man, if we should dwell upon particulars!” - Augustine
Kevin DeYoung: The Genius of God in the Glory of Man
DA Carson: The God Who Is Unfathomably Wise (lecture, 50:26)
--Practical value:
Evil-doers should recognize the intelligence of God will not allow them to “get away” with sin.
1 Samuel 2:3 Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.
The godly should recognize the intelligence of God means that God knows all their trials and will deliver them.
Job 23:10 But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.
(see also Isa 11:2; Job 28:12, 20-28; 1 Chron 12:32; Prov 4:7; Jam 3:17)
III. God is purposive
Isaiah 14:26 This is the purpose that is purposed concerning the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
Ephesians 1:11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will
Ephesians 3:10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
--What it means:
God makes plans according to His purpose, acts on His plan and succeeds in His plan. Nothing hinders God in the completion of His plan. God works so that everything that happens conforms to the end that He purposed.
Questions:
Do animals have purpose? Has an animal ever sinned? How does a person’s wickedness prove purpose? In what ways do you plan and prepare with a future goal in mind?
“With God, there is nothing without purpose” – Irenaeus (180 AD)
--Practical value:
God can act toward us now as though we are what we will be. (see 1 John 3:2)
Therefore, Christians can act toward others now as though they are what they will be. This is why Christians are the most compassionate people in the world. (see also Proverbs 25:1-2)
IV. God is active
Deuteronomy 11:7 For your eyes have seen all the great work of the LORD that he did.
John 5:17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”
--What it means:
God is ceaseless in His activity. Not just miracles, God holds everything together. In fact, a miracle is less significant that what God usually does!
(see also Psalm 92:4-5; Daniel 6:27; Philippians 2:13)
“God’s resting is not, then, as some conceive, that God ceased from doing. For, being good, if He should ever cease from doing good, then He would cease to be God, which is sacrilege even to say.” – Clement of Alexandria (195 AD)
V. God is free
Psalm 115:3 Our God is in the heavens; He does all that he pleases.
Job 23:13 But he is unchangeable, and who can turn him back? What he desires, that he does.
Isaiah 46:10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose’
Daniel 4:35 all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?”
Ephesians 1:11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will
--What it means:
God is free in that His actions are determined solely by His own nature and pleasure, not by anything outside Himself. Freedom is one of the clearest marks of personality.
“God can do everything that it is possible for Him to do without ceasing to be God, and good, and wise. … So neither is God able to commit wickedness, for the power of doing evil is contrary to His deity and His omnipotence” – Origen (225 AD)
Questions:
Can God do anything? Are animals free? Is man wholly free? Why is God alone perfect personality?
--Practical value:
1. It refutes two wrong ideas about God:
The Fatalistic view (Islam)
The Pantheistic view (Nature is God)
2. It gives the Christian both comfort and hope because God is free to answer prayer.
(see also Job 23:13; Romans 9:18; 1 Corinthians 12:18; Psalm 135:5-9)
E. Calvin Beisner: The Potter’s Freedom
“God, moreover, is as independent of beginning and end as He is of time” – Tertullian (207 AD)
VI. God is self-conscious
Exodus 3:14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
John 6:6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.
1 John 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
--What it means:
Self-consciousness is a fundamental mark of personality. In man, our self-consciousness leads to a higher capacity to sin. In contrast with man, God is completely self-conscious. In contrast with man, animals are conscious, but not self-conscious in any provable way.
Since God is completely self-conscious, He knows Himself completely and knows perfectly what He will do. Since man’s self-consciousness is incomplete, man cannot know what he will do.
For man’s incomplete self-consciousness, see:
Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!
--Practical value:
1. Answers the Hindu objection to Christianity. There is no evolution of God (Krishna) consciousness developing in humans or other life forms.
2. Answers the “Star Wars” objection to Christianity. God is not a force with a good and a dark side. Our God is self-conscious that He is, who He is, what He knows, what He will do, what He is doing, and why He is doing it!
VII. God is emotional
• God is jealous (Deuteronomy 5:9)
• God is grieved (Judges 10:16)
• God has hatred (Psalm 5:5)
• God has compassion (Psalm 103:13)
• God is gracious and merciful (Psalm 145:8)
• God rejoices (Isaiah 62:5)
• God is afflicted (Isaiah 63:9)
• God loves (Jeremiah 31:3)
• God has wrath (Romans 1:18)
“The philosophical theologians tell us that there is no feeling in God. This, they say, would imply passivity, or susceptibility of impression from without, which it is assumed is incompatible with the nature of God. … Here again we have to choose between a mere philosophical speculation and the clear testimony of the Bible, and of our own moral and religious nature. Love of necessity involves feeling, and if there be no feeling in God, there can be no love. … We must adhere to the truth in its Scriptural form, or we lose it altogether. We must believe that God is love in the sense in which that word comes home to every human heart.” – Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, (free pdf)
--What it means:
1. These are not mere figures of speech. They are the genuine feelings of God. A theology of an emotionless God produces passive people. People become like the god that they worship. How is your walk with God producing these emotions?
Note that God’s emotions are not mixed with human imperfection and weakness. Imagine what it must have been like to see Jesus expresses the complete array of emotions in total perfection.
2. We can reject any materialistic theory of emotions
Emotions can have a physical origin: e.g. hormones, conditioning, drugs, brain chemistry all have a role in our emotional lives. BUT emotions are not wholly physical. This has amazing consequences for psychology and psychiatry.
Question: Do animals express emotion apart from a physical origin?
3. We should not confuse “emotions” with “passions.” While God is emotional, He does not experience mood swings or depression or sudden bursts of anger. God enjoys an unchangeable and eternal tranquility and consistency in His person.
VIII. God is Spirit
John 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
“God is invisible, incorporeal, without parts, without body, without passions, and therefore free from all limitations; he is apprehended not by the senses, but by the soul; hence God is above sensuous perceptions.” – William Evans
--What it means:
1. This is the predicate, the essence of God apart from attributes.
2. The general meaning of “spirit” in the New Testament is that it describes a being that can do something.
Here are some examples: speaks (Matthew 10:20); perceives (Mark 2:8); rejoices (Luke 1:47); worships (John 4:24); plans (Acts 19:21)
These verbs describe the highest functions of personality. The source of personality is, therefore, not in the brain but in the spirit.
3. The Old Testament is pretty quiet on the subject of God’s essence, but God being a spirit is assumed. The Jews had no problems with Jesus’ teaching on this point. We do get a hint of this concept in the prohibition against making graven images.
4. We can define “spirit” as the name given to the invisible source or center of personality, whether in God or man or angel.
5. “Spirit” is not a synonym for personality. Spirit is rather the basis out of which the functions arise. There can be no function without something to function. (The statement, “My car is fast and fun to drive,” makes no sense if you do not have a car!).
6. God is the very essence of personality.
“God is spirit.” This may immediately conjure up images of a ghost or other such apparition, but we must be clear that to say the Lord is spirit does not mean He is wispy or ethereal. When Jesus says “God is spirit,” He simply teaches what the Father is like — divine, not limited by physical corporeality, life-giving, and incomprehensible. … To be physical is to have extensions. Our bodies extend out from our core to a definite boundary. However, our Father has no such extensions or limitations. We cannot be in more than one place at a time, but God is everywhere. Even our spirits have this limit (Luke 16:19–31), but God is forever omnipresent. – R.C. Sproul, God is Spirit
Questions:
1. Do animals possess a spirit?
Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth?
--something leaves an animal when it dies and that something goes into the earth
--animals must therefore have a limited spirit, but this spirit is so limited that it really requires a different vocabulary
--the metaphysics of animals is largely unknown, since no one has experienced it!
2. Is it okay to have pictures of Jesus to help us to pray? Why or why not?
3. If no one ever saw “spirit,” how do we know that there is such a thing?
4. If God is invisible “spirit,” how do we explain verses such as:
Exodus 24:10-11 and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.
5. Why does the Bible speak of God’s hand, arm, feet, and eyes if He has no bodily parts?
2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”
Matt Slick: Anthropomorphism
“I suppose that I need not say that this verse speaks (Exodus 32:14) after the manner of men. I do not know after what other manner we can speak. To speak of God after the manner of God, is reserved for God himself; and mortal men could not comprehend such speech. In this sense, the Lord often speaks, not according to the literal fact, but according to the appearance of things to us, in order that we may understand so far as the human can comprehend the divine.” – Charles Spurgeon
IX. Conclusion
--God is personal. That is, God is living, intelligent, purposive, active, free, self-conscious, emotional, spirit.
--While we will never know everything about God, the personality of God is great comfort to us that we can know God and relate to Him.
--The loss of God’s personality leads to intellectual pantheism which leads to polytheism which leads to the worship of individuals which leads to the worship of the Anti-Christ.
Tim Challies: Visual Theology (grapgic) – The Attributes of God
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