God
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In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
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| God | |
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| SERMONS, ESSAYS AND OPINIONS | |
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God is the central being of all existence. He is eternal, without beginning and without end (Psalm 90:2; Revelation 1:8). All things that exist owe their existence to Him, and nothing that exists can exist apart from His sustaining power. The very first chapter of the Bible begins not with an argument for God’s existence but with a simple, majestic declaration: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). From the very opening verses, Scripture presents God as the eternal, personal, powerful Creator who speaks the universe into existence and forms humankind in His own image (Genesis 1:26–27).
The Bible also reveals God’s character to be full of mercy, compassion, justice, holiness, and steadfast love (Exodus 34:6–7; Psalm 103:8–14). The apostle John states plainly that “God is love” (1 John 4:8), and this love is demonstrated not abstractly but personally through His actions in history—most clearly in the sending of His Son, Jesus Christ, for the salvation of the world (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).
Millions of people across the world and throughout history have trusted in this God as their Lord, Master, and Saviour. He is not a distant or impersonal force but a personal being who reveals Himself, who invites people into relationship with Him, and who comes into anyone’s life when that person acknowledges Him, turns from sin, and places their trust in Him (Acts 3:19; James 4:8).
Christian faith affirms that this one God eternally exists as Trinity: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. These three are distinct in personhood, equal in divinity, united in essence, and harmonious in their work. Though this truth surpasses our full comprehension, it is the consistent witness of Scripture and the foundation of Christian belief.
Names and Titles for God
In Scripture, names reveal character and relationship. The names God reveals about Himself show His eternal nature, His covenant love, His power, and His nearness to His people.
The Hebrew of the Old Testament uses several key words to describe God.
- Elohim is used over 2,500 times and is the dominant Old Testament word for God. Its plural form, paired with singular usage, has intrigued generations of Christian readers, as it echoes God’s unity and yet allows space for Trinitarian revelation.
- El - Singular terms meaning “Mighty One” or “God,” emphasising His strength and sovereigny
- Yahweh - The covenant name, revealing God as personal, faithful, and present with His people
The words for “God” in the Greek include:
- Theos (Θεός) which refers to the true God and is applied to both the Father and, strikingly, to Jesus Christ, for example John 1:1, John 20:28 and Titus 2:13
- Kyrios (Lord), which, in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) translates the divine name Yahweh. Thus, when the New Testament calls Jesus Kyrios, it identifies Him with the LORD of Israel (Philippians 2:11).
Yahweh (The LORD)
The most central name of God in the Old Testament is Yahweh (or YHWH), often written as LORD in small capitals. God revealed this name to Moses:
“I AM WHO I AM.” — Exodus 3:14
This declares God’s eternal, self-existent nature. He depends on no one, yet all creation depends on Him. Yahweh appears more than 6,800 times in the Old Testament.
Some significant titles attached to Yahweh include:
- Yahweh-Jireh — The LORD will provide (Genesis 22:14)
- Yahweh-Rapha — The LORD who heals (Exodus 15:26)
- Yahweh-Rohi — The LORD is my shepherd (Psalm 23:1)
Adonai
Meaning “Lord” or “Master,” this title expresses God’s authority and the reverent obedience His people owe Him (Psalm 8:1).
Elohim
The most common Hebrew word for God, used in Genesis 1:1. Though plural in form, it is used with singular verbs when referring to the true God, hinting at rich complexity within God’s unity.
Note that the word elohim does not always to God, but can also be used to refer to any beings existing within the spiritual realm.
Some significant titles attached to El (the singular of Elohim) include:
- El Shaddai — God Almighty (Genesis 17:1)
- El Elyon — God Most High (Genesis 14:18)
- El Olam — Everlasting God (Genesis 21:33)
Descriptors and Titles for God
Titles express what God is like and how He relates to His people.
Some key biblical titles include:
- Creator (Isaiah 40:28; Colossians 1:16)
- King of Kings (1 Timothy 6:15)
- Redeemer (Isaiah 43:14)
- Judge of all the earth (Genesis 18:25)
- Father (Matthew 6:9; Romans 8:15)
- Shepherd (Psalm 23:1; John 10:11)
- Rock (Psalm 18:2)
- Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1:8)
The Character and Nature of God
God is holy (Isaiah 6:3), loving (1 John 4:8–10), just (Psalm 9:7–8), merciful (Exodus 34:6), sovereign (Psalm 115:3), all-knowing (Psalm 147:5), all-powerful (Jeremiah 32:17), ever-present (Psalm 139:7–10), and faithful (Lamentations 3:22–23).
God is completely holy and without any evil, yet at the same time forgiving, merciful, and full of love. His character is perfectly harmonious. His justice does not undermine His mercy. His holiness does not suppress His compassion.
God Is One
The foundational confession of biblical faith is:
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” — Deuteronomy 6:4
The New Testament echoes this:
- “There is one God” (1 Timothy 2:5)
- “God is one” (James 2:19)
This unity means Christians do not worship three gods, but one God who eternally exists as three persons.
The Trinity
The Trinity is the Christian doctrine that God is one in essence and three in persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Although impossible to fully grasp, Scripture clearly teaches that:
- There is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4)
- The Father is God (John 6:27)
- The Son is God (John 1:1; Colossians 2:9)
- The Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3–4)
- The three persons work together harmoniously (Matthew 3:16–17; 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14)
God the Father
God the Father is the eternal Father of the Son and the source of all things (1 Corinthians 8:6). He is Creator, sustainer, and sovereign Lord over all. He adopts believers into His family through Christ (Romans 8:14–17) and cares for them with fatherly compassion (Psalm 103:13).
He sends the Son (John 3:16), sends the Spirit (John 14:26), and governs all things with perfect wisdom.
God the Son - Jesus Christ
Jesus is fully God and fully human. He is the eternal Word made flesh (John 1:1, 14) (the incarnation), the radiance of God’s glory (Hebrews 1:3), and the Saviour of the world through his atoning death on the cross (1 Peter 3:18) and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). He reveals the Father perfectly (John 14:9) and brings salvation to all who repent and believe.
God the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is fully God and personally active in creation, redemption, and the life of the believer. He convicts us of our sin (John 16:8), gives new birth (John 3:5–8), indwells believers (1 Corinthians 6:19), produces spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:22–23), empowering us for witness (Acts 1:8) and distributes gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4–11). He is the presence of God in and among His people.
God as Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer
God created all things (Genesis 1–2), and He continues to sustain them (Colossians 1:17). Not even a sparrow falls apart from His will (Matthew 10:29). All nature declares His glory (Psalm 19:1).
God rescues His people - delivering Israel from Egypt (Exodus 14), restoring exiles (Nehemiah 9), forgiving sin through sacrifice (Leviticus 16), and ultimately redeeming the world through Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:7).
Human beings are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26–27) and designed for fellowship with Him. Sin breaks that fellowship (Romans 3:23), yet God continually calls people back to Himself. He is ready to forgive and transform those who repent (Acts 3:19; Isaiah 55:6–7).
Quotes
Sri Aurobindo, in Thoughts and Aphorisms
- A God who cannot smile could not have created this humorous universe.
Robertson Davies in Conversations
- A man who recognizes no God is probably placing an inordinate value on himself.
Albert Einstein
- Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish
Benjamin Franklin
- God heals, and the doctor takes the fee.
- God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.
- God will look to every soul like its first love because He is its first love.
- If God thinks this state of war in the universe a price worth paying for free will...then we may take it it is worth paying.
Galileo Galilei (1564 ~ 1642)
- I do not think it is necessary to believe that the same God who has given us our senses, reason, and intelligence wished us to abandon their use, giving us by some other means the information that we could gain through them.
Yiddish proverb,
- If God lived on earth, people would break his windows.
J.R.R. Tolkien
- If you do not believe in a personal God the question: `What is the purpose of life?' is unaskable and unanswerable.
Thomas Jefferson
- It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.
Immanuel Kant
- Reason can never prove the existence of God.
Emily Dickinson
- They say that God is everywhere, and yet we always think of Him as somewhat of a recluse.
Catherine Doherty
- With God, every moment is the moment of beginning again.
Unknown source
- You can live without God, but you better not die without him.
Romans 5:7-8
- For one will hardly die for a righteous man. Yet perhaps for a righteous person someone would even dare to die. But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
- God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
- God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
Exodus 3:14 (King James Version)
- God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Isaiah 45:5-7 (King James Version)
- I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.
Spike Milligan
- And God said, 'Let there be light' and there was light, but the Electricity Board said he would have to wait until Thursday to be connected.
Woody Allen
- If only God would give me some clear sign! Like making a large deposit in my name in a Swiss bank.
- How can I believe in God when just last week I got my tongue caught in the roller of an electric typewriter?
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