What is God like?

[Xeno.of.athens]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

 

[Grip Docility]

1 John 4:7 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

The Man of War (Exodus 15:3) Wars from the stance of Love.​

The One True Judge of mankind (Ecclesiastes 3:17) will Judge from the stance of Love Matthew 25:31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46)​

The Alpha and the Omega began Creation with Love and will settle all things from the stance of Love​

​

God? God is incomprehensible Love

 

[RandyPNW]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

I grew up with a knowledge of God. He is simply "God," a presence that fills the universe and is always aware of what is in my mind. Without my personal knowledge of God I would be left with a sense of His possible existence, recognizing that He would have to be so vast that I could never comprehend Him. But I do know Him.

It is impossible to pin God down, but there have been patterns in the way He deals with things. I know He is patient and tolerant. And I know there is a limit to His patience. He has been angry with me before.

Sometimes He simply remains distant. And inexplicably He shows up as if I've been a "good boy." Grace is something I grapple with because sometimes I don't know the boundaries very well.

I do recognize that there is a consistency to being acquainted with Him. Call it a fragrance, if you will. In meetings where believers gather, there are varying degrees of His Presence--sometimes woefully dry, and sometimes bursting with excitement.

The best thing about knowing God over the long haul is a deeper sense of what He's like--the love He has for us as individuals. I can't say enough about that!

People who are devoted to God carry a greater sense of God's Presence. I don't think it comes cheap, but God does, I think, pour out on young, excited Christians what I call "baby gifts." They are exceptionally spiritual for awhile, as God pours His Spirit out on them to encourage their start of a new life in Him.

 

[Clare73]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

God is infinite Spirit..
God is sovereign
God is most wise.
God is most holy.
God works all things for his own glory.
God is most just, giving everyone his due, what he has earned, what he is owed.
God is most merciful.
God submits to his own justice.
God is most loving.

 

[public hermit]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

I say we can know something of what God is like, but that "knowing" is qualified. We can know something about God that is true (we can form concepts about God that are not necessarily false) while not knowing all that is true about God. Whatever we do know or say about God must be less than the reality. For instance, while it is not false that God is Being, what God is (in God's Self) goes beyond what we know of being, especially through our own experience. So, I think we can know what God is like (using analogy) even though God is unlike everything.

God can be revealed to us, and in this age, God is only revealed to us. What we know in that sense is sufficient for our needs, but I would say the closer we get to direct experience of God, the less we can grasp conceptually. God is Sui Generis, proper. God is seen in God's effects, and yet God transcends them. I tend to side with those who hold to the inscrutable nature of God, ultimately, but I believe we can penetrate this "Cloud of Uknowing" with our heart (good desire) even if we cannot do so with our mind.

 

[RandyPNW]

I say we can know something of what God is like, but that "knowing" is qualified. We can know something about God that is true (we can form concepts about God that are not necessarily false) while not knowing all that is true about God. Whatever we do know or say about God must be less than the reality. For instance, while it is not false that God is Being, what God is (in God's Self) goes beyond what we know of being, especially through our own experience. So, I think we can know what God is like (using analogy) even though God is unlike everything.

God can be revealed to us, and in this age, God is only revealed to us. What we know in that sense is sufficient for our needs, but I would say the closer we get to direct experience of God, the less we can grasp conceptually. God is Sui Generis, proper. God is seen in God's effects, and yet God transcends them. I tend to side with those who hold to the inscrutable nature of God, ultimately, but I believe we can penetrate this "Cloud of Uknowing" with our heart (good desire) even if we cannot do so with our mind.

I loved what you said and how you said it except that last bit. "We cannot penetrate the "cloud of unknowing" with our mind?" Of course we can! God gave us minds precisely so that we can know Him, who also has a mind!

But yes, God is transcendent, beyond our ability to know Him as He is in His transcendence. We can only know the part of Him that He extends down to our finite level. That is, however, enough for me. I have no wish to be God myself!

 

[public hermit]

I loved what you said and how you said it except that last bit. "We cannot penetrate the "cloud of unknowing" with our mind?" Of course we can! God gave us minds precisely so that we can know Him, who also has a mind!

But yes, God is transcendent, beyond our ability to know Him as He is in His transcendence. We can only know the part of Him that He extends down to our finite level. That is, however, enough for me. I have no wish to be God myself!

The last bit was partly a h/t to the 14th century book on contemplative prayer, which has informed some of both my understanding and my experience. I'm fine with saying God has mind, but I would add we don't want to get the analogy backwards. It is not as if God has a mind like ours, but that we have minds that are somehow like the divine mind but only so much. Our minds might be very little like the divine mind in significant ways. I mean, does God have a body or a brain by nature? What is our experience with "mind," sans body and brain?

The Cloud of Unknowing - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[RandyPNW]

The last bit was partly a h/t to the 14th century book on contemplative prayer, which has informed some of both my understanding and my experience. I'm fine with saying God has mind, but I would add we don't want to get the analogy backwards. It is not as if God has a mind like ours, but that we have minds that are somehow like the divine mind but only so much. Our minds might be very little like the divine mind in significant ways. I mean, does God have a body or a brain by nature? What is our experience with "mind," sans body and brain?

The Cloud of Unknowing - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Exactly my thoughts, which is why I added, "but I'm not God, nor do I wish to be so." We do not have minds exactly like God's but only a poor resemblance at best.

Nevertheless, God said He made us in His image, which is probably why I said He has a mind like we have a mind. It is obviously so that we can communicate with each other.

How can He share His word reliably with us if He can't communicate to us in a way in which we know it is Him? Thanks for your very deep thoughts!

 

[ARBITER01]

So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

I had a dream years ago where I seen the outline of a huge person sitting on a massive throne. I was looking behind Him over His right shoulder at a distance. I saw Him raise up His right hand palm upwards, and inside of his palm was small me. Then the dream ended.

I understood how when GOD stepped down upon Mount Ararat how half the mountain immediately went up in flame. The Father is a massive being, and we are only made in His image, not His size.

 

[Bob Crowley]

I claim to have had three "double whammies", which were used to highlight three phrases spoken by other people, way back at Christmas 1983 and then twice in 1984.

The "double whammy" was like a breath going through me in waves from head ot foot, very pronounced, it didn't come from me but nobody else knew about it unless I told them.

I suppose it was about 6 months between first and third "double whammy"

We move at more than 1.3 million miles per hour (approx. 2.08 million kilometres) through the universe using the background radiation as the reference point.

And how fast is the Milky Way Galaxy moving? The speed turns out to be an astounding 1.3 million miles per hour (2.1 million km/hr)!

In six months I would have moved at least 5.7 billion miles through the universe (9.12 billion kilometres).

In 1984 there were abouit 4.76 billion people on earth.

Assuming it was God who supplied the "double whammies", He knew where I was on 3 specific occasions, with the last one about 5.7 billion miles away from the first location, and how to get three messages to me using a "double whammy" when I was just one of of about 4.67 billion people without anyone else knowing about it.

I long ago gave up trying to psychoanlyse God.

 

[NBB]

What amazing with God is that he cares for us, and wishes us, our creator, humbling himself to help us be with us,
what important person in this world is interested in other 'lowly' people like that.

And people later ignore all that, and even say he is bad somehow.

 

[eleos1954]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

God is Love. He created His intelligent beings with the choice to love or not. God's love is a principle ... not an emotion ... putting others before self .... this is what Jesus (who is God) did on the cross ... laid down His live and provided the way to be reconciled with God.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 New International Version (NIV)

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them of those who are sincere believers in Christ.

 

[Jonaitis]

Some think of God as a stern judge who watches and judges everything that they do. Some think of God as their Saviour who loves them and will not condemn them no matter how many mistakes they make. Some think of God as vast and timeless and so far beyond human understanding that it makes every attempt to know what God is like, futile. And some have other views of God that they live in and with. So, my brothers and sisters, what is God like?

'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.' ​

(Matthew 6:9-13 NRSV)

God represents the ultimate reality that underlies and manifests the whole universe.

"All things were made through Him."
— John 1:3

"In Him all things hold together."
— Colossians 1:17