Who is God?

[arunangelo]

Force is a non-matter entity that exerts influence on its surroundings. Because it is non-matter it cannot be felt or seen. There are different types of forces in the universe. Some maintain the planets in perfect balance. Some regulate the weather patterns and seasons on earth. Some keep living things in proper order and make adoptive and evolutionary changes to keep them in existence. Life-force is another type of force, which is found in all living entities. It keeps a living entity in a state of being alive. It also coordinates the building of a single cell living entity into a multi-cellular highly complex structure. In the case of a human being it converts a single cell human being into a fully formed human being with trillions of cells and a highly complex brain with 110 billion cells and trillions upon trillion of connections. All of the activities of the above mentioned forces are highly complex, intelligent, inter-connected and well coordinated. Therefore, there has to be an infinitely intelligent force which created these forces; programmed their activities and sustains their presence. This force is God.

In addition to being the creator of the universe, God is also the spirit of love that fills the universe. The perfection of His love, which is His Spirit, is revealed in Jesus; (who is God in human form) who sacrificed His life on the cross so that those who offended Him and betrayed Him may have eternal life. Furthermore, when He was carrying His cross, He was concerned about the pain and suffering we will face (because of our sins), rather than His own suffering (Luke 23:27-29). His Spirit saves us from sin by making us selflessness, sacrificial, charitable, merciful and forgiving (Ezekiel 36:27). His Spirit also sustains the desire in our heart to perform works of charity when we are discouraged and tired (Matthew 11:30).

 

[granpa]

Christian Forums > Theology (Christians Only) > Theology > General Theology > Origins Theology

 

[philadiddle]

Trolling:

Since gods are invented by humans, I guess it's up to you.

 

[shernren]

Quick, creationists, go defend the essential doctrines of the faith! This faithless compromiser will enjoy watching the action.

* grabs some popcorn *

edit: ... mehh, false alarm. * munches some more popcorn and waits to see what will happen *

 

[theFijian]

Life-force is another type of force, which is found in all living entities.

Midichlorians?

 

[icedbun]

I'm not quite sure I understand this question really. True the various forces and energy in the universe do what they do and we can, in the main, calculate this and predict it. Sure we have some way to go towards a unified theory but that will eventually come and we will understand the universe.

Yet what has this to do with God? Obviously, as creator, He made it and set up the rules, so to speak, but the science of cosmology tells us nothing about God at all. It was never intended to. A creator, who created the universe, is, by the vary nature of things, going to have to be outwith the universe He creates. Cosmology only deal with what is inside the universe, although there are some suggestions that we might be able to learn something of the outside of it.

So I really am not sure what the OP is really saying. Is he saying that these various forces and energy replace God and that God is not needed or is he saying that cosmology is a direct attack on belief? I would love to know.

 

[noweeds]

it sounds like he was usung comparisons to give us a feel on who God is as best as we can understand Him. The things he mentioned can not be seen or touched but we accept they exist simply because we see the proof everyday. God isn't just a force but the creator of all things, the creator of everything from the smallest molecule to the human will to survive. The thought that there are forces that exist that can't be sensed opens us up to think about God.

The last paragraph out lines some of the key points about who God is but there is a lot more in His word.

 

[LifeInJesus]

Who is God? Don't even try to find our who God is. I tried, I thought for long but in the end, I found out nothing and everything was just theories that can never be proved on the earth. It was only when looking in The Bible that I did find out something about His true nature and that is that He is eternal. He's beyond the human imagination, we cannot begin to comprehend how He looks like or what He exactly is. Only God knows and He states to Moses "I AM that I AM". I think that says it all.

1 Corinthians 2:7

No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.

God is external and existed before time, He had no beginning and has no end.

 

[lucaspa]

Life-force is another type of force, which is found in all living entities. It keeps a living entity in a state of being alive. It also coordinates the building of a single cell living entity into a multi-cellular highly complex structure. In the case of a human being it converts a single cell human being into a fully formed human being with trillions of cells and a highly complex brain with 110 billion cells and trillions upon trillion of connections.

Sorry, but it has been definitively shown that there is no life force. As a biochemist, I can walk you thru the chemistry of life.

All of the activities of the above mentioned forces are highly complex, intelligent, inter-connected and well coordinated. Therefore, there has to be an infinitely intelligent force which created these forces; programmed their activities and sustains their presence. This force is God.

The forces are not intelligent. Gravity has not intelligence, for instance. It will operate to pull a kid on a sled down a hill and to crash a car that goes down a hill too fast.

Now, Christian theology does say that God sustains the universe. But God cannot be another force. By casting God this way you are making God a creature of the universe. That's not proper. This is the way that God sustains the universe has been stated by Christians in the past:

"The only distinct meaning of the word 'natural' is stated, fixed, or settled; since what is natural as much requires and presupposes an intelligent agent to render it so, i.e., to effect it continually or at stated times, as what is supernatural or miraculous does to effect it for once." Butler: Analogy of Revealed Religion.

"A Law of Nature then is the rule and Law, according to which God resolved that certain Motions should always, that is, in all Cases be performed. Every Law does immediately depend upon the Will of God." Gravesande, Mathematical Elements of Natural Philosophy, I, 2-3, 1726, quoted in CC Gillespie, Genesis and Geology, 1959.

In addition to being the creator of the universe, God is also the spirit of love that fills the universe.

Again, this comes very close to making God a creature of the universe. Yes, the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus revealed God's love for us, but it is not proper to say that the love "fills the universe".

 

[lucaspa]

Who is God? Don't even try to find our who God is. I tried, I thought for long but in the end, I found out nothing and everything was just theories that can never be proved on the earth. It was only when looking in The Bible that I did find out something about His true nature and that is that He is eternal.

First you tell us not to "even try to find out who God is" ,then tell us you found out in "The Bible". Can't have it both ways. Make up your mind. Either you can't or you can.

Why do you have to have the Bible? Moses didn't. Paul didn't have the NT. But both of those "found out" something about God, didn't they? How did they do that? They had direct experience of God!

People today who have such experience all say that they know a little about God, altho they all say they don't know the totality. Maybe pay a bit less attention to the Bible and bit more attention to God?

 

[Assyrian]

Who is God? Don't even try to find our who God is. I tried, I thought for long but in the end, I found out nothing and everything was just theories that can never be proved on the earth. It was only when looking in The Bible that I did find out something about His true nature and that is that He is eternal. He's beyond the human imagination, we cannot begin to comprehend how He looks like or what He exactly is. Only God knows and He states to Moses "I AM that I AM". I think that says it all.

1 Corinthians 2:7

No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.

God is external and existed before time, He had no beginning and has no end.

Does secret wisdom mean it is hidden and we cannot know it, or is Paul speaking of a secret that was hidden but now is revealed and can be understood through the Spirit of God in our hearts?
Remember the previous verse says
1Cor 2:6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.

As Jesus said to his disciples, John 14:7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.

 

[icedbun]

1

 

[LifeInJesus]

First you tell us not to "even try to find out who God is" ,then tell us you found out in "The Bible". Can't have it both ways. Make up your mind. Either you can't or you can.

Why do you have to have the Bible? Moses didn't. Paul didn't have the NT. But both of those "found out" something about God, didn't they? How did they do that? They had direct experience of God!

People today who have such experience all say that they know a little about God, altho they all say they don't know the totality. Maybe pay a bit less attention to the Bible and bit more attention to God?

Who is God? Don't even try to find our who God is. I tried, I thought for long but in the end, I found out nothing and everything was just theories that can never be proved on the earth. It was only when looking in The Bible that I did find out something about His true nature and that is that He is eternal.

Read what I said again and please don't go thinking God contacts people. He fulfilled everything through Jesus.

 

[juvenissun]

Force is a non-matter entity that exerts influence on its surroundings. Because it is non-matter it cannot be felt or seen. There are different types of forces in the universe. Some maintain the planets in perfect balance. Some regulate the weather patterns and seasons on earth. Some keep living things in proper order and make adoptive and evolutionary changes to keep them in existence. Life-force is another type of force, which is found in all living entities. It keeps a living entity in a state of being alive. It also coordinates the building of a single cell living entity into a multi-cellular highly complex structure. In the case of a human being it converts a single cell human being into a fully formed human being with trillions of cells and a highly complex brain with 110 billion cells and trillions upon trillion of connections. All of the activities of the above mentioned forces are highly complex, intelligent, inter-connected and well coordinated. Therefore, there has to be an infinitely intelligent force which created these forces; programmed their activities and sustains their presence. This force is God.

In addition to being the creator of the universe, God is also the spirit of love that fills the universe. The perfection of His love, which is His Spirit, is revealed in Jesus; (who is God in human form) who sacrificed His life on the cross so that those who offended Him and betrayed Him may have eternal life. Furthermore, when He was carrying His cross, He was concerned about the pain and suffering we will face (because of our sins), rather than His own suffering (Luke 23:27-29). His Spirit saves us from sin by making us selflessness, sacrificial, charitable, merciful and forgiving (Ezekiel 36:27). His Spirit also sustains the desire in our heart to perform works of charity when we are discouraged and tired (Matthew 11:30).

I will not put it that way. God HAS all the forces in your description. But God is more than just those forces.
What kind of force is love? If love becomes one of the "forces", then the word force as you use it becomes a misleading.

So, if you try to use any word as we know it to say "that is God", you are absolutely making a wrong definition. Because there is no such word to describe what God really is. Look at the definition of love in I Cor. Which one word do you think can be used to say "that is love"? Have you read that in all the descriptions of love, it only says "love is ...."? You need to know that "God is love" and "Love is God" are two very different expressions.

It takes the whole Bible to roughly sketch what God is. Which single word in the Bible which you think is enough to say that is God?

 

[theFijian]

It takes the whole Bible to roughly sketch what God is. Which single word in the Bible which you think is enough to say that is God?

A very interesting question Juvie How does God describe himself in the Bible?

 

[juvenissun]

A very interesting question Juvie How does God describe himself in the Bible?

Again, this is the major problem of the OP. Description of God is not a definition of God. When you say "love is God", you confined God by love. God may say I am this and I am that. That is fine. God is certainly more than this and that.

 

[theFijian]

Again, this is the major problem of the OP.

I don't see how this is a major problem (let's ignore the OP for now as it was largely a load of tripe) as God does describe himself in specific ways in scripture.

Ex 3:14 - God said to Moses, “I am who I am.”

Ex 34:6,7 - The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, [sup]7[/sup] keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation

Or all of Isaiah 43.

Description of God is not a definition of God. When you say "love is God", you confined God by love. God may say I am this and I am that. That is fine. God is certainly more than this and that.

I don't think 'confined' is the right word as you say yourself, God is Love, but he is more than just Love.

 

[icedbun]

Yet despite the various biblical passages, doesn't theology come up with some descriptive words about God?
Omnipotent
Omniscient
Omni-beneficent
Surely these are as much a description of what God is loike as much as biblical passages?

The OP was trying to show that God was a sum of all the forces of nature and it is clear that such a definition will not fit either the biblical descriptions of God (though the people of the time might have though of natural occurrences as acts of God) nor the theological formulations either. Surely to say we cannot know God is to miss the mark since it is clear from earlier posts that people here do know something about God form the texts they read so the argument against the OP is easily dismissed.

 

[juvenissun]

Yet despite the various biblical passages, doesn't theology come up with some descriptive words about God?
Omnipotent
Omniscient
Omni-beneficent
Surely these are as much a description of what God is loike as much as biblical passages?

The OP was trying to show that God was a sum of all the forces of nature and it is clear that such a definition will not fit either the biblical descriptions of God (though the people of the time might have though of natural occurrences as acts of God) nor the theological formulations either. Surely to say we cannot know God is to miss the mark since it is clear from earlier posts that people here do know something about God form the texts they read so the argument against the OP is easily dismissed.

OK. Then what else God is in addition to all the forces? Would that be all? Or may be you should add one more to it: The Unknown Force (Acts 17:23), just in case you forgot?

It there anything else inside/outside Heavens which can not be described as "force"? What kind of force is the time? or the space? Is God time too?

If I say: Time is God. How do you feel about it?

 

[icedbun]

Surely God is depicted in the Bible as a person not a blind force. Surely,too, he must be outwith the universe as it isn then universe that the Bible tells us he created (or rather a flat earth with a bubble over the top with the stars set in with heaven sitting atop it.) What is within the universe may be a manifestation of God but it can hardly be said to BE God.