What Is God Like?
The amount of misconceptions and flat out lies about God is astounding. What is the truth about His character?
The Great Controversy 1 of 2
Does God have a beginning or end?
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the LORD, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
It may be hard for our finite minds to comprehend—especially since none of us are exempt from death—but God is infinite; He always has been and always will be.
What belongs to God?
The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour.
Everything belongs to God first and foremost by creation, for nothing created itself. Humans belong to God both by creation and by redemption, for Jesus paid the price for our sin, thereby redeeming us from the power of death. In other words, we are doubly His: first because He gave us life, and second because He rescued us from certain death.
Because He created us, He cares for us as a loving Father cares for His children. It may be astonishing—or even difficult to grasp—that the Creator and King of the universe cares for each of us personally, but it is absolutely true. When we feel abandoned or neglected, He sees us and is with us (Isaiah 40:27-31; 41:10). He keeps our hearts beating, provides for our needs, and has a solution for every crisis (Acts 17:28; Matthew 6:26; 10:29-31; 2 Chronicles 16:9). No matter the time or place, He is always only a prayer away (Jeremiah 29:11-13).
Does God know all things?
Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?
For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
God is omniscient in the fullest sense of the word.
Does God know my thoughts?
O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest [comprehend] my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.
And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
As our Creator, God knows us better than we know ourselves. Just as there is no sin in our lives that God does not see, so there is no sorrow that He does not notice. He is acquainted with it all—every wound, disappointment, injustice, and abuse. Yet He is not merely aware; He longs to heal our wounds (Isaiah 53:5; Jeremiah 30:17; 33:6), restore what was lost (Isaiah 43:18-19; 51:3; Joel 2:25), comfort our sorrows (Psalm 147:3; Isaiah 57:18), make right every wrong (Romans 12:19), forgive every confessed sin (Psalm 103:2-4; 1 John 1:9), cleanse every defilement (Ezekiel 36:25), and set us free from every addiction (Luke 4:18). He who created the heavens and the earth by the power of His Word (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 33:6) has the same power to recreate us by that same Word (1 Peter 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:17), the Bible, but only if we let Him (Revelation 3:20).
Does God know the future?
Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.
Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
Not only does God know the future, but He also reveals it beforehand—to strengthen our faith in Him and to prepare us for what is to come. The Bible is full of prophecy for this very reason.
But God’s foreknowledge has a personal dimension as well, for He knows our individual futures and prepares and equips us to face whatever trials may come our way. More than that, He walks with us through them (Isaiah 43:1-2), just as He walked through the fiery furnace with the three Hebrew worthies (Daniel 3:22-25), and just as He was in the boat with His disciples during the storm on the sea (Mark 4:37-40). As long as Jesus was with them, they were safe, for it was impossible for Him who made the sea to perish in it.[1] When storms come into our own lives, we can rest in the promise that He will never allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13), and that whatever He does allow, He will ultimately work out for our good (Romans 8:28).
What comfort does this bring?
Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.
And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:
Because God is never caught off guard by any development, Satan’s rebellion in heaven was doomed from the start (Ezekiel 28:17-19), for God foresaw it and was prepared for it. He was likewise prepared for humanity’s fall, for Peter writes that Christ “was foreordained before the foundation of the world” (1 Peter 1:18-20), meaning that before Adam and Eve sinned, Christ had already offered Himself as their surety. This is the good news of the gospel, because no matter how unconquerable sin, evil, and death may now appear, God’s righteousness, love, and life will ultimately triumph (1 Corinthians 15:54-57).
Does God predestine who is saved?
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: that thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
God’s foreknowledge does not negate anyone’s freedom of choice. He respects free will, even when He knows it will cost Him everything; after all, He knew Satan would rebel against Him, yet He still created him. Why? Because God is love, and a foundational element of love is freedom of choice—freedom that always carries the risk that the one being loved may choose not to reciprocate.
Love is often expressed most vividly under trying circumstances. If God had created only angels whom He knew would remain loyal to Him, He would have limited Himself to a love that lacked depth—one that had never been “tried in the fire.” And a shallow expression of love can awaken only the same love in return. But God desires to reveal a love that “passeth knowledge” (Ephesians 3:19). Satan’s fall provided God an opportunity to display a love—by offering His Son for the sins of a rebellious world—that would never have been possible otherwise. This love, in turn, awakens a far greater love and devotion, not only from the redeemed human race but also from the angels who remained loyal to Him.
God’s respect for freedom of choice dismantles the idea of predestination—of God predetermining who will be saved or lost.[2] Imagine a pilot flying over a long, dark, one-way tunnel as two cars enter from opposite ends—both without headlights. The pilot knows disaster will soon follow, but his foreknowledge in no way impedes or imposes itself upon the drivers’ choice to enter that tunnel. Predestination is a dangerous teaching because it can lead people to live as though their decisions and actions do not matter, believing their destiny has already been determined. Scripture, however, teaches the exact opposite: our words and actions do matter, for we will be held accountable for them (Matthew 12:36; Romans 14:12; Revelation 22:12).
Is He the source of all wisdom?
And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
After Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, humanity became exposed to the knowledge of evil—with all its pain, misery, and suffering—which was never God’s design. Yet even all genuinely good human wisdom is not inherently ours, but His—a profound truth that removes any temptation to glory in ourselves (2 Corinthians 10:17; Galatians 6:14).
How many gods are there?
Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.
To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.
What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols? Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it. But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
There are countless gods across the world’s religions, but the Bible declares that there is only one true God,[3] that there is salvation in no other, and that one fallen angel—Satan—wages war against Him for the worship of humanity. Though Satan aspires to be like God (Isaiah 14:12-14), he is—and will always remain—a created being (Ezekiel 28:15). Since Satan especially covets the worship that belongs to God alone (though not His character, interestingly enough), it is unsurprising that, just before the second coming of Christ, the great test that will divide all humanity into two groups will revolve around worship.
God’s exclusive claim to divinity completely extinguishes the idea that mankind possesses inherent divinity or could attain it through practices such as yoga, mantra recitation, energy healing, or various Eastern meditation techniques. We are—and always will be—created beings. God does promise to bestow His character upon His followers (and what an honor that is), but we will never be divine—not even in heaven. The redeemed will live forever in heaven, not because they are immortal, but because God, who alone is immortal (1 Timothy 6:15-16), sustains their life.
How did God create the universe?
By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water.
All God had to do was speak, and immediately atoms came into existence and cells formed in obedience to His Word, for His Word possesses creative power. Because God never changes (Malachi 3:6), Jesus’ earthly life revealed that He had—and still has—the same power over creation (Mark 4:39) as when He spoke it into existence (Colossians 1:16; John 1:1-3).
Does He still create by His Word?
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.
The same creative power that spoke the worlds into existence out of nothing is still at work to speak His righteousness into existence in us—out of nothing—for we have no righteousness of our own (Isaiah 64:6). God’s power never changes; therefore, He exercises that same creative power in the re-creation of His image in us through the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:4-7), as we take hold of His promises by faith, especially those expressed in His Ten Commandments.
Why are the Ten Commandments promises? Because God knows that we have no power to keep them. The truth is He requires only that which He already gives. This is why He begins the Decalogue with the declaration that He is the Lord who delivered us out of bondage—bondage to sin. This is a fact, a finished work (John 19:30), for Christ overcame sin—our sins—in human flesh—our flesh (Philippians 2:7-8; Hebrews 4:15). Do we believe it?
After this opening declaration, God proceeds to spell out what His deliverance means in practical terms by giving us ten promises. In essence He says, “Because I have already delivered you—in Christ—from the bondage of sin, you will no longer have other gods before Me, nor worship idols, nor take My name in vain by living hypocritically; you will keep My Sabbath holy and honor your parents; you will not kill, nor commit adultery, nor steal, nor lie, nor covet.” Do we believe Him? This is the gospel proclaimed in the Ten Commandments, to be received by faith alone.
You are not to read or hear the word of God, and say, I must do that, I will do that. You are to open the heart to that word, that it may accomplish the will of God in you. It is not you who are to do it, but it. “It,” the word of God itself, is to do it, and you are to let it. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you.” This is stated in another place thus: “When ye receive the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.” Thus it is the word of God that must work in you. You are not to work to do the word of God: the word of God is to work in you to cause you to do. “Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.”
How is God glorified?
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
God is glorified through the marvelous works of His creation: the awe-inspiring sunset, the starry skies on a clear night, the fragrant meadow filled with colorful flowers, the majestic snow-capped mountains, the birds singing their cheerful songs, and yes—the people once marred by sin who have permitted God to completely transform their characters so that they reflect His—the most magnificent wonder of all.
What is His character like?
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.
To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
God is love, yet He is also perfectly just. He does not clear the guilty nor overlook sin, but takes that guilt and sin upon Himself, offering the sinner a second chance (John 8:11). He is patient, yet not indulgent—willing to chasten as a loving Father would, always for our eternal good. Never one to use force or coercion, He gently draws us into a relationship with Him, yet He honors our freedom if we continually resist. He is our heavenly Father who risked everything to spend eternity with His beloved sons and daughters. But because He is also just, all who refuse His free offer of life in Christ must bear the consequence of their sin themselves—the forfeiture of their lives—for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).[4] Yet this is not God’s desire for anyone, for Christ has already borne this death on our behalf!
How faithful is He?
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.
That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
It’s said that the bond between mother and child is the strongest human bond there is, but God’s love for you is actually even stronger. It knows no bounds.
What is the psalmist’s response to Him?
I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Will His name ever cease to be blessed?
Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his.
Waggoner, E. J. “Carest Thou Not That We Perish?” The Signs of the Times, vol. 17, no. 38, 21 Sept. 1891. ↩︎
Jacobus Arminius was a 16th-century Dutch Reformer who rediscovered the biblical teaching of free will, now known as Arminianism. He rejected both the Calvinist doctrine of predestination and the idea that all will ultimately be saved (Universalism). ↩︎
God’s declaration that He is the only true God may seem politically incorrect in an ecumenical world trending toward unity among religions. After all, what gives Him the right to make such a bold and exclusive claim? What sets the Christian God apart from all other gods is the fact that Jesus is the only One who died for His creation. What other god set aside his divine nature, took on the nature of his created beings, and died at their hands and for their sins? There is only One. ↩︎
It bears emphasizing: the wages of sin is death—not eternal torment in hell for a brief life of sin, nor a continuation of life as a disembodied spirit. This death includes both the first and the second death, because all the dead, whether saved or lost, will be resurrected again. The saved will be resurrected at Christ’s second coming, never to die again, while the lost will be resurrected at the end of the millennium for God’s final judgment. ↩︎