Who is God? What does He look like? Where did He come from? Where was He before He created the heavens and earth? These are all questions I have had, and that have actually kept me up at night. I’m going to assume that most of you have had these questions or similar questions too. It wasn’t until I read The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer that I actually understood who God really is. First, it is important to understand why we need to think rightly about God. Tozer quotes that “the essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him.” In other words, when we think wrongly about God we are committing idolatry. So now we understand why thinking rightly about God is important, but who really is God?
God is simply incomprehensible; God is not like anything. It is impossible for us as humans to imagine exactly who God is or what He looks like. We, and even the Bible, use things we know to describe God because that is all we know, but it is important to understand that these things do not accurately describe God. Because of this, “that-which-is-not-God” should be our basis for trying to understand who He really is. So you might be wondering if God is incomprehensible, then how can we really know who God is? Well, God does reveal some of His attributes to us which we can comprehend. An attribute is something that we can conceive as being true of God and these are mental concepts. God reveals these attributes to us through His word (The Bible), nature, and His son Jesus Christ. Some of these attributes include self-existence, self-sufficiency, immutability, wisdom, eternity, all-powerful, faithful, omnipresence, transcendence, good, just, merciful, holy, sovereign, loving, and so many more. When thinking of these attributes, it is important that we understand that no attribute contradicts another and that they can not be separated. As Tozer said, “we can think of them separately but they cannot be separated.”
God is exalted above all, He is the creator of all, He never changes, He is faithful, He is always with us, He is limitless in any way possible, and He desires to know YOU! To know these truths is to be free, relieved, and at peace. It is important to understand that we can not possibly know everything about God because He is nothing like us, but also that what we do know about Him shows just how amazing He truly is and that He is worthy of all our praises. With Easter just around the corner, I challenge you to do your own search for an understanding of who God truly is through reading scripture, prayer, and experiencing His constant presence in your life. Lastly, I suggest reading A.W. Tozer’s book The Knowledge of the Holy if you ever get the chance.
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” -Tozer
