GOD IS OUR POWERFUL, Genesis 1:1-3 & 27, Colossians 1:16,
I Chronicles 29:11-13,
MAJESTIC, SOVEREIGN I Timothy 6:15-16, Isaiah 40:12-26, &
Psalm 115:3.
CREATOR
GOD IS LOVING, I John 4:8, Psalm 36:5-7, Lamentations 3:21-23,
COMPASSIONATE & PATIENT Deuteronomy 7:9-10, II Peter 3:9,
& Genesis 6:3.
GOD IS PERFECTLY Deuteronomy 32:4, Psalm 45:6-7, Exodus 34:7,
& Psalm 7:9-11.
RIGHTEOUS & JUST
ABOVE ALL ELSE, Isaiah 6:1-3, Psalm 99:5, Habakkuk 1:13a, Psalm
5:5-6,
GOD IS HOLY & PURE Luke 5:4-9, & Isaiah 57:15.
BECAUSE HE IS HOLY, GOD Romans 1:18-20, Nahum 1:2-7, II Thessalonians
1:6-9,
IS A GOD OF GREAT WRATH Hebrews 10:26-31, Isaiah 55:8-9, &
Matthew 10:28.
The WHAT IS GOD LIKE? Bible study is copyrighted ©1989 by
William C. Nichols and is a part of a larger Bible study series.
For further information on obtaining the entire series The
Knowledge of God contact International Outreach, Inc whose
address appears at the end of this study.
INTRODUCTION "The foundation of all true knowledge of God
must be a clear mental apprehension of His perfections as revealed
in Holy Scripture. An unknown God can neither be trusted, served,
nor worshipped...Something more than a theoretical knowledge of
God is needed by us. God is only known in the soul as we yield
ourselves to Him, submit to His authority, and regulate all the
details of our lives by His holy precepts and commandments."1
The vast majority of people in the world today are virtually ignorant
as to what the God of the Bible is like. They have heard of God,
but much of what they have heard is distorted, one-sided, or altogether
inaccurate. Most today have created a "god" to their
own liking who exists only in their own imaginations. Men and
women spend thousands of hours studying for college degrees so
as to equip themselves for the world that exists around us. It
seems very strange that so few will take time to try to know God
better to prepare themselves for the world to come. It is hazardous
not to spend some time examining the God who is revealed to us
in the Bible, for the Bible tells us that He is the judge of all
the earth and has ultimate power over every man's eternal destiny.
The God of the Bible claims to be the one and only true God. He
is revealed to us as being Creator of all that is, powerful, majestic,
sovereign over all creation, loving, compassionate, patient, perfectly
righteous, just, holy, and a God who is full of wrath or anger
against all unrighteousness. These are only a few of the characteristics
of the God of the Bible. We will examine each of the above characteristics
of God in more detail in an effort to get to know Him better.
1. We shall begin at the beginning of the Bible in the book of
Genesis. Turn to Genesis 1:1-3 & 27. Who does verse 1 say
created the world? How did God create light (vs. 3)? Who created
man according to verse 27?
Colossians 1:16 gives us a view of the power and majesty of God
in creation. What does it say God created? Was anything created
that God did not create?
I Chronicles 29:11-13 lists some of the qualities or characteristics
of God. List four words used in verse 11 to describe God. What
does it say that God is ruler or head over (vs. 11)? What does
verse 12 tell us about God? What does the knowledge of these things
cause the writer to do in verse 13?
Paul, the writer of many books of the New Testament, describes
God in I Timothy 6:15-16. God is called by three seperate and
distinct titles by Paul in verse 15. What are these titles? What
does it mean to be Lord of lords? How does Paul describe God in
verse 16? Why do you think God lives in unapproachable light?
What does this tell us about God and about ourselves?
Isaiah gives us a lengthy description of the greatness and majesty
of God in Isaiah 40:12-26. What does verse 12 picture God as doing?
What impression do you get of God from this verse? What are the
answers to the questions asked about God in verses 13-14? How
does the greatness of the nations of the earth compare to the
greatness of God (vs. 15)? What does verse 23 say God does to
the power of the rulers of the countries of the earth? What are
the rulers of the earth compared to (vs. 24)? What is the answer
to the question asked in verse 25?
Psalm 115:3 speaks of the sovereignty of God. What does this verse
tell us about God? The sovereignty of God means that His will
is supreme. He is the Creator of all and all creatures are accountable
to Him. He is a law unto Himself, so that whatever He does is
right. Psalm 135:5-6 says,"For I know that the Lord is great,
and that our Lord is above all gods.
Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, in heaven and in earth, in
the seas and in all deeps." Since God made us, we are accountable
to Him and responsible to obey His will and submit to His authority.
God desires that we lovingly choose to submit to Him; however,
most men and women despise and hate the idea of the sovereignty
of God. Men will allow God to do most anything except be on His
throne. Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said, "When God ascends
His throne, His creatures gnash their teeth. And we proclaim an
enthroned God, and His right to do as He wills with His own, to
dispose of His creatures as He thinks well, without consulting
them in the matter; then it is that we are hissed and execrated,
and then it is that men turn a deaf ear to us, for God on His
throne is not the God they love." How does the knowledge
of God's sovereignty cause you to respond to Him--favorably or
unfavorably?
2. Love is a characteristic of God that most people are familiar
with. But many today who talk about the love of God do not know
the God who in His very essense, is love. A. W. Pink has said,
"Divine love is commonly regarded as a species of amiable
weakness, a sort of good natured indulgence."2 God's love
as viewed by modern man allows man to do anything he pleases with
no consequences. This is not what the Bible teaches or portrays
about God and His love for men. Let's examine some verses which
tell us about God's love, compassion, and patience.
We will begin with I John 4:8. What does this verse tell us about
God? Does the verse imply that God only "has" love or
more than that? Notice that before John tells us about God being
love, John mentions the fact that God is light in I John 1:5.
What do you think of when you hear the word "light"?
Light often implies holiness, purity, and righteous.
Turn to Psalm 36:5-7. What qualities or characteristics of God
are mentioned in verses 5 & 6? How great is God's love or
lovingkindness (vs. 5)? Because God's lovingkindness is so great,
what does the Psalmist say this allows men to do (vs. 7)?
Lamentations 3:21-23 tells us more about God. What qualities does
Jeremiah mention that God has in verses 22-23?
The mistake that most people make in evaluating or attempting
to understand God's love relates to how God responds to and deals
with sin or unrighteousness in man. Deuteronomy 7:9-10 helps strike
a proper balance between God's love and holiness. What does verse
9 say about God? What does verse 10 say about those who do not
love God? How have those in verse 9 demonstrated that they love
God?
Some people doubt that God would ever judge the earth because
they see no evidence of judgment in the lives of the wicked today.
This leads to the misconception that God is indulgent of sin or
like an old man up in heaven, who is so full of love that He winks
at or overlooks all sin. At least two fundamental errors have
been made by such people: 1) They do not understand or realize
that judgment follows death. Therefore, since they do not see
evidence of divine judgment, they presume it does not exist and
2) They mistake the marvelous patience of God toward those in
the world for indulgence. Peter talks about God's patience in
II Peter 3:9. Why is God so patient with those in the world according
to what Peter says in this verse?
Genesis 6:3 reveals to us another side of God's patience. It says,"Then
the Lord said, 'My Spirit shall not always strive with man forever.'
" What do we learn about God's patience from this verse?
3. Not only is God a loving, compassionate, and patient God, He
is also perfectly righteous and just. Deuteronomy 32:4 tells us
more about God's character and what He is like. What does this
verse tell us about God?
Psalm 45:6-7 tells us about God's righteousness. What does verse
6 say is the scepter (a staff borne by a king as an emblem of
authority) of God's kingdom? Since God is declared to be righteous,
what is His attitude said to be toward evil (vs. 7)? God hates
all sin and His righteous character demands that He punish sin.
Not just a few sins, but all sin. Proverbs 15:26 says, "Evil
plans are an abomination to the Lord."
This balance between God's love and justice is seen clearly again
in the same verse in Exodus 34:7. What does the first half of
this verse tell us about God? What does the last half of this
verse tell us God will do to the guilty (those who break any of
His laws)?
Again, we see this balance in Psalm 7:9-11. What does the writer
of verse 9 ask God to do to the evil and the righteous? Since
God is righteous, what does this cause Him to do (vs. 9)? What
is God's attitude said to be toward evil (vs. 11)?
4. Above all else, God is a holy God. What does this mean? Holiness
is a quality that is totally unfamiliar to most modern men. Webster's
Dictionary defines holy as "sacred, of unimpaired innocence
or proved virtue, godly, worthy of adoration". Holiness implies
purity, moral perfection, and absolute uprightness. In Isaiah
6:1-3 God's holiness is declared. What does Isaiah see in verse
1? Seraphim, created beings similar to angels, surround the throne
of God. What do the seraphim call out to each other (vs. 3)? Why
do you think the word "holy" is repeated three times?
It is interesting to note that no other quality of God is ever
repeated three times like this in all the rest of the Bible. God
is never said to be "Love, love, love" or "Mighty,
mighty, mighty". Holiness then, must be the supreme character
trait of God. Above all else and any other quality, God is holy!
In Psalm 99:5 God is declared to be holy. What are we told to
do because God is holy?
In the first half of Habakkuk 1:13 we learn more of God's holiness.
What does it say about God's eyes and sin? How does God respond
to wickedness?
Turn to Psalm 5:5-6. How does God feel toward those who sin and
do what is wrong (vs. 5)? What does verse 6 say about God's attitude
toward the deceitful person?
Because God is holy, He hates all sin. God loves everything which
is in conformity or agreement with His laws, and hates everything
which goes against or is contrary to His laws. God hates sin with
an absolute hatred, therefore He must punish all sin. Even those
things which men consider to be "little sins" are hated
and despised by God. Every sin constitutes open rebellion against
God's authority and therefore is an abomination to Him.
Let's look at the response one man made when he became aware to
some extent of the holiness of God. Turn to Luke 5:4-9. What instructions
does Jesus give to Simon (also called Peter) in verse 4? How does
Simon Peter answer Jesus (vs. 5)? What happens (vs. 6)? What response
does this cause in Simon Peter (vs. 8)? Why do you think Simon
Peter responded in this way?
Finally, we will look at Isaiah 57:15. How is God described in
the first part of this verse? What description is given of the
person God is pleased to live with? Does this describe you?
5. The wrath of God is one characteristic of God which many people
prefer to ignore or try to explain away. In actuality, there are
more references in the Bible to God's anger, fury, and wrath than
to His love and tenderness. We have seen in the last section that
because God is holy, He hates all sin. A. W. Pink has written,
"Indifference to sin is a moral blemish... How could He (God),
who delights only in that which is pure and lovely, not loathe
and hate that which is impure and vile?...The wrath of God is...the
holiness of God stirred into activity against sin...God is angry
at sin because it is a rebelling against His authority, a wrong
done to His inviolable sovereignty. Insurrectionists against God's
government shall be made to know God is the Lord."3
Turn to Romans 1:18-20. What are the reasons listed in verse 18
that the wrath of God comes upon men? What can any man learn about
God by observing God's creation around him (vs. 20)? Does any
man have any excuse after observing nature to deny that God is
real (vs. 20)?
The Old Testament book of the prophet Nahum begins by describing
God. Read Nahum 1:2-7. What characteristics of God are mentioned
in verse 2? What does Nahum say that God will do to His enemies
(vs. 2)? What will God do to the guilty (vs. 3)? How is God's
wrath described (vs. 6)? Still, Nahum reminds his hearers of God's
goodness in verse 7. To whom will God be a refuge or stronghold
(vs. 7)?
II Thessalonians 1:6-9 speaks more about the wrath of God. How
will the Lord Jesus be revealed from heaven (vs. 7)? Who are the
objects of God's wrath (vs. 8)? What will their punishment be
(vs. 9)? What character trait of God is spoken of in verse 6 to
describe God's response in repaying evil men with trouble or affliction?
The passage in Hebrews 10:26-31 is addressed to people who have
heard the truth about God, refused to believe it, and continued
on in their selfish lifestyles. They are described in verse 26
as those "who go on sinning willfully after receiving the
knowledge of the truth." What does the writer say in verse
29 about the person who knowingly rejects Jesus Christ? What warnings
are given to the one who has rejected Jesus in verses 30-31?
Isaiah 55:8-9 will help us to understand God better. In these
verses God is speaking. What are we like in comparison to God
(vs. 8-9)? God views sin and righteousness very differently than
we do. For one sin God drove Adam and Eve out of the garden of
Eden. For one sin God cursed the descendants of Ham. For one sin
Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land. For one sin
Lot's wife became a pillar of salt, Gehazi was turned into a leper,
and Ananias and Shappira were stricken with death.4
In Matthew 10:28 Jesus gives us counsel and a warning. Whom does
Jesus tell us not to fear? Whom does Jesus tell us to fear? Why?
In examining the character of God we have seen that God is much
different than we are. We have seen that God is our Creator, therefore,
we are accountable to Him and responsible to obey Him. We have
seen that God is both a loving and compassionate God, but that
His love must be balanced with His absolutely holy character.
Holiness is a quality that is difficult for us to understand,
because we are not holy. Because God is holy, He hates all sin
and must punish it. Since God hates sin so much, it is very important
that we understand what sin is. Please continue on to the next
study entitled "The Nature of Sin".
1 A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Book House, 1975), p. 8.
2 A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Book House, 1975), p. 77.
3 A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Book House, 1975), p. 83.
4 Ibid, pp. 43-44. (Summary)
Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960,
1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, by the Lockman
Foundation. Used by permission.