The Attributes of God: An Overview
My Journey
I have been studying about the attributes of God for the better part of a year now. I have read several books and listened to more than a dozen videos and podcasts as well as teaching a series on this subject, (see sources) and still I feel I am only grasping the tiniest fraction of who God is. Despite the fact that I have been unable to absorb more yet, I know that my faith has grown immensely from the journey, and will continue to grow as I keep meditating on God’s personage.
It has been such a wonderful experience, I have wanted to post and share my discoveries for a long time. However, every time I tried, it seemed my understanding would not come together in a coherent explanation. After mulling it over more, I am ready to begin my attempt to share my thoughts on these discoveries. I suspect this will be a rather long series of posts on this topic.
What is an Attribute?
An attribute is a quality that belongs to a being, a characteristic of the nature of a being. It defines who and what a being is. Attributes are the characteristics of a person, an explanation of the character of that person. If someone were to describe Billy Graham, for example, as a playboy, you would wonder if they were referring to a different Billy Graham than you know of. Or Mike Tyson maybe as a loving husband, you would be surprised that could be the person you thought they meant.
The attributes of God describe His divine nature, personage, perfections, qualities, essence, being, and character. If someone says that god is mean, for example, I have to say they are not talking about God, because that is not how God is. If we have a wrong picture of God, then we are not really serving God at all.
Being a Christian, being born again, getting saved starts with knowing God–His holiness, His wrath, His love, His power to save. That means there is no higher subject to study than the being of God. AW Tozier has said that whatever comes into your mind when you think about God is the most important thing about you. It is the most determinative influence in your life. If someone knows what you believe about God, they can tell everything else about your life, because our lives are simply the overflow of what comes into our minds when we think of God. We cannot be wrong about God, and right anywhere else.
When we meet someone, we know them–but as we continue to get to know that person, we grow deeper in that knowledge. In comparison with how we know someone after years of marriage, we barely knew them when we married. We knew them, but our knowledge deepens and heightens and broadens and our relationship draws closer and closer. Salvation is entering into a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, but as we grow in Him, we increase that knowledge continually.
Knowledge of God is a specific study because God is in a class by Himself:
Leviticus 15:11 “Lord, who is like You among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, revered with praise, performing wonders?”
Deuteronomy 3:24 “for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can perform deeds and mighty acts like Yours?”
Psalm 71:19 “Your righteousness reaches heaven, God, You who have done great things; God who is like You?”
Micah 7:18 “Who is a God like You? . . . He does not hold on to His anger forever, because He delights in faithful love.”
Partial List of Attributes of God
Incomprehensibility–we can never know God fully any more than the ocean can be held in a glass, but what He has revealed, we can know completely and confidently.
Aseity–God is self existent. He finds His existence within Himself. He is not dependent upon anything outside of Himself.
Immutability–God has never changed and never will change. What He is, He always has been and always will be.
Holiness–God is exalted and transcendent, and possesses moral perfection.
Wrath–God has righteous indignation against and demands retribution for any infraction of His moral code.
Sovereignty–God has the position of absolute ruler of the universe.
Spirituality–God does not possess a physical body.
Infinity–God has no limits outside His own nature.
Omnipotence–God has the power to do anything within His nature.
Omniscience–God know everything perfectly: past, present, future, and also possible.
Omnipresence–God exists outside of the space/time/matter continuum.
Truthfulness–God is the measure of truth. Things are exactly what He says they are.
Wisdom–God always chooses the best means to achieve the highest ends.
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