The Concept of God

God is … Holy (Divine) … Omniscient (infinitely wise) … Omnipresent (being present everywhere at once) … Omnipotent (having unlimited power).

These are some of the words used to describe the nature and character of God. These are attributes that make Him different and distinct from man. These words help us understand the concept of God a little better, but as we learn or gain knowledge of God from the meaning of these descriptive words, we need to point out there is a distinction between God and His attributes; what He is … is not … all together who He is. Let me explain with this example.

You may say that you have a friend who is patient, but you wouldn't say your friend is patience. Your friend is more than the sum total of his or her traits. So we must also say God is more than the sum of His attributes.

In looking at the concept of God, we need to look at the word itself …

Concept … the word means idea, possibility or theory.

Theory … a concept not yet verified … a hypothesis.

Hypothesis … an opinion based on conjecture, speculation or supposition.

I feel like I'm going around in a circle. As you can see, when talking about God, the scientific approach doesn't work. He is more than a lab experiment.

If God is Holy, Omniscient, Omnipresent and Omnipotent … what does that make God? Sovereign. What's that mean? Being Sovereign speaks of … rulership, King, Head of State, the one greatest in status or power; the rightful owner who is independent and self-governing.

Okay … how does a self-governing Sovereign like God operate? He acts through what's called the Providence of God.

Providence is …

1.) The guardianship and control of all creation by God.
2.) A manifestation of God's foresightful care.

Providence can simply mean … to see beforehand and to act accordingly.

I could end this discourse by saying that God sees everything that happens in the world before it happens; that He is just an observer, an onlooker as the history of man unfolds. But there is much more to God's Providence than just watching; it includes guardianship and control with His foresightful care.

Remember, the one thing God has always wanted ever since He created man is a relationship with the crown of His creation … man.

The concept of God's relationship with man is thought of basically three ways.

1.) First is the deistic view, in which God created the world like a machine; He set all things in motion as if it were a watch with built-in secondary movements and causes of action, one movement causes a different movement each with its own effects on the natural scheme of things. Everything works automatically just as God intended when He spoke all things into existence.

This view states all God did was to set the earth's natural laws in motion like a watch or a machine and then … God steps out of the picture … and simply observes and watches everything that takes place in the world. He never intervenes; He never intrudes in man's affairs because He is only an onlooker. With this view of God, He is absolved of any blame for the catastrophes that happen in life. He leaves man to operate by the dictates of their own hearts.

2.) The next view is ethical monism which is the exact opposite of the first. This view claims that everything that happens is a direct result from the hand of God as He directs and dictates all movement, good and bad. Peace, war, sickness, accidents, weather … anything and everything, God does it all.

With this view … man has no free will … God determines everything and He actually causes everything to take place. We would then become only robots or puppets.

3.) The biblical view … if it is not a total rejection of these other two positions on God's providence, it is as close to total rejection as one can get. The historical Christian view is that God created the universe to operate in the laws of nature that He predetermined. When God created man He gave him a free will to make his own decisions … good or bad … basically it's our choice.

As with the first view, God has stepped back somewhat, just not all the way to the role of only an observer. God observes, but will intrude into the affairs of man if and when He so chooses … does He not have the authority and the right to do so? There are times when He is the cause of how things work by intervening in our lives. At other times our decisions may be the indirect result of His influence at work on our lives to bring about His sovereign will. I believe that God is sovereign over everything that happens in the world either by direct cause from His hand or the secondary causes He has already put in nature.

One last thought about the Sovereignty of God. God must be in total control of everything created … everything. That's part of being Sovereign. If there is even one molecule that is not under His control, one tiny little speck running around in God's created universe that He is not in control of … just one … then that means that God is not in total control of what He made. Do you know what that is alluding to? God is not God. If anything is outside of His authority, outside of His control … then He is no longer God over all things … and that can not be.