From the beginning of human history, the Eternal God has been identified as the creator of the natural realm and all its life forms. (a) [see endnotes for Scriptures] While people visualize and worship Him in different ways, many honor Him as the Most High God, Lord of lords, and King of kings.
Throughout history, those who only knew of God and ignored His revealed guidance have been fearful of His displeasure. (b) To those who sought to heed His guidance and follow His revealed instruction, He was held in respectful reverence and worshiped as the Most High of all gods, lords and kings.
More than any of these acknowledgements, God desires for us to know and experience Him in a deeper and more personal way. One very righteous man questioned, “Can you discover the depths of God…the limits of the Almighty?” (c) To what degree can we know the Most High? Just who exactly is the Eternal God?
How Scripture Describes God
The disciple who was recognized as being closest to Jesus described the Eternal One in his first Epistle. Besides noting God is Spirit, John said, “God is light” and “God is love.” (d) These immeasurable qualities are central to the essence and the expressions of God. The Lamentations of Jeremiah states: “The Lord’s loving-kindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (e)
The Apostle John’s first-hand experience caused him to begin his writing with: “This is the message we have heard from him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” (f) Darkness does not exist in this God of light and love. Even when God appears to us, to turn aside or away, He does not produce even the hint of a shifting shadow. (g)
We want to realize darkness is a created feature of this natural universe; it does not exist in Eternity. The only appearance of power in darkness is its ability to hide from light. Light is so powerful, its presence always dispels darkness. An abundance of light produces much clearer sight and better understanding. God’s expressive light far exceeds our limited ability to clearly see and understand as He does.
Scripture uses darkness to speak of a lack of understanding. Without light, we “sit and walk in darkness” (h) and some even “love the darkness rather than the light.” (i) As we receive light, transformation can occur: “You were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light.” (j)
We want to understand that God’s essence can only radiate light and express love. John even blends the light and love of God as complementing factors by saying: “The one who loves…abides in the light.” (k) While light enables clearer sight, love enables better interactions. One without the other restricts our lives.
We want to understand that God’s essence can only radiate light and express love.
Our Father
When the Eternal One spoke from a burning bush and asked Moses to be His expressive representative, Moses asked, who shall I say sent me? God’s voice responded, “I Am Who I Am,” (l) acknowledging His light and love is timeless, not restrained by any past or future, nor limited to the temporary conditions of time and space. God echoed this in a phrase often repeated in Scripture, “I Am the first and the last.” (m)
In the last book of our Bible, the voice of God put it this way: “I am the Alpha and Omega…who is and who was and who is to come.” (n) The present tense is first to amplify His presence is always with us.
Two thousand years ago the Eternal One spoke and His “spoken expression” (Greek – logos) came into the womb of a woman to conceive and form the baby Jesus. (o) The life, words, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ revealed to the world that God’s light and love supports His forgiving nature. (p)
Jesus also revealed God’s desire to be our primary guiding influence during this life, as the best of all fathers. While God is generally perceived today as our heavenly Father, the realization was beyond belief during the time of Jesus. The insight was a fresh revelation for that day. God is recognized as Father only a few times in the Old Testament because His love and care for us as His offspring was not understood.
The concept that men can be children of God challenged the religious views of that day. Religious leaders considered the thought to be blasphemy, for they assumed a son is to be counted as equal to his Father. Jesus did not assume or proclaim to be as God but always referred to himself as “a son” of God.
Unfazed, Jesus continued to promote the revealing insight that his intimacy with the Eternal One was as a son. He sought to be the expression of God that said and did what he sensed His Father was saying and doing. (q) This is what led to the crucifixion of Jesus. (r)
The New Testament speaks of God as “Father” over 250 times. Jesus was clear when he said we can come to God as adoring children, who get to know and relate to Him as our Father. (s) We are encouraged as men and women to become more than withdrawn offspring who only know about the Eternal One or relate to Him primarily as our ruling King, Lord and Master. This relational truth was/is illustrated in Jesus Christ, who did just that. (t)
Jesus instructed everyone to pray to “Our Father who art in heaven.” (u) He even directed his disciples to “pray to the Father…for the Father himself loves you.” (v) God wants us to know and relate to Him as more than a ruling King, Lord and Master, for He is our loving and enlightening Eternal Father.
God is the best of all fathers.
Understanding His Grace and Mercy
Contrary to a common idea, ignorance is not bliss! It is, however, a condition in us that can receive light and understanding. We all have the capacity to receive light and love, and become better expressions of God’s heart. The complication many of us have is thinking we already know and we are not open to more insightful light. God wants us to know and interact with Him as our enlightening and loving Father, to learn of Him and mature as cherished children into the unique expression He has created us to be. (w)
“Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious? …because He delights in unchanging love.” (x)
“Beloved, if God so loves us (to forgive our waywardness), we also ought to love one another…If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected (Greek-matures) in us.” (y)
The Eternal One’s love is immeasurable, inexhaustible, unlimited, and unfailing. God’s light and love ensures His abundant desire for our maturing well-being will never fail. The word immeasurable means “extensive and extreme measure” while inexhaustible means “unable to be used up due to existing abundance.” We can easily say God’s forgiving grace is immeasurable and His mercy is inexhaustible.
Since the Eternal One ‘is’ Light and Love, He can only enlighten and lovingly care for us. The love of God is not blind; as our exceptional Father He chooses to forgive and not focus on our faults. All of our expressions of love and light originate with God. And, He “especially” cares for responsive children. (z)
The portions of His light and love we absorb from His presence helps us mature and become more like Jesus: “As he is, so also are we in this world.” (aa) Our positive response to His guidance helps us mature into better children and become more enlightening expressions of the Eternal One. As we interact and catch glimpses of God’s enlightening love in one another, may we see more clearly what He is really like.
All expressions of love and light originate with God.
a) Genesis 1:31-2:1; b) 2 Chronicles 20:29; c) Job 11:7; d) 1 John 1:5; 4:8; e) Lamentations 3:22-23; f) 1 John 1:5; g) James 1:17; h) Luke 1:79; Isiah 9:2; Acts 26:18; i) John 3:19-21; j) Ephesians 5:8; k) 1 John 2:10; l) Exodus 3:13-14; m) Isaiah 44:6; 41:4; 48:12; n) Revelation 1:4; o) John 1:1, 14; p) 1 John 1:1-2; q) John 5:18-19; Matthew 26:39; r) John 5:17-18; Luke 22:70-71; s) Matthew 5:16, 43-45; 6:4-15; t) Mathew 11:25-28; John 14:6; u) Matthew 6:6, 8-9; v) John 16:23-27; w) John 1:12; Genesis 1:26; x) Micah 7:18; y) 1 John 4:11-12; z) 1 Timothy 4:10; aa) 1 John 4:17
Keith Carroll, “The Relationship Guy”
Relational Gospel Founder
Created To Relate author