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The God Who Is
Divine Attributes
Divine attributes describe that nature of God which characterizes the Lord, and no one else in creation. They are divine, and God does not allow even godly men to share them. He alone is omnipotent, or almighty; omniscient, or all wise; omni-present, or every where present; immutable, or unchangeable; and eternal.
Almighty
God is almighty. In Job chapter 38, beginning in verse 4, the Lord asks Job, "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the cornerstone thereof; when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
"Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling band for it, and brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, and said, `Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?'
"Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring (i.e. light) to know his place; that it might take hold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be shaken out of it?" God is almighty.
In I Peter chapter 1, note beginning in verse 3, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."
Consider the words of the Lord in Revelation chapter 1, verse 8: "`I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,' saith the Lord, `which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.'" All power is at His disposal. It all belongs to Him. Because He is perfect He suffers no loss or change of power.
All Wise
"He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?" (Psalm 94:9). Some young people who have lived decently while at home, decide when they join the military and are sent to another state or to another country, that since no one knows them there, they can do what they want; that now they can live their own life. But, "He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?" God is omniscient—He is all wise.
In Psalm 139 we read, "O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it" (vs. 1-6).
Consider another. "The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good" (Proverbs 15:3). God does not have eyes of flesh; therefore, His vision will never become impaired. Any time we give God corporeality, i.e. give Him a body, we confine Him to a place, and thereby limit Him. God is in every place, beholding the good and the evil. He is the star witness to all works, whether they are honorable or dishonorable.
In Isaiah chapter 46, beginning in verse 9, the Lord exhorts, "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, `My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.'" God is all wise and He is almighty, and the sin that shall not be pardoned is the sin of unbelief.
Ever Present
God is present everywhere. In Psalm 139, in verses 1-6, the Psalmist declared that God is all wise. Beginning in verse 7, he testifies that God is everywhere present. "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning" (speaking poetically of light) "and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
"If I say, `Surely the darkness shall cover me;' even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee." (verses 7-12) If darkness could conceal knowledge from God, then darkness would be greater than God who created it. This is the meaning when God declares, "I form the light and create darkness." God is the Creator of them both.
Consider again the words of the Lord. In Jeremiah chapter 23, note verse 23: "`Am I a God at hand,' saith the LORD, `and not a God afar off?'" I once heard of a preacher who would not fly in an airplane because the Lord said, "Lo(w) I am with you always." Our God is at hand as well as afar off.
God is all wise because He is perfect. He therefore has perfect wisdom. He is everywhere present because He is perfection itself, and therefore He does not change.
Unchangeable
God is immutable: He does not change. "I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed" (Malachi 3:6). The only things we can know about God are the things He chooses to reveal to us. Here, He tells us that He never changes. God does not change because He is perfect. If He were to change, He would be no longer perfect.
This is the reason James wrote, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning" (James 1:17). God is the Lord who does not change.
Eternal
God is eternal. Oh, that these doctrines would find their way again into the pulpits of our land! In Psalm 90, in verse 1, we read, "LORD, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God."
Micah prophesied, "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2). This prophecy concerns the coming of the "Messiah" (Hebrew), or the "Christ" (Greek). The one here spoken of was born of the virgin Mary and is known as "The Lord Jesus Christ." It is He who is here declared to be "from everlasting."
The divine attributes characterize God alone. God is almighty, all wise, ever present, unchanging, and eternal; yet no man, though holy as mortal can be, is almighty, all wise, ever present, unchangeable, or eternal. But God does communicate the moral attributes to godly men. Among these are holiness, righteousness, justice, mercy, love, goodness, grace and others such as faithfulness. The reason these are so little spoken of in our day is because this generation has not kept faith with the Lord. Ours is a faithless generation.