The concept of God is as old as man, and I don’t think this is a coincidence. Throughout all of human history men and women have been seeking something to worship, something greater than themselves. There is a void in the human heart that only the transcendent can fill. But since sin entered the world, men have been creating gods and worshiping everything from statues, to animals and in our modern day even money and sex. However, it is not as if the true God has been hiding. Romans 1:20 says that God has been, “clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they (mankind) are without excuse.” All it takes is for one to look outside their window at creation to know that there is a Creator God. He is clearly perceived and all men are without excuse. But even still, there is much confusion over who God is. This is not because God has somehow made it hard to know who He is, but because our hard and wicked hearts have ascribed ultimate worth to everything BUT the true God. With so many religions and concepts of God, which one can we trust is the true and living God? Is it Allah? Is it the myriad of gods in Hinduism? Is the true god the monotheistic god of Sikhism? The true God is not religious, but is living and relational!
YHWH is the true God
The true God has a name, and that name is YHWH (often pronounced YAH-WAY). He is the God who created all things. He revealed Himself to Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and eventually came to be known as the God of the Hebrews.
YHWH the true God is one God
The first and fundamental truth of the true God is that He is one. Deuteronomy 6:4 declares, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” There are not multiply god’s in the universe, but only one who rules and reigns, who has all authority and power. The one true God is not in Heaven battling it out with other gods to see who is supreme. He does not have “wives”, who he impregnates to have more “god” children as Mormonism or Greek mythology proposes. He is the one God, who exists eternally. He has no maker is self sufficient, and self existent.
YHWH the Triune, Relational God
One thing that we can all agree on is that men and women are highly relational beings. Deprive a person of human contact and relationship and they will soon be drained. This is why loneliness is one of the most terrible plights a person can endure. People generally fear dying alone, more than they do actually dying! The God who created us, made us in His own image and after His likeness, He made us relational beings just like Himself. In His very nature and being, YHWH the true God, is relational. He is a community of persons, that are in perfect unity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Some have suggested that God created man because He was lonely, this could not be further from the truth. God has always existed as a Trinity, in perfect communion and harmony. The Tri-unity of God does not suggest that there is more than one God. God is still one.
As Christians, we openly admit that the Trinity is a great mystery that is beyond human comprehension, and yet we cannot deny the Trinity because it is the teaching of the Scriptures. The same Bible that declares God to be One, also refers to three different persons as God. (Paul Washer)
Scriptures to consider:
The Father is God: 1 Corinthians 8:6, John 6:27, 1 Peter 1:2
The Son is God: John 1:1, John 1:18, John 20:28, Philippians 2:6, Colossians 1:15
The Holy Spirit is God: Acts 5:3-4, compare 1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19
YHWH is Holy
The true God is holy. He is different and distinct from anything else that exists. The most glorious and radiant Angel in Heaven, is no more like God than the lowliest worm crawling the Earth. God is infinitely more holy than anything else that is.
The holiness of God not only means that He is unique among all His creation, but also that He is separated from all that is profane and sinful. God cannot sin, cannot take pleasure in sin, and cannot have fellowship with sin. There is absolutely no possibility that God could be tempted or that His nature could be defiled. He always remains as He is, holy and incorruptible. (Paul Washer)
God is holy and has no fellowship with sin. But the good news is that God is also merciful and full of grace. Motivated by His love and holiness, God made a way for our salvation, while not compromising His holiness and justice.
YHWH is Merciful and Gracious
The one true God is a God full of mercy and grace. Many people believe that they are to “bad” or “sinful” to be in fellowship with God. The fact is, if you are still breathing, God is still extending His grace to you. Not only by graciously allowing you to live and breath, but also based upon the truth that Jesus died for your sins and is extending forgiveness and eternal life for those who would believe. Numbers 14:18 declares,
The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.
In this Scripture we see both the mercy of God and the justice of God. God forgives sin but also does not clear the guilty. How can that be? When we look at the cross, we see the solution. God at the same time, forgives the sin and transgression of His people, while also not clearing the guilty. The guilt from sin was taken by Jesus, it has been dealt with, God’s justice is appeased and His mercy is extended. God truly is great!
YHWH is Love
Love is the most powerful force on earth. It is no wonder that the Bible says that, “God IS love” (1 John 4:8). Love is not God, but God is love. Love is not something God shows, but it is the very thing He is. As human beings we can show love at times, but for God He cannot help but show love as much as we can help being human.
Sources
Washer, Paul D. The One True God. Hannibal, Missouri: Granted Ministries, 2009. Print.