The first study in the Omega Foundation Builders Series is all about God, it covers his main attributes, his character and then the fact that he wants to be in a relationship with us humans. He wants to be our father.
Objectives
- The attributes of God
- The character of God
- God wants to connect with you
The attributes of God
God is ruler
Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
God was the first thing to be in the universe, he was before everything, and he is the being which created everything. The word for God in Gen 1:1 is eloheim this is a Hebrew term which essentially means ruler.
The central concept of the bible is God. God means ruler, God is the ruler of the universe he is the first in charge of everything he is the ruler, and God is love. Everything about God is love, this is his central motivating principle which directs everything he is and everything he does.
When you think of ruler, what comes to mind?
God is all knowing
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
Isa 46:9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Isa 46:10 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:
Now this is a very powerful fact about God. He knows all things, he knows the beginning from the ending and he also knows what is in people hearts. The powerful thing about this is that if you are connected to God, you can get inside information. An example of this is that when Jesus met the woman at the well, he was able to tell her all about herself. Jesus was in daily communion with God the father, and the father would have revealed these truths to him.
Jer 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
God is All wise
Rom 11:33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
God knows everything and is all wise, these two attributes point us to the fact that if we need knowledge or wisdom, God is the person to come to. If we need to make a decision it is very important to consult him and seek out his wisdom and will as this will lead to the best outcome for us.
Jas 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. Jas 1:7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. Jas 1:8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
God is Omnipresent (Everywhere)
Psa 139:7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
Psa 139:8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. Psa 139:9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Psa 139:10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
God is everywhere so he has the ability to be with us at all times, to protect us and comfort us. So when we are sitting in our rooms at home, God’s spirit can be with us.
God is outside of time and space
Isa 57:15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
God lives outside of eternity, which explains why he knows the end from the beginning, he lives outside of time, yet he still participates in time.
God can do the impossible
Luk 1:37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Mat 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
God can do all things, therefore, when we are connected with God, he can give us the power to do all things. He can answer our prayers in miraculous ways. He can do things which we could not in anyway do for ourselves.
The Character of God
God is Love
1Jn 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
What does love mean to you?
1Co 13:4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 1Co 13:5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 1Co 13:6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 1Co 13:7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.1Co 13:8 Charity never faileth:
Joh 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
God is love, 1 cor 13:4-8, shows us some characteristics of love, one of them being that love seeks not its own. We are told that there is no greater love than a man laying his life down for a friend. Love is a selfless act where you do what is best for the other person. At all times God is thinking about us, at all times and every decision he makes he has our well-being at the forefront of his mind.
God is Just
Deu 32:4 He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.
Rev 15:3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Rev 15:4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.
The word just means fair, what is deserved and appropriate. God always acts fairly. God is able to act fairly because he knows the end from he beginning and is totally wise. In this life things may not seem fair on the physical plain but we need to remember that there is a spiritual plain whereby those who suffer in the material things often have greater spiritual blessings. Sometimes things are bad in this life on the spiritual and physical plain, but od sees every ones situation individually and judges them according to their own circumstances. God is just and the afterlife, the scope of the eternal will be the place where things are balanced out.
Christians acknowledge that life is not fair, and it is because of this acknowledgement that they are required by God to try and balance out the injustice which takes place in the world and where they can work to bring people onto an equal playing field. This truly is the work of the gospel.
God is not an angry aggressive God
Psa 103:8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. Psa 145:8 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
God is a seriously patient, kind and gentle God, although portions of the bible portray him as being angry and aggressive. He is never angry without a cause and secondly when he is angry he always acts in patience, he gave countries years to repent before he destroyed them. Overall God is a kind and gentle God, we see this in the way which Jesus treated the children in the temple.
Mat 21:12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, Mat 21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Mat 21:14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. Mat 21:15 And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, Mat 21:16 And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?
This is the angriest we ever see Jesus, however his anger was so controlled that straight after he had driven the people out of the house of God, he began to heal the blind and lame and minister to the children. Jesus is the direct representation and image of God, (2Co 4:4). When we see Jesus we see the father (John 14:9), therefore with 100% certainty we can know that God the father gets angry, but is not out of control and as soon as his purpose of anger is complete he returns to the gentle, kind father that we know and love.
God is Good
Psa 34:8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
In life things do not always seem like they are going good. But the truth of the matter is that if we love Christ and are walking with him then he has dominion and control over our lives and everything he allows us to go through will be for his glory and will work out for our good.
Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Psa 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psa 46:2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
God is faithful
Deu 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he isGod, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
2Ti 2:13 If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
God truly is faithful, he is trustworthy and reliable, whatever he says that he will do. An example of this is how he stayed with the nation of Israel because of the promises he had made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God’s word is power because it is backed by his faithfulness, his faithfulness to fulfil what he has said.
1Th 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1Th 5:24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
God does not change
Jas 1:17 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.
This lines up with the fact that God is love, love does not fail, it does not change, it is faithful. We can expect God to always react the same, he is consistent, which gives us confidence that we can actually know him and trust him. Insecure attachment is an attachment style where a child grows up in a situation which is unstable, sometimes the parent is there to give love, sometimes they are not. In this situation, the child becomes nervous because they do not know if their needs are going to be met. God is faithful and he does not change, therefore we can be confident that he will always, always provide for us, if we wait on him.
God wants to connect with you
We have seen some of the different characteristics of God, but his central binding principle is that he is love. God created us for his pleasure, so that he could interact with us, work with us and have us as his children.
Rev 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
God is a God of relationships and a relationship with God is similar to a relationship with a person. A crucial element of a relationship between two people is communication and a key element to a relationship with God are the bible, prayer and good works. Prayer is how we communicate with God, and the bible is one of the primary ways God communicates with us.
Homework
- The homework for today is to meditate on the attributes of God and think about what they mean to you.
- Prayer is the opening of the heart to God. This week, the second piece of homework is to begin to start talking to God. Get on your knees, sit down and tell him how you feel about things. Ask him questions, tell him what is on your mind.
Omega Foundation 