God must be Defined Positively

We must define God positively. He is a person. Many people always wish to define God by what he is not.

You cannot define a person by what they are not. A person is a positive entity and must be defined positively.

At times statements about what a person is not can help clarify a person. But negative statements are far less useful in defining a person than positive statements.

The bible offers a great deal of positive statements about God. We always need to grasp the positive teaching on the nature of God. This gets us much closer to understanding God than negative statements of what God is not.

In fact God walked among us in the person of Jesus who took on human flesh. We can learn much about the nature of God from looking at the life of Jesus presented in the gospels.

Of course we must really read the gospels rather than what those who do not read the gospels think they say or those who pick and choose what they like from the gospels.

Jesus was a person very concerned with heaven and hell. He did repeatedly declare his divinity and call men to himself.

He was a man who turned the other cheek, but also a man who stood up and fought injustice. You see God's nature is more complex than ours. His personhood is deeper and richer than ours because he is bigger than us.

It is why so many people get God wrong. They cannot understand a righteous anger or a God who judges but does not delight in judgement. We need to learn as we see God what true personhood of the deepest kind looks like.

God walking among Men

Often people feel as if God is difficult to grasp. He hides in the smoke and clouds and behind signs and symbols.

He is so far off. I cannot get the sense of him. This is how many people feel.

Of course the whole bible depicts the nature of God, but it is far easier. You see Jesus is very God of very God in human flesh. He walked among men.

The four gospels are most helpful. You see we have a record of God dwelling among men as a fellow brother.

Jesus as a member of the Trinity is not different than God; he is God. It is as if we had many fragmentary notes of God recorded in bits and pieces and now God himself has shown up on the scene and we have an extensive record of many years of his life and teaching and the teaching he imparted to his chosen followers.

You see God is not as difficult to find as we think. We simply need to look to the gospels to get a clear picture.

Of course many people wish to view Jesus as in some way different than the OT God. Jesus is all love and not wrath they say.

Of course this makes no sense. If you look at the teaching of Jesus he was very long suffering with many of his opponents but he was very firm in their condemnation if they would not change.

You see simply because the judge has paid and freely offers payment of the debt against those in debt does not mean there is no justice.

The price is paid, but by Jesus. All the glory goes to Jesus because he overcame death. That is of course why the bible always insists there is no grounds to boast.