To know someone is know his or her character. Knowing God’s character allow us to develop the type of relationship that He desires us to have with him.
The Character of God
God is Faithful – 1 Corinthians 1:9 “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord”. Also, Deuteronomy 7:9 says “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.”
God is Holy-Set Apart – Psalm 99:1-3 “The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake. Great is the Lord in Zion;he is exalted over all the nations. Let them praise your great and awesome name—he is holy”. Also, In 1 Peter 1: 15-16, God commanded us to, “Be holy, because I am holy”.
God is Good – Psalm 145:1-9 “I will exalt you, my God the King;I will praise your name for ever and ever. Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. One generation commends your works to another;they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works—and I will proclaim your great deeds. They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all;he has compassion on all he has made”. Also, Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him ”
God is Love – 1 John 4:7-12
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us”. Also, Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us”.
God is Sovereign
“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me…I say: ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please’” (Isaiah 46:9-10)
The sovereignty of God represents the ability to exercise His holy will or supremacy. The Most High, Lord of Heaven and earth, has unlimited power to do what He has resolved. Being absolutely independent, God does as He pleases. None can deter Him, none can hinder Him. In His Word, God declares:
God is Merciful – Deuteronomy 4:29-31
“But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath”.
A beautiful picture of God’s mercy is shown in the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15.
God is just – Isaiah 30:18 ..”The Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” Also, Zephaniah 3:5 “The Lord … is righteous;he does no wrong.Morning by morning he dispenses his justice,and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame.”
God is immutable – Unchanging – James 1:17 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows”. Also, Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever”.
God is Omnipresent- Ever present – Psalm 139:7-12 “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there;if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me,your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you;the night will shine like the day,for darkness is as light to you”. Also, Joshua 1:5 “No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you”.
God is Omnipotent- Powerful – Isaiah 40:25-26 “To whom will you compare me?Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name.Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing”. Also, Genesis 18:13-14 ” Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
