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Adapted from “Just What the Bible is all about” © 1979 BIBLE TEACHINGS ON GOD AND MAN
BIBLE TEACHINGS ABOUT GOD CHARACTERISTICS OF GOD By the term God we mean the Supreme Being, existing from eternity, the cause of all created things. By gleaning out the scriptures that refer to God’s attributes, we learn what God is like.
GOD IS A PERSON-YET A SPIRIT The Bible presents God as a personal being, not in the shape or form of man, for in John 4:24 we learn that: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” However, He possesses personal characteristics like consciousness, intelligence, free-will and emotion. As an example Hebrews 11:6 tells us that “...He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”
ONLY ONE ETERNAL, UNCHANGEABLE GOD We learn there is but one true and living God, for Isaiah 45:5 states ...“There is no God else beside me…” We learn He is self-existent and eternal from Psalms 90:2, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” (Also see John 5:26.) We also learn that God’s character and nature are unchangeable from Malachi 3:6, “For I am the LORD, I change not…” therefore He is entirely dependable.
GOD IS OMNIPOTENT We see He is “omnipotent” meaning all powerful in Matthew 19.26, which says, “...with God all things are possible.” This does not mean He could lie or make sin holy, but has full power to do all that is within His nature.
GOD IS OMNIPRESENT God is omnipresent or everywhere present. Jeremiah 23:24, says, “Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth...?” This is not meaning that God is physically present everywhere, filling all space; for God is not matter, but rather that nothing is out of His consciousness or power of immediate action.
GOD IS OMNISCIENT Since God is and always has been everywhere present, He knows all things or is omniscient. He knows all things of the past, present and future. He even knows the thoughts and intents of our heart (Heb. 4:12). I Corinthians 3:20 states, “The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.”
GOD ALSO HAS MORAL ATTRIBUTES We learn God is holy from I Peter 1:16, “Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” Psalms 89:14 tells us God is just and true and merciful. We could go on with scriptures showing God’s goodness and faithfulness, but much of this could be summed up in the word “love”.
GOD IS LOVE (I John 4:8) Surely the scriptures tell us our Heavenly Father is a loving God. The very familiar John 3:16 expresses it well when we read, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish; but have everlasting life.”
GOD THE GREAT I AM The Hebrew word for God is translated “Jehovah”. At the burning bush when Moses asked God His name; God replied “...I AM THAT I AM…” (Ex. 3:14). Thus God expresses that His name means eternal and self-existent. GOD CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE We learn that God created this material universe from the very first verse in the Bible. Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Jeremiah 10:12 says, “He hath made the earth by His power, He hath established the world by His wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by His discretion.” In the New Testament, we read in Hebrews 11:3, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which ere seen were not made of things which do appear.”
GOD SUSTAINER OF THE UNIVERSE Along with being creator, God is also preserver of the universe. Nehemiah 9:6 “Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.”
GOD IS RULER OF THE UNIVERSE We see that God is ruler of the universe from Psalm 103:19, “The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens; and His kingdom ruleth over all.”
GOD CREATED ANGELS The Hebrew word “angel” is translated “messenger,” therefore, first of all we point out that the word angel in the Bible does not always refer to a superhuman angelic being. Sometimes it is referring to God’s ministers, which are of course His messengers. Likewise, the devil’s angels can also refer to false ministers. However, the Bible does speak of angels who do not have mortal bodies. In this respect, they differ from Christ. (Heb. 2:5-9) Angels have never experienced redemption, but Peter tells us in speaking of salvation in I Pet. 1:12 “...which things the angels desire to look into.” God used angels to reveal His message to various ones in Old Testament times. The angel Gabriel announced the coming of the Messiah. Jesus says in Matthew 26:53 that more than twelve legions of angels were at His disposal. In Matthew 18:10, He implies that each believer has a guardian angel watching over him. Peter was delivered from prison by an angel. (Acts 12:6-17) The Book of Hebrews tells us angels are created beings and subordinates to Christ. They are servants and not mediators between God and man. I Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.” We are definitely commanded not to worship angels, see Colossians 2:18 and Revelations 19:10. God has designed His creation so that the highest exaltation is focused upon Jesus Christ. Even angels worship Christ. GOD CARES FOR MAN In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus points out in Matthew 6:26-30, that God cares for even the sparrows and lilies of the field, so He surely cares for man. Jesus says to His disciples in Matthew 10:30,3l “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
THE DIVINE TRINITY In learning about God, we find a mystery, a great mystery to many, for the Bible teaches us there is but one God, yet it also teaches the Trinity. By Trinity, we mean the union of three persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) in the one God-head, so that all three are one as to substance, but three persons as to individuality. This truth like many other Bible doctrines is not taught in a scientific form yet there are scores of plain texts, bearing out this fundamental truth. The mystery is how can three persons be only one God and how can one God be three persons? Granted, this is hard for the human, finite mind to comprehend; but, there are many things hard for us to comprehend, yet we accept them as true and factual. We know we have thoughts, but we really cannot understand how. We know the way that gravity works, but again we don’t really know how. The same could be said for electricity or things that grow or even life itself and countless other things. There have been many comparisons offered in attempt to illustrate the Trinity; for example, time consists of past, present and future, yet there is but one time. Another example is that every object, to be an object must have length, breadth and height, yet do not make three objects. The sun is another in that the light and heat that comes from it are not the same, yet are inseparable. The sun is the source representing God the Father, the light being Christ, and the heat representing the Holy Spirit. In showing illustrations, we would mention that it is impossible to find anything that would exactly explain the Trinity. Some have thought that each person in the Trinity is one-third of God and that together they make up the one whole God. But we must point out that one-third of God is not God. Others have claimed each one is simply a way in which God has manifested Himself through time, but the Holy Bible teaches us that God does not change. Some have incorrectly held that Jesus is the only divine person and that the Father is the divine side and the Son the human side of His nature. Many who hold this view also deny the personality of the Holy Spirit. Scriptures like those in the seventeenth chapter of John will show us that Christ was surely not praying to himself or to His divine nature. Still others view the Trinity as a “God family” in that Christ was created by God, but once more we point out that Christ is from everlasting to everlasting. In fact the important question concerning Christ in the Trinity is whether or not He is God in the highest sense of the term. Those who reject that Christ is God may also reject His work of atonement for sin, hence pardon and regeneration as an instantaneous work of grace is rejected. That would boil down to no salvation by faith, only salvation by works.
CHRIST IS GOD THE SON To cite all the scriptures that prove the deity or Christ would require much space, so we will just mention a few. First, Christ is called God. The opening verses of the Gospel of John says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” The term “Word” or in Greek, “Logos” is Christ, for it says in verse 14, “And the Word [or Logos] was made flesh, and dwelt among us…” In Hebrews 13:18 we read, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today and forever.” The same attributes applied to The Father are also applied to Christ throughout the Bible. The Bible informs us in II Corinthians 5:10, that Christ will be the Judge of all men in the last day. He forgave sin while on earth (Luke 5:20-24) a power only of God. Christ is also mentioned as Creator; Colossians 1:16-17 states, “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Also, only by Christ being God, could He be a sacrifice sufficient to atone for our sins.
GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT The third person in the Divine Trinity is the Holy Spirit who likewise is given divine titles, attributes and divine works. Matthew 10:20 says, “For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” The Holy Spirit is seen in redemption. II Thessolonians 2:13 says, “…salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” Then we see in creation, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” (Gen. 1:1-2) The Trinity is also seen in the formula given for baptism, recorded in Matthew 28:19. “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”
BIBLE TEACHINGS ABOUT MAN Under God’s works of creation, the Bible also informs us that God created men; so let us look at the age-old question: WHAT IS MAN? Scientists tell us that man is composed of various chemical elements. The physiologist sees men in terms of flesh, blood and an intricate system of nerves and muscles. Then the psychologist enters into the realm of the mind and estimates man in the terms of behavior, thought, emotions, etc. These are all legitimate discoveries, but it is still not the whole of man. Only in the Bible do we find the complete answer. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7) It is this soul which was “in-breathed by God” that constitutes the real man, which differentiates man from all other created beings. Yes, through the Bible we learn that we as men were created different from, and superior to, all other forms of life. Man and only man was created in the image of God. Most of all we learn we were created as a compound or two-fold being, consisting of both flesh and spirit, or mortal body and immortal soul. We learn too, we were created under God’s moral law or as a moral creature with a free will or a freedom of choosing to obey or disobey that law. Granted, some disbelieve or try to avoid this responsibility through denial. However, even if we are ignorant of the Bible’s teachings or perhaps have some doubt to life hereafter, still if we are honest with ourselves we are aware of a feeling deep down that we are more than just physical body. Besides intuition however, we have evidence of this. Let’s look at this evidence in God’s Word.
MAN CREATED IN THE IMAGE OF GOD In the first chapter of Genesis, verse 25 says in part, “…and God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind…” Then verse 27 states, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” By God’s image, we do not mean the physical part or man, for God is not a physical form, but as John 4:24 says, “God is a Spirit.” It is the spirit of man and not the body or man that is in God’s image. Created in God’s image also means that man was created holy, for God’s image is holy. This original state of holiness was forfeited, however, by sin…hence in this respect and to this extent; the image of God was lost. However, through conversion and sanctification through Christ, holiness is regained; therefore mankind can be restored to the image of God. (See Col. 3:9-10, and Eph. 4:24.)
The inward man is the moral aspect of man and is responsible to God for the outer man.
Biblical proof of man’s duality is found in those texts which indicate a distinction between the spirit and the body. Zechariah 12:1 says, “The LORD… formeth the spirit of man within him.” I Corinthians 2:11 “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?” These texts show that the spirit is not the body, but in the body. Job 14.22 is another. “But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn. In Matthew 26:41, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Spirit and flesh are contrasted here showing that they are not the same and that it is the spirit that wills. II Corinthians 4:16, “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” Here the contrast is made using different terms. The word “heart” is also used to denote the spiritual part of man. Hebrews 8:10, “…I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts…” Also see Acts 15.8-9.
SOUL OF MAN IS IMMORTAL Much of the confusion over the question of the nature or immortality of the soul lies in terminology. The word “soul” for example, in Hebrew is called, “Nephesh” and “Psuche” in Greek. This word is translated to mean life, breath, heart, mind, desire and many other things. So while the word “soul” could be applied to animals for example, as they have breath, still the scriptures teach another deeper meaning of the word “soul”. Terms like soul, spirit, inward man, inner man etc. are used interchangeably, referring to the real self of man. In I Peter 3:4, the “hidden man of the heart” in Greek is “Aphrhartos” the same Greek word found in I Timothy 1:17 applied to Christ and translated “immortal”. The terms body, flesh, outward man, tabernacle etc. refer to the physical body. The Bible calls the body mortal (Rom. 6:12- 8:11) plus the act of death proves this beyond dispute, but nowhere is the soul called mortal. Spirit is by nature deathless. The nature of ice is to be cold, but seldom do we say cold ice. Likewise, we seldom say deathless spirit or immortal spirit, for it is by nature deathless or immortal.
SPIRITUAL DEATH IS SEPARATION FROM GOD The death of the soul spoken of in the Bible is not the end of its conscious existence, but means spiritual death or spiritual separation from God in this present world. A multitude of texts could be given on this point. “And you hath He quickened, [quickened means made alive] who were dead in trespasses and sins,” (Eph. 2:1). “But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth,” (I Tim. 5:6). In other words, those who are alive in Christ are not separated from God and those who are dead in sin, even though alive physically, are spiritually dead or separated from God. The second death mentioned in Revelation 21:8, is final separation from God. Matthew 10:28, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. This shows that man can kill the body while the soul lives on. Some confuse immortality and eternal life. The former is endless existence, while the latter is a spiritual state. Granted, eternal life implies immortality, but eternal life is a present experience of all the saved. For example, in John 6:54, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath eternal life. The immortality of the body, or the “new body,” to be received at the resurrection, is detailed in “What Happens to Body and Soul at Death” available from this publisher. In this article we are just discussing the soul or inner man, showing that all men have an immortal soul. This immortality or endless existence will either be eternally with God or eternally separated from God. MAN IS A MORALLY RESPONSIBLE BEING This Inner man or soul of man is the moral factor in man and for this reason is responsible to God. Micah 6:7, “…shall I give my first born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” Then Ezekiel 18:4 says, “…the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” (Spiritual death-separation from God) Consequently, it is the soul that must be saved.
THE CONSCIENCE OF MAN The faculty of conscience shows that man is a moral creature. Our conscience decides whether an act is right or wrong. Keep In mind, however, the conscience is subject to education, therefore could decide wrongly. The decision is made in the light of knowledge that we as an individual possess. Our conscience urges us to do the right thing and urges us not to do the wrong act. The degree or intensity of this urging varies with the individual, depending whether the conscience be tender or seared. After the act is done, we either feel good inside, if we choose right, or feel condemned if we choose wrong. However, the Bible tells us of those who have hardened their heart, waxed gross and become past feeling. This would be good to remember, if you feel no guilt for disobeying God’s Word.
MAN NOT PREDESTINED, BUT A FREE WILL CREATURE The fact of possessing a conscience and being moral creatures proves, we as men, are free will creatures or free moral agents; for moral character would be impossible if our will was predestined. Predestination is also discussed in “No Security, False Security & Eternal Security” available from this publisher. For now we will say this: if we had no free will, then evil would not deserve any punishment or goodness any reward. All through the Bible are pleas to exercise choice in doing right and shunning evil. Scriptures like Joshua 24:15, “...choose you this day whom ye will serve…” would be meaningless if we were not free will creatures. Yes, man is a free will, moral, twofold being, “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psm. 139:14) by our wonderful God. Gospel Truth and Publications, P.O. Box 142, Jackson Center, OH 45334
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This site was last updated 12/28/07
