Berkhof on the doctrine of God and Creation, Attributes of God (Summary Christian Doctrine)

Part II: The Doctrine of God and Creation

Chapter VI: The Attributes of God

God reveals Himself not only in His names, but also in His attributes, that is, in the perfections of the divine Being. It is customary to distinguish between incommunicable and communicable attributes. Of the former there are no traces in the creature; of the latter there are.

1. The Incommunicable Attributes. These emphasize the absolute distinction between God and the creature, and include the following:

a. The independence or self-existence of God. This means that God has the ground of His existence in Himself, and unlike man, does not depend on anything outside of Himself. He is independent in His Being, in His virtues and actions, and causes all His creatures to depend on Him. The idea is embodied in the name Jehovah and finds expression in the following passages, Ps. 33:11; 115:3; Isa. 40:18 ff.; Dan. 4:35; John 5:26; Rom. 11:33-36; Acts 17:25; Rev. 4:11.

b. The immutability of God. Scripture teaches that God is unchangeable. He is forever the same in His divine Being and perfections, and also in His purposes and promises, Num. 23:19; Pa 33:11; 102:27; Mal. 3:6; Heb. 6:17; Jas. 1:17. This does not mean, however, that there is no movement in God. The Bible speaks of Him as coming and going, hiding and revealing Himself. He is also said to repent, but this is evidently only a human way of speaking of God, Ex. 32:14; Jonah 3:10, and really indicates a change in man's relation to God.

c. The infinity of God. This means that God is not subject. to limitations. We can speak of His infinity in more than one sense. Viewed in relation to His being, it may be called His absolute perfection. He is unlimited in His knowledge and wisdom, in His goodness and love, in His righteousness and holiness, Job 11:7-10; Psa. 145:3. Seen in relation to time, it is called His eternity. While this is usually represented in Scripture as endless duration, Ps. 90:2; 102:12, it really means that He is above time and therefore not subject to its limitations. For Him there is only an eternal present, and no past or future. Viewed with reference to space, it is called His immensity. He is everywhere present, dwells in all His creatures, filling every point of space, but is in no way bounded by space, I Kings 8:27; Ps. 139:7-10; Isa. 66;1; Jer. 23:23, 24; Acts 17:27, 28.

d. The simplicity of God. By ascribing simplicity to God we mean that He is not composed of various parts, such as the body and soul in man, and for that very reason is not subject to division. The three persons in the Godhead are not so many parts of which the divine essence is composed. The whole being of God belongs to each one of the Persons. Hence we can also say that God and His attributes are one, and that He is life, light, love, righteousness, truth, and so on.

2. The Communicable Attributes. These are the attributes of which we find some resemblance in man. It should be borne in mind, however, that what we see in man is only a finite (limited) and imperfect likeness of that which is infinite (unlimited) and perfect in God. Here we have:

a. The knowledge of God. This is that perfection of God whereby He, in a manner all His own, knows Himself and all things possible and actual. God has this knowledge in Himself, and does not obtain it from without. It is always complete and always present in His mind. And because it is all-comprehensive, it is called omniscience. He knows all things, past, present and future, and not only the things that have real existence, but also those which are merely possible. I Kings 8:29; Ps. 139:1-16; Isa. 46:10; Ezek. 11:5; Acts 15:18; John 21:17; Heb. 4:13.

b. The wisdom of God. God's wisdom is an aspect of His knowledge. It is the virtue of God which manifest itself in the selection of worthy ends and in the choice of the best means for the realization of those ends. The final end to which He makes all things subservient is His own glory. Rom. 11:33; I Cor. 2:7; Eph. 1:6, 12, 14; Col. 1:16.

c. The goodness of God. God is good, that is, perfectly holy. in Himself. But this is not the goodness we have in mind here. In this connection we refer to the divine goodness that reveals itself in doing well unto others. It is that perfection which prompts Him to deal kindly and bounteously with all His creatures The Bible refers to it repeatedly, Ps. 36:6; 104:21; 145:8, 9, 16; Matt. 5:45; Acts 14:17.

d. The love of God. This is often called the most central attribute of God, but it is doubtful whether it should be regarded as more central than the other perfections of God. In virtue of it He delights in His own perfections and in man as the reflection of His image. It may be considered from various points of view. The unmerited love of God which reveals itself in pardoning sin is called His grace, Eph. 1:6, 7; 2:7-9; Tit. 2:11. That love relieving the misery of those who are bearing the consequences of sin is known as His mercy or tender compassion, Luke 1:64, 72, 78; Rom. 15:9; 9:16, 18; Eph. 2:4. And when it bears with the sinner who does not heed the instructions and warnings of God it is named His longsuffering or forbearance, Rom. 2:4; 9:22; I Pet. 3:20; II Pet. 3:16.

e. The holiness of God. God's holiness is first of all that divine perfection by which He is absolutely distinct from all His creatures, and exalted above them in infinite majesty. Ex. 15:11; Isa. 57:15. But it denotes in the second place that He is free from all moral impurity or sin, and is therefore morally perfect. In the presence of the holy God man is deeply conscious of his sin, Job 34:10; Isa. 6:5; Hab. 1:13.

f. The righteousness of God. The righteousness of God is that perfection by which He maintains Himself as the Holy One over against every violation of His holiness. In virtue of it He maintains a moral government in the world and imposes a just law on man, rewarding obedience and punishing disobedience, Ps. 99:4; Isa. 33:22; Rom, 1:32. The justice of God which manifests itself in the giving of rewards is called His remunerative justice; and that which reveals itself in meting out punishment is known as His retributive justice. The former is really an expression of His love, and the latter of His wrath.

g. The veracity of God. This is that perfection of God in virtue of which He is true in His inner being, in His revelation, and in His relation to His people. He is the true God over against the idols, knows things as they really are, and is faithful in the fulfillment of His promises. From the last point of view this attribute is also called God's faithfulness. Num. 23:19; I Cor. 1:9; II Tim. 2:13; Heb. 10:23.

h. The sovereignty of God. This may be considered from two different points of view, namely, His sovereign will, and His sovereign power. The will of God is represented in Scripture as the final cause of all things, Eph. 4:11; Rev. 4:11. On the basis of Deut. 29:29 it is customary to distinguish between the secret and the revealed will of God. The former is the will of God's decree, which is hidden in God and can be known only from its effects, and the latter is the will of His precept, which is revealed in the law and in the gospel. God's will respecting His creatures is absolutely free, Job 11:10; 33:13; Ps. 115:3; Prov. 21:1; Matt. 20:15; Rom. 9:15-18; Rev. 4:11. The sinful deeds of man are also under the control of His sovereign will, Gen. 50:20; Acts 2:23. The power to execute His will is called his omnipotence. That God is omnipotent does not mean that He can do everything. The Bible teaches us that there are some things which God cannot do. He cannot lie, sin, deny Himself, Num. 23:19; I Sam. 15:29; II Tim. 2:13; Heb. 6:18; Jas. 1:13, 17. It does mean that He can, by the mere exercise of Hie will, bring to pass whatsoever He has decided to accomplish, and that, if He so desired, He could do even more than that, Gen. 18:14; Jer. 32:27; Zech. 8:6; Matt. 3:9; 26:53.

To memorize. Passages to prove God's:

a. Incommunicable attributes:

Independence.

John 5:26. "For as the Father hath life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself."

Immutability.

Mal. 3:6. "For I, Jehovah, change not; therefore ye, 0 sons of Jacob, are not consumed."

James 1:17. "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning."

Eternity.

Ps. 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."

Ps. 102:27. "But Thou art the same, and Thy years have no end."

Omnipresence.

Ps. 139:7-10. "Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from Thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, Thou art there: if I make my bed in Sheol, behold Thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand shall hold me."

Jer. 23:23, 24. "Am I a God at hand, saith Jehovah, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places so that I shall not see him' saith Jehovah. Do I not fill heaven and earth? saith Jehovah?"

b. Communicable attributes:

Omniscience.

John 21:17b. "And he said unto Him, Yea, Lord, Thou knowest all things', Thou knowest that I love Thee."

Heb. 4:13. "And there is no creature that is not manifest in His sight; but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of Him with whom we have to do."

Wisdom.

Ps. 104:24. "0 Jehovah, how manifold are Thy works! In wisdom hast Thou made them all."

Dan. 2:20, 21b. "Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever; for wisdom and might are His.... He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that have understanding."

Goodness.

Ps. 86:5. "For Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness unto all them that call upon Thee."

Ps. 118:29 "0 give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; for His lovingkindness endureth forever."

Love.

John 3:16. "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have eternal life."

I John 4:8. "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love."

Grace.

Neh. 9:17b. "But Thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness."

Rom. 3:24. "Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

Mercy.

Rom. 9:18. "So then He hath mercy on whom He will and whom He will He hardeneth."

Eph. 2:4, 5. "But God, being rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ."

Longsuffering or forbearance.

Num. 14:18. "Jehovah is slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression."

Rom. 2:4. "Or despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?"

Holiness.

Ex, 15:11. "Who is like unto Thee, 0 Jehovah, among the gods? Who is like unto Thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?"

Isa. 6:3b. "Holy, holy, holy, is Jehovah of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory."

Righteousness or justice.

Ps. 89:14. "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Thy throne."

Ps. 145:17. "Jehovah is righteous in all His ways, and gracious in all His works."

I Pet. 1:17. "And if ye call on Him as Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to each man's work, pass the time of your sojourning in fear."

Veracity or faithfulness.

Num. 23:19. "God is not a man, that He should lie, neither the son of man, that He should repent. Hath He said, and will He not do it? Or hath He spoken, and will He not make it good?"

II Tim. 2:13. "If we are faithless, he abideth faithful; for He cannot deny Himself."

Sovereignty.

Eph. 1:11. "In whom also we were made a heritage, having been foreordained according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the council of His will."

Rev. 4:11. "Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they were, and were created."

Secret and revealed will.

Deut. 29:29. "The secret things belong unto Jehovah our God; but the things that are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law."

Omnipotence.

Job 42:2. "I know that Thou canst do everything." Matt. 19:26. "With God all things are possible." Luke 1:37. "For with God nothing shall be impossible."

For Further Study:

a. Give instances in which the Bible identifies God and His attributes, Jer. 28:6; Heb. 12:29; I John 1:5; 4:16.

b. How can God be just and gracious to the sinner at the same time, Zech. 9:9; Rom. 3:24-26?

c. Prove from Scripture that God's foreknowledge includes conditional events. I Sam. 23:10-13; II Kings 13:19; Ps. 81:13-15; 48:18; Jer. 38:17-20; Ezek. 3:6; Matt. 11:21.

Spurgeon on the attributes of God

General Comments (See precept austin)

Spurgeon commenting on Psalm 9:10 observes that

Ignorance is worst when it amounts to ignorance of God, and knowledge is best when it exercises itself upon the Name of God. This most excellent knowledge leads to the most excellent grace of faith. O, to learn more of the attributes and character of God. Unbelief, that hooting night bird, cannot live in the light of divine knowledge, it flies before the sun of God's great and gracious name. ... By knowing his name is also meant an experimental acquaintance with the attributes of God, which are everyone of them anchors to hold the soul from drifting in seasons of peril. The Lord may hide his face for a season from his people, but he never has utterly, finally, really, or angrily, forsaken them that seek him.

Spurgeon commenting on Psalm 18:22 adds that

The word, the character, and the actions of God should be evermore before our eyes; we should learn, consider, and reverence them. Men forget what they do not wish to remember, but the excellent attributes of the Most High are objects of the believer's affectionate and delighted admiration. We should keep the image of God so constantly before us that we become in our measure conformed unto it. This inner love to the right must be the main spring of Christian integrity in our public walk. The fountain must be filled with love to holiness and then the streams which issue from it will be pure and gracious.

In life and death we prove the attributes of God’s righteousness. We find that He does not lie but is faithful to His Word. We learn the attributes of mercy, for He is gentle in the time of our weakness. We prove the attributes of His immutability, for we find Him “the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb 13:8).

Spurgeon commenting on Psalm 37:4 encourages us to remember that

Every name, attribute, word, or deed of Jehovah, should be delightful to us, and in meditating thereon our soul should be as glad as is the epicure who feeds delicately with a profound relish for his dainties.

Our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep who was brought up from the dead (Heb 13:20), uses His omnipotence, His omniscience, and His divine attributes to keep His sheep. My dear believer, rest assured, He will preserve you! You are in good keeping. He is the Shepherd, the great Shepherd and the chief Shepherd (1 Pe 5:4).

In Morning and Evening (May 18) Spurgeon reminds us that ...

All the attributes of Christ, as God and man, are at our disposal. All the fulness of the Godhead, whatever that marvellous term may comprehend, is ours to make us complete. He cannot endow us with the attributes of Deity; but He has done all that can be done, for He has made even His divine power and Godhead subservient to our salvation. His omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, immutability and infallibility, are all combined for our defence.

Arise, believer, and behold the Lord Jesus yoking the whole of his divine Godhead to the chariot of salvation! How vast his grace, how firm his faithfulness, how unswerving his immutability, how infinite his power, how limitless his knowledge!

All these are by the Lord Jesus made the pillars of the temple of salvation; and all, without diminution of their infinity, are covenanted to us as our perpetual inheritance. The fathomless love of the Saviour’s heart is every drop of it ours; every sinew in the arm of might, every jewel in the crown of majesty, the immensity of divine knowledge, and the sternness of divine justice, all are ours, and shall be employed for us. The whole of Christ, in his adorable character as the Son of God, is by Himself made over to us most richly to enjoy. His wisdom is our direction, His knowledge our instruction, His power our protection, His justice our surety, His love our comfort, His mercy our solace, and His immutability our trust. He makes no reserve, but opens the recesses of the Mount of God and bids us dig in its mines for the hidden treasures. “All, all, all are yours,” saith He, “be ye satisfied with favour and full of the goodness of the Lord.” Oh! how sweet thus to behold Jesus, and to call upon Him with the certain confidence that in seeking the interposition of His love or power, we are but asking for that which He has already faithfully promised.

Attributes of God List

• Eternal
• Faithful
• Foreknowing
• Good
• Holy
• Immutable
• Impartial
• Infinite
• Jealous
• Just
• Longsuffering
• Loving
• Merciful
• Omnipotent
• Omnipresent
• Omniscient
• Righteous
• Self-existent
• Self-sufficient
• Sovereign
• Transcendent
• True
• Wise
• Wrathful

Sermon Attributes of God (1)

From time to time we come across people who say that they meditate. They usually say that they get great help from it. Oprah Winfrey, Paul McCartney, Novak Djokovich, Jerry Seinfeld - they all say they find it a tremendous help.

Are they to be followed? Is this something Christians should engage in? When we scratch below the surface we find that usually the sort of meditation being advocated is of the eastern Buddhist or Hindu sort. We should not engage in TM as they call it or anything like it. That sort of meditation advocates emptying the mind, rather than filling it. Rather than mental passivity, Christian meditation calls on us to actively exert our mental energy. We should do that.

It is said of the nineteenth century Princeton professor Archibald Alexander

From our earliest recollections, he had been accustomed to sit and muse in the evening twilight, often prolonging these hours far beyond the time when lights are usually demanded. These moments, though solemn, appeared to be pleasurable. In these he pursued his most fruitful trains of thought. As he grew older, this sort of exercise was more frequent and protracted; and in no instance did it seem to merge into any thing like slumber. It was a period to be gratefully remembered, as one of singular peace.

Meditation of that sort is not always easy but we should seek to do it frequently and in a focussed way. Adequate time must be set aside for it. it is encouraged in Scripture. For example in Psalm 119:15 David says that he meditates on God's precepts and considers his ways. In Philippians 4:8 Paul encourages us ... whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. Use your mind to go over these things.

Lots of pictures are used by Christian writers wanting to encourage this sort of thing.

Spurgeon says it is not enough just to gather grapes we need to tread them out so that the juice is preserved and can be used to make good wine. He likens it to a wrestler putting embrocation on his body to warm him up for the match. It is like a cow ruminating - passing its food through all four stomachs so we must slowly meditate on God's Word and on similar matters.

It is important that we take time not only to pray and to read God's Word but also to meditate.

The Puritan William Bates says our meditations are like eggs which need to be kept warm in the nest, ‘if the bird leaves her nest for a long space, the eggs chill and are not fit for production’ but ‘holiness and comfort to our souls’ will be the result of regular time with God. At the beginning, meditation is like trying to build a fire from wet wood. He encourages us to persevere ‘till the flame doth so ascend’.

Subjects

Another Puritan, George Swinnock, makes a list of subjects for meditation and I thought it might be useful for the next few Sunday mornings to take some of his suggestions and give you a meditation on each one that hopefully will get you thinking and meditating too on similar lines.

His first subject is the nature and attributes of God. A Christian should not only love and serve God but should think about him, meditate on him. That would in turn, under God, make us love God more and serve him better.

But how do I begin to meditate on God? Well, first, you have to know what God is like. That is something found in Scripture and experienced in life.

One big help in this is what you will find in good catechisms. So, for example, The famous Shorter Catechism has a sits fourth question "What is God?". The answer it expects you to give and learn is in 11 parts. It says "God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth."

The Larger Catechism (Question 7) expands the answer so that it includes 20 terms.

God is a Spirit, in and of himself infinite in being, glory, blessedness, and perfection; all-sufficient, eternal, unchangeable, incomprehensible, everywhere present, almighty, knowing all things, most wise, most holy, most just, most merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

I notice that if you look up Attributes of God in Christianity in Wikipedia there are 28 different things listed - Aseity (God is one not made up of parts), Eternity, Goodness, Graciousness, Holiness, Immanence (nearness), Immutability (unchanging nature), Impassibility (he is without passions), Impeccability (he cannot sin), Incomprehensibility, Incorporeality (he doesn't have a body), Infinity, Jealousy, Love, Mission, Mystery, Omnipotence, Omnipresence, Omniscience (he is all powerful, in all places and is all knowing), Oneness, Providence, Righteousness, Simplicity, Sovereignty, Transcendence, Trinity, Veracity and Wrath.

If you took something like the Shorter Catechism and learned the answer (God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth) you could very profitably spend time thinking about God's nature and attributes for a good long time. God is a Spirit. That deserves some thought. He has no body and yet he is the living God. He is infinite - there is no end to his qualities. He is beyond our measuring. He is eternal - without beginning and without end.

What I want to do rather this morning is to take a psalm - Psalm 145 - and meditate together on four aspects of God's character that come out in this place - namely, God's greatness, goodness, glory and grace. So four things, four Gs

1 Meditate on the fact that God is great

The psalm is A psalm of praise and it is Of David. One of the aims of meditation is to lead to praise. David begins (1, 2) 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. What an example David is here to us - he wants to exalt God and praise his name and extol him always and forever.

The first reason he gives as to why God should be praised, extolled and exalted is that God is great (3, 4) 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. There is something amazing and great about God. No matter how long you meditate, you will never get to the bottom of his greatness. Down the ages people have spoken of his greatness.

In his Confessions, Augustine says "What art Thou then, my God? Most highest, most good, most potent, most omnipotent; most merciful and most just; most hidden and most present; most beautiful and most strong ..."

Calvin says "Men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God."

The Puritan Stephen Charnock says this "Nourish right conceptions of the majesty of God in your minds. Let us consider that we are drawing to God, the most amiable object, the best of beings, worthy of infinite honour, and highly meriting the highest affections we can give; a God that made the world by a word, that upholds the great frame of heaven and earth; a Majesty above the conceptions of angels; who uses not His power to strike us our deserved punishment ... a God that gave all creatures to serve us, and can, in a trice, make them as much our enemies as he hath now made them our servants. Let us view Him in His greatness ... that our hearts may have a true value of the worship of so great a majesty, and count it the most worthy employment with all diligence to attend upon Him."

One last quote from Spurgeon "There are no measures which can set forth the immeasurable greatness of Jehovah, … Notes of exclamation suit us when words of explanation are of no avail. If we cannot measure we can marvel; and though we may not calculate with accuracy, we can adore with fervency."

Psalm 145:5, 6 They speak of the glorious splendour 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. Each time David heard others speak of God's greatness - the wonderful splendour of his majesty, the power of his awesome works - he too meditated on God's amazing works so that he could proclaim his great deeds. We must do the same.

2 Meditate on the fact that God is good

Then in verses 7-10 David says 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. All your works praise you, LORD; your faithful people extol you.

So think too of what people say not only about God's greatness but also about his goodness (and his righteousness) - about the fact that he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love, that he is good to all and has compassion on all he has made David also wants to join in the praise for these things. All God's works praise him in one way or another and his faithful people should also extol him.

Think of the goodness of God also then and meditate on it. Creation itself is urging you to praise him for it.

Augustine tells us that "God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them." Writing on the incarnation the church father Athanasius says "God is good - or rather, of all goodness He is the Fountainhead.”

Puritan John Flavel writes "He spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all; how shall He not with him freely give us all things” (Romans 8:32)? How is it imaginable that God should withhold, after this, spirituals or temporals, from His people? How shall He not call them effectually, justify them freely, sanctify them thoroughly, and glorify them eternally? How shall He not clothe them, feed them, protect and deliver them? Surely if He would not spare this own Son one stroke, one tear, one groan, one sigh, one circumstance of misery, it can never be imagined that ever He should, after this, deny or withhold from His people, for whose sakes all this was suffered, any mercies, any comforts, any privilege, spiritual or temporal, which is good for them."

John Owen says "Men are afraid to have good thoughts of God. They think it is a boldness to eye God as good, gracious, tender, kind, loving. I speak of saints. They can judge Him hard, austere, severe, almost implacable, and fierce (the very worst affections of the very worst of men, and most hated by God). Is not this soul-deceit from Satan? Was it not his design from the beginning to inject such thoughts of God? Assure yourself, then, there is nothing more acceptable to the Father than for us to keep up our hearts unto Him as the eternal fountain of all that rich grace which flows out to sinners in the blood of Jesus."

A W Tozer in the last century wrote "The goodness of God is infinitely more wonderful than we will ever be able to comprehend."

Give praise to God for he is good.

3 Meditate on the fact that God is glorious

In verse 11 David says further of the different generations that They tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might. They do it, he says (12, 13) so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendour of your kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations.

We can think of God's greatness then but we can also speak of God's glory, his glorious nature. His attributes all flow one into another and we only distinguish them to help us think about them. Here David is thinking of God's might, his mighty acts and the glorious splendour of his kingdom which is an everlasting kingdom in which he exercises a dominion that endures through all generations.

What doe we mean then by God's glory? John Piper has attempted to define it like this. He begins by saying that the word is more like the word beauty than the word basketball. You can describe a basketball and easily get the idea across but you can’t do that with the word beauty. Some words are like that and glory is one.

So what he does is to contrast it biblically with the word holy. He suggests that God's holiness is God's being in a class by himself in his perfection, greatness and worth. In a class by himself, God has infinite perfections, infinite greatness, infinite worth.

He then quotes Isaiah 6:3 where the angels cry to each other Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts and The whole earth is full of his ... As he says, you might expect holiness, but it says glory.

God is intrinsically holy, and the whole earth is full of his glory. And so Piper suggests that God's glory is best thought of as the manifest beauty of his holiness. " ... the glory of God is the holiness of God made manifest." Leviticus 10:3 confirms it. God says that he will be shown to be holy among those who are near him, and before all the people he will be glorified.

So think not only of God's greatness and goodness but also his glory - his holiness and the splendour of it.

4 Meditate on the fact that God is gracious

The last thing I want us to meditate on this morning is God's graciousness - his grace. Now you could think of this as an aspect of his goodness, of course, but it is worth looking at separately. From the end of verse 13 to verse 21 we read The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does. The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. The LORD is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does. The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfils the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy. My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.

The word grace is not used it is true but that is the subject - the undeserved love of God. He upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. That is why everyone looks to him and depends on him. He opens his hand and satisf(ies) the desires of every living thing. He is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfils the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. That is the God of grace we worship the one we should all praise forever.

In the New Testament it is revealed that God's grace comes to all who put their faith in Jesus Christ.

There's a hymn that begins

Wonderful grace of Jesus, Greater than all my sin;

How shall my tongue describe it, Where shall its praise begin?

Taking away my burden, Setting my spirit free;

For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus, Deeper than the mighty rolling sea,

Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain,

All sufficient grace for even me, Broader than the scope of my transgressions,

Greater far than all my sin and shame, O magnify the precious name of Jesus, Praise His name!

Wonderful grace of Jesus, Reaching to all the lost;

By it I have been pardoned, Saved to the uttermost,

Chains have been torn asunder, Giving me liberty;

For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

Wonderful grace of Jesus, Reaching the most defiled,

By its transforming power, Making him God’s dear child,

Purchasing peace and heaven, For all eternity;

And the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

So here is a meditation - God is great, God is good, God is glorious, God is gracious. Praise his name!

The Nature or Attributes of God 1

The Shorter Catechism asks the question What is God? and answers with an 11-fold (potentially 21-fold) answer.

God is a Spirit,

infinite,

eternal,

and unchangeable

in his being,

wisdom,

power,

holiness,

justice,

goodness,

and truth.

The Larger Catechism expands the answer (Question 7) so that it includes 20 terms.

God is a Spirit, in and of himself

infinite in being,

glory,

blessedness,

and perfection;

all-sufficient,

eternal,

unchangeable,

incomprehensible,

everywhere present,

almighty,

knowing all things,

most wise,

most holy,

most just,

most merciful

and gracious,

long-suffering,

and abundant in goodness

and truth.