Your Role Model

With God as our Heavenly Father, both He and His children have certain character qualities that are shared in common.[i]

The Almighty views humanity with compassion and love.

·       “Anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”  1 John 4:8 (MEV)

 ·       “God loves us too much to indulge our every whim.” (Max Lucado)

The Almighty acts according to what is just.

·       “Learning respect for the Lord is good.   It will last forever. The Lord’s judgments are right. They are completely fair.” Psalm 19:9 (ERV)

 

·       “No matter what storm you face, you need to know that God loves you. He has not abandoned you.” (Franklin Graham)

The Almighty’s character is righteous, virtuous, and morally right.

·       “If any of you are smart, you will listen and learn that God All-Powerful does what is right.” Job 34:10 (CEV)

 

·       “If you know that God loves you…never question a directive from Him. It will always be right and best…You are not just to observe it, discuss it, or debate it [but] obey it.” (Henry Blackaby)

 

The Almighty is truthful and faithful to His word (veracity).

·       “There are these two things, then, that cannot change and about which God cannot lie. So we who have found safety with him are greatly encouraged to hold firmly to the hope placed before us.” Hebrews 6:18 (GNT)

 

·       “God is Truth. There is no incompatibility between science and religion. Both are seeking the same truth. Science shows that God exists.” (Sir Derek Barton, winner of the 1969 Nobel Prize in Chemistry)

With God as our Heavenly Father, there are certain attributes that are completely unique to Him alone.

The Almighty owns, rules, and sustains the creation. Nothing (or no one) can stop His desires (or sovereignty).

·       “The earth belongs to God! Everything in all the world is his! He is the one who pushed the oceans back to let dry land appear.” Psalm 24:1 (TLB)

 

·       “God is completely sovereign. God is infinite in wisdom. God is perfect in love. God in His love always wills what is best for us. In His wisdom He always knows what is best, and in His sovereignty He has the power to bring it about.” (Jerry Bridges)

The Almighty does not change who He is, or the promises He makes (immutable).

·       “Every good gift, every perfect gift, comes down from above, from the father of lights. His steady light doesn’t vary. It doesn’t change and produce shadows.” James 1:17 (NTE)

 

·       “Consider what you owe to His immutability. Though you have changed a thousand times, He has not changed once.” (Charles Spurgeon)

The Almighty is not dependent in any way on His creation (self-existent).

·       “Men cannot worship him by things they make with their hands because he does not need anything. He is the one who gives life and breath and everything else to all people.” Acts 17:25 (New Testament) (WE)

·       “I don’t know how people pray who don’t believe in the sovereignty of God to do the impossible. Because all the things I want to happen are impossible. If they’re possible I’ll do them.” (John Piper)

The Almighty is free from any limitations (infinite).

·       “Before mountains were born; before You fashioned the earth and filled it with life (from ages past to distant futures). You are truly God.” Psalm 90:2 (VOICE)

·       “An infinite God can give all of Himself to each of His children. He does not distribute Himself that each may have a part, but to each one He gives all of Himself as fully as if there were no others.” (Aiden Wilson Tozer)

The Almighty knows all things actual and possible (omniscient).

·       “Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He doesn’t grow tired or weary.” Isaiah 40:28 (CEB)

 

·       “God lets everything happen for a reason. It's all a learning process and you have to go from one level to another.” (Mike Tyson)

The Almighty is everywhere, and transcends all limits of space and time (omnipresent).

·       “Is there any place I can go to avoid Your Spirit, [or] to be out of Your sight? If I climb to the sky, You’re there. If I go underground, You’re there. If I flew on morning’s wings to the far western horizon, You’d find me in a minute. You’re already there waiting.”  Psalm 139:7-10 (MSG)

 

·       “Always have the fear of God in your heart, and remember that God is always with you, everywhere, whether you are walking or sitting.” (St. Gennadius of Constantinople)

The Almighty is can do anything He pleases except that which is inconsistent with His character (omnipotent).

·       “Oh, Lord God, you made the skies and the earth. You made them with your very great power. There is nothing too wonderful for you to do.” Jeremiah 32:17 (ICB)

 

·       “When the Bible speaks of God, it speaks of Him as being all-powerful or omnipotent. The word omnipotent comes from two Latin words, “omnis,” meaning all, and “poetntia” or “potens” which means power. Hence the God of the Bible is the God of all power. The Bible says.” (Don Stewart)

 

“One key and defining attribute of God that does not appear in any other world religion or system is the biblical use of the term "Father." Over seventy times in the New Testament alone, God is described as "Father" to His children. No major world religion describes the relationship between its Creator and its adherents in terms of a father.”[ii] (Ergun Caner)

 

 

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[i] A role model is a familiar person (or famous personality) revered (and aspired) by others as a worthy behavioral success to be to be emulated by others either in the present (or in the future).

 

[ii] This post is inspired by the teaching of John Hastings at a men’s group on the “11 Attributes of God” CenterPoint Church Gahanna, Wednesday, February 13, 2017