Trying to define God is an impossible task.
When we attempt to do so, we typically refer
to God’s attributes and/or actions in the world.
But there is no way for the human mind to
grasp God in all his fullness. It simply cannot
happen.
Recently when discussing this in a Sunday
morning Bible class, someone wisely said that
the way in which we view God has a lot to do
with where we are in our lives at the moment.
At various times, we might define God as
Savior or Judge or Father or Comforter or in
any number of other ways.
One way in which I have heard God
defined is this: he is a God who is perfectly
just and perfectly merciful. And, God is the
only one who can simultaneously exact justice
and show mercy. Think about it for a minute,
especially as we define mercy and justice in
our world—the two struggle to coexist. It is
either one or the other. Or, at least one has to
be “reduced” at the expense of an increase of
the other. This is a quandary for humanity. We
cannot do this the way in which God does it.
We are made to imitate this great God.
That is an incontrovertible fact. He created
humanity to be near him and to be like him. It
is at the center of our commitment to Christ
that we follow God in the ways in which God
interacts with people, especially as Jesus
demonstrated in his earthly life. We follow him
in peace, kindness, compassion,
righteousness, and love. We act justly, and
we seek justice. We practice mercy, because
God is merciful. And, we endeavor to do so
perfectly, because God is perfect.
–Ricky
