Who is God? Misunderstandings about God create false idols in our minds based on misperceptions the Bible never promotes. God is not a void of love and light, and he’s not a celestial tyrant. As we overcome the lies we believe about God, replacing them with truth is crucial. It’s also important not to enter into “yada, yada” mode as we hear words like “loving” or “kind.” For church kids and ministry leaders, we write off characteristics like these as boring and cliche without digging deeper to understand the mindblowing implications. If these things are really true – if God is really our loving triune Father and King – this reshapes our entire reality. Here’s how:
God is Our Father: Relational Connection with a Benevolent God
One of the central aspects of God’s nature is His role as our Father. This is the characteristic He wants us to identify Him as. Jesus calls Him “The Father” frequently and even encourages his disciples to be one with the Father in the same way in John 17.
The Distinction Between Power-Centric and Relational Views of God
When we start our understanding of God with a powerful creator, that leads us down a path of understanding Him as a power-centric God. We assume that since He is the Creator, He needs creation to worship Him and needs to have reign over all the earth. He does have great power – this is true. However, our understanding of Him cannot start there because that gives us no space to move into relationship with Him. That only leaves us in a sinful position, failing to meet His expectations and fearing His wrath.
This power-centric understanding of God is not how He identifies Himself throughout the gospels. Though He is the great King and all-powerful Creator – What He wants us to call Him is Father. That is an astounding truth! As the disciples observe how Jesus interacts with His Father, they ask him, “teach us to pray like you pray!” They’ve never seen anything like it. Because, unlike the religious rulers at the time who had a power-centric understanding of Him, Jesus had a relationship.
A Relationship that Begins with Fatherhood
So they ask Him to teach them to pray, and He does. This prayer starts with “Our Father.”
“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’” (Matthew 6:10-13)
These requests start with “Our Father” because we’re not just reciting empty words – we’re entering into a relationship. That relationship defines and determines how we talk to Him, the things we ask for, the things we desire, and the way we spend time with Him. So this passage teaching us how to interact with God begins with his role as our Father.
God is Love: The Core Essence of God’s Character
God’s love is not merely an emotion but a fundamental aspect of His nature. As we experience His fatherly nature, we also experience His love. This is seen at the end of the Lord’s Prayer passage in Luke 11:9-13, which says,
“So I say to you: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened – Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Our Loving God Gives Good Gifts
God is a good father who gives good gifts. He’s given us familial relationships on earth to be a reflection – though a dim reflection – of what it means to be a loving father. Fathers who are imperfect, flawed, or even evil should not be confused with the selfless, loving, and benevolent fatherhood God extends to us. This passage shows that our Father in Heaven knows how to give us good gifts and loves us profusely. By reading through the end of the passage, we see that He not only blesses us with possessions and circumstances which bring us joy, but the gift He gives us most generously is more of Himself. He gives His Spirit. The Holy Spirit was poured out upon Jesus, the early Christians, and now us as a way to have God always with us and in us providing the tools and resources we need to live this life.
A Case Study of God’s Love
At Jesus’ baptism, we see a glimpse of this love played out. It’s this scene that displays how God’s self-giving love is extended through all persons of the trinity. As Jesus is raised from the water after being baptized, the voice of the Father speaks words of affirmation and love over Him. To provide a visual representation and physical sign of His love, the Spirit descends in the form of a dove to rest on Him. The natural progression or result of the Father’s love is the provision of His Spirit. When we are in moments of hardship, we can listen for the affirming words of the Father and ask that He gives us more of Himself through His Spirit.
That’s what the passage above means when it says, “How much more will the Father give the Holy Spirit on those who ask Him?”
Inserting God into 1 Corinthians 13
So if love is the very essence of God’s character, we can see a demonstration of His character by looking at the most popular definition of love in the Bible: 1 Corinthians 13. If this defines love, and God is love, what insights might we rediscover about God if we replaced the word “love” with “God?”
“God is patient, God is kind. He does not envy, He does not boast, He is not proud. He does not dishonor others, He is not self-seeking, He is not easily angered, He keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. He always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
When we are entangled in doubts or insecurities, we may wonder if God is cruel or if He cares about our suffering. The answer to these difficult questions is anchored in the fact that we KNOW these words in 1 Corinthians are true. We don’t have to wonder if He loves us. We don’t have to wonder if He’s patient or kind. This profound passage reveals the depths of God’s love. It assures us that God’s love is unfailing. We can rest in the certainty that God loves us unconditionally and demonstrates His love through these attributes.
God is Trinity: The Mystery of God’s Power and Selflessness
The mystery of the Trinity, another aspect of God’s nature, demonstrates the self-giving love within the Godhead. While it is challenging to comprehend fully, the Trinity reveals that God exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Because God’s love is a relational self-giving love, the most vivid expression of this love is through relationship. As the three persons of the Trinity relate in full unity and cohesion, we can see the perfect expression of love.
Is God Selfish?
If you’ve ever wondered how it’s not selfish for God to deserve all the glory, this is the answer. Though there is only one God, only one way to heaven, God is revealed to us through the three persons of the Trinity. Instead of asserting His dominance in a power-hungry struggle for glory – the Trinity demonstrates a self-giving love. The Trinity is not something we can fully explain or fully understand, but that mystery makes me excited. If I were able to understand every aspect of who God is, that god would be too finite (or wimpy) to truly be God. The Trinity dictates that instead of a power-hungry struggle for power and worship, we get a Triune God that is always pouring out His love among the persons of the Trinity.
Trinitarian Love is Self-Giving Love
To be loved by our Triune God is to have a lavish self-sacrificing love poured out upon us without strings attached. When we grasp the depth of God’s love and the selflessness within the Godhead, it reshapes our understanding of family and relationships, showing us that God’s love is not a power struggle for glory but a self-giving love within the persons of the Trinity.
God is King: The Kingdom that Changes Our World
Finally, recognizing God as the King of Kings provides a framework for understanding His authority and sovereignty. As the supreme King, God governs His kingdom with righteousness, justice, and love. When you live in a kingdom, the king shapes the rules, the regulations, and the way your culture runs. The Bible repeatedly reminds us that believers are citizens of His kingdom, called to live according to His principles and values. This Kingdom reality is different and distinct from the societies of this world. Jesus’ kingdom reality reshapes the way we interact with God, others, and the world around us.
No Longer in Survival Mode: Our Position as Coheirs with Christ
Living as citizens of God’s kingdom, we are called to honor and submit to His kingship. This understanding instills reverence and awe, motivating us to align our lives with His purposes and participate in His redemptive work in the world. However, His Kingship does not negate His role as our Father. Romans 8:14-17 speaks to this as it explains that we are coheirs with Christ. Because God is our father, there is no necessity for the relational distance that a king might normally keep with his subjects. We are the children of the King – Jesus is our brother and coheir to the kingdom. So we have the agency to approach the throne of grace with confidence. Anything that the King has access to in all the land and his whole Kingdom treasury – we can request access to as well! Jesus affirms this in John 15:15, where He says,
“I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”
The Mindblowing Implications of an Eternal Kingdom
Being both a child of our Heavenly Father and a child of the King of Kings means that we are wholly and completely beloved AND we have every provision and blessing at our fingertips. This doesn’t mean we won’t experience hardship in a world ravaged by sin and destruction, but it does mean we have an inheritance waiting for us that is far greater. Therefore, we have no need to live our lives like the people of this world do. We have no need to run from place to place in survival mode. We don’t need to revert to self-preservation or shut down because we won’t have enough resources, relationships, or rest to survive. Instead, we are invited to live in an entirely different economy from the rest of the world – an economy of overflowing love, abundant resources, self-giving relationships, and joyful generosity.
How Does God’s Character Change My Everyday Life?
Gaining a comprehensive understanding of who God is transforms our relationship with Him and our perception of His kingdom.
The Search for Love is Over
As our Father, He invites us into an intimate relationship, assuring us of His love, care, and provision. We no longer have to live searching for love and affirmation because it’s freely available to us in overflowing abundance. His love, embedded in His very nature, encompasses the attributes described in 1 Corinthians 13.
He’s Given Us a Template for Relationships
The mystery of the Trinity reveals the self-giving love within the Godhead, reflecting the deep unity and relationship between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Observing and experiencing the relational self-giving love within the Trinity reshapes how we interract within the relationships around us.
Our New Kingdom Redefines How We Live Within Broken Societies
Then, as we interact within His Kingdom, God’s kingship over all creation redefines how we live within our broken societies. Rather than reverting to survivalism and self-preservation, or being beaten down into hopeless despair because of systemic evils and injustice, we can instead have hope as we refuse to accept that evil is the end of the story. As coheirs with Christ serving our benevolent King, we then can live each day bringing pieces of Heaven to Earth, and proclaiming, “Your Kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!”
Rediscovering Delight and Restoring a Vibrant Faith
As we delve deeper into these aspects of God’s nature through His Word, we can embark on a journey of delight as we rediscover a vibrant faith. By understanding that God is our Father, that God is Love, that God is Triune, and that He is the King of Kings, we can develop a more profound and intimate relationship with Him. There are many other characteristics of God we could study, but if we get a grasp on those four they will reshape our reality. Let us embrace these truths and allow them to shape our lives, leading us into a deeper walk with our heavenly Father, the embodiment of love, the mystery of the Trinity, and the King above all kings!
