Question 3 – Who is God and what does He look like?
'An energy', 'a higher power', 'a higher principle', 'good' and also 'love'. These descriptions about who (or more often what) God is are widespread in the western world. Although there can be some truth in each of them, they are not completely exact. God is neither an impersonal type of energy, nor is He a senile old man with a beard sitting on a cloud and watching us from there.
Who is God?
According to Christians, God is a unique, personal being who is intelligent, perfect and has His own will. We are not dealing with a God who can't be understood nor an impersonal force who created everything and now just keeps everything going. God not only created all living and inanimate things, but also manages everything and has a plan for the world, including humanity. God is, then, a perfect, thinking being with whom nothing or no one else in the universe can be compared.
What does God look like?
In our first question we said that no one has ever seen God. The Bible also states that God is spirit. For some of you, this may bring to mind a comical character from a fairy tale or a spooky ghost. We, however, understand this term in the sense of a being who does not have a physical body, whose form/appearance is not known to us and, with our limited understanding, we cannot fully comprehend. Any attempt at an artistic rendition of God's likeness is, therefore, senseless.
What is God like?
We could describe many of God's characteristics here. Despite this, God would still remain a mystery to us. Nevertheless, I would like to speak about one of God's aspects – His sense for beauty and perfection. Although our world is to a certain point contaminated, corrupted and decaying and in no way carries its original perfect form, we are literally fascinated by the beauty of nature, its harmony and perfect unity. As I write these lines, it is spring. Everything is in bloom and nature is awaking to life. I don't live in an especially beautiful place (a normal Czech city), and yet I am fascinated by the beauty around me. If God exists, then it is logical that all of this is His work. Why did He create beauty? Why did He ever give us the sense to be aware of and appreciate this beauty? I believe that this reality mirrors one of the many aspects of His own nature. Last but not least, it can be said that God can be known through His Son – Jesus Christ. It is written in the Bible that he who has seen the Son has seen the Father also (the Gospel of John 14:8-9). Jesus is, then, the perfect expression of God's character. If you want to know what God is like, get to know what Jesus is like.
What does God mean for people?
Some people teach that God is unreachable and strictly separated. At the same time, many people imagine that He is some kind of overseer who is just waiting for us to make a mistake so that He can punish us. The God of the Bible has, however, revealed Himself to be quite different. In relationship to mankind, He is presented as a loving Father who desires to have a relationship with His children. He is a Father who loves, comforts, trains and if necessary, punishes His children. The reality that most of us do not know God as our Father and live in active rebellion towards Him is another chapter in itself and will be addressed in some of the other questions.
Where can we learn more about God?
For those of you who desire to know more details about who God is, I recommend that you read the Bible. It is best if you begin with the New Testament (for example a gospel). Christians believe that the Bible is God's revealed will and His design for mankind. It is a kind of 'instruction manual' for life. It contains a great number of stories about ordinary people as well as unusual people who God met with. It also contains many reactions of an all-powerful God to human failings and weaknesses.
God reveals partially who He is, and who we are in the Bible. It also reveals God's plan for mankind and our planet. However, it reveals and offers that which is most important – the way that each person can come to God.
On the basis of a study of the Bible and especially of Jesus Christ, you will gain a more detailed 'personal profile' of God. If you read that far, you will discover that God is holy (that is separated), all-powerful, sovereign, perfect, merciful, gracious, kind, loving and forgiving, but also someone who causes one to revere and fear Him, who is a righteous judge who punishes everyone according to his/her actions.
Is it possible to know/understand God fully?
Despite the Bible offering a quite complete and satisfying description of God, it is not possible to fully understand God. We don't know everything about Him and, in many respects, He is beyond our understanding Him fully. For some, this fact is clear proof that no God could exist. However, we must realise that we are trying to describe a limitless being by means of finite and limited language of human beings which are themselves limited in their knowledge. In the same way that an 8-year-old child does not understand the Theory of Relativity, quantum physics, or 'ordinary' photosynthesis, we cannot fully comprehend God. Our understanding is simply too restricted. Should we not expect this from an almighty God? If, however, this exceptional, perfect God really exists, then it is logical that we cannot span His depths with our own understanding. If someone presents 'his god' in a way that he can be fully understood, you can be almost sure that this god has been made up.
What is God's name?
The question of God's name in the Biblical context is a little complicated. God reveals Himself by many names in the Bible. They point to His substance/essence. He does not try to give us a name by which He wants to be addressed. When Moses asked God what His name was, He said, 'I AM WHO I AM' (Hebrew JHVH = Yahweh/ Jehovah - Exodus 3:14). Although God gave a concrete name here, it is, according to my understanding, a deeper message. Personally, I understand it in this way - 'I do not have a human name. I simply am.' God's name or significance is usually dependent on the language into which the Bible is translated and is presented in various ways.
Other peculiarities of God's person
The Bible reveals one other unusual characteristic of God. Although it declares that there is only One God, in many places it proclaims that God exists in three persons, neither three gods nor one god in three forms as some people ridicule this reality, but three persons – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Since this aspect is very complex, I will devote a separate question to it.
Summation
God has many characteristics which we will discuss in further questions. To a great extent, however, we can only know what He himself has revealed about Himself. He has done this through the Bible where He has shown His purpose for mankind, our planet and where He has revealed all that is needed for us to come to know Him. For a closer understanding of God's character, I recommend that you go straight to the source – read the Bible rather than listening to the opinions or comments of other people.
"God proved His love on the Cross. When Christ hung, and bled, and died, it was God saying to the world, 'I love you.'" - Billy Graham