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Many so called gods have come and gone through the ages. The Lord God Jehovah is completely unique - He is "the everlasting God!" (Rom. 16:26). Without beginning and without end, eternal by nature. He was not created, designed, fashioned, manufactured or imagined into existence. It is not enough to say there is no god like Him - there is no God except Him!
Probably, one of the most prominent characteristics of God that immediately comes to the mind of most people is His power. Nuclear weapons, laser beams, super heroes with super powers... We're bombarded with images of power through literature and media. But all of those images, and all of the potential power that can be conjured up by the imagination of man, does not begin to compare with God's power. His power is infinite, limitless. The scriptures refer to Him as omnipotent, all powerful! (Rev. 19:6).
We don't like to think of God being a God of judgment (Eccl. 12:13-14) and wrath (Rom. 1:18). However, we need to keep in mind the reason for His exhibiting those particular characteristics - sin, unrighteousness, unfaithfulness, wickedness, evil - all of which are contrary to God's very nature and self-destructive to those who practice such. God is totally righteous, and He created us in His own image. He holds us accountable for living up to that image as best we can. While God condemns sin and warns us to abstain from it (1 Thess. 5:22), He is also merciful and eager to forgive when we repent and seek His forgiveness (Dan. 8:8-9).
If we have a problem with God bring a God of judgment, thinking of Him being a God of wrath is even more troublesome. We don't like to think of God in that light. We like to focus on what we consider to be His positive characteristics - love, goodness, kindness, mercy, grace and forgiveness. We put a negative connotation on the concepts of judgment and wrath and even more so as they might apply to God.
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September 2022
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