Communicable attributes of God

How is God like us in His being and moral attributes.

I. Attributes describing God’s being.

A. Spirituality

We have already discussed that God is not limited to time, space , and matter. As a result, there is no physical substance that makes up God. We are formed from the dust of the ground. However, God is not and instead is a Spirit.

John 4:24 ESV

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Exodus 20:4–6 ESV

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

God is also not just energy or another element of creation.

God is a spirit, something beyond our understanding and reference.

Gruden says this, “God’s spirituality means that God exists as a being that is not made of any matter, has no parts or dimensions, is unable to be perceived by our bodily senses, and is more excellent than any other kind of existence.

Therefore, how is this a communicable attribute of God? We can not be like Him in this regard.

Yet, in-spite of our deficiencies, we were created with a spirit.

1 Corinthians 14:14 ESV

For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful.

When we re saved we are joined with Christ in Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:17 ESV

But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.

Hebrews 12:23 ESV

and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,

Thus, we are also a spirit, not in the fulness of God, but He has communicated to us a taste of who He is.

B. Invisibility

God is invisible, yet knowable and experienceable.

John 1:18 ESV

No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

John 6:46 ESV

not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father.

1 Timothy 6:16 ESV

who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

1 John 4:12 ESV

No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

However, in the O.T. there are references to individuals speaking to God.

Exodus 33:11 ESV

Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.

Exodus 33:20 ESV

But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”

Here we see that God could not be seen at all in some since, but was able to be seen in some form of manifestation.

One such manner is through Theophanies. A theophany is an appearance of God.

Theophany appearances.

A. Abraham Gen. 18:1-33

B. Jacob Gen. 32:28-30

C. Israel (Pillars of Cloud and Fire) Ex. 13:21-22

D. Elders Ex. 24:9-11

E. Manoah and his wife Judges 13:21-22

F. Isaiah Is. 6.1

G. Jesus

John 14:9 ESV

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Colossians 1:15 ESV

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

Will we see God in Heaven?

A. We will never see all of him.

Psalm 145:3 ESV

Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.

1 Timothy 6:16 ESV

who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

B. We will see God himself.

Matthew 5:8 ESV

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

However, we do not know exactly how we will see Him. But, we will see Him as He is. I John 3.2

1 John 3:2 ESV

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

The world can see traces of an Invisible God in us.

God is invisible. Just as is our faith.

We know God is real because he has shown it to us through His works.

Like wise the world will see our faith through our actions.