Spirituality
Notes
Transcript
Two things I want to think about when we begin looking at the spirituality of God.
Immaterial and invisible
Immaterial and invisible
These are three things that are key elements as we look at God’s spirituality.
Immaterial
Immaterial
Without physical body
24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
If God has no physical body, this is why we can have the Holy Spirit live in us.
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
and why the world can’t even contain God:
1 Thus says the Lord: “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest?
18 “But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!
God does use anthropomorphic words to describe God.
18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,
This is used to describe that God see’s all
8 And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great deeds of terror, with signs and wonders.
The hand and arm are to demonstrate the strength and reach of God.
God speaks in this way because we understand it. The He is transcendent to the point that we might not be able to understand Him, He is coming down to our level so that we can understand what He is speaking about.
How is this a comfort
If God was physical, He would have to be present in a location.
In Hebrews 13:5 when God says that He will never leave us, this wouldn’t be possible if He had a physical presence in a certain place.
Invisible
Invisible
7 desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.
Invisible, cannot see Him.
18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
We haven’t seen God. No one has ever laid eyes on Him.
Moses in Ex 33:20-23 only got to see the departing glory of God after He had passed by, for you couldn’t look on God and live.
This is why in Exodus God forbids any graven image.
4 “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.
Any image would fall far short of depicting who God is.
There are ways that God reveals to people who He is.
Revealed in Creation
Revealed in Creation
Just as you can walk into someone’s house and deduce some things about them.
20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
When we look at creation we can learn somethings about our God.
Revealed through the Son
Revealed through the Son
God the Father does not reveal himself physically, but the son is the physical manifestation of God. However seeing Him physically isn’t seeing Him in the fulness of His glory.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
9 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’?
Wrap up
God is transcendent over all, but it is amazing how many ways he tries to make himself know to us. The extent that He goes through so that we will know more of Him.