Who God Is
“Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call upon him while he is near.” (Isa. 55:6 ESV)
“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” (Heb. 1:1-2 ESV)
I grew up attending a non-denominational Christian Church. I don’t remember if I heard these words explicitly stated or simply absorbed the attitude: “The Old Testament doesn’t matter now that we have the New Testament.” I have also heard people contrasting “the God of the Old Testament” with “the God of the New Testament,” as though God changed somewhere between Malachi and Matthew.
Because I believe in one unchangeable God, those two concepts never made sense to me. But it’s easy to spend a lot of time reading around the edges of who God is by only looking at the Sunday school version. Reading the Old Testament as a series of disconnected character sketches, we may miss the fact that the Holy One of Israel is patiently teaching us who he is.
Because God is the all-powerful, all-knowing Creator, it stands to reason that his ways and thoughts are higher than ours. But he explicitly tells us who he is if we’re willing to seek and hear.
He tells us what he delights in and what he doesn’t. In the first chapter of Isaiah, verse 11, he says, “I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.” The book of Isaiah is filled with God’s expounding on what he does want. Hosea encapsulates it in one sentence: “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings” (Hos. 6:6 ESV).
God desires steadfast love from us because he is a God of steadfast love. In the midst of his people’s sin and rebellion, God’s character never changes. Though the Israelites had been in captivity because of their rebellion, Ezra and Nehemiah both recognized God’s steadfast love. Job understood it and staked his life and reputation on it. The psalmists proclaimed it. Isaiah was aware of the abundance of his steadfast love. Jeremiah knew it. The knowledge of it sustained Daniel through his long life in Babylon. Even Jonah acknowledged it, though he didn’t want it to be true for his enemies.
Whether it is evident all around us every day or not, God says he loves justice. This means for everyone. “And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plumb line; and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters will overwhelm the shelter” (Isa. 28:17 ESV).
The God who promises peace and comfort to Jerusalem also promises he “shall show his indignation against his enemies” (Isa. 66:14 ESV). He assures us a day of wrath will come for the wicked. His wrath is toward those who rebel and refuse to acknowledge who he is, even if they are his own people.
In his righteousness and justice, he has left us with no excuse for not knowing. His Word is a long story of who he is. The book of Isaiah alone is a thorough description. He is the Holy One of Israel, Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, the King, the mighty God, Lord God of hosts, the Almighty, the Most High, the God of your salvation, the Rock of your refuge, the Maker, the first and the last. “The Lord God is an everlasting rock” (Isa. 26:4 ESV).
There is no other God, and he will not give his glory to anyone else; certainly not to idols. He says to Israel that he blots out their sins for his own sake. He defers his anger for his name’s sake, and restrains it for the sake of his praise. This isn’t petty jealousy on God’s part. It is so people can know and be saved.
“Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
By myself I have sworn;
from my mouth has gone out in righteousness
a word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear allegiance.’” (Isa. 45:22-23 ESV)
Through the gift of a faithful mother and grandmother, grew up knowing Jesus as a friend. Married for nearly two-thirds of her life, there has been time for several seasons, from homeschooling to owning a coffee shop. She has three grown children and nine grandchildren. An element of this season is writing about literature and life at Plumfield and Paideia.
Photograph © Erika Ang, used with permission
