God is Eternal

Articles on the Eternal Covenant of God click Bible Study Series by Rev. Charles King, D.Min.

In the beginning God....Chapter1....God's Eternal Covenant

The main subject of the Bible is God. The Bible does not attempt to prove there is a God, but proclaims the fact that God is! The Bible starts by showing that God is eternal and existed in the beginning and He created everything including all humans. Elsewhere the Bible states that God is the “Alpha and Omega”, the “ First and Last”, and the “Beginning and End”. The fact that “God is” is the focus of Scripture. Hebrews states without faith a person can not please God. We must believe that God “is” and that He rewards us who seek him.

Our belief system determines our behavior. The Bible states as a man thinks so he becomes. Some say that God is dead or does not exist. The Bible calls such a person a fool. Our faith in God and the Bible as TRUTH are very important beliefs. Our understanding of this determines our Biblical worldview (belief system) and our behavior. Jesus says, the Word of God is truth and that a person is sanctified, set apart by God’s Word.

Paul, like Jesus, points out in Romans chapter one that man is without excuse. Paul said that God shows His anger against all sinful, wicked people who refuse His truth. He goes on to say that the truth about God is known to them and that God has put this knowledge in their hearts.

God is a relational being and has made us in His image as relational beings. Based on God’s covenant revelations, He desires a relationship with man. The conditions for this relationship are dictated by His Eternal Covenant. As we study about God and His creation let us look at the following three things; (1) God’s Attributes, (2) God’s Character/nature, and God’s Work.

God’s Attributes

God is self-existent and eternal, without beginning, and without end. Many places God’s Word speaks of His eternal nature. In Isaiah God says, that He is the First and the Last and that there is no other God besides Him.” Isaiah continues this thought as he speaks of God when he says there is but one God and He is a just God and a Savior .There is but One God, but He manifest Himself as three persons, God the Father, Son and God the Holy Spirit. He is the One who was, is, is to come. This is the basis of the doctrine of a triune God (trinity).

The Bible is very clear in the fact there is but one God (presented in three persons). Not only is there but one God, the Bible states there is only one way to God. John says, Jesus is the way truth and life, and no one goes to the Father, but by Jesus. Also in Acts it is stated that there is no other name, than the name of Jesus that one can call on for salvation.

The Bible states that God is unchanging, God tells us that that He is the Lord and does not change. The Bible shows us that God is constant and unchangeable in His revelation and response to mankind. God gives His name to Moses as “I AM that I AM”. God tells Moses that He is the God who is and will be what He has already been in the past (unchanging). He goes on to tell Moses that He is “the Lord God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and that will be His name forever.”

God is all-present or is everywhere present. He tells us that He is everywhere in all the heavens and earth. God has the capability of being present everywhere in the world at once. He is never separated from any part of His creation. The psalmist exclaimed, Where can I go from thy spirit, where can I flee from thy presence? If I go up into heaven, you are there, if I go down to hell, behold, you are there. We can not hide from Him.

Not only is God all-present, He is all-knowing. The Bible states no creature is hidden from God’s sight, all things are naked and open to the eyes of the One to whom we must give account. God’s all-knowing nature is a matter of experience for the righteous and is not cause for alarm but assurance. But to the unrighteous it should be cause for alarm since His eyes are everywhere, watching both the wicked and the good. Not only does God know every thing as it happens, He has a knowledge of all events, past present and future (foreknowledge). There are no surprises to God. There is no one else that can tell you what is going to happen in the days ahead.

Remembering that God knows all my actions and thoughts encourages me to evaluate my actions and see if there is something of which I need to confess or repent, such as gossip, anger, hatred, or an offense against a brother or sister in Christ.

God is all-powerful. Nothing can limit Him except the limits He places on Himself. Scripture affirms that all power belongs to God and that all things are possible for Him. God can accomplish any task He chooses. Also we see that we can accomplish any task for God because with God all things are possible. God could make anything happen, but He limits Himself through His eternal covenant relationship in which He explains His requirements of man. God is faithful and keeps His covenant for a thousand generations. He grants man freedom and holds them accountable. There is no excuse.

God’s sovereignty and His delegated responsibility to man presents a paradox in Scripture. Although He is all-powerful and could cause anything He desires to come to fulfillment, He has delegated to man certain freedom. This freedom is defined by His Eternal Covenant relationship. Man is not a robot or a puppet on a string. God has created man as both a rational and volitional being. God allows man to reason and make choices. God desires that man love Him voluntarily and not by force. Man’s most important decision is to love God.

The book of Revelation states that God created everything for His pleasure and He is worthy of worship. God desires that we bring Him pleasure through worship, praise, and obedience. God has created man with the ability either do these voluntarily or not. The Bible states that even though they knew God they refused to give Him glory or thanks. God goes on to describe the punishment that will come to the ones who chose not to honor Him.

God’s Character

The most basic word to describe God’s character is the word holy. True holiness belongs to God alone. It is a unique quality of God, separate and distinct from all else. Holiness includes the ideas of righteousness, justice, and purity and belongs to God alone. The Bible says we are to Be holy, because He is holy.

Who can come into God’s presence? Who shall climb the hill of the LORD? Who can stand in his holy place? Only the one with clean hands, and a pure heart; He that is Holy. We are to be holy. We only become holy by being drawn into relationship with God and assuming His holiness by being cleansed by the blood of the Lamb.

God’s love is coordinated perfectly with His holiness and His righteousness. God’s love is always just. Love is the primary motivation behind His revelation. His covenant is given for our good. God’s love is primarily expressed as His mercy in forgiving sinners. Jesus expresses this love when he states that God loved the world so much that He gave his Son, so that who ever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.

God has made us as rational beings. We must receive His expression of love by faith. Right behind this expression of love is His statement of holiness and righteousness where Jesus states if a person believes in Him there they are not condemned but if they do not believe in Him they are condemned already.

God is impartial. God treats everyone the same and he gives everyone an opportunity to believe. The book of Romans says that God is no respecter of persons. Deuteronomy says that God shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. Peter says that God wishes none to perish. Therefore, God does not choose one over the other. God using His foreknowledge carries out His plan that He initiated before the world was formed which was that Christ be crucified for the sins of man without neutralizing the freedom that He has allowed man.

God did not and will not break His Eternal Covenant. It is man who breaks the covenant relationship. God’s all knowing ability is displayed by His perfect awareness of all events past, present, and future. He knows the final outcome (foreknowledge), but allows free choice. This is a paradox. Theologians differ with the interpretation of Ephesians chapter one. Some read it with the focus on Christ and God’s predetermined plan of the crucifixion of Christ and others read it with the focus on man and see it as God predetermining an individual’s salvation. In either case you will see that God’s foreknowledge was involved prior to the foreordained event.

God’s word says that God has chosen us in Jesus before the foundation of the world, predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus. If the focus is on Christ we see the method of salvation, the cross. This is more consistent with all of Scripture. If the focus is on an individual’s predestination to salvation then the many references to “whosoever will” and “all” will be in conflict. If we interpreted these verses with the focus on man then one could build a case for the doctrine know as election. The election (selection) of one human over the other seems to violate the attribute that God is impartial and wishes none to be lost.

We must somehow reconcile God’s Word. God is always faithful to His Word. God’s Word stands forever firm in heaven. His faithfulness extends to every generation, like the earth He created; it endures by His decree and everything serves His plans. God is faithful to His Word. He tells us that He will never leave, nor forsake us. God’s character dictates His action. Sometimes we forget that God is a perfect balance of these attributes. His love does not sway His justice.

God’s Work

God in His sovereignty moves toward a particular purpose. Yet, at all times allowing man the freedom to operate within God’s Eternal Covenant revelation. God’s purpose is to bring His creation to completion, to fellowship with Him: The Bible says that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself. The kingdom of God “in Christ” is the end toward which God moves His creation.

Man was created in the image of God. He gave us the attributes of being rational, relational, volitional, and emotional. These attributes with God’s commandment for man to rule over God’s creation under the terms of His Eternal Covenant gives us freedom but hold us accountable. Starting with Adam, God has established a covenant relationship with man. This covenant defines our relationship with God. The Bible tells us that God desires a relationship where we recognize that He is our God, that we are His people, and that He dwells with us. This three-part formula culminates when the Bible states, that God will dwell with man, and we shall be his people, and He will be our God.

God with all of His power could mandate this to happen with every person. If He were to do that, then the person would lose the freedom of choice (volition). God does not want robots or puppets. He wants a person’s free worship. We need to recognize that we were created for His pleasure and that all things were created by Him and for Him. Using our God-given rational and volitional ability to reason and chose we can either chose to trust and obey (worship) or reject His offer of a relationship.

What all this means is there is a God that grants all men freedom and He holds us accountable for our decisions. This freedom and accountability is defined in His eternal covenant revelations. God rules and sets rules. He does exist and does reward those who seek Him. God has established a set of rules, which are included in His eternal covenant. Yet this covenant is a paradox, because our all-powerful God limits Himself by assigning us responsibilities and giving us the freedom to obey or not.

It is very important that we understand God’s eternal covenant and live within its constraints. This is the third article in a series that discuss God’s Eternal Covenant Relationship with mankind.

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