“‘Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God Almighty,’
who was, and is, and is to come.”
“You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being.”
-Revelation 4:8b, 11
In order to understand God one must have a clear vision of who He is. The word throne is mentioned fourteen times in the eleven verses of Revelation chapter four. A throne represents the office of power and authority of a sovereign. We know that God is the most exalted sovereign of all creation -
"For you, LORD, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods." -Psalm 97:9
Everything in all creation is ruled by the One who sits on the throne -
"The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all." - Psalm 103:19
Who is this most exalted being? We know that His first defining characteristic is His holiness. It describes both His goodness and power that radiates out from Him like energy. It describes the creative intensely powerful force that is behind all of creation. It makes Him totally unique from any other beings which is the meaning of the word holy. His holiness is so overwhelming that no mortal can actually see God in all the fullness of his holiness and glory and live -
But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." - Exodus 33:20
God's holiness is like a burning fire that purifies. It must be treated with the utmost respect and reverence.
Another defining characteristic of God is that He is Almighty. The Hebrew name "El Shaddai" is usually translated "God the All-powerful One". This attribute also makes God unique. The fact that He is all powerful leaves no room for any other power that can usurp Him. There is no one higher. God is ruler over all, the Most High.
"Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.” - Psalm 91:1-2
Another attribute that makes God unique is that He is eternal. The word eternal means "everlasting, having no beginning and no end.". God is the only being whose existence is completely independent upon anything else. This is something we will never fully understand because God's ways are not our ways. He is infinite, we are finite. Yet the amazing and incomprehensible thing is that that in spite of this, God loves and values His creation so much so that He gave his own Son so that we might enjoy eternal Life with Him.
Everyone knows that there is a Creator God. The evidence is all around us. God designed the universe so that His many visible attributes would be clearly seen in the things He made, so that we are without excuse (Romans 1:20). The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all impiety and
injustice of men, who are seeking to suppress the truth by means of
their unrighteous lives. (Romans 1:18). We cannot deny that God exists and that He is who He is. Having a clear vision and understanding of His character and nature allows us as believers to blossom into the creatures that we were created to be. We were created for love and fellowship with our incomprehensibly wonderful Creator and each other.
