THE NATURE OF GOD

Thomas Aquinas one of the great theologians asserted that from what is observed logically, there must be an unmoved mover. This was a justification of what was earlier put across by Aristotle, the philosopher. For the believers, this is what we refer to as God but of course, different religions give him different titles. Bearing in mind that we have atheists, Agnostics, and pagans, this reflection focuses on the believers. 

In the world of today, the problematic element is on the nature of God. Different ministers have tried to elaborate on this notion but still, the level of understanding is the same. To understand the nature of God both in the New and Old Testament, one needs a historical, philosophical and theological eye. However, divine illumination surpasses the mentioned three. The danger in today’s world is that the understanding of God has been based more on emotional circles and not intellectual. It is the time to reconcile faith and reason so as to come up with one entity. This implies believing and understanding. 

In the Old Testament, God revealed himself to Moses as one who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. In the whole of Old Testament this is the nature of God. In the above-mentioned characteristics implies that God hates injustice, oppression, extortion, dispossession, dishonest business, bribery and commands us to avoid them. This is to say that we are entitled to defend the rights of the weak, needy, fatherless, poor and oppressed. 

Nevertheless, one will have to pose and question the nature of God in the book of Deuteronomy where He ordered the destruction of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (Deut 20:16-17). In the first place, one will have to ask on who wrote the book and under what influence. It is true that God ordered that the above communities be abolished? Is He the same lord who offered the ten commandments? In answering some of these queries, one will have to understand that Gods nature cannot be completely compared with that of man. God has no gender and neither does He have a body and so to think of Him one has to transcend. The failure to transcend has led to many religions and denominations whereby all have different interpretations offer one creator. In other words, this is to say that there is no time whereby all will agree to worship Him in one manner. 

The nature of God as underlined in the Old Testament is affirmed by Jesus when he spoke strongly against divorce and violence. He also spoke categorically against the death penalty for adultery in the case of the woman taken in adultery. The coming of Jesus was an approval of Gods true nature as mentioned in His encounter with Moses. Finally, it is of great importance to understand that however much the fundamentalist and conservatives may argue, the Scripture or any other holy book has to be in line with the moral law. An atheist may not believe in God but knows that killing is evil. On the other hand, God remains to be compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithful. It is due to our weakness and impatience that we see his nature contrary.