The Transcendent Attributes of God
1. God is Self-Existent – His life is in Himself.
The Hebrews called Him Jehovah – One who exists of Himself and who gives being and existence to others. God has no origin, no beginning and no end. He is uncreated and self existent, owing His life and being to no one or no thing.
Psalms 90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God .
2. God is Spirit – As Spirit He is invisible to the human eye.
John 4:24 "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."
God is spirit, not physical or material. He exists on a different plane from us and is not subject to the limitations of a physical body. God is deeply personal and can be worshiped only at the most intensely personal level, from our spirit to God as spirit. Worship is not offered to a physical object or in a mechanical way. True worship of God must be in a personal relationship.
3. God is One, Yet Three – The Father, Son & Holy Spirit.
Deuteronomy 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!
The word One is a compound word meaning united, altogether, together, e.g. one body, many members.
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, sothat they are without excuse….
The Godhead has one will and each works together incomplete oneness, harmony and unity. Though aspects of God’s work are often attributed more to one than then other, in every case the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are working in agreement whether in creation, redemption or regeneration.
4. God is Eternal – He is unlimited by time – "From everlasting to everlasting." Neither beginning nor ending.
God in His infinite wisdom has chose to reveal Himself to mankind as an eternal God, a being without beginning or end, an uncreated infinite Creator. Eternity is a part of God’s character and Who He is rather than a state of being. The Biblical concept of "eternal life" is more than immortality, and it involves not only the soul but also the body. From creation man was made for never-ending life, not for death.
Psalms 90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
5. God is Immutable – Unchangeable in nature, or purpose. His Word and plan may not be changed.
Malachi 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.
God does not change. He is not like us who grow stronger or weaker, or older or younger. He remains constant never losing or gaining power. His character, truth and plans never change.
6. God is Omnipotent – All powerful. Nothing in the truest sense is impossible.
God possess what no person or creation can possess, only He alone: incomprehensible and inexhaustible power, a potency and might that is absolute.
Revelation 19:6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns
7. God is Omnipresent – Unlimited by space. He is everywhere.
Genesis 28:15 "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you."
To be omnipresent is to be universally present. God is present, next to everyone, close to everything. Our five senses limit our experience of reality to the material world, but when we are born again by God’s Spirit His omnipresence becomes available to us in manifestations of His personal presence.
Galatians 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!"
8. God is Omniscient – He Knows all Things.
Hebrews 4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
God knows past, present and future. e.g. through foreknowledge God saw that man would fall and as a result predestinated man's reconciliation through Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ were predestinated events that could not be changed, but were set in motion by God's foreknowledge or omniscience.