When we talk about the character of God, what we are really saying is “What is he like?”. The word ‘character’ describes how someone acts and reacts and so reveals what they are like ‘inside’. In books and plays the people describes are called ‘characters’ because we want to know what they will do and why – its all about what they are like on the inside coming out to affect what they do and say on the outside.
So how do we know what someone’s character is like? Obviously the best way is to get to know the person themselves, by spending time with them and getting to know what makes them tick. Many of the people in this room are good friends with God and know what He is like through long personal experience. But lets for a moment assume that we are unable to do that for some reason – how then could we find out what God is like?
Firstly, in order to get to know someone’s character, we can look at how they act, look at what they actually do. For example, at geek cell we play a tabletop wargame that is meant to promote and So what about God reward teamwork. Instead, nearly all of our players spend most of the game trying to stitch each other up, which is why they die so often – someone watching could perhaps watch how the players act and draw some fairly good conclusions about what each of the players are like, and what they believe and think about life, and about people, and about fairness or right and wrong and all sorts of things – in short, your actions reveal your character. ?
What can we say about someone who created this?:
Perhaps that they are powerful, creative, that they love beauty and energy, order and chaos, that they are complex and beyond understanding?
How else can we know of someone’s character?
This pretty much sums up what the entire Scriptures has to say about God :
Dear friends, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent Prophet’s and Jesus Christ into the world that we might live through them. This is love: he loved us and sent Prophet’s & Messengers to put right everything that is broken about us.
Dear friends, because God loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, we show each other what God is like.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, proves that they do not love God, whom they have not seen, because this is what God says that He wants: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
Ok, so in the Scriptures there is another way we can know what God is like. When we say someone has a good name, what we really mean is that they have a good reputation. But in the Scriptures this is taken literally – peoples names meant something, and their name could and would be changed by their friends, families or teachers to something more appropriate if it turned out that their name didn’t match their character.
In the Bible Old Testament alone God has 144 different names in Hebrew & in the Quran he has 99 names, they all explain what he is like.
Biblical Names of God :
Advocate – 1 John 2:1
Almighty – Revelation 1:8
Alpha – Revelation 1:8
Amen – Revelation 3:14
Angel of the Lord – Genesis 16:7
Anointed One – Psalm 2:2
Apostle – Hebrews 3:1
Author and Perfecter of our Faith – Hebrews 12:2
Quranic names of God :
The Most Compassionate (Al-Rehman)
The Most Merciful (Al-Rahim)
The Most High (al-Ala)
The Most Glorious (al-ʻAziz)
The Ever Forgiving (al-Ghaffār)
The Ever Providing (ar-Razzāq)
The Ever Living (al-Ḥayy)
The Self-Subsisting by Whom all Subsist (al-Qayyūm)
The Lord and Cherisher of the Worlds (Rabb al-ʻĀlamīn)
The Ultimate Truth (al-Ḥaqq)
The Eternal Lord (al-Bāqī)
The Sustainer (al-Muqsith)
The Source of Peace (As-Salām)
What is God like? He saves. If you remember nothing else from tonight, remember that – He saves us in every way it is possible to be saved. And that is the good news of the Bible & Quran – God is here, God is great, God wishes good to us, and most of all, he acts to bring that good about for us. He saves.
We cannot be God, But we can strive to be like him in Grace, Wisdom, Inspiration & Attributes of God builds this whole “Character” in a person.
God bless you all & peace be with you.
Aslo see :
Quranic Truth 