Who is God that He should care about us?

BY Omar Miranda

God is the Father

There’s something about a father that represents the deepest and best ideals of what human relationships are and ought to be. However, it would be insensitive and unrealistic to recognize that a vast majority of the population—due to traumatic childhood experiences—doesn’t have a particularly positive experience of what a father is.

However, even given that reality the Bible refers to God as a Father. The Bible described God, the eternal Father, as the Creator, Source, Sustainer, and Sovereign of all creation. He is just and holy, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in consistent love and faithfulness.

The Bible describes God as:

• Our Father and all of humanity as His children. “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1a, NLT).
• A Father to the fatherless. “Father to the fatherless… this is God, whose dwelling is holy” (Psalm 68:5, NLT).
• The Father of Jesus, the Son. “ ‘For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life’ ” (John 3:16, NLT).
• The Creator, Sustainer of all things. “For through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16, NLT).

God is the Son, and the Son is God

Recently I was looking at a picture of my son, and realized that he looked and acted like me, but was his own person as well. I put the picture down and realized that this reminded me of what the Bible has to say about who Jesus is.

God the eternal Son became a human being in Jesus Christ (John 1: 1-3). Jesus created all things (Colossians 1:15-19). In Him the character of God is revealed (John 10:30, John 14:9), the salvation of humanity is accomplished (John 3:16), and the world is judged (John 5:22).

Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary (Luke 1:34, 35). He lived and experienced temptation as a human being (Hebrews 4:15), but perfectly demonstrated the righteousness and love of God. He voluntarily suffered and died on the cross for our sins and in our place (John 10:18). Jesus was raised from the dead (Romans 8:34), and ascended to heaven to minister in the heavenly sanctuary in our behalf (Romans 8:34, Hebrews 7:25; 4:14).

But there will come a time when He will come again in glory for the final deliverance of His people (John 14:2, 3).

God, the Spirit

My boss texted me related to the email she sent, urgently requiring my response. I, however, realized that the email on my cellphone wasn’t working because I was away from my Wi-Fi and had forgotten to turn on my data. I wasn’t receiving my emails because I wasn’t tuned in to the ever-present, all-encompassing, and invisible “Signal.” In order to remedy the situation, I just needed to connect with it. It’s the same for Christians and the Holy Spirit.

God the eternal Spirit was active with the Father and the Son in Creation, incarnation, and redemption (Genesis 1:2, Job 26:13). The Spirit is as much a person as we are and has feelings and can make decisions (Ephesians 4:30). The Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Bible (2 Timothy 3:16, and 1 Peter 1:20, 21); draws and convicts human beings of sin and truth (John 16:8, 13); and for those who respond the Spirit renews and transforms into the image of God (Philippians 2:13). Part of that transformation includes the gifting of each believer for the growth and maturity of the church (1 Corinthians 12:7). You don’t have to ask if God wants you to have His Holy Spirit. In fact, you can be sure that He wants you to be baptized with Him, so you can grow to be more like Him and share His salvation with others! (Matthew 3:11 and Acts 1:8).

More than anything, God wants you to receive the Holy Spirit. But for many, it can be hard to know whether or not they have the Holy Spirit.

Receiving the Holy Spirit is really quite simple: just ask God! To be filled with all the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:19), we must first allow God to empty us of the things contrary to His Bible. Just as you can’t fill a milk carton with water until it’s emptied of its contents, we can’t be filled with the Spirit until we allow God to do His work through the Spirit. This is called sanctification.

How God works to Save You, and Me

Long before our two kids were born, my wife and I had a specific plan for them. We knew that regardless of how they would act, what they would look like, or what happened to them, we would do whatever it took to ensure that they were in our lives. God does the same thing for all humanity—it’s called the “Plan of Salvation.”

In infinite love and mercy God made Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin for us, so that in Him we might be made the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). Led by the Holy Spirit we sense our need (Isaiah 64:6), acknowledge our sinfulness and repent of our sins (Luke 15:10, and 1 John 1:9), and show faith in Jesus as the Giver of Eternal Life and our Lord, Substitute for our sinfulness, and our Example (Romans 6:4).

This saving faith comes through the divine power of God’s Bible and is the sole gift of God’s grace. Through Christ we are made as if we had never sinned (Romans 3:24), adopted as God’s sons and daughters (Galatians 4:5), and delivered from the power of sin (Romans 7: 24, 25). Through the Spirit we are born again and made holy; the Spirit renews our minds, and we are given the power to live a holy life (Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23, and 2 Corinthians 5:17-21). Continually spending more and more time with Him, we become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4) and have the assurance of salvation now and in the judgment (1 John 5:13).

Omar Miranda, counselor, lay pastor, and free-lancer writes from Plainville, Georgia.