I AM, REDEEMER & MASTER EVANGELICAL CHURCH

IRM BIBLE COLLEGES FOUNDATION INC.

351 Tandang Sora Avenue, Pasong Tamo, Quezon City

THEISM

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

Lesson 4

I. THE MEANING OF THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

When we speak of the attributes of God, we are referring to those qualities of God that constitute
what he is, the very characteristics of his nature (Erickson, 1998, p. 291).

Attributes are those distinguishing characteristics of the divine nature which cannot be separated from
the idea of God and which from the basis of revelation to His creatures (Grudem, 1991).

Attributes are those qualities of God which constitute what He is. They are expressions of His glory and
tells of who God is in terms of His character.

II. IMPORTANT TRUTHS REGARDING THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD.

1. The Attributes are Qualities of the Godhead

All the three persons in the Godhead possess essentially and equally all the attributes. Though
the Lord Jesus Christ seem to have been limited in some ways during His incarnation (ex. in His
omniscience in Mark 13:32) but those limitations He voluntarily took upon Himself as part of the
circumstance He was in as fully man. It doesn’t mean that He doesn’t have that attribute essentially or
that He will not have it permanently.

2. The Attributes are Permanent Qualities of God

They don’t change. When He manifests an attribute, it doesn’t mean that the others have
change or were absent. He simply shows what He wants to reveal for the moment. For example, when
God’s mercy forgives a sinner who repented, it does not mean His justice have changed in fact He has
shown His mercy based on His justice, that Christ had already paid for the justice needed.
3. The Attributes are Inseparable from the Being or Essence of God.
 God’s attributes do not add anything to Him, they mainly reveal His nature. They are not also
component parts of God but each describes His being.

III. THE APPROACH IN STUDYING GOD

1. Biblically

Believe only what God revealed in the Scriptures. There is a tendency to describe God based on
human experiences but if this is the case then man will describe God subjectively. God’s attributes are
objective descriptions of God not mere human ideas about Him. Other may try to describe God
philosophically but the proper way of studying them to look at how God in the Bible revealed Himself
through His attributes.

2. Practically

Study to bear upon the lives of people. They are to be approached in such a way that they will
affect lives. They must not just be studied enumeratedly but there must be a contemplative attitude so
as to see their relevance in the lives of people.

3. Christologically

See the with Christological orientation. The attributes of God were revealed in Jesus Christ. It
was Christ who clearly manifested the Father (John 1:18). As no one had seen God, the Son showed
Him.

IV. THE IMPORTANCE IN KNOWING THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

1. In greater detail, they reveal the character of God

2. They make the distinctions of the God of the Bible to the gods of any other religion

Other people believe that the God of the Bible is the same with the gods professed by other
religion. To test the validity of that belief, compare their attributes. Same God will definitely not have
different attributes.

3. They should be the ones generating worship to God.

Worship is a response to the apprehension of the attributes of God. This is where man should
glory about. Serious contemplation on them should move a person particularly believers of God to
glorify and worship Him.

V. CLASSIFICATION OF GOD’S ATTRIBUTE

 Classifications of God’s attributes are merely human categorizations. This is something that one
cannot be dogmatic about. Classifications serve as instruments of systematization, sometimes a mnemonic
device, or a times aid to better understand what is being categorize. Some of these classifications include:

A. Incommunicable and Communicable

Incommunicable attributes which are possessed by God alone. No other shares these
attributes but are unique to God alone. (Ex. omnipresence, omniscience, omnipotence)

Communicable attributes which can be shared and possessed also by man at least partially.
(love, mercy, just).

The problem for these classifications is that it is based on man (i.e. whatever it was based in
relation to man when God’s attributes remains even without comparison with man. The term
communicable also has a problem as if those attributes are being infected by God to man.

B. Immanent or Intransitive and Emanant or Transitive

Immanent or Intransitive are those which remains within God’s own nature (ex. his
spirituality).

Emanant or Transitive are those which go out from and operate outside the nature of God,
affecting creation (ex. love, mercy, benevolence. etc.).

But saying that there are attributes which remains can mean that God is not communicating
them to His creation when in fact, all His revealed attributes really affects in various aspects the life of
His creation.

C. Absolute or Relative

The absolute attributes of God are those which he has in himself independently from His
creation. (omniscience, omnipotence, infiniteness, immortality, etc)

The relative attributes of God are those which can be perceived or seen through His
relationship to His creation.

But this may imply that the relative attributes are not innate and are useless apart from His
creation. Attributes of God are innate in Him.

D. Natural and Moral

Moral attributes are those which in human context would relate to the concept of rightness (as
opposed to wrongness). Examples are holiness, love, mercy, and faithfulness)
 Natural attributes are the non-moral superlatives of God such as His knowledge and power.

But the use of the word natural may imply that the other category is not natural or that the
natural attributes are devoid of moral sense.

Millard Erickson in his book Christian Theology (1997), gave better classifications of the
attributes of God. This is the one that will be adopted in this study. He classified the attributes as
follows: (1) the attributes of greatness to where belongs spirituality, infinity, immutability, etc. (2) the
attributes of goodness in which he further classified into three, the moral purity, integrity, and love in
which the other attributes belong.

VI. GOD’S ATTRIBUTES OF GREATNESS

1. The Eternality of God

2. The Immortality of God
3. The Immutability of God
4. The Infinity and Constancy of God
5. The Spirituality of God
6. The Sovereignty of God
7. The Personality of God
8. The Omnipresence of God
9. The Omniscience of God
10. The Omnipotence of God

VII. GODS ATTRIBUTES OF GOODNESS

1. God’s Moral Purity

A. God’s Holiness
B. God’s Righteousness
C. God’s Justice

2. God’s Integrity / Truthfulness

A. God’s Genuiness
B. God’s Veracity
C. God’s Faithfulness

3. God’s Love
A. God’s Benevolence
B. God’s Grace
 C. God’s Mercy

God’s attributes are the perfections of His character. These set Him apart from any so-called gods.
Nothing lessens among the attributes otherwise He is not anymore perfect in His being and essence.

NOTE: A succinct description of each attribute is provided in the supplementary reading material