Comprehending the incomprehensible

I have recently been struck by the amount of people struggling to understand God. I have read several articles written by people in religious circles, each revolving around a particular issue pertaining to our Lord and Savior which has been particularly difficult for each respective author to understand. (An example of a topic of an article could be the eternal nature of God) Typically, the authors will work through the problem using every form of logic and several historical references and arrive at a conclusion. Unfortunately, I feel that many of these conclusions fall short or attempt to limit God in some way.

These discussions are good. They spur us into productive lines of reasoning and get us thinking deeply on subjects of spirituality. It's important to think about our God and how He relates to us.  Here's the problem as I see it. We have this idea that we must come to a conclusion regardless of whether or not we are capable of coming to the correct conclusion.

Our God is infinite in nature. Has always existed and always will. God created the entire universe, a universe that scientists have yet to find the edge of, in six days. And He created it out of nothing. As a carpenter, I build things all the time. Projects such as bookcases, toy chests, amioures, and end tables have all come out of my small shop. However, I wouldn't even think of starting a project without lumber. I'm not talking about a tree. I need boards cut to a regular thickness and width. I need fasteners, glue and tools. And more often than not, I need a lot more than six days. This is all for something that can be built in my twenty by twenty foot shop. God created a universe out of nothing. And what he made is beautiful beyond compare. Romans 1:20 says For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.


Gods love is unbelievable. Thousands of people go to hell every week because they don't believe it. God loves the worst of us so much that He gave His only Son as a sacrifice for us. Jesus died for the worst rapist and murderer who has ever walked this earth. His love is so infinite that He loves that guy. He loves that guy so much, He wants to spend eternity with him in heaven. I'm not sure I would care to spend a half hour in the same building with him let alone eternity. I most certainly would not give my son as a sacrifice for his sins. I wouldn't sacrifice my son for the best of us. But God did. And His love will be a constant for eternity. 1Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. 2Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Psalms 136:1-2

We are far from infinite. I don't know a single person who would argue with me on this point. In the scope of this universe, we're tiny. For centuries, humankind has struggled to build empires to define themselves and set themselves apart in history. The Egyptians and the Mayans built pyramids. The Greeks built the Parthenon and the Romans, the Colosseum. America is responsible for the Mount Rushmore National Monument. The French, the Eiffel Tower. Every one of these structures is a man made marvel. every one of these is already showing signs of decay, some more than others. No matter how hard we try we can't begin to match Gods creation.

The only conclusion i can come to is this. God is infinite in everything. We are finite in everything. Job 36:26 tells us this. "Look, God is greater than we can understand. His years cannot be counted." For me to try to fully understand God in his infinite nature is live trying to park a Panzer tank in a single car garage. Something is going to break and it's not going to be the tank. Ephesians 2:8 tells us "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God." God calls us to have faith because He knows that He is beyond our comprehension. We don't need to have the answers for everything. 2 Timothy 3:16 says All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. If the Bible doesn't specifically address an issue, there's a good chance I don't need to understand it. This is not to say that we shouldn't seek the answers to the big spiritual questions. We should just be prepared for the possibility that they might be beyond our understanding.

Personally, I would rather follow a God I cannot fully understand. It makes it harder for me to co-occupy His throne.