Day 11: The Father

If I were to describe my biological father to you, I could probably do it in a few sentences. Mostly because the details aren't all that relevant to you. There are a few to whom the details have more importance and I could spend a few pages telling of my dad's background and life's story. On the other hand, if I endeavored to tell of my dad's heart for loving sacrificially and his resulting ability to bless those around him, it would take quite a bit of ink. But it could be done. However, to fully capture God's character and attributes with ink and paper isn't going to happen. Ever! Regardless of how many writers spend their entire lives trying to do so.

Using the grammatical tools of the day (word duplication), the Bible writers placed special emphasis on one attribute of God, Holy! In our modern typesetting, the word would be underlined, bold, and in larger font. It's the only attribute that was originally penned that way in the scripture. And it happened in the Old Testament (Isaiah 6) and the New Testament (Revelation 4), both describing heavenly scenes where angels hover around the throne of God and for all eternity call out:

“Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!

His majestic splendor fills the entire earth!”

“Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God, the All-Powerful,

Who was, and who is, and who is still to come!” (NET)

God is majestic…and the whole earth can't contain His impressive beauty and dignity. He is all-powerful…and holds that power eternally. But, let's get first things first…

God is HOLY, HOLY, HOLY!

Read the visions recorded in Isaiah 6:1-7 and Revelation chapter 4…read them several times imagining the scene.

Now close The Bible, close your eyes if necessary, and really visualize the scene. Pick up some paper and describe the scene using your own words (but, don't draw it) and be as descriptive as possible (take poetic license and embellish with adjectives). Please don't read further until you complete this part.

Now, compare/contrast how much of each narrative (Isaiah's, John's, and yours) is spent describing God versus how much describes the environment and activity around Him.

The angels had long ago begun to sing accolades to the wonder of Almighty God. Isaiah and John realized that after all this time, these devoted angels still hadn't fully “done justice” to the foundational attribute of God. The angels were eternally captivated by the wonder...and compelled to repeat it again. How could John and Isaiah, as mere humans facing His awesome nature, hope to describe God with ink and parchment? When originally trying to describe God, I imagine they thought about it for a few days, struggled with what to write for a while, gave up, and finally moved on with their narrative…

Words only have meaning as they relate to things we have seen, ideas we have experienced, and constructs we have imagined. But there is nothing like The Lord, our God.

In various times in your past, what single word would you use to describe God?

In Matthew 6, Christ teaches His disciples to pray

Our Father in heaven, may your name be ________________ …

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