January 22, Who He is

Speak about beauty, truth and goodness, or about a God who is simply the indwelling principle of these three, speak about a great spiritual force pervading all things, a common mind of which we are all parts, a pool of generalized spirituality to which we can all flow, and you will command friendly interest. But the temperature drops as soon as you mention a God who has purposes and performs particular actions, who does one thing and not another, a concrete, choosing, commanding, prohibiting, God with a determinate character.
-C.S. Lewis

We are creatures of change even if we are creatures of habit. God is constant, always the same, never changing. He's so much larger, mightier, bigger; there aren't even words, God is beyond comprehension. We can't draw boundaries for Him to fit into. We see knew facets of Him regularly; His character, His presence, more of His will and plans are regularly revealed to each of us individually depending on our paths and certainly on our choices. But He does not change. And there are things about God that we'd all love to wax over, or erase: His passion, His jealousy, His fury, His wrath... "but God is 'love.' How could He..."

God is not simply a great spiritual force. He is the Author, the Creator, the Lord of all. There's a lot to that. I've a dear friend who believes God is something having to do with a strong force of light and love. But that's entirely how she sees Him. Her view of God takes His character away from Him. My God encompass absolute truth and power and beauty and perfection and wisdom. He has a character and is a Being, not just a spiritual force. Oh, He is a Spiritual force but He's not just this huge mighty spiritual force. He is God. I don't think anyone should even begin to narrow that down even if a God who is simply the indwelling principle of beauty, truth, and goodness sounds like such a grand thing. Let's not start trying to fit God in boxes we've made for Him.

I think my friend would say I'm the one who's shoved Him into a box by calling Him the "Christian" God. But identifying truths about Him, like how I believe He sent His Son to draw humanity back into right relationship with Him after they walked away, I don't see that as putting God into a box. I see that as seeking out who He is.

We who defend Christianity find ourselves constantly opposed not by the irreligion of our hearers but by their real religion. Speak about beauty, truth and goodness, or about a God who is simply the indwelling principle of these three, speak about a great spiritual force pervading all things, a common mind of which we are all parts, a pool of generalized spirituality to which we can all flow, and you will command friendly interest. But the temperature drops as soon as you mention a God who has purposes and performs particular actions, who does one thing and not another, a concrete, choosing, commanding, prohibiting, God with a determinate character. People become embarrassed or angry. Such a conception seems to them primitive and crude and even irreverent. The popular 'religion' excludes miracles because it excludes the 'living God' of Christianity and believes instead in a kind of God who obviously would not do miracles, or indeed anything else.
-C.S. Lewis
The Business of Heaven