More Than We Think

“To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him. (Isaiah 40:18)

         The majesty of the King James Bible cannot be matched by any other book.

         Bless the LORD, O my soul.

         O LORD my God, thou art great;

         Thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

                  Who covereth thyself with light as with a garment;

                  Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain;

                  Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters;

                  Who maketh the clouds his chariot;

                  Who walketh upon the wings of the wind.

                                                                                            (Psl.104:1-3)

         I once heard our pastor say something that opened a window of limitless horizon in my mind: “God is more than who we think He is.” As children of God we know this world has a very limited, even warped, conception of Him; but our own spiritual presumption can lead us to secretly assume that because we have been enlightened by the Spirit of God to the Grace of God, we are now fully cognizant of the Glory of God. Not so. The most astute theological mind or the most humble, adoring heart can neither one grasp the Being that is our God. He who calls Himself, “I Am,” is the personification of being, having neither point of origin or conclusion. And should He ever find Himself in need of natural transportation, David tells us He would simply ride a cloud or walk with the wind. Yet, even as we try to wrap our minds around this vision, we realize He only uses such imagery in order to give us a mere finite inkling of Himself. After all, as Isaiah says, He is incomparable.  

         Is this to say that we should cease trying to comprehend the incomprehensible? Far from it. We should yearn as the apostle to “know Him” (Philip.3:10). The fact that He took human form testifies to His desire to be known; and John tells us in his first epistle that one day, “we shall see him as he is” (3:2). Oh, stop for a minute and ponder those last seven words! I’m not sure what all the implications of that may, or may not, be, but I quiver with anticipation (and some fear) at the very thought of it. In the meantime, I have determined to know as much about Him now as I am capable of knowing, while all the time acknowledging, He will always be more than who I think He is.