God's Nature

 I read an article this past week that I had to share, because I think many people believe what the author was suggesting about her personal beliefs about God. And I'm not trying to share this as a judgment because I believe the author probably had good intentions - and there were some good points. But most of what she shared didn't come from scripture. I'll just share some portions from what she wrote...

"I decided to consider the existence of a loving, omnipotent deity of my understanding Who was different than the Great Intimidator of my upbringing. I listened carefully for the voice within me... Here are some of the things I believe about my God. God is NICE. He is 100 percent love, devoid of hate. My God doesn't have a Hell waiting for sinners. God isn't a believer in "sin," either.

God doesn't like those among us who try to tell others what they can do in their private lives. God doesn't get angry, or hold grudges. He doesn't hold onto negative thoughts or feelings for an instant, let alone eternity. Grudges are useless in our quest to become more like 'The Big Guy'.

God wants us to find peace, and be happy. No one has the inside track to Him, we all do. When we claim one religion to be superior, we are doing our will's work, not His. God is a big fan of Spiritual 'Inclusionism'. God is a huge fan of kindness, compassion and generosity. (And she concluded...) Yes, I'm certain, God is Nice."

God can Biblically, accurately be described as gracious, as merciful, just, loving, good, righteous, generous, and compassionate – but can God accurately be described as 'nice'? I don't want to look at this as just a matter of opinion, but rather as a genuine theological question. And in order to answer any theological question, I'm interested in facts. And where we find facts about God and who He is - is in…

I. God's Word

The author was right when she claimed that 'no one has the inside track to God', but then proceeded to give her own thoughts about God based on nothing more than opinion. I don't have an 'inside track' and my opinions aren't any more valid than hers, which is why we need to look to what God has revealed about Himself. What we believe about God drastically affects our relationship with God.

People can certainly share their ideas and understanding of God and of Jesus. And it can be helpful in giving us insight into the nature and person of God – but there's no substitute for looking to the Bible, God's own Word, for truth.

So, as I ask the question – "Is God nice?" let's start with who the author referred to as 'The Big Guy' - but Biblically speaking would be referred to as...

A. The Father

As we look to the Bible, let's look back to the Old Testament to a story that's recorded in both 1 Chronicles and 2nd Samuel. David was the King of Israel and he decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant that God had directed Moses to build, back to the people. Let's read in 2 Samuel 6:5-7 (NIV)...

David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might before the LORD, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, sistrums and cymbals. (6) When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. (7) The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down and he died there beside the ark of God.

In the article I shared - the woman said her God doesn't get angry. The God of the Bible certainly does! And that account doesn't sound very 'nice' to me. Now, we do need to understand that God had very clearly commanded His people "they must not touch the holy things or they will die." But the argument could be made that Uzzah was trying to do a good thing by steadying the ark – so wouldn't the 'nice thing to do' be to forgive Him rather than strike him dead?

It appears from this account that God was more concerned with absolute obedience than in 'good intentions' or Him being perceived as 'nice'. We can find all sorts of accounts throughout the Old Testament where God commanded a whole slew of things that we probably wouldn't consider very 'nice' either. He commanded the slaughter of His enemies; He sent plagues and even commanded the death penalty for many of His own people.

But of course, that's the Old Testament. We always see God portrayed as a God of wrath in the Old Testament, but then Jesus comes on the scene and then we see this softer, gentler side - right? But we see the words of Jesus Himself in John 14:8-9 (NIV)...

Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us." (9) Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?"

So, to understand if God the Father really is 'nice', we can Biblically look at…

B. The Son

When we look to the Bible to answer this question, we have four entire books devoted to the life of Jesus, the four Gospels. We can read for ourselves and see if the things that Jesus did and said could be categorized as 'nice' or 'not so nice'.

In the book of John it records Jesus' first public miracle of turning water into wine at the request of His mother, Mary. That seems pretty 'nice'. But just a few days later we find this account of Jesus in John 2:14-16 (NIV)...

In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. (15) So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. (16) To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!"

Do you think that after Jesus left the Temple, the older women who were there said, "He's such a nice young man."? - Probably not. Now Jesus wasn't wrong in His anger – there were money changers taking advantage of people in His Father's Temple – but He wasn't really acting in a nice way in dealing with them.

And we find many occasions where Jesus called the Pharisees and teachers of the law, snakes, wicked, adulterers, hypocrites, blind guides, fools, 'white washed tombs full of dead men's bones', broods of vipers, and even 'son's of Hell'. Would those names be in the 'nice' column or the 'not so nice' column?

If we look at all the interactions in the Gospels that Jesus had with different people we'd have to admit that He had some rather harsh words for the religious leaders, and even His own disciples. As we look at the scriptures, there can be no doubt that Jesus was very popular with a lot of people. We always seem to find Him surrounded by crowds or at a banquet or a feast. Jesus was definitely well liked by many, but I wouldn't say that He was always nice.

Why did Jesus speak and act the way that He did? Why do we see God the Father doing things that we wouldn't categorize as nice? It has something to do with the fact that…

II. God is the source of truth

Truth isn't always nice. And I'm not talking about mean spirited truth, but honest unadulterated truth. And that kind of truth doesn't always fit through the filter of 'nice'. Jesus said what He said because in each situation it was the absolute truth. We read this in John 1:14 (NIV)...

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Jesus never had a situation where He hurled an insult at someone or said something that didn't sound very nice and then had to go back and apologize. It happens to me all the time, when in frustration or anger, I might say something and then have to rethink and say, "I was wrong…" Every word that Jesus spoke was intentional, unadulterated truth.

God loves us enough to tell us the truth at all times whether it sounds nice, or whether it feels good, or not. He knows our true motives and thoughts and will deal honestly and bluntly with anything that is holding us back from becoming who He desires we become. Jesus came to earth with the purpose of dying on a cross to save us from Hell, not just to make us feel good about ourselves.

It is vital that we understand God's authority and that He is THE source of truth and that…

A. God's character defines truth

All the way back in Deuteronomy we see that Moses, one who knew God pretty well, he wrote this in Deuteronomy 32:3-4 (NIV)...

I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! (4) He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.

It is God's very nature and character that defines truth. It's not just that God chooses things that are true or judges things to be true – they are true because who He is determines truth. Truth is not something God simply decides; it's something He is. God defines what is right for all people, for all times - for all places.

We can't make the mistake of measuring right and wrong by our own standards or ideas. Understand that the basis of everything we call moral, the source of every good thing, is the eternal God who is outside us, above us - beyond us.

The reason we even think that there are such things as "fair" and "unfair" and even 'nice' is because our Creator is a just God. The reason love is a virtue and hatred is evil is because the God who formed us is a God of love. The reason honesty is right and lying is wrong is because God is true. The reason purity in our marriages is moral and sex outside of marriage is immoral is because God is pure. The reality that human life is sacred is not just our opinion but because God is Holy and He created human life as sacred.

God's character defines truth! And the truth is...

B. Holy is better than nice!

Have you heard about the revival at Asbury University in Wilmore, Kentucky? It started as a morning Chapel service, but then students stayed through the night and it's been going for over 2 weeks now. Students kept praying and worshipping and then others started coming and the media started covering it. It grew to 15,000 people visiting a day!

I wanted to share several firsthand testimonies that I've gathered from college friends through Facebook.

"There were dozens of groups scattered around outside in prayer. Some standing. Some on their knees. Some prostrate on the ground. None of it disruptive or distracting. The campus atmosphere was one of quiet, joyful anticipation."

"We observed people fully engaged in singing and praying to the Lord as a congregation. People were praying for others. Tears were flowing. The steps at the front of the chapel were filled with people on their knees quietly calling out to God. People were confessing their sins to each other. There were no loud, attention-seeking people. There was simply the soft and humble confession of sin and the repentance of that sin and calling out to God to know Him more deeply."

"Humility was the theme. Holiness was the focus. They were asking for God to reinvigorate their commitment to truth and a way of life that reflected biblical principles. In this potential skeptic's mind, there is no question this thing is the real deal, and their prayers should remind us to seek revival ourselves by returning to our first love as well."

"Yesterday the turn into Wilmore off of 68 was blocked by state police allowing local traffic only. One road sign flashed, "Revival over capacity"- Wilmore literally can't handle any more people. I've never seen an entire town closed by state police due to overcrowding."

"Not one national speaker is there. Not one professional recording artist is there. It's Wilmore - its two stop lights, a college, a seminary, and a Subway restaurant. There's nothing to attract the masses like this. This isn't explainable by natural means. This is truly a supernatural move of God."

"Sometimes we envision 'revivals' as times when people hear fiery sermons, and there are big outbursts of emotion. This move of God is marked more by quiet weeping than emotive shouting."

Have thousands of people been gathering to simply meet a 'nice God'? People have described 'puddles of tears' where people are praying. Are they crying because God is nice? No! - It's because they came into the presence of a Holy God! Holy is better than nice! - Revival doesn't come from a nice God but a Holy God!

Many want a 'nice God' because they don't want to be afraid of an 'angry God'. But they've confused the "spirit of fear" with the "fear of the Lord." There's a huge difference! I'm not afraid of electricity, but I have a healthy fear of electricity. I am not afraid of God, but I do have a very healthy fear of a righteous, Holy God! Holy fear is not being so scared of God that you pull away from Him. 'Holy fear' does not smother intimacy with God; it does just the opposite! It strengthens our relationship with God! David wrote in Psalms 25:11-14 (NIV)...

For the sake of your name, O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great. (12) Who, then, is the man that fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way chosen for him. (13) He will spend his days in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land. (14) The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.

Every generation has opinions about the values and morals of the previous generation. We see throughout history those values and morals shift as public opinion and circumstances change. God does not change. God is not as concerned with nice as He is truth – His truth.

So What?

So, is God nice? I'd have to say by looking at the evidence – no, not particularly. But God is good; God is just; God is Holy! Just because I look at things from my viewpoint and see things that aren't especially nice – that doesn't mean that God is wrong or should do things differently.

You see, I suffer from the terrible human condition of perspective. I can really only see things from my point of view. My point of view doesn't always completely include God's entire truth or motives or great Holiness, so it can become a little skewed. Solomon wrote, in Proverbs 16:25 (NIV)...

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

I'm glad that God loves me enough to correct me and isn't worried about whether I perceive Him as nice or not. If He didn't correct me, I may feel good about myself but then end up separated from Him for eternity. I'd rather serve a Holy God than a 'nice god'. We need to stand for the truth whether the world sees it as nice or not. Share God's truth, in love, and trust that our gracious and loving God will always do what is right.