`The world by wisdom knew not God' (1 Cor. 1:21). The works of creation testify of their Maker, but their

testimony is limited. `That which may be known of God is manifest' (Rom. 1:19), but that which may be known of

God by the works of His hands is small when compared with the revelation of His Word. Instead, therefore, of

attempting the impossible, `he that cometh to God must believe that He is' (Heb. 11:6). `That He is' lies outside the

scope of revelation to discuss or prove. `What He is' is its theme, but it is what He is as related to creation and to

man, not what He is absolutely in His Own Person - that we do not know neither can we understand.

Let us take an example of the condescension everywhere visible in the self-revelation of God to man. Moses,

speaking of his mission to the children of Israel, asks:

`When I ... say ... the God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is His name?

What shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM ... say ... I AM hath sent me' (Exod.

3:13, 14).

The idea of a perpetual present, a condition in which there is neither past nor future, may not be the meaning that

should be attached to these words - this will be discussed later in this book but, whatever the true translation may be,

the words convey ideas that are as much beyond the grasp of the greatest of philosophers as they were beyond the

grasp of the lowest Israelite bondmen in Egypt. Consequently the Lord adds to His answer to Moses, saying :

`Thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of

Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: THIS is My name for ever (the age); and this is My memorial

unto all generations' (Exod. 3:15).

Here the absolute `I AM' condescends to human limitations, and reveals Himself as `The Lord God', associated

with a people - `your fathers', and with a time - `for the age' and `unto all generations'. This revelation of God

comes within our limited apprehension, but we must remember that it is relative, and not absolute.

In the New Testament we meet with a similar thought: `Before Abraham was I AM' (John 8:58). This statement

is not grammatical; it has no parallel in human experience, and no justification in human logic. It is a glimpse of

truth beyond our ken. And, as in Exodus 3 the absolute `I AM' limits Himself to the terms of time and place, so in

John's Gospel, the absolute `I AM' of John 8:58 is expressed, `for us men and for our salvation', in such relative

terms as `I am the Door', `I am the Light' and `I am the Way'. Christ, the Image of the invisible God, makes God

known in these wonderful ways, and it will be our delight to study the revelation of God, as made known through

the written and the living Word.

It must never be forgotten that God Himself is entirely removed from the realm of time - to Him not only is a

thousand years but as a day, but a day is as a thousand years. It is absolutely impossible for the human mind to

operate in a realm where there is neither time nor space, and we thankfully recognise every title of God from

Genesis to Revelation as a Self-limitation bringing God Himself into relationship with His creatures. When the

Lord Jesus took upon Himself flesh and blood, it was but another step in that condescension of God that has made us

great (Psa. 18:35 - see note in The Companion Bible).

In the previous chapter we did little more than face the immensity of our quest, and its relation to our limited

powers of comprehension, and the fundamental revelation that God `is' (Heb. 11:6). We now proceed to learn what

He is. Perhaps no humanly-framed definition has ever surpassed the words of the Westminster Confession:

Q. What is God?

A. God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, and truth.

The answer has the merit of a true definition in that it states what God is - `a Spirit' - before proceeding to

describe His attributes - that He is `infinite, eternal, unchangeable'. This is the sequence which we must always