Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
Isaiah 40:28
Q4: What is God?
A: God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.
There has never been a time when God has not existed. God is not bound by time. He makes it and upholds it. He acts within real time and real history yet He is transcendent and stands outside time.
Our catechism says that this God is eternal, infinite, and unchangeable. This God has always been who He is for all eternity. He has not changed, He is not changing, and He will not change. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Malachi 3:6 similarly says, “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.” Because God is eternal and unchangeable then we can have hope that His promises and providences will never fail. Because God is eternal and unchangeable then His determination to be gracious to you will not and cannot change. Because He is unchangeable then we should not get carried away by any “new” teaching. The faith that has been passed down to us is the faith we need to embrace today. In the words of J.C. Ryle, we need to get back to the “old paths” rather than seeking out the new and trendy.
Since God is eternal it means that He is eternally and infinitely wise. He will never lose wisdom nor gain wisdom. Since God is eternal it means that He is eternally and infinitely powerful. He will never be defeated, thwarted, or frustrated. Since God is eternal it means He is eternally and infinitely holy. He will never lower His standards of the Law. He will never water down the guilt of sin. He will never not be someone who deserves our godly fear. Yet, because He is eternally and infinitely holy, it also means that when this God took on flesh and gave Himself up for His people then His people have a holy, holy, holy atonement and righteousness.
Since God is eternal it means that He is eternally and infinitely just. You can be patient and trust that God will exact justice in a far better way than you ever could. Since God is eternal it means that He is eternally and infinitely good. Louis Berkhof says, “Hence in our ascription of goodness to God the fundamental idea is that He is in every way all that He as God should be, and therefore answers perfectly to the ideal expressed in the word “God.” Since God is eternal it means that He is eternally and infinitely truth. He and His Word will never be false.