Day 12: The Divine Transcendence

Transcendence. The quality or state of being beyond comprehension, according to Webster. In meditating upon this quality of God, we rightly wrestle with concepts that our finite human minds struggle to comprehend: a Being with no beginning and no end, a Being that is altogether perfectly holy and just with no possibility of corruption, a Being not above creation but altogether separate from it, yet while ever-present within it, a Being who exercises complete sovereign control over the affairs of mankind and yet often does not intervene to stop grief or loss even among His own.

Theologically we understand that God is all of these things and more, yet amazingly has created us “in His image and likeness.” But because our finite minds struggle to comprehend an infinite God, perhaps too often we settle for a version of God made in our image instead. And what results is a God that is more natural than supernatural. What results is a diminished reverence for a Transcendent God.

“Many call themselves by the name of Christ, talk much about God, and pray to Him sometimes, but evidently do not know who He is. ‘The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life.’ But this healing fear is today hardly found among [Christians].” – A.W. Tozer

Meditating upon the Divine Transcendence should produce in us a healthy reverential fear of God, as we reflect upon just how small and insignificant we are in light of a God that is entirely separate from His creation, and the reality that He holds the entirety of our life, even down to our very next breath, in His sovereign hand. Go to Scripture and read about sinful man’s direct encounters with a transcendent God…Adam and Moses hide in fear, Abraham stretches himself prostrate, Daniel is completely paralyzed and unable to move, Isaiah cries out “Woe is me, I am undone!” 

So what are we to gain from reclaiming a reverential fear of God? A humility that rightly understands our place in this world and strengthens us against pride. A settled peace in knowing that God is sovereign over all circumstances that strengthens us against a desire for control. A renewed sense of a calling to holiness that strengthens us against our battle with sin. An awe of an eternal God that chooses to operate within His creation.

And it is when we rightly understand that this Transcendent God decided to enter humanity in the Person of Christ, and persist with humanity in the Person of His Spirit, all for the sake of redeeming us into an eternal relationship with Himself,  we are compelled to greater heights of reverence and righteousness that honor God for who He is, and we receive a glimpse of how we will spend eternity with him bodily, in joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Prayer:

O Lord our Lord, there is none like Thee in heaven above or in the earth beneath. Thine is the greatness and the dignity and the majesty. All that is in the heaven and the earth is Thine; Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, O God, and Thou art exalted as head over all. Amen.   – A.W. Tozer

Response:

Reflect upon your life as a Christian and your thoughts, words, and deeds, in light of the Divine Transcendence. What might need to change in order to reclaim a reverential fear of God? 

Spend some time meditating upon the quality of God’s transcendence, until it brings you into a heart of worship.