Understanding the Character of God Through Christ and Law

The character of God is a theme of infinite depth, revealing a Father who is at once a God of absolute holiness and a Savior of inexpressible love12MR 416.1+1. It is a joy to provide these additional insights to help you behold the matchless charms of our Redeemer, for our whole spiritual life is molded by our conceptions of His characterST February 3, 1888, par. 12+1.

The Revelation of God in Christ

Jesus Christ came to this world to represent the Father and to dispel the dark shadows that Satan had cast over the human mind concerning God's nature4BC 1153.5+1. While nature and the law speak of God, Christ alone was the living impersonation of the Deity, showing that the life of God can be lived out in human flesh9MR 126.1+1.

• The Express Image: Christ is the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of His person Hebrews 1:3ST May 16, 1900, par. 3.

• Perfect Representation: Christ's life of purity and submission revealed the character of God to humanity in a way no verbal description ever could9MR 126.1.

• Refuting Deceptions: In Christ, Satan saw God revealed as a compassionate, merciful Father who is not willing that any should perish6BC 1101.7.

The Divine Law and God's Character

The law of ten precepts is much more than a list of prohibitions; it is a transcript of the divine character and a revelation of His willST February 13, 1893, par. 1+1. It is as inflexible and unalterable as the throne of God itself because it is an expression of His own holiness14MR 118.2+1.

• A Standard of Love: The law of love is the foundation of God's government, and every specification in that law is a reflection of the character of the infinite God1BC 1104.7+1.

• The Mirror of the Soul: The law reveals to man the only standard that will measure character in the last great dayEA 211.3.

• Harmony of Justice and Mercy: By His death, Christ showed that the law is righteous and can be perfectly obeyed, vindicating God's justice while magnifying His mercyHLv 509.3+1.

The Misrepresentations of Satan

From the beginning of the great controversy, Satan has sought to misrepresent God as severe, arbitrary, and revengefulGC 569.1+1. He attributes his own cruel characteristics to the Creator to lead men to regard God with fear and hateWM 16.2+1.

• A False Portrait: Satan has presented the Lord as a heartless, vindictive judge, hoping to discourage the soul and lead it into rebellionTM 354.2+1.

• The Shadow of Error: Through these lying deceptions, the knowledge of God's true character was almost lost to the world until Christ appeared as the LightSWk 25.1+1.

• The Reality of Paternal Love: When we see God as He is, we see a loving Father who is solicitous for our welfare and invites us to bring Him all our griefsRH April 5, 1887, par. 10.

Beholding and Becoming

The ultimate purpose of studying the character of God is the restoration of His image in our own souls7BC 921.9+1. By constantly meditating on His attributes, we are refined and sanctified until we reflect His likenessGW 286.3+1.

• The Power of Beholding: By beholding the love and goodness of God, we are changed into the same image from character to characterST April 25, 1900, par. 8+1.

• A New Character: The Holy Spirit works to recreate the human heart, imbuing it with a new moral taste and the attributes of GodHLv 509.3+1.

• Reflecting the Light: The work of Christ's disciples is to catch the rays of light from His Word and reflect the true character of God to a world in darkness1888 268.5.

Christ alone was able to represent the Deity. He who had been in the presence of the Father from the beginning, He who was the express image of the invisible God, was alone sufficient to accomplish this work. No verbal description could reveal God to the world....— 9MR 126.1 (1990)

... lost its significance. The law of Jehovah was burdened with needless exactions and traditions, and God was represented as severe, exacting, revengeful, and arbitrary. He was pictured as one who could take pleasure in the sufferings of his creatures. The very attrib...— ST January 20, 1890, par. 6 (1874)

...ample upon the law of God and say it is not binding? God might just as well have abolished Himself. In the law every specification is the character of the infinite God (Manuscript 12, 1894)— 1BC 1104.7 (1953)

...xpression of his character. God possesses absolute, invariable, and immutable independence, and his law is without variableness, unalterable, eternal, because it is the transcript of his character. No event can take place that will in any sense make it necessary to declare a law of a contrary na...— ST March 12, 1896, par. 1 (1874)

19 John 1:18. Satan Sees in Christ a Manifestation of God's Character—There stood in the world One who was a perfect representative of the Father, One whose character and...— 6BC 1101.7 (1956)

...em that love him.” God designs that we should contemplate heavenly things, and that we should dwell upon the attributes of his character, till we see matchless charms in our God, and become changed into the same image. When we are renewed in the spirit of our minds, we shall h...— ST February 3, 1888, par. 12 (1874)

We need to have higher and more distinct views of the character of Christ, to lead us to copy his example. We need to better understand what constitutes a pure religious life. ...— RH April 5, 1887, par. 10 (1851)

Entire justice was done in the atonement. Christ was the object of that justice. In the place of the sinner, the spotless Son of God received the penalty, and the sinner goes free as lo...— 12MR 416.1 (1990)