What is God like?

Many people assume God is distant, angry, or waiting to punish them. But what if that picture is completely wrong?

God is love - Not just that He loves, but love defines His very essence
He’s deeply personal - He knows you by name and desires relationship with you
He’s always been good - Even in the Old Testament, His heart was reconciliation
Jesus shows us the Father - If you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus
His love never changes - Nothing can separate you from it

The most fundamental thing the Bible says about God is this: “God is love” ( 1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter ). Not just that He loves or that He’s capable of love, but that love is the core of who He is. Everything else about God flows from this reality.

God isn’t distant or indifferent. He’s deeply personal and relational. Psalms 139:1-4 WEB "For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. Yahweh, you have searched me, and you know me. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and..." KJV "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path..." Psalms 139:1-4 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter says He knows when you sit down and when you rise, He’s familiar with all your ways. He’s not a cosmic force or an abstract idea - He’s a Father who knows you and wants to be known by you.

And here’s what makes this incredible: God demonstrated His love while we were still sinners ( Romans 5:8 WEB "But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." KJV "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter ). His love isn’t based on your performance or how well you’re doing. It’s based on who He is.

A deeper look

God is love

1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter makes an audacious claim: “God is love.” Not just that God has love or shows love sometimes, but that love is fundamental to who He is. 1 John 4:16 WEB "We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him." KJV "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." 1 John 4:16 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter emphasizes this again: “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.”

This isn’t the fluctuating, emotion-based love the world talks about. This is agape love - a deliberate, action-oriented love that seeks your welfare and benefit regardless of circumstances. It’s the kind of love demonstrated when Christ died for us while we were still ungodly ( Romans 5:6 WEB "For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." KJV "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. in due time: or, according to the time" Romans 5:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter ).

Everything God does flows from this love. His plans for you, His interactions with you, His very nature - it’s all rooted in love.

He’s deeply personal

Many people think of God as distant - a force, an idea, or a strict judge watching from far away. But what if God is more personal than that?

The God of the Bible isn’t just powerful - He’s relational. He knows you by name. Psalms 139:1-4 WEB "For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. Yahweh, you have searched me, and you know me. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and..." KJV "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path..." Psalms 139:1-4 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter says He knows when you sit down and when you rise; He’s familiar with all your ways. Matthew 10:30 WEB "but the very hairs of your head are all numbered." KJV "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Matthew 10:30 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter tells us that even the hairs on your head are numbered - that’s how intimately God knows you.

John 17:23 WEB "I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me." KJV "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." John 17:23 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter reveals something stunning: God loves you just as He loves Jesus. That’s not a lesser love or a conditional love - it’s the same love the Father has for His Son. When you begin to understand how deeply He loves you, you’ll naturally want to get to know Him personallyHow can I know God personally?Know God by spending time with Him, reading the Bible, and accepting the relationship Jesus offers. It's about receiving, not earning His approval. Full answer coming soon… .

He’s always been good

Some people think God used to be mean in the Old Testament and became nice in the New Testament. But God’s character has never changed. His heart has always been reconciliation and relationship, not judgment and punishment.

The Old Testament Law wasn’t given because God demands perfection before He’ll love you. The LawWhat is the difference between law and grace?Law reveals our inability to avoid sin. Grace is God's unearned favor despite our flaws - Jesus took our sin and gave us His righteousness as a gift. Read full answer → was given to magnify sinWhat is sin?Sin is falling short of God's standard, and used to separate us from Him. The law revealed sin, and Jesus took the punishment for us. Read full answer →, to show humanity’s need for a Savior ( Galatians 3:24 WEB "So that the law has become our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith." KJV "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Galatians 3:24 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter ). Even in the Old Testament, Exodus 34:6 WEB "Yahweh passed by before him, and proclaimed, “Yahweh! Yahweh, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth," KJV "And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering , and abundant in goodness and truth," Exodus 34:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter describes God as “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” This has always been His nature.

Jesus shows us the Father

Want to know what God is like? Look at Jesus.

John 12:45 WEB "He who sees me sees him who sent me." KJV "And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me." John 12:45 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter says, “He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me.” 2 Corinthians 4:6 WEB "seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." KJV "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. hath: Gr. is he who hath" 2 Corinthians 4:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter speaks of “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Jesus didn’t come to change God’s mind about us - He came to reveal what God has always been like.

When Jesus dealt with people with mercy and graceWhat is grace?God's unearned favor toward us - a free gift of righteousness and forgiveness through Jesus, not earned by our performance. Read full answer →, He showed the Father’s heart. When He was moved with compassion before healing, He revealed what God is truly like. Jesus is the clearest picture we have of God’s character.

His love never changes

One of the most powerful passages in Scripture is Romans 8:38-39 WEB "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able..." KJV "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to..." Romans 8:38-39 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter : “Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The Apostle Paul wasn’t just hoping or wishing - he was persuaded, fully convinced, that nothing could separate him from God’s love. This is the confident rest that every believer can have.

God can’t love you any more than He already does. You can receive His love more, feel it more, and experience it more. But His love itself is constant, unchanging, and unconditional.

What God is NOT

Not waiting to punish you - He demonstrated love while we were sinners, not after we cleaned up
Not distant or angry - Jesus reveals a Father who runs toward the lost, not away from them
Not withholding good from you - Satan’s lie in Eden was that God was holding something back; the truth is God wants to bless you
Not defined by the Law - The Law reveals our need for a Savior, not conditions for earning God’s love
Not based on your performance - His love flows from who He is, not from what you do

Key Scriptures

1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - “God is love” - the core definition of His nature
1 John 4:16 WEB "We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him." KJV "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." 1 John 4:16 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - We have known and believed the love God has for us
Romans 5:8 WEB "But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." KJV "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God demonstrated His love while we were still sinners
Romans 5:6 WEB "For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." KJV "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. in due time: or, according to the time" Romans 5:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - While we were still ungodly, Christ died for us
Romans 8:38-39 WEB "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able..." KJV "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to..." Romans 8:38-39 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Nothing can separate us from God’s love
John 17:23 WEB "I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me." KJV "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." John 17:23 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God loves us just as He loves Jesus
Psalms 139:1-4 WEB "For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. Yahweh, you have searched me, and you know me. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and..." KJV "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path..." Psalms 139:1-4 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God knows you personally and intimately
Matthew 10:30 WEB "but the very hairs of your head are all numbered." KJV "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Matthew 10:30 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Even the hairs on your head are numbered
Exodus 34:6 WEB "Yahweh passed by before him, and proclaimed, “Yahweh! Yahweh, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth," KJV "And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering , and abundant in goodness and truth," Exodus 34:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love
John 12:45 WEB "He who sees me sees him who sent me." KJV "And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me." John 12:45 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Seeing Jesus is seeing the Father
2 Corinthians 4:6 WEB "seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." KJV "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. hath: Gr. is he who hath" 2 Corinthians 4:6 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ
Galatians 3:24 WEB "So that the law has become our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith." KJV "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Galatians 3:24 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - The Law was a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ

INTERNAL

Resources

Research Notes

From The Good News Slides

Slide 11: Get to Know God

Key to understanding God’s desire to bless us is getting to know who He is
2 Peter 1:2 WEB "Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord," KJV "Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord," 2 Peter 1:2 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Grace and peace multiplied through knowledge of God
1 John 4:16 WEB "We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him." KJV "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." 1 John 4:16 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - We have known and believed the love God has for us; God is love
John 12:45 WEB "He who sees me sees him who sent me." KJV "And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me." John 12:45 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - He who sees Jesus sees the Father
1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - He who does not love does not know God, for God is love
We get to know Him by studying His Word and spending time with Him in relationship
Even during the time of law, mercy was available

Slide 67: What do we do?

Get to know Jesus (The Word) and rest
Matthew 11:29 WEB "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls." KJV "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." Matthew 11:29 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Jesus is meek and lowly in heart; we find rest for our souls
John 17:23 WEB "I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me." KJV "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." John 17:23 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God loves us just like He loves Jesus
1 John 3:1-2 WEB "See how great a love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God! For this cause the world doesn’t know us, because it didn’t know him. Beloved, now we are children of God,..." KJV "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of..." 1 John 3:1-2 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - What manner of love the Father has bestowed that we should be called sons of God

Slide 151: As He Is, So Are We

1 John 4:15-17 WEB "Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God. We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and..." KJV "Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love..." 1 John 4:15-17 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God is love; he who abides in love abides in God
Love has been perfected among us in this: as He is, so are we in this world

From Discipleship Evangelism

L1-04: Relationship with God

Understanding God’s character is essential for healthy relationship with Him
Satan’s lie in Eden maligned God’s character, suggesting He was withholding good
The Law wasn’t given to earn God’s love but to magnify sin and show need for a Savior
1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - “God is love”
Romans 5:8 WEB "But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." KJV "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - God demonstrated love while we were yet sinners
God has already reconciled us through Christ - not holding sins against us

L1-05: The Nature of God

God’s nature is love, not anger
Romans 5:13 WEB "For until the law, sin was in the world; but sin is not charged when there is no law." KJV "(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law." Romans 5:13 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Sin was not imputed before the Law
Galatians 3:24 WEB "So that the law has become our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith." KJV "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Galatians 3:24 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - The Law was a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ
Romans 5:6-10 WEB "For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man. Yet perhaps for a righteous person someone would even dare to die. But God..." KJV "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. in due time: or, according to the time For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man..." Romans 5:6-10 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - While we were ungodly, sinners, and enemies, Christ died for us
Jesus reveals the Father’s true nature through mercy and grace

L2-12: God’s Kind of Love (Part 1)

Agape love is fundamentally different from emotional, fluctuating feelings
Love is the only thing we take from this life into eternity ( 1 Corinthians 13:13 WEB "But now faith, hope, and love remain — these three. The greatest of these is love." KJV "And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." 1 Corinthians 13:13 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter )
Agape love is action, not emotion - demonstrated through obedience
Love must be learned - it’s a fruit of the Spirit ( Galatians 5:22 WEB "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith," KJV "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith," Galatians 5:22 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter )
Love seeks the welfare of others regardless of how we feel
God is the source of love - we cannot truly love without Him ( 1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter )

L3-01: The Divine Flow

Ministry flows from recognizing what God has already placed inside us
When you feel genuine love flowing toward someone, that’s God Himself
God’s love (agape) is patient, kind, not self-serving, never fails ( 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 WEB "Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; doesn’t..." KJV "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, vaunteth: or, is not rash Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily..." 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter )
Compassion moves to action - follow up when you sense divine compassion
Serving others is serving Christ ( Matthew 25:37-40 WEB "“Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and..." KJV "Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed..." Matthew 25:37-40 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter )

L3-11: I Am Loved, I Am Pretty

Story of Patricia writing “I am loved, I am pretty” because she didn’t feel it
All humans desire to be loved, accepted, and valued
Satan’s weapon is guilt and condemnation; God’s gift is righteousness
1 Corinthians 1:30 WEB "Because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who was made to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption:" KJV "But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:" 1 Corinthians 1:30 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Jesus is made unto us righteousness
God is love ( 1 John 4:8 WEB "He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." KJV "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:8 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter ) - He can’t love you any more than He already does
Romans 8:38-39 WEB "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able..." KJV "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to..." Romans 8:38-39 BibleGateway · BibleHub · Blue Letter - Nothing can separate us from God’s love
Paul was persuaded, fully convinced of this truth