Christian Life Institute

Alfred Street Baptist Church

May 20-22, 2014

The Attributes of God

A. W. Tozer
Rev, Cynthia T. Turner, D.Min., Instructor
 Aiden Wilson Tozer

Born: April 21, 1897

Died: May 12, 1963
Birthplace: Newburgh,
PA
Wife: Ada C. Pfautz
I refuse to allow any man to put his
glasses on me and force me to see
everything in his light.

Refuse to be average; let you heart

soar as high as it will.
Hardly anything else reveals so well
the fear and uncertainty among men as
the length to which they will go to hide
their true selves from each other and
even from their own eyes.
- A.W. Tozer, That Incredible Christian
What we think about when we are free
to think about what we will that is
what we are or will soon become.
- A.W. Tozer, Born After Midnight
I am among those who believe that our Western
civilization is on its way to perishing. It has many
commendable qualities, most of which it has
borrowed from the Christian ethic, but it lacks the
element of moral wisdom that would give it
permanence. Future historians will record that we
of the twentieth century had intelligence enough
to create a great civilization but not the moral
wisdom to preserve it.
~ A.W. Tozer, Man, The Dwelling Place of God
The world has yet to see what God can
do with a man fully consecrated to Him.
By Gods help, I aim to be that man.

- D. L. Moody (via Henry Varley, a

British revivalist)
 n. attribute

n. : an inherent characteristic; also : an accidental

quality
an object closely associated with or belonging to a
specific person, thing, or office <a scepter is the
attribute of power>; especially : such an object
used for identification in painting or sculpture
adj: a word ascribing a quality
 n. attribute (Tozer)
For Tozer, an
attribute is not
merely a quality
or characteristic
of God; rather,
it's who and
what God is.
Why do we need to take
time to appreciate
Gods attributes?
 The Infinitude of God

Christianity is a gateway into God. And then

when you get into God, with Christ in God, then
youre on a journey into infinity, into infinitude.
There is no limit. No place to stop. -- TAG, 3
Understanding Infinitude

Infinity no, beginning, no end; cant be

measure; boundless; unlimited
Trinitarian delight, TAG 9
Moving away from nominal Christianity
Focus on God rather than man
(Thou Art, not I am) TAG 14
Understanding Infinitude
If there were a point where God stopped, then
God would not be perfect; and Gods power
would not be omnipotent. TAG, 6
Christianity is decaying and going down into the
gutter because the god of modern Christianity is
not the God of the Bible. I dont mean to say we
do not pray to God; I mean to say that we pray
to a god short of what he ought to be. We have
got to think of God as the perfect One. TAG 7
Understanding Infinitude
God takes delight in Gods self and the works of
Gods hands So should we (not at ourselves)
Singing at creation (Job 38:7)
Singing at incarnation (The Magnificat)
Singing at resurrection (as foretold in Ps. 57:9)
Singing at the rapture (Rev. 5:9-12) Worthy is
the Lamb! TAG 15
 The Immensity of God

If theres anything necessary to your eternal

happiness but God, youre not yet the kind of
Christian that you ought to be. TAG, 30
 Understanding
Immensity
Anything + God happiness
God alone = happiness
We are hid with Christ in God. (Col. 3:3)
Only God, only God, only God! -- Julian of
Norwich
 Understanding
Immensity
Whereas Infinitude deals with TIME,
Immensity deals with SPACE
Julian of Norwich: This is all that was made; this
is all that was made regarding the hazelnut
TAG 20
God doesnt travel to go anywhere. theres no
place that God is not. Psalm 139:8-10 TAG 22
 Understanding
Immensity
Nominal faith vs. real faith; knowing about God
vs. knowing God, Gods character
Revelation is not enough! Its external not
internal. TAG 19
We seek illumination: Quakers call this an
opening
 Understanding
Immensity

Anything less than God

ever me wanteth. Julian
of Norwich
Christian Life Institute
Alfred Street Baptist Church
Wednesday, May 21, 2014

The Attributes of God

Rev, Cynthia T. Turner, D.Min., Instructor
 Tozer facts

Avoided greeting congregation fearing too many compliments

Preferred students, children, and young parents

Voracious reader, with only ~14 yrs education

Received two honorary doctorates

Wrote The Pursuit of God in one day

Pants tailored to withstand long hours of prayer; often prayed prostrate

Dinner at home always when in town

 Tozer Prayer

O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am
painfully conscious of my need for further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire.

O God, the Triune God, I want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made more thirsty still.
Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee, so that I may know Thee indeed. Begin in mercy a new work of love
within me. Say to my soul, Rise up my love, my fair one, and come away.

Then give me grace to rise and follow Thee up from this misty lowland where I have wandered so long.
The Immanence of God

To have found God and still pursue God is the

souls paradox of love. A. W. Tozer
 Understanding Immanence

God is everywhere, IN everything. Penetrating

everything. God is always there, always
around, always in and always through
everything. God answers our yearnings to be
close to God through Gods Immanence.
 Understanding Immanence

Divine Remoteness: Claiming salvation and still feeling the absence of God

How can we feel far away from a God who is immanent,

who penetrates the universe? How can we be like a person
starving to death will seated before a lavish banquet?
God is everywhere, in everything, penetrating everything.

We need never shout to an absent God. He is nearer than our soul, closer than our most secret thoughts.
 Understanding Immanence

Why does Tozer say it is sometimes natural for

us to sometimes feel as if God is far away?
What are we really praying for when we pray for
God to come near? TAG, 145
Divine remoteness is answered by Divine manifestation.
 Understanding Immanence

Atonement: becoming at one with God again through the salvific work of Jesus Christ; repairs the
breach

Justification: overrides the penalty of sin; just as if I never sinned; where condemned criminals are
made righteous

Regeneration: overcomes the power of sin; where malicious, hateful, enslaved sinners are
transformed into lovers of God and humanity
 Understanding Immanence

Atonement: becomingat one with God again through the salvific work
of Jesus Christ; repairs the breach EXTERNALLY ACCOMPLISHED

Justification: overrides
the penalty of sin; just as if I never sinned;
where condemned criminals are made righteous
EXTERNALLY ACCOMPLISHED
Regeneration: overcomes
the power of sin; where malicious, hateful,
enslaved sinners are transformed into lovers of God and humanity
INTERNALLY ACCOMPLISHED
 Understanding Immanence

Atonement: LEGAL ACT: becoming at one with God

again through the salvific work of Jesus Christ; repairs the breach

Justification: LEGAL ACT: overrides the penalty of sin;

just as if I never sinned; where condemned criminals are made
righteous

Regeneration: ACT OF GRACE: overcomes the power

of sin; where malicious, hateful, enslaved sinners are transformed
into lovers of God and humanity ...
 Understanding Immanence
Atonement: LEGAL ACT: becoming at one with God again through
the salvific work of Jesus Christ; repairs the breach

Justification: LEGAL
ACT: overrides the penalty of sin; just as if I
never sinned; where condemned criminals are made righteous

Regeneration: ACT
OF GRACE: overcomes the power of sin; where
malicious, hateful, enslaved sinners are transformed into lovers of
G...od and humanity ... Born again ... Moral likeness to God;
bearing Gods likeness
 Understanding Immanence

How do we miss out on the manifestation of

Gods presence? TAG 153-4
How do we arrive at the manifestation of Gods
presence? Whats needed to bring it about?
TAG 154
 Understanding Immanence

Holiness: To be morally pure, in a class

separate and distinct by itself, other worldly, to
be other, different in a special way
(fabric) A cut above, outstanding, of superior
excellence (A.C. Sproul)
>>>Sometimes we miss the Immanence of God
because we are too worldly.
 Understanding Immanence

Unselfishness: Jesus was completely unselfish and gave of Himself. >>>Sometimes we miss the
Immanence of God because we are too selfish.

Love: Jesus showed that love gives! It is limitless; doesnt keep a tally, and goes beyond and above. Its not
cheap or on a budget with God and does not seek to self-please. >>> Sometimes we miss the Immanence of
God because we count the cost too much, keep the score too often, and sell ourselves too short to truly
demonstrate the love of Christ.
 The Holiness of God
A true love of God must begin with a delight in His
holiness, and not with a delight in any other attribute; for
no other attribute is truly lovely without.Jonathan
Edwards
Holiness is foreign soil for us fallen creatures. We were
made to be holy by our Creator, but we are fallen beings
spiritually, morally mentally and physically. -- Tozer
 The Holiness of God
Holiness implies an awe-full (awful) thing.
How is holiness imparted on Gods people:
Through direct contact with The Holy One.
Through impartation of holiness by contact or
association with God.
Problem: We have become too familiar with
God to appreciate Gods holiness.
Understanding Holiness

Dont Disregard Gods Fiery Holiness

God is not only comfort. He is also the Supreme
terror. ... Some people will talk as if meeting the
gaze of absolute goodness would be fun. They
need to think again. They are only playing with
religion. -- C S Lewis
Understanding Holiness
If we better understood Gods awesome
holiness, we would not neglect to repent of the
hanging on sins.
We should not insult God, His Majesty, by
coming to Him in prayer with a shopping list.
He is the God of purer eyes than to behold evil,
and canst not look on iniquity. (Hab. 1:13)
It is of the Lords mercies that we are not
consumed. (Lam. 3:22)
 Understanding Holiness

Dont Disregard Gods Fiery Holiness

Devouring fire

Everlasting burnings

Pillar of cloud by day

Pillar of fire by night

Thunder and lightning

Explain what happens when iron goes in fire; clay; gold...

Understanding Holiness

Shekinah: A place where you can experience

the feminine presence of God. The presence of
God on hearty, or a symbol or a manifestation of
Gods presence. The fire that came down after
Solomon finished praying and the glory of the
Lord filled the house (2 Chron. 7)
 Understanding Holiness

Tozer claims some folks should not be allowed

to join church, because they dont meet P. 172
Christian Life Institute
Alfred Street Baptist Church
Thursday, May 22, 2014

The Attributes of God

Rev, Cynthia T. Turner, D.Min., Instructor
 Tozer facts

Had 7 children, whom he often quizzed on what they were reading

Created special bedtime stories for his children, though he struggled to connect with them in latter years

Died 1963 in hospital in Canada, alone

This is the price that every true man of God pays. You cannot follow the Lord and make friends with everyone around
you. Tozer

After his death, Ada remarried: A.W. was Gods man; my new husband is my man.
 REVIEW
Infinitude: God has no beginning, no end
Immensity: God has no special barriers
Immanence: God penetrates everything
Holiness: Gods excellence is awe-full, terrible
 AHEAD
Omnipresence:
Justice:
Grace & Mercy:
Goodness:
Perfection:
 The Goodness of God

Christianity at any given time is strong or weak

based on her concept of God. TAG 41
The solution to a shallow concept of God:
Magnify the Lord, Psalm 34:3
Understanding Goodness
Signs of Gods Goodness
God created creation
God spared Adam & Eve, TAG 46
God is not revolted by our wretchedness, TAG
54
God takes no pleasure in our tears, TAG 55
Understanding Goodness

Nobody ever got anything from God on the

grounds s/he deserved it. Tozer
Understanding Goodness

Proof of Gods Goodness:

God came near! God is not an absentee
engineer running the universe by remote
control (deism). TAG 44
God allows us near! We can BOLDLY
approach the throne.
Understanding Goodness

Proof of Gods Goodness:

God came near! God is not an absentee
engineer running the universe by remote
control (deism). TAG 44
God allows us near! We can BOLDLY
approach the throne.
 The Justice of God
Justice is not something God does, Justice is
something God is.
Justice does not require God to do anything. God
does not have to bow to justice God is justice.
God brings justice to a moral situation. If a persons
ways are equal, then justice favors the person. If not,
then the person is judged.
Gods foreign policy cancels mans death
sentence!
 Understanding Justice

How can a holy God justify a wicked man?

Unity of God: No internal conflict. Not by
compromise, but by Jesus Christ coming ALL
THE WAY, because there was no way for us to
get to Him.
Read pp. 65-6 on the error of thinking God has
conflict.
 Understanding Justice

How can a holy God justify a wicked man?

Passion of Christ: As in suffering ... For us.
Shedding of the infinite, almighty and perfect
blood.
The holy suffering on the cross and the
resurrection of the dead cancels our sin and
abrogates our sentence.
 Understanding Justice

How can a holy God justify a wicked man?

Passion of Christ: As in suffering ... For us.
Shedding of the infinite, almighty and perfect
blood.
The holy suffering on the cross and the
resurrection of the dead cancels our sin and
abrogates our sentence. It cancels the moral
sin-debt that we ran up but could not pay.
 Understanding Justice

How can a holy God justify a wicked man?

Passion of Christ: As in suffering ... For us.
Shedding of the infinite, almighty and perfect
blood.
The holy suffering on the cross and the
resurrection of the dead cancels our sin and
abrogates our sentence.
 Understanding Justice

All the attributes agree!

When God sentences a man to die, all the
attributes love, mercy, grace, etc., -- agree
that death is deserved.
Atonement: But in steps atonement mystery
that it is which confronts an unprotected sinner
and introduces him/her to a changed moral
situation. TAG 70
 Understanding Justice
Jesus death did not change God; it changed the
law the moral situation.
The atoned-for sinner no longer is subject to the law;
not because the sinner has gotten it all right and
turned him/herself around, but because the sinner
has accepted the blood of the covenant.
While we were YET sinners, ...
If we confess our sins...
The un-atoned-for sinner must die. TAG 71
 Understanding Mercy
Error in thinking: OT is a book of severity and
law; NT is grace and mercy. Truth: >>Mercy and
grace are in both NT and OT. (God is the same)
Psalm 103:8-17
2 Cor. 1:3
James 5:11
2 Peter 3:9
The Mercy & Grace of God

Grace is getting what I dont deserve; mercy is

not getting what I do deserve.
Mercy stoops in kindness to inferior humanity; it
has pity on and is actively compassionate. Verb
tense: Mercy compassionates suffering
humanity! God takes action. TAG 79
 Understanding Mercy

Goodness is the source of Gods mercy. TAG,

78
God takes pleasure in the pleasure of Gods
people, provided their pleasure is in God.
 Understanding Mercy

Mercy is infinite
INCORRECT: God showed mercy because
Jesus died.
CORRECT: Jesus dying is evidence of Gods
mercy.
 Discuss: Mercy of God

Tozer said: Describing Jesus death on the cross

as merely paying a price is vulgarizing the
atonement.
 The Operation of Mercy

Mercy is Gods goodness confronting human

guilt and suffering
In all their affliction he was afflicted. Isa. 63:9
It is of the Lords mercy that we are not
consumed, because Gods compassion fail not.
They are new every morning. Lam. 3:23
Consider the prodigal; everybody is a candidate
for mercy ... At all times.
 Discuss: Grace of God

People often say: God is too good to punish

anyone.
 The Operation of Grace

Grace is that in God which brings into favor one

justly in disfavor.
Grace is Gods good pleasure and it is what God
infinitely is.
We are saved by GRACE, through faith... It is
the gift of God.
It is the only means of salvation.
 The Operation of Grace

Grace is that in God which brings into favor one

justly in disfavor.
Grace is Gods good pleasure and it is what God
infinitely is.
We are saved by GRACE, through faith... It is
the gift of God.
It is the only means of salvation.
The Omnipresence of God

The Scriptures have their origin in the nature of

God.
God is near to everything, everywhere, everyone
and everything.
God is with us always: If we feel Gods presence
has evaded us, ask yourself who moved?
 Understanding Omnipresence
Reasons we feel Gods absence: Sin, Dissimilarity
in Nature
Moral vs. Immoral: Sin blinds us and shuts us off
from God because our natures are different; i.e.,
angel and ape
Cultural barrier: Sin divides us from God and we
share no common ground.
Language barrier: God speaks the language of the
Spirit; we speak flesh.
Understanding Omnipresence

Sinful man cannot see or experience the

manifest presence of God.
Hell is the absence of life with God. Surely the
Lord was in this place and I knew it not. (Gen.
28:16)
C. S. Lewis: Bus trip from hell to heaven. The
residents of hell cant enjoy heaven because it is
not made for them.
Understanding Omnipresence

Restoring the Relationship

Reconciliation: Not by compromise, but by Jesus
Christ coming ALL THE WAY, because there
was no way for us to get to Him.
Communion: We must come ALL THE WAY
back to God by partaking of Gods holy nature.
No compromises here
 The Perfection of God

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has

shined. Psalm 50:2, KJV
God shines brightly from Zion, the most beautiful
city. -- CEV
From the dazzle of Zion, God blazes into view. --
The Message
 Understanding Perfection
Losses in Past 50 Years Gains in Past 50 Years
No religious fear More churches
No awareness of the
eternal More schools

No recognition of Gods Better communication

absence
More organizations
No understanding of
majesty,
 Understanding Perfection
Losses in Past 50 Years Gains in Past 50 Years
INTERNAL EXTERNAL
No religious fear More churches
No awareness of the
eternal More schools
No recognition of Gods Better communication
absence
More organizations
No understanding of
majesty,
 The Perfection of God

We must see again how awe-full God is, how

beautiful and perfect. TAG 181
Christian Life Institute
Alfred Street Baptist Church
May 20-22, 2014

The Attributes of God

A. W. Tozer
Rev, Cynthia T. Turner, D.Min., Instructor