While working on this week’s Bible study lesson on the Atonement I began thinking about the Nature of God. There are some people that have the view of God that he is this detached being out there some where who is just waiting for us to mess up so he can zap us. While other people believe that God is loving sort of grandfatherly being that will forgot about our wrong doings if he just try to be a good person.
In my opinion both of those views are incomplete. God is just, Holy and righteous but he is also loving and merciful. The Atonement demonstrates that God’s nature is not one-sided or conflicting. He is not merely a strict, righteous and demanding judge who delights in sending violators of his law to hell. Nor is he simply a loving patron who will excuse sin if some just tries to be a good person. His righteousness demands that a sacrifice must me made to atone for our sins. His love compelled Him to provide the way for our redemption.
The Dee Zone 