“What we cannot do, however, is we cannot look at this list of attributes like a recipe card and think that God is made up of ‘one part mercy, one part grace, a pinch of slow to anger, and a cup steadfast love and faithfulness’. That would be a grave mistake. God is one. Indivisible. He is not made up of parts. A few weeks ago Marshall led the congregation in reciting the 1689 London Baptist Confession, specifically Article 2, which states: that God’s essence is ‘…without body, parts, or passions…’Theologians have coined this principle by describing it as the Simplicity of God. By simplicity they do not mean simplistic. He is not a simpleton. No, by simplicity they mean God is not composed of parts…
When it comes to us humans, attributes can compete against each other. As a parent, I struggle with the concept of when to be just and when to be merciful. One kid hurts another in a fight - to be merciful to the one who hurt the other is to do injustice to the other. So, in my ‘part-hood’, I struggle to make sense of what justice and mercy look like. But not-so in God. Everything God does is perfectly full, complete in love, justice, and truth. So much so, that we can confidently say ‘God is love’ (1 Jn 4:8, 16). Just as we can say God is justice, God is righteousness, God is gracious. Not merely God was gracious to me at this point in my life. No God IS gracious to you at every point, because He IS His attributes.”
