Bible Study God's Essence

[TheWordIsOne]

God is all Spirit
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
John 4:24

God has feelings
For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:
Ex 34:14

God was in the flesh
And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out o in the f the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
Matthew 3:16

God's Essence of Love
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Hebrews 13:2
(Compare Heb 6:10 Heb 10:32-34 Heb 12:12, 13).

The mind of God
For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:16

The face of God
"The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace." '
Numbers 6:24-26

The eyes of God
Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst do not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
Habakkuk 1:13

The ears of God
And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD.
1 Samuel 8:21

The voice of God
And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
Isaiah 40:5

The heart of God
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast set thine heart ,as the heart of God;
Ezekiel 28:6

The arms of God
Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:
Exodus 6:6

The hands of God
The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.
Ezekiel 1:3

The finger of God
But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Luke 11:20

God remembers all
I Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed; this mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.
Psalms 74:2

Last edited: 11 minutes ago

 

[Fastfredy0]

God has feelings
For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:
Ex 34:14

If God has feelings (mood swings) then He is not immutiable.
Numbers 23:19,Hebrews 13:8,James 1:17

 

[Hopeful]

If God has feelings (mood swings) then He is not immutiable.
Numbers 23:19,Hebrews 13:8,James 1:17

How do you equate "feelings" with "mood swings"?
God is love, and love is a feeling, isn't it?

 

[Fastfredy0]

God is love, and love is a feeling, isn't it?

The essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love. Unlike our English word love, agape is not used in the New Testament to refer to romantic or sexual love. Nor does it refer to close friendship or brotherly love, for which the Greek word philia is used. Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character. Agape love is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13.

What is agape love? | GotQuestions.org

What is agape love? How is agape love different from other types of love?

www.gotquestions.org

Agape love can be immutable. Since God is immutable, His love must be immutable.

How do you equate "feelings" with "mood swings"?

Feelings is defined as "an emotional state or reaction." Emotions are defined as "a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances, mood, or relationships with others." (see Google search). Thus, God cannot have feelings or emotions as then He would be mutable; if He changes He changes for the better or worse ... He would be what he wasn't and therefore would not be eternal.

... if an action of mine can cause anger in God in a similar way that I can cause anger in a man, then this means that I can cause anger in God by my power. To the degree that he lacks self-control, he is helpless against my efforts to cause anger in him. Likewise, if an action of mine can produce joy in God in a similar way that I can produce joy in a man, then this means that I have the ability to produce joy in God at will. In this manner, I would exercise a significant measure of control over God. But this contradicts his sovereignty [independence] and immutability. (Job 35:7-8)
If God is angered by our sins, it is only because he wills to be angered by them, and not because his mental state is subject to our will or beyond his control. Even if God has emotions, they are under his control, and they will never compromise his divine attributes. And since they cannot compromise the divine attributes, this also means that even if he has emotions, he does not have them in a way that is similar to man. But then we wonder why we would still call them emotions. Thus at least in this sense and to this extent, we must affirm that God is without passions. Vincent Cheung

 

[Doug Brents]

God was in the flesh
And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out o in the f the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
Matthew 3:16

Please note that, aside from the incarnation of Jesus, God has never been “flesh”. He came down “like” a dove, not “as” a dove. Like a dove: soft, gentle, peaceful…. Not as a physical being with feathers and claws.

 

[Fastfredy0]

aside from the incarnation of Jesus, God has never been “flesh”.

Theophanies
All devout scholars uniformly believe that the “Angel of God” and “Angel of the Lord” is the pre-incarnate second Person of the Trinity. (How they know it's the 2nd person and not the Father or Spirit is beyond me as I have not heard an explanation.)

And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshipped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so. A unfallen angel of God would never allow himself to be worshiped; thus deity is identified. Also Joshua, like Moses on Mount Sinai when he met God (The Angel of the Lord), was told to take off his sandals because he was standing on holy ground.

Further info at https://www.gotquestions.org/angel-of-the-Lord.html

 

[D-D-W]

Please note that, aside from the incarnation of Jesus, God has never been “flesh”. He came down “like” a dove, not “as” a dove. Like a dove: soft, gentle, peaceful…. Not as a physical being with feathers and claws.

And how do you describe an immaterial spirit "walking" in the Garden with Adam?
Does not one have to have feet to walk? And for the feet to make a sound?

Genesis 3:8
They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

 

[Hopeful]

The essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love. Unlike our English word love, agape is not used in the New Testament to refer to romantic or sexual love. Nor does it refer to close friendship or brotherly love, for which the Greek word philia is used. Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character. Agape love is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13.

What is agape love? | GotQuestions.org

What is agape love? How is agape love different from other types of love?

www.gotquestions.org

Agape love can be immutable. Since God is immutable, His love must be immutable.


Feelings is defined as "an emotional state or reaction." Emotions are defined as "a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances, mood, or relationships with others." (see Google search). Thus, God cannot have feelings or emotions as then He would be mutable; if He changes He changes for the better or worse ... He would be what he wasn't and therefore would not be eternal.

... if an action of mine can cause anger in God in a similar way that I can cause anger in a man, then this means that I can cause anger in God by my power. To the degree that he lacks self-control, he is helpless against my efforts to cause anger in him. Likewise, if an action of mine can produce joy in God in a similar way that I can produce joy in a man, then this means that I have the ability to produce joy in God at will. In this manner, I would exercise a significant measure of control over God. But this contradicts his sovereignty [independence] and immutability. (Job 35:7-8)
If God is angered by our sins, it is only because he wills to be angered by them, and not because his mental state is subject to our will or beyond his control. Even if God has emotions, they are under his control, and they will never compromise his divine attributes. And since they cannot compromise the divine attributes, this also means that even if he has emotions, he does not have them in a way that is similar to man. But then we wonder why we would still call them emotions. Thus at least in this sense and to this extent, we must affirm that God is without passions. Vincent Cheung

"To the degree that He lacks self-control..."
What a bunch of hooey.
God has the same range of emotions we have.
He loves us, but hates sinners. (Ps 5:5)
His emotions will follow according to our own doings.
To call that "controlling God" is a misnomer...at best.
He has feelings and is immutable.

 

[Fastfredy0]

He has feelings and is immutable.

This is a contradiction.
First you say God has mood swings and then you He is immutable.
He is loving and hating, happy and sad.

His emotions will follow according to our own doings. To call that "controlling God" is a misnomer...at best.

Another contradiction.
You state "His emotions will follow according to our own doings".
I will be a good boy for the next 5 minutes so God is happy with me for the next five minutes.
I will be a bad boy for the next 5 minutes so God is unhappy with me for the next five minutes.
Using your statement, I can control God like a puppet... yet this is a misnomer?

God has the same range of emotions we have.

So, God can be 'surprised'. So I pull on a present from behind my back and God says, "You surprised me, I never would have guessed." You've attributed an all-knowing God with the emotion of surprise.

As they say on the commercials, "But wait, there's more"!!!
So, having the same range of emotions per your statement we can conclude God has "romantic love". I wonder who He has a crush upon? God is envious too I suppose; the all-powerful, all-knowing all wise being, because He has the "range of emotions we have" is envious. I wonder what/who he is envious of.
Furthermore, God fmust eel pain, helplessness, modesty, shyness, lust, optimism, relief, alarm, nervousness, jealously, greed, lust, alarm, fear, fatigue, confusion, guilt, helplessness, pain, inadequacy, etc. This is all news to me.

Aside: There is some anthropomorphisms in the Bible, use those to prove your case.

.... continued hyperbole ...
In eternity past God knew I would lie at 5 p.m. Aug 9th, 2022. I have made him upset for eons. Yet God knows I am In Christ and forgiven. Should this forgiven overcome His anger. Similarly, God knew in eternity past I would give a nickel to charity. This has made Him happy with me for eons. Hmmm, He is angry and happy with me for eons... what a strange emotional response. But wait, there more. There are billions of people who have made God angry and happy for eternity. All the continuous mood swings with God having no choice to be respond to our actions.

Isaiah 55:8-9

 

[Hopeful]

This is a contradiction.
First you say God has mood swings and then you He is immutable.
He is loving and hating, happy and sad.

I didn't say He had mood swings.
I did say He has the same range of emotions we have.

Another contradiction.
You state "His emotions will follow according to our own doings".
I will be a good boy for the next 5 minutes so God is happy with me for the next five minutes.
I will be a bad boy for the next 5 minutes so God is unhappy with me for the next five minutes.
Using your statement, I can control God like a puppet... yet this is a misnomer?

You would be erroneously thinking you can control God.
His reactions are based on our behavior, but the idea of "controlling" God is ludicrous.
"You get what you pay for."

So, God can be 'surprised'. So I pull on a present from behind my back and God says, "You surprised me, I never would have guessed." You've attributed an all-knowing God with the emotion of surprise.

Isn't love an emotion?
Hate? Anger? Joy?
BTW, God wouldn't lie, so wouldn't say "you surprised me".

As they say on the commercials, "But wait, there's more"!!!
So, having the same range of emotions per your statement we can conclude God has "romantic love". I wonder who He has a crush upon? God is envious too I suppose; the all-powerful, all-knowing all wise being, because He has the "range of emotions we have" is envious. I wonder what/who he is envious of.
Furthermore, God fmust eel pain, helplessness, modesty, shyness, lust, optimism, relief, alarm, nervousness, jealously, greed, lust, alarm, fear, fatigue, confusion, guilt, helplessness, pain, inadequacy, etc. This is all news to me.
Aside: There is some anthropomorphisms in the Bible, use those to prove your case.
.... continued hyperbole ...
In eternity past God knew I would lie at 5 p.m. Aug 9th, 2022. I have made him upset for eons. Yet God knows I am In Christ and forgiven. Should this forgiven overcome His anger. Similarly, God knew in eternity past I would give a nickel to charity. This has made Him happy with me for eons. Hmmm, He is angry and happy with me for eons... what a strange emotional response. But wait, there more. There are billions of people who have made God angry and happy for eternity. All the continuous mood swings with God having no choice to be respond to our actions.
Isaiah 55:8-9

Was not Jesus tempted like as we are?
He experienced all the things we do.
No more moot points...OK?

 

[Fastfredy0]

I didn't say He had mood swings.
I did say He has the same range of emotions we have.

Well, our emotions include change .. but if you say God has emotions that do not change, then that is a possibility.
When you say God has the same RANGE of emotions as us, do you believe He can have: fear, anticipation, shame, indignation, envy, romantic love, pain, helplessness, modesty, shyness, lust, optimism, relief, alarm, nervousness, jealously, greed, lust, alarm, fear, fatigue, confusion, guilt, helplessness, pain, inadequacy, suprise etc. ????
For example, how does one "surprise" God? (which is part of a human's range of emotion)

You would be erroneously thinking you can control God.

Yet you said:

His emotions will follow according to our own doings.

Your second statement says God follows (reacts) to our doings. Unless you believe God controls our doings, how is this not a method by which we can control God? It's your hypothesis, so explain it. The 2 statements seem to be contradictions to me.

Isn't love an emotion?

It can be. It depends on how you define an emotion. If you define is as the dictionary (a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances, mood, or relationships with others) then I would say God's love is not an emotion because the dictionary's definition requires a change and God does not change.
If you define love as "“he essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love" per gotquestions.org then this form of love does not change and I believe this definition fits God's love as it is possible for it not to change.

Hate? Anger?

It is not possible for God to have the emotions of 'hate' or 'anger' IMO. God is a PERFECT being and to be subject to these emotions is to be less than perfect as these emotions are imperfect/undesirable. These emotions are anthropomorphic. From what I've read, HATE is God's holy justice against sin. This does not conflict with God's other attributes like unchanging or all knowing. If you have another definition that does not conflict with God's other attributes, then take a stab at it.

BTW, God wouldn't lie, so wouldn't say "you surprised me".

Agreed. My point was to show that your statement claiming God has the full range of our emotions is not possible. He cannot be surprised, for example.

Was not Jesus tempted like as we are?
He experienced all the things we do.

Agreed, good point. I didn't want to go down this road. Jesus is the God-man. He has a divine and human nature. It is not possible for the divine nature to die or suffer, his human nature could. Yes, Christ's human nature could be surprised. I don't think Christ's human nature could experience the "FULL RANGE OF HUMAN EMOTIONS" as some emotions like LUST are sinful.
All my comments have been about God's ETERNAL divine nature. If you want to talk about Christ human nature, that's another avenue of exploration.

 

[crossnote]

Much of what is written in Scripture describing God is 'anthropomorphic'. That is God is condescending by using imagery we as creatures of His can understand.

 

[Hopeful]

Well, our emotions include change .. but if you say God has emotions that do not change, then that is a possibility.
When you say God has the same RANGE of emotions as us, do you believe He can have: fear, anticipation, shame, indignation, envy, romantic love, pain, helplessness, modesty, shyness, lust, optimism, relief, alarm, nervousness, jealously, greed, lust, alarm, fear, fatigue, confusion, guilt, helplessness, pain, inadequacy, suprise etc. ????
For example, how does one "surprise" God? (which is part of a human's range of emotion)


Yet you said:

Your second statement says God follows (reacts) to our doings. Unless you believe God controls our doings, how is this not a method by which we can control God? It's your hypothesis, so explain it. The 2 statements seem to be contradictions to me.


It can be. It depends on how you define an emotion. If you define is as the dictionary (a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances, mood, or relationships with others) then I would say God's love is not an emotion because the dictionary's definition requires a change and God does not change.
If you define love as "“he essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love" per gotquestions.org then this form of love does not change and I believe this definition fits God's love as it is possible for it not to change.


It is not possible for God to have the emotions of 'hate' or 'anger' IMO. God is a PERFECT being and to be subject to these emotions is to be less than perfect as these emotions are imperfect/undesirable. These emotions are anthropomorphic. From what I've read, HATE is God's holy justice against sin. This does not conflict with God's other attributes like unchanging or all knowing. If you have another definition that does not conflict with God's other attributes, then take a stab at it.


Agreed. My point was to show that your statement claiming God has the full range of our emotions is not possible. He cannot be surprised, for example.


Agreed, good point. I didn't want to go down this road. Jesus is the God-man. He has a divine and human nature. It is not possible for the divine nature to die or suffer, his human nature could. Yes, Christ's human nature could be surprised. I don't think Christ's human nature could experience the "FULL RANGE OF HUMAN EMOTIONS" as some emotions like LUST are sinful.
All my comments have been about God's ETERNAL divine nature. If you want to talk about Christ human nature, that's another avenue of exploration.

Jesus was the Word made flesh, not the Father made flesh.
He and His Father could be happy or sad.
Angered or pleased.
Your view of "immutable" is in question now.
And perhaps the term "mood-swings" too.

 

[Fastfredy0]

Jesus was the Word made flesh, not the Father made flesh.
He and His Father could be happy or sad.
Angered or pleased.

I say God the Father, the divine nature, cannot have be happy one moment and sad the next and base my opinion on scripture that says God does not change.
You say God the Father, the divine nature, can have be happy one moment and sad the next and base your opinion on "because you say so".
Premise 1: God does not change (scripture explicitly confirm this over and over)
Premise 2: God is happy at one time and sad at another time
Conclusion: This cannot occur as it is a contradiction.

I concede that the human nature of Christ is mutable and therefore can have mood changes. The human characteristics of Christ are NOT divine characteristics. Christ human nature was not eternal, not immutable, not all-knowing, not invisible, not ...
If you can't or won't separate the two, you won't comprehend the question at hand.

 

[Hopeful]

I say God the Father, the divine nature, cannot have be happy one moment and sad the next and base my opinion on scripture that says God does not change.

Your "scope" of things doesn't take into account that God doesn't change even though His emotions may change.

You say God the Father, the divine nature, can have be happy one moment and sad the next and base your opinion on "because you say so".
Premise 1: God does not change (scripture explicitly confirm this over and over)
Premise 2: God is happy at one time and sad at another time
Conclusion: This cannot occur as it is a contradiction.

He "changed" when He repented of making man. (Gen 6:6)
He "changed" when He repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people. (Exod 32:14)
He "changed" "because of their groanings". (Jud 2:18)
Even though He changed His mind about certain things, He, Himself , didn't change.
So we are both right.

I concede that the human nature of Christ is mutable and therefore can have mood changes. The human characteristics of Christ are NOT divine characteristics. Christ human nature was not eternal, not immutable, not all-knowing, not invisible, not ...
If you can't or won't separate the two, you won't comprehend the question at hand.

I have no problem separating the two.
Can you see that a change of mind constitutes a "change" of heart?

BTW, I only found the word "immutable" in one place in the bible.
"Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:" (Heb 6:17-18)
Upon what are you basing your POV that God can't be happy AND sad ?

 

[Fastfredy0]

He "changed" when He repented of making man. (Gen 6:6)
He "changed" when He repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people. (Exod 32:14)
He "changed" "because of their groanings". (Jud 2:18)
Even though He changed His mind about certain things, He, Himself , didn't change.
So we are both right.

Definition of change: make (someone or something) different; alter or modify.
If God's mind thinks "A" and later "B" then I have changed. Besides, if God say something and does not do it, He is not faithful; rather, He is a liar. (Aside: Unless what He said is conditional ... though He knows if the condition will be met and therefore only maybe it conditional for our benefit/way of thinking.)
Aside: I think I see your point of view (sort of) ...

Can you see that a change of mind constitutes a "change" of heart?

Sort of ... whereas I consider the spirit changing (God is Spirit) to be a change and you do not. You separate the two and I cannot. Thus, we are at an impasse, we see different things who looking at the same thing so to speak.

Upon what are you basing your POV that God can't be happy AND sad ?

Being HAPPY or SAD involves change usually. Since God does not change (Mal. 3:6) He cannot be HAPPY or SAD. Now, if by HAPPY we mean an unchanging contentment/pleasure, that I would agree with.
He can never be SAD though.

Consider: If an action of mine can cause anger in God in a similar way that I can cause anger in a man, then this means that I can cause anger in God by my power. To the degree that he lacks self-control, he is helpless against my efforts to cause anger in him. Likewise, if an action of mine can produce joy in God in a similar way that I can produce joy in a man, then this means that I have the ability to produce joy in God at will. In this manner, I would exercise a significant measure of control over God. But this contradicts his sovereignty [independence] and immutability. Vincent Cheung

Jonathan Edwards: if God’s infinite hatred against sin included “pain and grief” over each sin, then the countless sins committed by demons and men would cause God to “suffer infinite pain, every day” and make him “the most miserable of all beings”—whereas in truth, God is “perfectly happy,” for he sovereignly uses the evil of sin for his glory.

‘Love’ and ‘hate’ are not emotions that God feels but actions that he carries out.” Tom Constable

 

[Hopeful]

Definition of change: make (someone or something) different; alter or modify.
If God's mind thinks "A" and later "B" then I have changed.

"You" have changed? (probably a typo)
Or God?

Besides, if God say something and does not do it, He is not faithful; rather, He is a liar. (Aside: Unless what He said is conditional ... though He knows if the condition will be met and therefore only maybe it conditional for our benefit/way of thinking.)
Aside: I think I see your point of view (sort of) ...

OK...Good.

Sort of ... whereas I consider the spirit changing (God is Spirit) to be a change and you do not. You separate the two and I cannot. Thus, we are at an impasse, we see different things who looking at the same thing so to speak.

I use the terms "spirit" and "mind" interchangeably.
If the Spirit has a mind-spirit, it can change.
It doesn't change God, however.

Being HAPPY or SAD involves change usually. Since God does not change (Mal. 3:6) He cannot be HAPPY or SAD. Now, if by HAPPY we mean an unchanging contentment/pleasure, that I would agree with.
He can never be SAD though.

I agree with the scripture's POV, but not with what you have done with it.
God has changed His mind on numerous occasions.
And I see no reason He shouldn't be happy or sad on occasion.
Don't you think He rejoices with the angels when a sinner comes to a real true repentance from sin? (Luke 15:10)
As for God being saddened...It is written..."And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart." (Gen 6:6)

Consider: If an action of mine can cause anger in God in a similar way that I can cause anger in a man, then this means that I can cause anger in God by my power. To the degree that he lacks self-control, he is helpless against my efforts to cause anger in him. Likewise, if an action of mine can produce joy in God in a similar way that I can produce joy in a man, then this means that I have the ability to produce joy in God at will. In this manner, I would exercise a significant measure of control over God. But this contradicts his sovereignty [independence] and immutability. Vincent Cheung

Moot point, as God doesn't "lose control".
Your "conditional" thesis comes to bear here.

Jonathan Edwards: if God’s infinite hatred against sin included “pain and grief” over each sin, then the countless sins committed by demons and men would cause God to “suffer infinite pain, every day” and make him “the most miserable of all beings”—whereas in truth, God is “perfectly happy,” for he sovereignly uses the evil of sin for his glory.

Was not that a weight Jesus carried to the cross?
He bore our sins.

‘Love’ and ‘hate’ are not emotions that God feels but actions that he carries out.” Tom Constable

"Tom" must not have read the bible.
I can't even imagine a Father without emotions.
Makes me think of idol worshippers and their pointless actions.

 

[for_his_glory]

If God has feelings (mood swings) then He is not immutiable.
Numbers 23:19,Hebrews 13:8,James 1:17

TheWordIsOne never mentioned mood swings in his OP. God does not have mood swings and His word will never return back to Him void.

 

[for_his_glory]

The essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love. Unlike our English word love, agape is not used in the New Testament to refer to romantic or sexual love. Nor does it refer to close friendship or brotherly love, for which the Greek word philia is used. Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character. Agape love is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13.

What is agape love? | GotQuestions.org

What is agape love? How is agape love different from other types of love?

www.gotquestions.org

Agape love can be immutable. Since God is immutable, His love must be immutable.


Feelings is defined as "an emotional state or reaction." Emotions are defined as "a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one's circumstances, mood, or relationships with others." (see Google search). Thus, God cannot have feelings or emotions as then He would be mutable; if He changes He changes for the better or worse ... He would be what he wasn't and therefore would not be eternal.

... if an action of mine can cause anger in God in a similar way that I can cause anger in a man, then this means that I can cause anger in God by my power. To the degree that he lacks self-control, he is helpless against my efforts to cause anger in him. Likewise, if an action of mine can produce joy in God in a similar way that I can produce joy in a man, then this means that I have the ability to produce joy in God at will. In this manner, I would exercise a significant measure of control over God. But this contradicts his sovereignty [independence] and immutability. (Job 35:7-8)
If God is angered by our sins, it is only because he wills to be angered by them, and not because his mental state is subject to our will or beyond his control. Even if God has emotions, they are under his control, and they will never compromise his divine attributes. And since they cannot compromise the divine attributes, this also means that even if he has emotions, he does not have them in a way that is similar to man. But then we wonder why we would still call them emotions. Thus at least in this sense and to this extent, we must affirm that God is without passions. Vincent Cheung

Are you saying God is emotional like we humans are?
God is truly moved by His essence in all His sovereignty.

 

[for_his_glory]

I say God the Father, the divine nature, cannot have be happy one moment and sad the next and base my opinion on scripture that says God does not change.
You say God the Father, the divine nature, can have be happy one moment and sad the next and base your opinion on "because you say so".
Premise 1: God does not change (scripture explicitly confirm this over and over)
Premise 2: God is happy at one time and sad at another time
Conclusion: This cannot occur as it is a contradiction.

I concede that the human nature of Christ is mutable and therefore can have mood changes. The human characteristics of Christ are NOT divine characteristics. Christ human nature was not eternal, not immutable, not all-knowing, not invisible, not ...
If you can't or won't separate the two, you won't comprehend the question at hand.

How can you second guess God's essence. Why can't God be happy at one time and be sad at another time. We are made in His image of love, but yet does anyone truly know God.