When you think of God, what specifically do you think of? Do you think of a gray-haired old man who sits in a big chair in the sky, overseeing all his creation? Do you think of God as some awesome figure or bright shining light? Whatever initially comes to mind when thinking about God, it is probably skewed at least to some degree. We humans are often tempted to think of God like a super-human, almost akin to a Zeus-like figure (but just greater than Zeus!). Mankind’s thoughts about God are often, as author J.B. Philipps pointed out years ago, “too small” (see his book Your God Is Too Small). Somehow, we frequently end up making God in man’s image rather than the other way round. So what can we do to help our minds keep in focus the true grandeur of God? One thing that has helped me through the years is thinking about God as the most perfect being ever.
This concept of God as “the most perfect being” is not original to me. It came from the theologian-philosopher known as Anselm of Canterbury (ca. 1033-1109) during the Middle Ages. He came up with the idea while writing a book-long prayer (knows as the Proslogion) as he praised God. Actually, Anselm used a really long hyphenated term to refer to God as the most perfect being. He called God “something-than-which-nothing-greater-can-be-thought.” But that’s a mouthful, so we now just say God is the “perfect being.”
What exactly did Anselm have in mind when he thought of God as the perfect being? Basically this: when we think of God more deeply, what do we think he is like in regard to his power, knowledge, love, and other characteristics? Do we think of God has having just some power and a little knowledge and love, or do we think of God has having the most knowledge, power, and love any being could ever have, that is to say, perfect knowledge, power, and love? Anselm believed, and I agree, that when the overwhelming majority of people think of God they are thinking of a being who is all-powerful, all-knowledgeable, and all-loving. People think that God is the best kind of being there is. He is “something-than-which-nothing-greater-can-be-thought.” If when you think about God, you can actually think of a being better (or more perfect) than God, then your idea of God is incorrect because no being can be greater than God.
So, how great is God? How can we recapture the grandeur of God? By remembering that God is the most perfect being. What does this mean specifically? It means God has perfect knowledge, power, love, mercy, grace, and so many other attributes. Whatever God is, he is the perfection of it. God’s power, knowledge, or love are not diluted in anyway. God is the very definition of these things. He is pure power, knowledge, and love.
And we should be thankful that God is perfect in all that he is! It means that God has the power to answer our prayers and help in our time of need. God has the knowledge and wisdom to answer our prayers in the best way for us. Most significantly, it means that God has the perfect plan to save us from our sins, reconcile us to himself, and make us knew in the image of his Son, Jesus! Imagine if God was not perfectly great but just the greatest of the greatest: God may have not had just enough power and grace to save us, or he could have all the power but not enough love, making him at least somewhat prone to being a tyrant. No good! Such a God would not be worthy of worship, and he would definitely not be God.
The next time you are tempted to conceive of God human terms, remember: God is the most perfect being. He is the Creator, not creature. “Great is the LORD, and highly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable” (Ps 145:3; NASB).
Pastor Pete