What is your perception of God? Your perception of God determines the foundation you will build your life on. It determines how you view everything else in life.

To our ancestors, the universe consisted of the sun, the moon and the stars. Astronomers tell us that it is possible to see about 1000 stars with the naked eye. The earth was the center of the universe and was much bigger than the sun and moon, which appear to be about the same size. Today we know this is not true, but to them that was the universe and that’s how big God needed to be. Big enough to create their idea of the universe.

From the time man first began studying the stars, he has tried to figure how big the universe is. As better telescopes evolved and then finally the Hubble telescope and satellites sent towards the outer limits of space, astronomers have had to keep enlarging their view of the universe. Today they claim that the observable universe is about 93 billion light-years in diameter and they have no idea how big it actually is. A light year is how far light travels in a year of course. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second which would mean that in a year it travels 5.88 trillion miles. Now multiply 5.88 trillion times 93 billions and we have man’s idea of how big the universe is at this time. That’s the observable universe, not the entire universe. I love to use the universe as an example of God’s greatness.

There are at least 200 billion galaxies each containing a billion trillion stars. Astronomers estimate there are at least that many planets. They figure not every star has a planet, but others have multiple planets. Our own star, our sun has 8 planets.

We know that the earth is not the biggest thing in the universe. Even in our own solar system Jupiter dwarfs our earth. 1300 of our earths will fit into Jupiter. If our earth was the size of a golf ball, Jupiter in comparison would be over twice the size of a basketball. But there are many many larger planets that are bigger than Jupiter. One of the largest is tagged Hat-P-35. If the earth was the size of a golf ball, Hat-P-35 would be over 5 ft. in diameter. Our sun that God placed at exactly the right distance from earth for our survival, a few degrees either way and life on earth would be impossible, dwarfs even Hat-P-35. If our earth was the size of a golf ball, The sun would be over 21 ft. in diameter. 

This is a little different picture of the universe than our ancestors had. The universe and all it contains is really beyond our comprehension, at least mine.

Wasp-17b is another planet that absolutely dwarfs our earth, as the image shows. How great is our God? 

As big as the universe is, it cannot contain God. Just as I can be in a house I built, the house cannot contain me, because I created it. I know that is a poor example, but God created the universe, it cannot contain Him. He is bigger than that. David said that if we ascend to the heavens, God is there. If we go down to hell, God is there. God is omnipresent. His presence is everywhere, even to the farthest reaches of the universe, He is there. How utterly awesome and mysterious is our God? I say mysterious, because we cannot even begin to comprehend the vastness of God. If you think you understand God, then I have sad news for you, that is not God. A.W. Tozer said he believes the most important verse in the Bible is Genesis 1. (In the beginning) In the beginning God was. God always was and always will be. God is infinite. Time, space, and matter did not exist, God created them. Everything begins with God. He is the foundation upon which everything rests.

God is infinite,  which means He is limitless, boundless, without end. If we are going to understand God, we need to see Him in the light of infinity. By that I mean God is infinite in every aspect of himself. God knows no limit. We should stop right there. The human mind is amazing. After all God created it and it can go a long way, but it cannot go all the way to infinity. God is limitless. There is no end to anything in God, He has no bounds. The vast oceans have a boundary, The universe has a boundary, but God has no boundary. Whatever God is, He is without limit and whatever God has, He has without limit or measure. Often we use these words carelessly when talking about limitless and boundless things, but we are talking about things that were created, there is a limit to created things. 

God has no limit or measure for God is the Uncreated One. God cannot be measured and cannot be weighed, for He is not composed of matter. You cannot figure God in distance, for God has no end. We cannot describe God’s energy, sound, or the amount of light He gives off. There are no words or concepts to describe God. He defies every description we could come up with. We only know and understand a small part about God, Only what His word and the Holy Spirit has revealed to us. No human can think infinitude. Nobody can think it; you must believe it. You must believe it in your heart. 

We cannot describe the infinitude of God to others. We can only point with wonder, amazement, and awestruck admiration and say, “Behold my God.”

God is perfect. Perfect and perfection are more words that we loosely use to describe things, places, or people in life; but none are perfect. God is perfect! Webster dictionary describes perfection as that which lacks nothing it should have and has nothing it should not have. It is fullness, completeness, not lacking in anything, and not having anything it should not have. God is perfection. With us there are different levels of perfection. But not with God. What He is at any one moment is what God is all the time. God never changes.

If our perception of God is compromised, then our understanding of who God is, is also compromised.

Because God is perfect, His love is perfect. Because God is infinite, His love is infinite, never ending, unlimited. With us love is an emotion that is always changing, depending on our feelings. With God love is not an emotion. It is part of the character of God, therefore it never changes. His love toward us never changes. There is no sin bigger than God’s love. There is no limit to the love of God. Because of this love, Jesus died for you and I. God’s love is unchanging. He loves us the same whether we are good or bad. God is never indifferent. It is impossible for God to be indifferent. Either God loves with a boundless, unremitting energy, or God hates with a consuming fire of Holy hatred. God hates evil, He hates sin. He does not hate His creation. You and I are His creation. He loves us more than we can ever comprehend! 

Because God is infinite, His goodness is infinite. The goodness of God is without limits, never ending. It is part of the character of God. God never fluctuates in His feelings as we do. He is the same always. His goodness is perfect without blemish.

Because God’s goodness is boundless, without end. His grace and mercy are also infinite, without end. 

Mercy is God’s goodness confronting our human guilt, It is God extending grace and forgiveness to us rather than punishment for our sins.  

The mercy of God did not begin at Calvary. The mercy of God led to Calvary. It was because God was merciful that Christ died on the cross for us. There is no limit to the mercy of God. Nothing can increase, diminish or alter the quality of God’s mercy for us.

Because of God’s goodness, God has extended His favor, His grace to us. Without God’s amazing grace we would never be able to enter heaven. When we come to Christ He forgives us and when He forgives us, His grace covers our sins and makes us spotless in His sight. He no longer sees a sinner, but a justified individual. Because of God’s grace we can enter into God’s presence. There is no limit to God’s grace, absolutely no limit. No one and no amount of sin is beyond the grace of God.

The many attributes of God did not spring out of our need for them.  They are the character of God. They always were and always will be. We can benefit from those attributes though and it should be our goal to do so. That is only possible through Jesus Christ.

How big is your God? Your perception of God determines how you worship Him. Let me say that again. Your perception of God determines how you worship him. 

Many people try to bring God down to their level. They just want a God that will be there when they need Him. Kind of like an insurance policy. Others want a God that doesn’t interfere with their life, they just want the assurance of heaven. Others try to put God in a box that they bring out on Sundays. Their gods are not very big nor are their perception of who God is. Oftentimes people may view their relationship with God based on their relationship with people. They have taken their relationship with others and projected it onto God. They come to God, not out of reverence, but for what God can do for them.

Any meaningful relationship with God must be based upon the character and nature of God. The truly amazing God of the universe desires a close personal relationship with each one of us. How amazing that we are able to approach God and He will meet us on our own level.

God is infinite, and because God is infinite, you and I can be bold and brave in this world just as the little boy or girl who is brave when their father is near.

Our fellowship with God is much more than “one day I am going to die and go to heaven.” Our fellowship with God is experiencing the manifest presence of God in our lives every day, not just a Sunday morning experience that cannot be replicated throughout the week. The dynamics of our worship is a day by day, hour by hour experience, or it is not true worship and we do not understand who God really is. God’s presence is with us every second of every day. It is only when we acknowledge that presence that it is apparent in our lives. 

The Lord is all powerful, but, at the same time, very personal! Whether you live in a small town, a sprawling suburb, or a congested city, Jesus knows your address. He knows your living conditions, your hardest problems, your heaviest burdens, and your unfolding opportunities. He cares. He considers. He carries out His plan, and it’s always for your benefit.

The Lord Jesus thinks of you constantly, so you can shift your sorrows onto His shoulders. He is bigger than our burdens, and cares about our future.

The God who created the universe and all that’s in it, loves each of us as if there were only one of us.