Who Is God

Who is God? In Theism, he has been described as everything from an impersonal life-force to a benevolent, personal, almighty Creator. He has been called by many names, including: "Zeus," "Jupiter," "Brahma," "Allah," and "the Great Spirit" to name just a few. He's seen by some as "Mother Nature" and by others as "Father God." But who does he claim to be? To begin with, whenever he refers to himself in parental terms, he always addresses himself as "Father," never "Mother." He calls himself "a Father to Israel". His prophets acknowledged him as Father by saying, "You are our Father, we are the clay, and you our potter; and all of us are the work of your hand," (Isaiah 64:8) Never once does God refer to himself as "Mother" and never once is he called such by the prophets to whom he spoke. I believe calling God "Mother Nature" is comparable to calling your earthly Father "Mom", but some debate this believing God could be female.

I feel God is most recognized in situations of death; "By "death" I am not referring to the physical death which might come to mind. Rather, God is understood as the one who will determine if something will happen in eternity, after our physical deaths. The Scriptures refer to this event as the "second death." (Revelation 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:8) The first death separates us from our bodies and takes us from this world. The second death is different. It also entails a separation, but it's the separation of one group of people from another: the righteous and the forgiven on one hand and the wicked and the unrepentant on the other. The two groups will be judged separately. The one group will be rewarded according to the good that they've done. Their evil deeds will be overlooked, forgiven by God. The other group will be judged according to the evil that they have done, and their good deeds will not keep them from their punishment. God says, "When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and dies because of it, for his iniquity which he has committed he will die." But "when a wicked man turns away from his wickedness which he has committed and practices justice and righteousness, he will save his life. Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. Therefore, repent and live." (Ezekiel 18:26-28, 32) In this way, God will see that justice ultimately prevails, but that mercy is given to the humble and the repentant.

Christian discipleship is a concept that was born when Jesus Christ hand-selected his first followers. A disciple, by definition, is a convinced adherent of a school or individual. In the case of Jesus, his

Disciples were those who followed him while he was on earth, as well as those who continue to follow his teachings today.

Christian discipleship began, according to John's Gospel, the day after Jesus was baptized (John1:35-39). According to this passage, the first two men to follow Him heard John the Baptist declare that Jesus was the Lamb of God. Andrew and his friend (most likely John) believed what they heard and followed Jesus. Before long, they were telling others about this amazing Man of God! Andrew recruited his brother Simon (whom Jesus called Peter); the next day Jesus found Philip in Galilee; Philip found Nathaniel and soon a movement was born. Not everyone came easily or willingly at first. However, before long, Jesus had twelve disciples. It is not known why twelve, but twelve