Sinful housework

[Luke]

Originally Posted by Aquila

Depends on how one defines holiness and righteousness. Being loving, true to God, true to self, and being forgiving to a fault. To many... that is holiness. That is righteousness.

Not quite a biblical definition.

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Luke

Not quite a biblical definition.

What is God with regards to His very substance? Love. Living love. And that is defined as being "holy". Love is holiness. And holiness is loving. Holiness has nothing to do with rules. It has to do with one's state of being. Are they loving or not? To love is to be holy. For to love is to be like God. No man can say he loves God and fail to love others. However, one can keep any list of standards and fail to love others.

[Luke]

Originally Posted by Aquila

What is God with regards to His very substance? Love. Living love. And that is defined as being "holy". Love is holiness. And holiness is loving. Holiness has nothing to do with rules. It has to do with one's state of being. Are they loving or not? To love is to be holy. For to love is to be like God. No man can say he loves God and fail to love others. However, one can keep any list of standards and fail to love others.

Gad at His very nature is Holy. His love along with all of His other attributes flow and stem from His love.

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Luke

Gad at His very nature is Holy. His love along with all of His other attributes flow and stem from His love.

I think it's important to emphasize that God doesn't love... He is love.

[Luke]

Originally Posted by Aquila

I think it's important to emphasize that God doesn't love... He is love.

Iagree God is Love but he is also Justice and Rightous and Omnipotent and Omniscence and Sovereign and Merciful, Gracious but all of these things are equal attributes that flow from His nature which is holiness

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Luke

Iagree God is Love but he is also Justice and Rightous and Omnipotent and Omniscence and Sovereign and Merciful, Gracious but all of these things are equal attributes that flow from His nature which is holiness

I don't think you're understanding exactly what I'm saying.

When it comes to God, love isn't an "equal attribute" to other attributes. God "is" love. Love is His very substance. We can say that God is "merciful", but we cannot say that God is mercy. We can say that God is "just", but we can't say that God is justice. We can even say that God is "holy", but we can't say that God is holiness.

As human beings, we struggle with properly understanding this. Because to us love is an attribute that emanates from the soul. However, when it comes to real divine love, it's source is always God. It flows through us. Therefore, with regards to mankind, it is what is known as a communicable attribute of God.

When this is properly understood, God's Omniscience, Sovereignty, Mercy, Grace, Justice, Holiness, etc. all come into proper ontological context. Love is the ocean frome which these streams flow. Love isn't just another stream.

Now, where in SCRIPTURE does it say that God's nature is "holiness"??? God is love, therefore His nature is "loving". All attribues that flow from Him are then to be viewed as expressions of Him loving us. While God speaks anthropomorphically about "hating" various things, the ontological understanding of God is that it is impossible for God to truly "hate". When God speaks of hating something over something else, God is expressing desire. Out of His love, God desires righteousness and goodness. Why? Because those things are beneficial to the creation He dearly loves. Thus God does not desire sin and wickeness. In this God "hates". So, just as God's love is not our kind of love (ours is quite shallow and conditional)... God's hatred is not our kind of hatred (ours is rather petty and judgmental).

[Luke]

Originally Posted by Aquila

I don't think you're understanding exactly what I'm saying.

When it comes to God, love isn't an "equal attribute" to other attributes. God "is" love. Love is His very substance. We can say that God is "merciful", but we cannot say that God is mercy. We can say that God is "just", but we can't say that God is justice. When can even say that God is "holy", but we can't say that God is holiness.

As human beings, we struggle with properly understanding this. Because to us love is an attribute that emanates from the soul. However, when it comes to real divine love, it's source is always God. It flows through us. Therefore, with regards to mankind, it is what is known as a communicable attribute of God.

When this is properly understood God's Omniscience, Sovereignty, Mercy, Grace, Justice, Holiness, etc. all come into proper ontological context. Love is the ocean frome which these streams flow. Love isn't just another stream.

Now, where in SCRIPTURE does it say that God's nature is "holiness"??? God is love, therefore His nature is "loving". All attribues that flow from Him are then to be viewed as expressions of Him loving us. While God speaks anthropomorphically about "hating" various things, the ontological understanding of God is that it is impossible for God to truly "hate". When God speaks of hating something over something else, God is expressing desire. Out of His love, God desires righteousness and goodness. Why? Because those things are beneficial to the creation He dearly loves. Thus God does not desire sin and wickeness. In this God "hates". So, just as God's love truly exceeds our kind of love... God's hatred is not our kind of hatred.

Where does the Bible say that the nature of God is love? The Bible multiple times clearly says that God is Holy and even puts it forth as a state a state of being:

1 Peter 1:15 but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
16 because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

Notice in the following scripture which to as far as i can think of is the only one that specificly mentions the divine nature (I could be wrong on that). Notice what the divine nature is contrasted with.
2 Peter 1: 4 whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Notice it is contrasted with sinfulnes not hatred but rather filth.

Also as a oneness believer How can you deny that His nature is Holy when one of His manifestations is the HOLY GHOST not the Love Ghost? Also all in the Old Testament one of the more common terms for God used by the prophets was The Holy One of Israel not the loving One of Israel.