What is God like?

In the ancient world, a person's name held great meaning.  For example, the patriarch Jacob (a name meaning "he deceives") was given a new name by God; he was called Israel (meaning "he struggles with God").  This new name, Israel, was carried on by the nation--for thousands of years, the people of Israel would struggle with God. But when God gave Himself a name, it was Adonai (meaning "The Lord").  And in the 34th chapter of Exodus, God explains what that Name means:

Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and stood there with him (Moses) and proclaimed His Name, the Lord.  And He passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.  Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation." (Exodus 34.6-7)

Broadly, this shows that God has two sides: On the one hand, He is gracious and loving, compassionate and forgiving.  On the other hand, He is jealous and exacting, and hates injustice; He never lets a sinner go without facing the consequences of his sin.  But how can this be? How can a God whose name is synonymous with love and grace and forgiveness also exact revenge and payment for sin?  He is like a parent who catches her six year old stealing candy from a convenience store.  The parent loves the child, and forgives him immediately; but the good parent will also make the child return the stolen candy and apologize to the store clerk.  This penalty is humiliating to the child, but it is necessary; the parent will also keep a close eye on the child from that point forward, to make sure that he does not repeat the offense.  And when the parent becomes a grandparent, she will tell her grandchildren about the time she caught daddy stealing candy, so that the grandchildren will not make the same mistake.  This is forcing humility to the second and third generation.

But what was God saying about Himself that we should know about Him, so that we can be like Him?  Specifically, we see attributes of God that come from His own spoken words:

• He is compassionate.  Exodus 22.25-27 says, "If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest.  If you take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, return it to him by sunset, because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body.  What else will he sleep in?  When he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate."  
• He is slow to anger.  Psalm 78.32 & 38 says, "In spite of all this they kept on sinning; in spite of His wonders, they did not believe...Yet He was merciful; He forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them.  Time after time He restrained His anger and did not stir up His full wrath."  Jeremiah 15.15 says, "You understand, O Lord; remember me and care for me.  Avenge me on my persecutors.  You are long-suffering--do not take me away; think of how I suffer reproach for Your sake."  Paul said this in Romans 2.3-4: "So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?"
• He is abounding in love.  Genesis 19.16 speaks of the time that God spared Lot and his wife from the destruction of Sodom.  God sent angels to escort them out ahead of the fire and brimstone that would rain down on the city. "When he hesitated, the men grasped Lot's hand and the hands of his wife and his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them." 
• He is abounding in faithfulness.  Psalm 108.4 says, "For great is Your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies."  Psalm 115.1 says, "Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to Your Name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness."  Psalm 138.2 says, "I will bow down toward Your holy temple and will praise Your Name for your love and faithfulness, for You have exalted above all things Your Name and Your Word."  One of my favorite verses is Lamentations 3.22-23: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."
• He maintains His love to multitudes.  In the 20th chapter of Exodus, when God gives the Ten Commandments, the second commandment against making idols is underscored with this warning: "You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments."
• He forgives wickedness, rebellion, and sin.  In his prayer of dedication to the temple, Solomon said this in I Kings 8.30: "Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place.  Hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, and when You hear, forgive."  Psalm 86.5 says, "You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call on You."  Psalm 130.3-4, 8 says, "If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness; therefore You are feared...He Himself will redeem Israel from all their sins."  Isaiah 43.25 makes this promise from God: "I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for My own sake, and remembers your sins no more."  In Daniel 9.9, the prophet made this confession: "The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against Him."  The beloved disciple John said this in 1 John 1.9: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and purify us from all unrighteousness."
• Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished.  Joshua 24.19-20 says, "You are not able to serve the Lord.  He is a holy God; He is a jealous God.  He will not overlook your rebellion and your sins.  If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, He will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after He has been good to you."  Job 9.28 says, "I dread all my sufferings, for I know you will not hold me innocent."  Again in Job 10.13-14, "But this is what you concealed in Your heart, and I know that this was in Your mind; If I sinned, You would be watching me and would not let my offense go unpunished."  Nahum 1.2-3 says, "The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath.  The Lord takes vengeance on His foes and maintains His wrath against His enemies.  The Lord is slow to anger and great in power; The Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished." 

So I know I do not want to be an enemy of God.  I don't want to be one that struggles with God.  I want to know God by His name, the name He calls Himself: THE LORD.  I want to receive His compassionate mercy, His long-suffering, faithful love.  How do I do this?  Jesus came as a sacrifice for our sins, so that God's wrath would be averted.  If we accept Jesus into our hearts, He will take our punishment away.  What a glorious promise.  If you haven't given your heart to Him, please do it today.  There will come a time, at the Great White Throne Judgment of God, where we will have no more chances to repent.  If we do not have the blood of Jesus shielding us from God's wrath, we will be banished from His presence and sent to an eternity without Him.