Here’s something that you don’t hear many people say – I love English grammar. Really, I do. Yes, it is complex. And, yes, for every rule in English grammar there are at least five exceptions. But I enjoy seeing how words with their various meanings fit together to create a cohesive, united message.
To construct a complete sentence in English, you need a subject (person, place, thing, or idea) and a verb. Verbs can show action OR they can show a state of being.
The state of being verbs express the state of existence – something was (existed in the past), is (exists in the present), or will be (will exist in the future).
In Exodus 3, Moses experiences God in the wilderness through a bush that burned, yet was not consumed. God tells Moses, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:6). After telling Moses that he will be used by God to free God’s oppressed people, Moses asks God for His name, “If the people of Israel…ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them” (3:13). God’s reply to Moses was,” I AM WHO I AM… This is my name forever” (3:14-15). God’s name declares that He existence is eternal and constant.
A. W. Tozer writes, “God is not derived from anything. Everyone is derived from someone else and everything is derived from some other thing. But when it comes to God, God is underived – uncreated. If God had derived from something else then that something else would have antedated God.” (The Attributes of God Volume 2). There was never a time when God didn’t exist, and there will never be a time that He doesn’t exist. His existence is constant and eternal. Theologians call this the self-existence of God. No one made God. God will never cease to be. God is eternal. He is also self-sufficient. God doesn’t need us. He doesn’t need anything. This is an incredibly humbling thought, and completely countercultural for us. We like to think that we are essential. However, God does not need us – He is essential and sufficient while we are not. Yet, He still chose to create us and wants to have a relationship with us. No, He doesn’t need a relationship with us. But He does want one. Even though we have done anything to deserve it.
Continuing to express praise and thankfulness for who God is, today I am thankful that God is self-existent. He is eternal and self-sufficient. He IS.
Steel-Toed Stilettos 