问题2：神是什么？
答：神是每个人和一切事物的创造者和维持者。祂的权能和完美、良善和荣耀、智慧、公义、真理都是永恒、无限和不变的。 除非借着祂、并且出于祂的旨意，否则什么都不可能发生。
儿童版：神是每个人和一切事物的创造者。

Question 2: What is God?
Answer: God is the creator and sustainer of everyone and everything. He is eternal, infinite, and unchangeable in his power and perfection, goodness and glory, wisdom, justice, and truth. Nothing happens except through him and by his will.
For Kids: God is the creator of everyone and everything.


歌谱 Lead Sheet

经文

《诗篇》86 篇8 节至10 节、15 节：

主啊，诸神之中没有可比祢的，
祢的作为也无可比。
主啊，祢所造的万民都要来敬拜祢，
他们也要荣耀祢的名。
因祢为大，且行奇妙的事，
惟独祢是神……
主啊，祢是有怜悯、有恩典的神，
不轻易发怒，并有丰盛的慈爱和诚实。

注解

约拿单·爱德华兹

　　世界的创造主无疑也是治理者。祂既有权能创造这个世界，并使它有条不紊地运转，毫无疑问也有权能支配这个世界，维系或者改变祂所建立的秩序。祂创造并掌管自然律，万有都在祂的手中，祂可以按照自己的喜好随意处置这个世界……

　　事实上，神对这个世界所发生的事情和存在的问题并非漠不关心，祂在创世之初就不曾忽视这些；万物受造的方式和次序表明，神早在创造的时候就已经考虑到了世界未来的发展和状态。

默想

唐·卡森

　　谈论和思想神是何等美好的事情，再也没有比这更崇高的话题了。但「神」这个词并非是个空泛的术语，不会因为有些人使用「神」这个词，另一些人也用「神」这个词，就代表他们是在谈论同一件事。对某些人来说，神是一种无法言说的感受，或者是宇宙起源时那个不变的第一因，或者是一种超越的存在。但我们是在讲圣经中的神，而圣经中的神是自我启示的。祂说自己是永恒的、公义的。神是爱，是超越的，祂是超越时间、空间、历史的，祂是自有永有的。也就是说，祂一直在我们身边，我们不可能逃离他。祂无所不在，祂从不改变，祂信实，祂可靠，祂是有位格的。

　　读懂并明白圣经如何描述神非常重要，这不仅是指明白某些字句，更是明白整本圣经的叙述。很重要的一点是，我们不可以只看见神属性的一部分，就以为那是祂的全貌。让我这么说，我们不能只看到神的主权，却忘记祂的良善；或者只看到祂的良善，却忘记祂的圣洁，正是圣洁的属性让祂成为审判的神；或者只看祂的审判，只看到审判的严厉，却忘记祂是慈爱的神，祂甚至爱抵挡祂的受造物，甚至差遣祂的爱子担当他们的罪，使祂爱子的身体，挂在那木头上。

　　换句话说，若要真正明白神是谁，我们应从细微之处真正认识神，进而俯伏在祂面前，持续不断地思想圣经的话语，按照圣经启示的平衡方式整合地理解整本圣经。这才是我们敬拜的原因。我们若用任何其他东西来取代神，就成了拜偶像。

祷告

　　我们的创造主和护理者，万有都在祢的里面。受造中最微小的，祢都知道，最强大的军队也要听命于祢。祢的治理是公义的。帮助我们相信祢旨意的良善和纯全。阿们。

Scripture

PSALM 86:8–10, 15

There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,
nor are there any works like yours.
All the nations you have made shall come
and worship before you, O Lord,
and shall glorify your name.
For you are great and do wondrous things;
you alone are God. . . .
But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and
faithfulness.

Commentary

JONATHAN EDWARDS

The Creator of the world is doubtless also the Governor of it. He that had power to give being to the world, and set all the parts of it in order, has doubtless power to dispose of the world, to continue the order he has constituted, or to alter it. He that first gave the laws of nature, must have all nature in his hands; so that it is evident God has the world in his hands, to dispose of as he pleases. . . .

And it is manifest, in fact, that God is not careless how the affairs and concerns of the world he has made proceed, because he was not careless of this matter in the creation itself; as it is apparent, by the manner and order in which things were created, that God, in creating, took care of the future progress and state of things in the world.

Devotional

D. A. CARSON

It is spectacularly wonderful to talk about God, to think about him. There cannot be any higher subject. But the word God itself is not an empty cipher. Just because somebody uses the word God and then somebody else uses the word God, it does not follow that they mean the same thing. God, for some, is an inexpressible feeling, or it’s the unmoved cause at the beginning of the universe, or it’s a being full of transcendence. But we’re talking about the God of the Bible, and the God of the Bible is self-defined. He talks about himself as being eternal and righteous. He’s the God of love. He’s the God of transcendence; that is, he’s above space and time and history. Yet he is the immanent God; that is, he is so much with us that we cannot possibly escape from him. He is everywhere. He is unchangeable. He is truthful. He is reliable. He’s personal.

What’s really important to see and understand, as God has disclosed himself not only in words but in the whole storyline of the Bible’s narrative, is that we are not permitted to take one attribute of God and make everything of it. We cannot, let’s say, take his sovereignty and forget his goodness. Or take his goodness and forget his holiness (his holiness is what makes him the God of judgment). Or take his judgment, even the severity of his judgment, and forget that he’s the God of love, the God who has so much loved even his rebellious creatures that ultimately he sent his Son to bear their sin in his own body on the tree.

In other words, to get to the heart of who God is and to bow before him in some small measure of genuine understanding, it’s important to think through what the Bible says again and again and integrate the whole with the same balance and proportion that Scripture itself gives. That calls us to worship. And if we put anything else in the place of God, that is the very definition of idolatry.

Prayer

Our Creator and Sustainer, everything holds together in you. The smallest creature is known to you, and the mightiest army is at your command. You rule with justice. Help us to trust your goodness in all that you will. Amen.