Articles
God is…(5)
God is…(5)
Greg King
In coming to know God we seek to know His character and His heart. The scripture identifies that God is love, is gracious, and merciful. The Bible declares also that God is a God of patience. Romans 15:5 says, “Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.”
The patience of God is illustrated in His longsuffering toward man. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3:20, “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”
Our loving, gracious, merciful God is still patient today. Again, Peter writes in 2 Peter 3:7-9, “But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
He is patient so that we might have salvation. Every moment that we have breath in our body is God being patient with us. “And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 2 Peter 3:15. He is patient that we might be led to repentance. Romans 2:4 says, “Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?”
Don’t take His love, grace, mercy, and patience for granted. Turn to Him today!
