Daily Lesson for Wednesday 8th of April 2026

You probably know from memory the first words in the Bible: “In the beginning God.” In Hebrew, the word for God here is Elohim. Although this word can be used when talking about false “gods,” when it refers to the one true God, it describes an almighty, all-powerful Creator in connection with the whole of creation; the transcendent God who is beyond our understanding but in control of everything. He is so powerful that when He speaks, something is created just from His voice.

But in the next chapter, Genesis 2:1-25, there appears a different name for God: Yahweh. This name connects to Elohim (Yahweh Elohim), the same all-powerful, almighty God; but the name Yahweh is the more personal name of the one true God, often used to emphasize that God is the covenant God, in loving relation with His created people.

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

In Genesis 2:7, we can imagine God kneeling to form the first human being out of the ground with His own hands. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” This is a God who gets close—so close that He breathes into Adam’s nostrils the breath of life. This name, Yahweh, presents a more intimate picture of God, but Moses uses both names in the first two chapters of the Bible to describe these two characteristics of God to us.

How astonishing! We see here God’s transcendence to us as Elohim, and His immanence, His closeness to us, as Yahweh. How good for us to think of both of these aspects of God’s character: His overall control of everything and His nearness to us. As Paul said to the Athenians on Mars Hill: “ ‘He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being’ ” (Acts 17:27-28, NKJV).

It’s important that we continue to seek a clear, balanced picture of God based on what the Bible tells us about God’s character in order to grow in a relationship with Him. This is why it’s important to read all parts of the Bible rather than focusing on only one portion. Truly, the more we learn about the character of God, the more we will learn to love Him.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26b-02-god-in-creation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26b-02-god-in-creation

Daily Lesson for Tuesday 7th of April 2026

Love is perhaps the most common word used by Christians to describe God’s character. This could be because of the identity statement about God in 1 John 4:8, which says, “God is love.” John doesn’t say, “God is loving,” but rather, “God is love.” Love is His character, the very essence of who He is.

For many people, their picture of God emerges from their human definition of love, which is always distorted and imperfect. Instead, our very definition of love should be shaped by who God is and what He reveals about Himself in His inspired Word.

Image © Jim Howard at Goodsalt.com

God’s love is perfect, free, and deeply relational, as revealed in the repeated invitation to “abide” in Him in 1 John, because “we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16, NKJV). God is love, and He created us in His image (Genesis 1:27) to love and to desire love. In Hebrew, one major word for love is ḥ__esed. This describes God’s covenant love for humanity, which encompasses traits of loyalty, protectiveness, steadfastness, and tenderness.

The ancient languages of Hebrew and Greek use many different names to refer to God, names whose meanings capture and shed light on different aspects of God’s beautiful character. Here are just two examples:

• Adonai: The Lord of all, who reigns forever, in reference to the covenant (Genesis 15:2, Judges 6:15, Malachi 1:6, Psalms 97:5).

• Yahweh-Yireh: The-Lord-Will-Provide (Genesis 22:13-14, NKJV).

Ultimately, the greatest expression of God’s love is revealed through the gift of His Son to this earth (John 3:16) who died for sinners (Romans 5:8). God could have withheld this from humanity, yet because of His magnanimous, radical, supremely altruistic love, God sent Jesus to earth so that we might freely choose to respond to His love, revealed in His substitutionary death on our behalf. Not only did Jesus bridge the separation that sin has brought between us and God (Isaiah 59:1-2), He lived to show us God’s perfect character of love (John 14:9, Hebrews 1:3) and to draw all people to Himself (John 12:32).

<–Monday Wednesday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26b-02-god-is-love/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26b-02-god-is-love