We may ask, "Is such a confession necessary?" For our answer to this question we point to Romans 10:10, where the apostle Paul says, "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." It is the nature of faith to express itself in a confession. It is possible that we confess the truth with our mouth, without believing it with our heart; but it is impossible to believe with the heart, without confessing this with the mouth. So the true confession comes up from the heart and is the fruit of faith. It is necessary for Christians to confess with the mouth that which they believe with the heart.

But now we have a problem – there are so many Christian churches, who all refer to the Word of God, but they have not the same confession. This division and separation is not to the honor of God; it is impossible that two or more different explanations of God's Word can be true. Sometimes it may seem for us that there are con­tradictions in the Bible, but this is never true. We must seek the reason in our darkened mind; when we compare God's Word with itself, the one place with the other, then we will find the truth and the meaning of that Word. Oh, that the separation in God's church might become sin for us. Christ has said that the unity of the church was necessary: "That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us." When the body of Christ has come to full growth, that is, when all the elected are called, then all believers will be one. Until that moment we use also our doctrinal standards to express our faith. We must maintain our Con­fession against the errors in doctrine and life which are so evident today in all places. Both in the churches and in daily life, there is more against God's Word than in accord with it.

In the previous article we wrote that there are many religions, but that only the Christian religion is a true religion – a true worship of God. In Hebrews 11 we can read: "for he that cometh to God must believe that He is". Many people do not believe in God, but according to God's Word they are fools. Rev. Hellenbroek says, "That is rather a desire than an actual belief that there is no God." Those who do not believe in God we call atheists. They are not born in such a belief, but are made such by the devil and others. All men are born with an internal knowledge of God, that is, all believe that there is a higher Being, Whom we call God. This internal knowledge is not enough for eternity because it does not acquaint us with the Trinity, with Christ, and with our misery and its origin. God has revealed something of Himself in nature, but much more in His Word. From the Word of God we know that what our Confession states is true: "We all believe with the heart, and confess with the mouth, that there is one only simple and spiritual Being, Which we call God."

The Confession begins by saying that there is one only true God. It is characteristic of the Reformed Churches to give the knowledge of God the first place in their doctrine. In the Lutheran Confession the doctrine of justification is the most important, but in the Reformed Confession it is the honor of God, so that God's Name and His glory comes first, in creation as well as in deliverance. The Lutherans stress: How can I be saved, placing man in the center; the Reformed Churches emphasize: How does the Lord receive His Honor, and through this, teach how man can receive salvation in Jesus Christ out of free grace. This is evident in the beginning of this first article. The Con­fession does not climb up from man to God but comes down from God to man.

It has pleased the Lord to reveal something of Himself in nature and in Scripture. We must not try to under­stand God; this is impossible. A small shell cannot contain the whole ocean; neither can man understand God, Who is endless and infinite. God is a Spirit, one in Being, three in Persons. A spirit has no body, is invisible, cannot be portrayed. We know that the Bible speaks figuratively about God's eye, His hand, etc, but it then speaks of the Lord in a human way so that we can better understand the meaning. We can see with our eyes; in the same manner the Lord says that His eyes go over all things – meaning that He is all-knowing, omniscient.

Here we are speaking of God's attributes or virtues, which are revelations of God Himself, but which also are God Himself. God is called Love, but this is also one of His attributes. In like manner He is said to be Light, the Life, the Truth, etc. These attributes are not different and distinct from each other; in man attributes can be contrary to each other, but not in God.

So here is spoken of God's simplicity, to distinguish Him from the heathen's thoughts of their gods or idols, which are not Gods at all. The simplicity of God excludes the belief that God is composed of several parts.

Man is composed of mind, heart, will and affections, but it is not so with the Lord. He is everything that He can be, and He cannot become more perfect by anything outside of Himself. God's simplicity makes Him greater and richer. This teaches us also that each of the attributes in the Divine Being is not a part of His Being, but it contains everything which belongs to God. We know these things are difficult for our mind to understand; however, we are not to understand everything about God, but to believe that which is written. The Confession states that God is a spiritual Being, which the Lord Jesus has affirmed in John 4:24, "God is a Spirit".

This article of our Confession continues by mentioning some of God's attributes. The first is God's eternity.

This means that He is without any beginning, without any succession or difference of time, and without end.

"Time" has not always existed; in the beginning God created the time. But God Himself is above the time. We cannot exactly explain what time is, as it is an abstract thing. Time is the existence of things one after the other, but for the Lord there is not yesterday, today or tomorrow. It is written in Psalm 90, "from eternity to eternity Thou art God."

God is also incomprehensible, which means that we cannot understand Him. Some (well-intentioned) people have tried to find in nature a way to convince the atheist that there is a God, but this is impossible. God is great and we understand Him not. Zophar gives the answer in Job 11: "Canst thou by searching find out God?"

God is also invisible, even though in a human way we speak of parts of God's body, as we explained above. It is true that God can make Himself visible to man, as He has done in appearances. Then He took a body to show Himself to man, but in His Essence He is invisible. After such an appearance, the Lord laid such a body aside.

He is also immutable, that is, unchangeable, as we can learn from His greatest Name – Jehovah. In Psalm 102 we read: "All shall wax old, but Thou art the same and Thy years shall have no end". This is important against the evolution theory and against the Pantheists, who say that God is changing with the world. It is a great comfort for God's children that God is unchangeable and faithful, even though they are often forgetting the Lord.

From our youth we have learned that the Lord is omnipresent, without limits. Here in the Confession it is called infinite. This should fill us with fear, because He sees everything that we are doing. On the other hand the Lord also knows what is living in our hearts, when we cannot miss him anymore.

The Lord is also almighty. God can perform everything if it is not against His Essence, as God cannot be against Himself. Once in a catechism class the question was asked, "What can the Lord, as the Almighty One, not do?" A girl answered, "The Lord cannot refuse to help a poor sinner." We hope that this may be the experience of many readers!

That the Lord is perfectly wise can be found throughout God's Word and can be seen in the ways which the Lord keeps with His children here on earth. Wisdom is more than knowl­edge; wisdom is to oversee a situation and make the right decision.

God is also just. He will punish the wicked and will out of free grace reward His children. His justice is not the opposite of His goodness, but they are related, Psalm 33:5, "He loveth righteousness and judgment; the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord."

This article ends by stating that God is the overflowing fountain of all good. In Him is everything that we need for time and eternity. We can only rest in Him through Jesus Christ.

This has been only a few words about God's attributes, but I hope that in the way of experience through the teaching of the Holy Spirit we may learn more about them.