It becomes obvious, as we pursue an explanation of the attributes of God that there is a lot of interrelatedness between them. The spillover of one attribute into another becomes inevitable; hence, some repetition is also inevitable. Yet, each attribute, in and of itself, has peculiarities of its own worthy of elaboration. An attribute of God is that being of God, the feature of God, that makes Him God, and now, under brief consideration on Christianity Clarified is the subject of God’s eternal being. The spillover from this topic to several other of His attributes is, as stated earlier, inevitable.
Our use of the word “eternal” and the meaning usually given to it is simply not accurate. We most often think of eternity as time stacked upon time so that thousands, or even millions, of years constitute eternity. But this is a misunderstanding, even though it is believed by most. A correct concept of eternity is that which is utterly devoid of time, all time. Eternity is timeless. It is a state of being where time is unknown and unneeded. It is the very absence of time that makes eternity eternity. Yet, one can easily see why we think of eternity as time going on forever because, in our finite creatureliness, we are confined and constrained by time. Days, months, and years are everything to us when it comes to our very existence. And that’s, of course, because we live, move, and have our being regulated by the clock and the calendar. Is there anything more germane to our humanness than time and space? We very fully dwell in both.
Eternity is another of God’s attributes. Isaiah expressed this in chapter 57, when he said, “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy.” Eternal conveys no notion of time but is timeless. In fact, it is the very absence of time of any kind that makes eternity eternal. So, while it is understandable in a concept we often invoke as eternity being a long, long time, that is non-the-less incorrect. Rather, think of eternity as being a state of being rather than a time of being.
Here on earth, it is time that ages us and everything all about us. But there is no aging factor in eternity. What age will we be in eternity? That’s a question we all ponder, particularly those now beset with a groaning and weakening body. Suffice it to say, upon entering eternity, the believer will find himself to be precisely what and how God deems it to be. And how can you improve on that? Our eternal God is the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity. This is where God dwells, and all believers will one day inhabit this eternity with Him.
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