Maximally Great Being

Isaiah 43:1–13

“But now, this is what the LORD says— He who created you, Jacob, He who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring My sons from afar and My daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by My name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made.” Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf. All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of their gods foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, “It is true.” “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed, nor will there be one after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from Me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am He. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”

Before Him, no other was formed (v. 10) from ancient days (v. 11), that is to say, from the very beginning of this time-space-matter manifold we call the universe: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning, through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made (John 1:1–3).” One of my favourite arguments for God’s existence, and yet one that I have most difficulty understanding is the Ontological Argument initially proposed by St. Anselm in the 1000s AD and relatively recently developed further by Christian philosopher Dr. Alvin Plantinga: (1) It is possible that a maximally great being exits; (2) If a maximally great being exists, then it exists in some possible world; (3) If a maximally great being exists in some possible world, then it exists in every possible world; (4) If a maximally great being exists in every possible world, then it exists in the actual world; (5) If a maximally great being exists in the actual world, then a maximally great being exists

Therefore, a maximally great being exists. Of course, that “maximally great being” is God. The beauty of this thinking is it moves us from the possibility of God into His reality, quite forcefully when properly understood, that if one thinks the idea of God itself isn’t a contradiction like a “square circle”, a “married bachelor”, nor “the smell of blue”, then God actually exists by virtue of His attributes being maximally excellent in every possible (feasible) world. This argument is rooted in the very nature of God and is therefore specific to the true and living God rather than to the general idea of an ultimate principle or divine being. I don’t want to distract with a bit of complex thinking, but this has been a rather controversial argument easily dismissed by those who misunderstand it, but my emphasis here is on the attributes of that maximally great being, God, that apart from Him, there is no other, not even lesser gods, and given the argument, idols will always be worthless lifeless things, as the prophet Habbakuk writes, “Woe to him who says to wood, 'Come to life!' Or to lifeless stone, 'Wake up!' Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it (Hab 2:19).” Indeed, “our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, The work of man's hands. They have mouths, but they cannot speak; They have eyes, but they cannot see (Psa 115:3–5).” And we do have idols of today, not literal ones, and these can have effects and power of some measure, we will be gravely mistaken however to wildly pursue these and make them the end-all-and-be-all of our existence when there is this being who is truly maximally great from whence real power and authority, blessings and abundance, true love, and lasting things come, He is God and in His right hand are delights forevermore (Psa 16:11) and we as in Isaiah today, are His treasured possessions. We witnesses to this Maximally Great Being who loves us and cares for us. The LORD said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matt 6:19–21).” LORD, help us respond to Your great love and majesty the right way, dwell in our hearts, cast down every idol, reign in our minds supreme, reign in our lives alone.