One of the questions that has confounded both atheists and believers alike is where God came from. The Bible not only says that God created the heavens and the earth but gives painstaking details of the creation process. However, what about the creator – what he created or where did he come from?
According to Christian theology, God is eternal and therefore he was uncreated. The eternal attribute of God means that he has always existed and there was nothing or no one that predates him. As mind-boggling as it may seem, the answer to the question of God’s origin is God has always been.
What the Bible teaches about God’s Origin
Depending on how you look at it, the Bible either has a lot to say about God’s origin or it has nothing to say at all. If you are looking for scriptures that explain how God came to be or who created him, you won’t find any. However, there are many scriptures that illustrate that God has always been. This concept is referred to as eternal existence. Additionally, The Bible also emphasizes God’s incomprehensible nature. This means that God’s wisdom is too high for mortal man to grasp. Let us take a closer look at some fo these concepts from the Biblical point fo view.
Eternal Existence
God, unlike the universe that has a beginning and an end, exists eternal. Eternal existence means that God had no beginning and he had no end. This is because God exists outside the constraints of time and space. God’s eternal existence is one of the most important truths in the Bible as it shapes the other attributes of God. There are several scriptures that illustrate the concept of God’s eternal existence. These include:
Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (Psalm 90:2, NIV)
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:8, NIV)
This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. (Isaiah 44:6, NIV)
In the beginning, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing, you will change them and they will be discarded, but you remain the same, and your years will never end. Psalm 102:25-27, NIV).
Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity. (Psalm 93:2, NIV)
The Uncreated Being
The Bible teaches that God is self-existent. Another way of putting it is that he was not created which makes him the only uncreated being in existence. God is referred to as the creator because all life forms as well as all creation forms emerged from him. In the words of scripture, all things – whether visible or invisible – in heaven and earth were created by him (Col. 1:16). However, There was no point at which God was brought into existence or created by another being.
The question of who created God may seem like an intelligent one until you think about the implications. Assuming God had a creator, then you will also want to know the creator of God’s creator. Before you know it, you will be lost in a rabbit hole of which creator created which one. The concept of a God that was not created is therefore more logical than the idea that God must have had a creator.
Incomprehensible Nature
In your quest to understand God’s origin, it is worth noting that the human understanding of God is limited. God is omniscient but everything humans know is what we can grasp by our physical senses. As such, there is so much more about the universe, eternity, and God that we do not know. Additionally, there is a lot of information that we wouldn’t understand even if it was revealed to us. God made it clear that we shouldn’t worry about things that haven’t been revealed because the hidden things belong to God. We should instead focus on what has been revealed to us because that is what our limited minds can grasp. (Deut. 29:29). The Bible has a lot to say about God’s incomprehensible nature but here are some of the prolific references:
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.(Isaiah 55:8-9, NIV).
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? (Romans 11:33-34, NIV).
Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? They are higher than the heavens above—what can you do? They are deeper than the depths below—what can you know? (Job 11:7-9, NIV).
For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. (1 Corinthians 2:11, NIV).
Conclusion
The concept of an eternal God is based on several scriptures that describe God as infinite, eternal, without beginning or end, etc. These scriptures illustrate that God has no origin or point of creation. God did not emerge from anywhere, was not created by some other being, or did not emerge out of something (or nothing). On the contrary, God is eternal and uncreated and he remains to be the creator/source of all creation. The Christian understanding of God is that he is the timeless and uncaused creator of our universe by whom all things exist.
