Did you know that God is simple? That might sound borderline blasphemous. You may object, “no! God is complex and greater than our understanding; how dare you say simple!” God is indeed great and above understanding, but the church – throughout the ages – has also held that God is simple. God’s simplicity can be defined as “not composed of parts.”
Love Has a Name, Jesus
One implication of this doctrine is that God is not separate from his attributes. We can distinguish God’s love, justice, mercy, and others as we talk about them, but our distinctions are more to help us understand than to describe who God is in Himself. God is not one part loving and one part justice, for instance. Instead, God is love, and God is justice.
Moreover, love and justice do not stand above God as if He is accountable to them. This would be to place abstract realities as authoritative over God. While love can be discussed in the abstract, it has its grounding in the character of God. Again, God is love, and God is justice.
Even better is God took on flesh in the person of Christ. We can not only say that God is love, but that love has a name, Jesus.
You Don’t Just Get Part of God; You Get God Himself
Another beautiful implication of this doctrine is that you don’t just get part of God; you get God himself. Scripture is clear that God is everywhere; there is nowhere we go that God is not present (Psalm 139:7-12). But we might think that when God is with us, it’s just one aspect or piece of God. Instead, by understanding the doctrine of simplicity, we can know that God is with us and he is fully present wherever he is. To use a human analogy, we don’t just get God’s pinky toe; we get his entire presence with us. He’s not giving us leftovers, but he is fully with us. What amazing comfort for whatever we are going through.
Boonstra Babble 