LITTLE GODS OF HAUGHTY HEARTS (PART V)

“Communicable and Incommunicable Attributes of God”

By Akin Ojumu

We understand from Scripture that being made in the image and after the likeness of God is the exclusive preserve of humanity. No other groups of created beings share in this high and lofty status. Neither the creatures in the sea nor birds in the air nor livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth can evolve or genetically mutate into the image of God.

Likewise, we’ve established that it’s very much unlikely that man being made in the image of God could be referring to the physical or material aspect of man. We know this because:

(1) God is Spirit

“God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24).

(2) A Spirit has no physical form

“See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” (Luke 24:39).

(3) God is infinite and eternal, whatever is created is finite and mortal

“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” (Psalm 90:2).

If being made in the image of God was a reference to the anatomical, biological, or physiological characteristics of man, a legitimate case could be made that animals are also made in the image of God, since animals share a lot of similarities in their physical characteristics with humans. 

Notwithstanding the shared similarities between humans and animals in their anatomy, biology, and physiology, however, it’s only humans that are made in the image of God and animals aren’t. 

So, what are the attributes of humans that make us a reflection of the image of God? Well, let’s get to it.

“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”” (Genesis 1:26-27).

You can’t read Genesis 1:26 and not sense some palpable excitement in the air when it came to the creation of man. It was as though the Godhead had reached the crescendo of divine creativity as they began to carve man into the shape of God. Just as an artist dexterously pours all his skills into fashioning his best masterpiece, God had His game face on in the creation of man.

For the purposes of broad classification, God has two overarching attributes, namely incommunicable and communicable attributes. By definition, communicable attributes are those that can be transmitted, while the incommunicable attributes are those that cannot be transmitted.

God’s incommunicable attributes are those attributes exclusive to Him. This refers to aspects of divinity in which humans cannot share. The incommunicable attributes of God make Him distinct from man. These are attributes that He does not share with humans. 

Included in these is the aseity of God which speaks of God being the great unmade Maker and the great self-sustaining Sustainer. Others include God’s omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, sovereignty, transcendency, and immutability.

On the other hand, the communicable attributes of God are those that humans also possess, although only to a limited extent. When the Bible talks about man being made in God’s image, it’s really referring to the communicable attributes of God that humans share. 

These include the ability to love, think, and form relationships. Others include grace, mercy, goodness, truthfulness, longsuffering, holiness, and righteousness.

Humans’ ability to appreciate beauty, creativity, ingenuity, and appreciation of diversity are all aspects of God’s communicable attributes that humans share. Others are man’s ability to understand abstract concepts such as morality, liberty, sense of justice, and pursuit of happiness.

Additionally, the divine likeness in man refers to human innate capacity to solve complex problems, intellectual prowess, and reasoning faculty. Also included in the communicable attributes of God fashioned into humans is the capability to express varieties of emotions such as sorrow, zeal, anger, delight, and joy.

Before the fall, humans shared in all the communicable attributes of God perfectly, fully and without measure. But because of the corrosive effect of sin on the soul of man, even those communicable aspects of God that humans share are only effected in very limited degrees. Sin robs humanity of the ability to fully manifest the image of God.

For instance, humans can love, but only God alone loves perfectly. Man’s love is often inadequate, insincere and often motivated by selfishness. 

Likewise, humans can tell the truth, but only God alone does not and cannot lie. The truths humans tell are often predicated on caveats and colored with prevarications.

Similarly, humans do have a sense of justice. Again, when it comes to dispensing justice, we do so woefully. Although Lady Justice is often depicted wearing a blindfold to symbolize that justice is unbiased and impartial, the reality, though, is that she often peeps under her blindfold when it comes to favoring the powerful and privileged against the poor and powerless.

It is important to understand that we will never be fully like God, and in no sense will we ever become gods. God is distinct from us, and yet we are made in His image and redeemed by His Son. We are called to be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:15–16) yet know that only He is completely holy; any holiness in us comes from Him. Our sharing in God’s communicable attributes is for His glory and is made possible by His design of us and His enabling as we abide in Him (Source: Got Questions).

In conclusion, the little gods’ doctrine is all a farce and a demonic con. Those who tell you that you are god, are lying to you. Humans are not divine, only God is. Just because man is made in the image of God does not in any way confer divinity on humanity.