Glory Be to Our Great God | Day 5 - God is Infinite

Give Thanks to the Immeasurable, Boundless, and Matchless God

A SONG OF PRAISE. OF DAVID.
I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable. - Psalm 145:1-3

Because You are greater than we can imagine
You are too beautiful for us to fathom
Oh, You are great and greatly to be praised
- Sovereign Grace Music, “Greater Than We Can Imagine”

Magnificent, marvelous, matchless love
Too vast and astounding to tell
Forever existing in worlds above
Now offered and given to all
Oh, fountain of beauty eternal
The Father, the Spirit, the Son
Sufficient and endlessly generous
Magnificent, marvelous, matchless love
- Keith Getty, Kristyn Getty, Matt Papa, Aaron Keyes, Luke Brown, “Magnificent, Marvelous, Matchless Love”

The Lord our God is but one only, living, and true God; whose subsistence is in and of himself, infinite in being, and perfection . . . - The London Baptist Confession of 1689 (emphasis added)

Only one reigns, let the wonder fall
Who is like him? None at all. Off the wall
Beyond what we understand, or what we comprehend,
catching the signals at the satellite sense
Communicate from an awe-struck state
and translate the frequencies when we touch base
Heavenly sounds above ground is wonderful.
Heavenly sounds above ground is wonderful
- Beautiful Eulogy, “Wonderful”

You are beautiful beyond description
Too marvelous for words
Too wonderful for comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard
Who can grasp Your infinite wisdom?
Who can fathom the depth of Your love?
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty, enthroned above

And I stand, I stand in awe of You
I stand, I stand in awe of You
Holy God, to whom all praise is due
I stand in awe of You
- Mark Altrogge, “I Stand in Awe”

I wonder but I want you more
Infinity is just the floor
No matter what I'm searching for
I love you more than my reasons why
- Kings Kaleidoscope, “Infinity”

“To Infinity and Beyond” and “Plus Ultra” Don’t Apply

If there are two things millennials grew up with, they would be early Pixar movies and anime. Growing up, I remember watching the first Pixar film, Toy Story, on VHS in my family’s basement, and in its beginning, Andy received the newest and coolest toy: Buzz Lightyear. If you watched it, you will remember that Buzz is known for declaring “To infinity, and beyond!” This captures a sense of not having any limits along with a sense of adventure and exploration of outer space. But there is a similar phrase that comes from a very different animation from Japan called My Hero Academia. Without turning this post and Substack into an anime fanboy column, this anime follows the story of Izuku Midoriya who enrolls in a superhero high school where their school motto is “Go Beyond! Plus Ultra!” Throughout the anime, characters shout it out during battles or when facing gigantic odds as a way to remember to press forward and break every limit of their potential (See example below).

But do these mottos apply to God? Does God experientially in his divine nature have a need to go “to infinity and beyond” or “plus ultra” as if he started without it? We know God is God, but does God need an increase to get to an infinite status? The answer is “no.” God doesn’t need to get to a place of infinity because he is infinite, and we will see that God’s infinitude colors every one of his perfections/attributes because he is infinite in all that he is.

God Without Measure

Jen Wilken and J. T. English succinctly define “infinite” as “God has no limits or bounds whatsoever in His person or dominion.”¹ Although a good starting point, there is more depth to God’s nature being infinite. As Herman Bavinck explains, “God is unlimited in his virtues, that in him every virtue is present in an absolute degree. In that case, infinity amounts to perfection. . . . God is infinite in his characteristic essence, absolutely perfect, infinite in an intensive, qualitative, and positive sense. So understood, however, God’s infinity is synonymous with perfection and does not have to be treated separately.”² Historically some theologians would place infinity in contrast to space by saying that God is not limited to a particular space like an idol would,³ but as shown above, it is best to define God’s infinity with a broader scope for several reasons.

First, God isn’t just infinite or limitless in relation to space but also in every single perfection and category. Throughout the Scriptures, we see how God is not just boundless in contrast to space but all other categories. Solomon exclaims “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built” (1 Ki. 8:27–28). His father, David, writes, “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there” (Ps. 139:7-8). Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed how “At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done’” (Dan. 4:34-35)? God is the only being who transcends time, power, wisdom, knowledge, etc., and nothing can compare to him.

Second, God is infinite in light of his simplicity, aseity, and incorporeality. Please don’t think that theology is just a game of logical ping pong with only reason being utilized without Scripture, but in light of the biblical witness, we can see how God must be infinite because of the implications of his divine nature. God is not a composite being who is limited by being made up of parts, and he is what he is (Simplicity). God has life coming from himself and thus is all-sufficient in himself (Aseity). God is Spirit who is not limited by a material form nor whose nature can be physically perceived or quantified because he is invisible (Incorporeal). Therefore, God is infinite in all that he is because he is the only perfect being. As Bavinck states, “No creatures can be completely simple, for every creature is finite. God, however, is infinite and all that is in him is infinite. All his attributes are divine, hence infinite and one with his being. For that reason, he is and can only be all-sufficient, fully blessed, and glorious within himself.”⁴

Third, as Matthew Barrett puts it, “infinitude does not merely mean rejecting any quality that would limit God; it also means that God is his perfections in infinite measure.” This is where Christians misunderstand God’s infinite nature by adopting the Buzz Lightyear or My Hero Academia mantras. God doesn’t just have the “capacity” to be infinite; God is infinite, meaning he doesn’t fluctuate or grow in his nature to become infinite (we will unpack this more in how God is “immutable” and “impassible”).⁵ “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; is understanding is unsearchable” (Isa. 40:28). He alone is the great “I AM” (Exod. 3:14) who is all that he is, and his infinitude colors all of his attributes. Barrett unpacks this further:

For example, consider what infinity entails for all that is in God. God’s power is an infinite power, which is why we call him omnipotent (all-powerful). God’s knowledge is an infinite knowledge, which explains why we title him omniscient (all-knowing). God’s wisdom is an infinite wisdom, which justifies praising him as omnisapient(all-wise). God’s presence is an infinite presence, which urges us to acknowledge that he is omnipresent (everywhere present). And if infinity “applied to space is omnipresence,” then infinity “applied to time is eternity.”⁶

This has massive—or should I say, infinite—implications for our recognition of God’s nature, but before moving to application, we need to drill this reality into our minds: There is no like our God because he is a being in a class of his own. The LORD God alone is God. That’s why God proclaims through Isaiah:

Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any.” - Isaiah 44:6-8

God is Unstoppable + He Loves Us = That’s Crazy!

I wonder if you feel bewildered in awe of God like me as I’ve reflected on the past several posts; how do we apply the reality of God’s infinite nature to our daily lives? Several points of application come to mind. First, the most important and practical application is to worship our infinite God. So often, present-day Christians (esp. in my context of American Evangelicalism) want the immediate gratification of “practical steps” that they can take to advance their agenda. But when we are confronted with the majesty of God, the main application point that encapsulates the Christian life is this: will you behold your God? The late J. I. Packer wrote how the doctrine of God (through reflection on Isaiah 40), particularly his majesty, rebukes wrong thoughts about him and our slowness to believe in God’s absolute wonder. He writes:

How slow we are to believe in God as God, sovereign, all-seeing and almighty! How little we make of the majesty of our Lord and Savior Christ! This need for us is to “wait upon the LORD” in meditations on his majecsty, till we find our strenth renewed through the writing of these things upon our hearts.⁷

So imagine this: if the God of the Bible is the infinite one who is perfect always, shouldn’t it floor us that he would rescue sinners like you and me? The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not some cheap news of a spiritual supplement to add to your self-centered life. It is the announcement that this God saves sinners who deserve everlasting wrath by sending the Son of God to die in their place and rise victorious over sin and death. Only the infinite God can save those whose offense against him deserves punishment, and so Jesus, the infinite Son of God incarnate is the only one who can save us.⁸ “Our sinning goes to the uttermost. But his saving goes to the uttermost. And his saving always outpaces and overwhelms our sinning, because he always lives to intercede for us.”⁹

Father, thank you so much for being infinite in all that you are. To think about how measureless you are in your existence and attributes is beyond my highest thought. And yet, it is you, O infinite one, that has set me free from the chains of sin’s bondage on my life. Through your Son’s life, death, and resurrection, you have demonstrated unstoppable love and grace that makes me your holy child. By the indwelling of your Holy Spirit in my life, you only have grace upon grace for me. How can I stop thanking you when you have given yourself to me without measure? Help me remember that my life has never been the same since your infinite Son saved my soul. In his name, I pray. Amen.

1. Jen Wilkin and J. T. English, You are a Theologian: An Invitation to Know and Love God Well (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing, 2023), 54.

2. Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, ed. John Bolt, trans. John Vriend, 4 vols. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2003-2008), 2:160.

3. Gerald Bray, The Attributes of God: An Introduction (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2021), 56.

4. Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, 2:176.

5. Stephen J. Wellum, Systematic Theology, Volume 1: From Canon to Concept (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2024), 584-5.

6. Matthew Barrett, None Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2019), 47-8.

7. J. I. Packer, Knowing God (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2018), 89.

8. See Barrett, None Greater, 51-52.

9. Dane Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020), 85.