His greatness and nearness
Psalm 145:2-5, 10-11. February 18, 2023 - Saturday, 6th Week
The psalmist today speaks about the greatness of the Lord that is unsearchable. It brings to my mind two songs. The first is by Chris Tomlin, “How great is our God”. God’s greatness cannot be fathomed. The Church teaches that our knowledge of God is limited and so is our language about him (see CCC, 40). We cannot confuse our human representation of God with "the inexpressible, the incomprehensible, the invisible, the ungraspable" God of our faith. Our human words always fall short of the mystery of God” (CCC, 42).
The second song is by Don Moen “Be magnified”. We hear in that song these words: “I have made You too small in my eyes O Lord, forgive me; And I have believed in a lie That You were unable to help me”. I often say that there are more theologians in the world than any other professionals. Everybody has something to say about God. But he is portrayed in our image and likeness. This is not the unfathomed God of the Bible but an illusionary god of our human imagination.
One of the greatest theologians of our Church, Saint Thomas Aquinas said that "concerning God, we cannot grasp what he is, but only what he is not”. The differences between God and all he created are greater than any similarities (see CCC, 43). We simply are unable to describe the greatness of our Lord. No matter what we say about our God, He is still vastly greater. And yet, we need to talk about God and the glory of His kingdom. But how?
The Book of Wisdom gives us a clue. “For from the greatness and the beauty of created things their original author, by analogy, is seen” (Wisdom 13:5). The author indicates that the created world, God’s works, reveals the Creator. If we are fascinated by the beauty and vastness of the universe, we should realise how much greater is the One who created it. Every truth, goodness, and beauty found in human beings and other creatures reveal the infinite truth, goodness, and beauty of God.
But, this great God whose greatness is unsearchable has one incredible characteristic: “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth” (Ps 145:18). This nearness of unfathomable God is proclaimed in the writings of the New Testament. “The Word became flesh and dwelled among us and we have seen his glory” (John 1:14). In Jesus Christ, we get to know the unfathomable mystery of God, His unsearchable greatness and His intimacy towards those who call on Him.