What does it mean that God is a Spirit?

on Feb 18, 2022

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Q: I have heard that God is a Spirit. What does that mean? – S.F.

A: The Bible declares that God is Spirit, that He is not limited by body: He is not limited to shape; He is not limited to force; He is not limited to boundaries or bonds; He is absolutely immeasurable and indiscernible to eyes that are limited to physical things. The Bible declares that because God has no such limitations He can be everywhere at the same time.

In the gospel of John, Jesus makes a statement about God, simply saying, “God is a Spirit.” Immediately we imagine a sort of cloudy vapor. But this is not a picture of God. Spirit is contrary to body. God is a Spirit — infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. Those three words beautifully describe God. He is infinite — not body-bound. Eternal — He has no beginning and no ending. He is the one forever self-existent. The Bible declares that He never changes — that there is no variableness or shadow of turning with Him (James 1:17). People change, fashions change, conditions and circumstances change, but God never changes.

God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to this earth in bodily form to walk among people, to show us the great and deep love of God by dying in our place and being gloriously resurrected. We cannot fathom the infinite nature of God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Our ever-changing minds cannot grasp His never-changing ways. We must ask the Lord to empower our belief and our faith and walk with Him step by step, and worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:24).

========

(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)