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Answer
To transcend means “to exist above and independent from; to rise above, surpass, succeed.” By this definition, God is the only truly transcendent Being. The “LORD God Almighty” (in Hebrew, El Shaddai) created all things on the earth, beneath the earth, and in the heavens above, yet He exists above and independent from them. All things are upheld by His mighty power «who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; », (Hebrews 1:3), yet He is upheld by Himself alone. The whole universe exists in Him and for Him so that He may receive glory, honor, and praise.
Being transcendent, God is both the unknown and unknowable, yet God continually seeks to reveal Himself to His creation, i.e., the unknown seeks to be known. Here is a paradox. Being transcendent, God is the incomprehensible Creator existing outside of space and time and thus is unknowable and unsearchable. Neither by an act of our will nor by our own reasoning can we possibly come to understand God or experience Him personally. God wants us to seek to know Him, yet how can the finite possibly know and understand the infinite when our minds and thoughts are so far beneath His (Isaiah 55:8-9)? Romans 11:33-36 says, “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him is the glory forever!”
Another aspect of God’s transcendent nature that places Him beyond the reEach of His creations reflects His holiness and righteousness. Due to humanity’s inclination towards sin and wickedness, individuals are unable to enter God’s presence. Consequently, God must avert His face from us, as He did with Moses when Moses requested to witness God’s glory. God informed Moses, “You cannot see my face, for no one may see my face and live” «And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. », (Exodus 33:20). The complete manifestation of God’s glory would overwhelm any human being; it would shatter the fragile human vessel. Therefore, the full revelation of God is reserved for the future, when all will be revealed as they truly are, and individuals will be prepared to comprehend them.
The prophet Isaiah recognized the importance of God maintaining distance from His creation: “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and made us waste away because of our sins” (Isaiah 64:6-7). A transcendent God must turn away His face, compelled by His inherent righteousness and holiness to remain separate from anything or anyone tainted by sin, impurity, uncleanness, or imperfection. Nevertheless, in addition to His transcendence, God also embodies immanence (nearness), and it is through His immanence that God opts to approach His creation.
This, too, presents a paradox. “‘Am I only a God nearby,’ declares the LORD, ‘and not a God far away? Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the LORD. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 23:23-24). God’s transcendent essence coexists with His immanent nature, illustrating the complexity of His divine being.Keep Him distant and remote from His creation both in space and time, yet on the other hand, His immanent nature works to draw Him near to His creation and to sustain the universe. God’s love for His creation is so great that we see His immanence overshadowing His transcendence. This becomes clear in His incarnate Son, Jesus Christ, as He breaks through the barrier of sin and separation to draw all mankind back into a close, personal relationship. We see God not only choosing to draw near to His creation but to personally come into the hearts and minds of His people through the indwelling power of His Holy Spirit. This is the miracle of God’s transcendence.
