The Divine Transcendence: Rediscovering Reverence for God
Reflections on Chapter 13 of A.W. Tozer’s The Knowledge of the Holy*
Who Is Like Our God?
When we speak of God as transcendent, we acknowledge a truth that human language struggles to contain: God is exalted far above all creation. Not in physical distance, but in His very being. His greatness is of a different order entirely—so far above us that our minds cannot fully grasp it.
Tozer reminds us that transcendence is not about God being higher in a vertical sense, but about His incomparable nature. Just as the beauty of a child outweighs the grandeur of a mountain because of the child’s capacity to love, laugh, and relate, God’s transcendence isn’t simply an elevated status—it’s His infinite difference from all He has made.
But unlike the child, God’s being cannot be compared to anything else. He is not simply “the highest being” in a hierarchy of beings. He is altogether other. The archangel and the caterpillar, while vastly different from each other, share one thing in common: they are created. God, however, is uncreated and infinite.
Transcendence Brings Reverence
Throughout Scripture, encounters with the transcendent God produce a consistent response: awe, terror, and worship.
When Abram heard God speak, he lay facedown to listen.
Moses hid his face at the burning bush, terrified to look upon God.
Isaiah cried out, “Woe is me, for I am undone!” (Isaiah 6:5).
Daniel’s vision of God left him with no strength, his face to the ground (Daniel 10:5–9).
Each of these experiences silenced self-reliance, replacing it with reverence and submission. Saul’s encounter on the road to Damascus is a vivid example: upon meeting the risen Christ, he immediately surrendered, asking, “Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).
This reverence, Tozer notes, is largely absent in modern Christianity. Our casual attitudes toward God, flippant prayers, and irreverent gatherings reveal a diminished view of His transcendence.
The Fear of the Lord
Tozer connects the lack of reverence to the loss of the “fear of the Lord,” a concept deeply rooted in Scripture. Proverbs 9:10 declares, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” This fear is not terror in the sense of dread but a profound respect, an acute awareness of God’s majesty and our own smallness in His presence.
The absence of this fear, Tozer suggests, is the root of much sin and spiritual apathy. When we lose sight of God’s holiness and transcendence, we approach Him casually, failing to recognize the enormity of who He is.
God’s Grace in Transcendence
Here’s the paradox: though God is infinitely beyond us, He invites us to know Him. It is God Himself who places in our hearts the desire to seek Him, and He delights in even our feeblest efforts to draw near.
Tozer beautifully describes this tension:
"Forever God stands apart, in light unapproachable. Yet we console ourselves with the knowledge that it is God Himself who puts it in our hearts to seek Him and makes it possible in some measure to know Him."
Through Christ, the transcendent God becomes Immanuel—God with us. While we approach Him with reverence, we also rejoice in the intimacy made possible through His grace.
Reflect & Respond
Consider these questions:
How does the truth of God’s transcendence change the way you approach Him in prayer and worship?
Are there areas in your life where casualness toward God has replaced reverence?
How might recovering the “fear of the Lord” deepen your relationship with Him?
Pray this:
“Lord, You are high and lifted up, beyond my understanding and worthy of all my reverence. Forgive me for the times I’ve approached You casually. Teach me to honor You in the awe of Your transcendence while resting in the grace that invites me to know You. Amen.”
A Final Thought
Tozer’s chapter reminds us that God’s transcendence calls for reverence, awe, and worship. Yet, in His grace, the God who dwells in light unapproachable has drawn near to us in Christ. Let’s recover the fear of the Lord, approaching Him with hearts full of reverence and gratitude.