--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is terrible to represent God as…" description: "\"“It is terrible to represent God as unrelated to us in the way of appeal to his righteousness. How should he be righteous without owing us anything? Ho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/george-macdonald-295_children_it-is-terrible-to-represent-god-as-unrel_733710.jpg" --- # It is terrible to represent God as unrelated to us in the… ![“It is terrible to represent God as unrelated to us in the way of appeal to his righteousness. How should he be righteous without owing us anything? How would there be any right for the judge of all the earth to do if he owed nothing? Verily he owes us nothing that he does not pay like a God; but…” quote by George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/george-macdonald-295_children_it-is-terrible-to-represent-god-as-unrel_733710.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/george-macdonald-295_children_it-is-terrible-to-represent-god-as-unrel_733710.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/george-macdonald-295_children_it-is-terrible-to-represent-god-as-unrel_733710.jpg) > ““It is terrible to represent God as unrelated to us in the way of appeal to his righteousness. How should he be righteous without owing us anything? How would there be any right for the judge of all the earth to do if he owed nothing? Verily he owes us nothing that he does not pay like a God; but it is of the devil to imagine imperfection and disgrace in obligation. So far is God from thinking so that in every act of his being he lays himself under obligation to his creatures. Oh, the grandeur of his goodness, and righteousness, and fearless unselfishness! When doubt and dread invade, and the voice of love in the soul is dumb, what can please the father of men better than to hear his child cry to him from whom he came, 'Here I am, O God! Thou hast made me: give me that which thou hast made me needing.' The child's necessity, his weakness, his helplessness, are the strongest of all his claims. If I am a whale, I can claim a sea; if I am a sea, I claim room to roll, and break in waves after my kind; if I am a lion, I seek my meat from God; am I a child, this, beyond all other claims, I claim—that, if any of my needs are denied me, it shall be by the love of a father, who will let me see his face, and allow me to plead my cause before him. And this must be just what God desires! What would he have, but that his children should claim their father? To what end are all his dealings with them, all his sufferings with and for and in them, but that they should claim their birthright? Is not their birthright what he made them for, made in them when he made them? Is it not what he has been putting forth his energy to give them ever since first he began them to be—the divine nature, God himself? The child has, and must have, a claim on the father, a claim which it is the joy of the father's heart to acknowledge. A created need is a created claim. God is the origin of both need and supply, the father of our necessities, the abundant giver of the good things. Right gloriously he meets the claims of his child! The story of Jesus is the heart of his answer, not primarily to the prayers, but to the divine necessities of the children he has sent out into his universe.”” [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. God is portrayed as a loving father whose goodness is unconditional, and children may claim him with trust and humility. **In simple terms:** God’s love is unconditional; children can trust and claim Him. Key Takeaway Trust and claim God’s love. Themes faith divine love humility Mood reverent hopeful Type spiritual theological When to use this quote - prayer - personal crisis - seeking comfort - spiritual growth Key Concepts theology spirituality dependence Questions to Reflect On - How do you express trust in divine love? - What does it mean to claim a birthright? A Different Perspective Human doubt can limit perception of divine grace. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appeal Righteousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appeal-righteousness-5742244/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Claim God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claim-god-605837/) [Divine nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine-nature/) [God Desires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-desires/) [God Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-thinking-723151/) [Good thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-thing/) [Good things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-things/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Represent God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/represent-god-327625/) ## Related quotes > [“But in truth there was more expression in the flower than was yet in the face. The flower expressed what God was thinking of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/but-in-truth-there-was-more-expression-in-the-flower-than-was-yet-in/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [ \[God desires\] not that He may say to them, "Look how mighty I am, and go down upon your knees and worship," for power… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/god-desires-not-that-he-may-say-to-them-look-how-mighty-i-am-and-go/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [“I fear you will never arrive at an understanding of God so long as you cannot bring yourself to see the good that often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/i-fear-you-will-never-arrive-at-an-understanding-of-god-so-long-as/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [“If we really want to represent God in our day and time, we must embrace knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/if-we-really-want-to-represent-god-in-our-day-and-time-we-must/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [Angels represent God's personal care for each one of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-greeley/angels-represent-god-s-personal-care-for-each-one-of-us/) [Andrew Greeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-greeley/) > [If human beings pretend to be God, then forget about democracy. If they understand that no human being can represent God, then sure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-abou-el-fadl/if-human-beings-pretend-to-be-god-then-forget-about-democracy-if-they/) [Khaled Abou El Fadl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-abou-el-fadl/) > [“You are placed on this earth to represent God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-george/you-are-placed-on-this-earth-to-represent-god/) [Jim George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-george/) > [We were to represent God whose supreme purpose is, as Jesus so clearly showed, to forgive all our sins and heal all our disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-g-lake-2/we-were-to-represent-god-whose-supreme-purpose-is-as-jesus-so-clearly/) [John G Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-g-lake-2/) > [One thing faith always did for me is it gave me perspective that, yeah, I was to maximize my gift and talents in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-warner/one-thing-faith-always-did-for-me-is-it-gave-me-perspective-that-yeah/) [Kurt Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-warner/) > [“Today more than ever, we are in need not only of godly pastors and Bible teachers, but also godly lawyers, politicians, diplomats, judges, doctors,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-overman/today-more-than-ever-we-are-in-need-not-only-of-godly-pastors-and/) [Christian Overman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-overman/) > [I play to represent God, something bigger than baseball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-pujols/i-play-to-represent-god-something-bigger-than-baseball/) [Albert Pujols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-pujols/) > [“The truth is, that the concept of God which I had always entertained, and which I had accused Christians of teaching to the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-truth-is-that-the-concept-of-god-which-i-had-always-entertained/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [We often represent God to ourselves as being able to draw from non-being a world without sorrows, faults, dangers - a world in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-often-represent-god-to-ourselves-as-being-able-to-draw-from-non/) [Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/) > [The institutions that claim to represent God, when they are not ignored altogether, are treated like other human institutions that have to earn their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-holloway/the-institutions-that-claim-to-represent-god-when-they-are-not/) [Richard Holloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-holloway/) > [If nothing that can be seen can either be God or represent Him to us as He is, then to find God we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/if-nothing-that-can-be-seen-can-either-be-god-or-represent-him-to-us/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) ## More by George MacDonald > [“No revelation can be other than partial. If for true revelation a man must be told all the truth, then farewell to revelation; yea,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/no-revelation-can-be-other-than-partial-if-for-true-revelation-a-man/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [In low theologies, hell is invariably the deepest truth, and the love of God is not so deep as hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/in-low-theologies-hell-is-invariably-the-deepest-truth-and-the-love/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Life and religion are one, or neither is any thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/life-and-religion-are-one-or-neither-is-any-thing/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [The region belonging to the pure intellect is straitened: the imagination labours to extend its territories, to give it room. She sweeps across the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/the-region-belonging-to-the-pure-intellect-is-straitened-the/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Come, then, affliction, if my Father wills, and be my frowning friend. 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No, I don't That would be to take it from somebody else. But it's mine for all… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/i-wish-i-had-made-that-song-no-i-don-t-that-would-be-to-take-it-from/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Past tears are present strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/past-tears-are-present-strength/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Age is not all decay; it is the ripening, the swelling, of the fresh life within, that withers and bursts the husk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/age-is-not-all-decay-it-is-the-ripening-the-swelling-of-the-fresh/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [I want to help you grow as beautiful as God meant you to be when he thought of you first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/i-want-to-help-you-grow-as-beautiful-as-god-meant-you-to-be-when-he/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [“Immeasurably imperfect it was, but false the impression could not be, for she saw with the eyes made for seeing, and saw indeed what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/immeasurably-imperfect-it-was-but-false-the-impression-could-not-be/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Those that hope little cannot grow much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/those-that-hope-little-cannot-grow-much/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) [Explore all 720 George MacDonald quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. 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I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? 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Verily he owes us nothing that he does not pay like a God; but it is of the devil to imagine imperfection and disgrace in obligation. So far is God from thinking so that in every act of his being he lays himself under obligation to his creatures. Oh, the grandeur of his goodness, and righteousness, and fearless unselfishness! When doubt and dread invade, and the voice of love in the soul is dumb, what can please the father of men better than to hear his child cry to him from whom he came, 'Here I am, O God! Thou hast made me: give me that which thou hast made me needing.' The child's necessity, his weakness, his helplessness, are the strongest of all his claims. If I am a whale, I can claim a sea; if I am a sea, I claim room to roll, and break in waves after my kind; if I am a lion, I seek my meat from God; am I a child, this, beyond all other claims, I claim—that, if any of my needs are denied me, it shall be by the love of a father, who will let me see his face, and allow me to plead my cause before him. And this must be just what God desires! What would he have, but that his children should claim their father? To what end are all his dealings with them, all his sufferings with and for and in them, but that they should claim their birthright? Is not their birthright what he made them for, made in them when he made them? Is it not what he has been putting forth his energy to give them ever since first he began them to be—the divine nature, God himself? The child has, and must have, a claim on the father, a claim which it is the joy of the father's heart to acknowledge. A created need is a created claim. 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