God's Character by Contrast

And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; (Romans 1:28-31)

This is a list of opposites of God's characteristics. By analyzing the real meaning of each of these descriptions and then looking for the opposite, a picture of God emerges that is quite accurate. As well as describing the life of Jesus and His true followers, it also helps unmask the growing obscurity of some words.

Unrighteousness	Righteous
Wickedness	Holiness
Greed	Generosity
Evil	Good
Envy	Thrilled to see others succeed
Murder	Life-giving
Strife	Peace and harmony
Deceit	Truthful
Malice	Only good motives
Gossips	Love covers a multitude of sins
Slanderers	Blessing – speaking well of
Haters of God	Lover of sinners
Insolent	Polite, respectful
Arrogant	Humble
Boastful	Entrusts His witnesses (us) to vindicate Him
Inventors of evil	Good plans
Disobedient to parents	Submissive to parents
Without understanding	Full of understanding
Untrustworthy	Completely trustworthy
Unloving	Abounding in love
Unmerciful	Merciful

If you have some suggestions for better definitions of opposites in this list I would like to hear them.

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