Doctrine of Triune God: God's Attributes

God’s Omniscience

Lexham Survey of Theology God’s Omniscience

The attribute of omniscience refers to God’s perfect knowledge of both himself and that which he has created.

Drama

God knows what is happening in the present.

Psalm 33:13–15 ESV

The Lord looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man; from where he sits enthroned he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, he who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.

God knows what happened in the past.

Job 38:4–5 ESV

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?

God knows what will happen in the future.

Matthew 26:34 ESV

Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”

God’s knowledge of Himself

Matthew 11:27 ESV

All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

Doctrine

God knows all states of affairs, both actual and possible but like always there is division among the theologians:

Two views that I disagree with but are becoming prevalent in theology today:

Process theologians have argued that because God is bound to his creation in a relationship of mutual dependence, he cannot know what his free creatures will decide to do; the future is as surprising to God as it is to us.

2. Open theists have argued that God’s ignorance of the future does not contradict his omniscience, for the simple fact that the future is unknowable.

Lexham Survey of Theology God’s Omniscience

such views raise important questions for our understanding of what omniscience should mean, most theologians consider them irreconcilable with the claims of Scripture, as partially noted above.

Lexham Survey of Theology God’s Omniscience

For instance, does God see the future, as one might by peering into a “crystal ball”—or indeed from some sort of atemporal “vantage point” in eternity—or does God know the future as a consequence of his willing it to be so? The first view leaves open the possibility that God’s knowledge is determined by the free actions of creatures, whilst the second view excludes this possibility. Many Wesleyan-Arminian theologians prefer the first option, as they are keen to highlight biblical material prioritizing the free will of the creature; many Reformed-Calvinistic theologians opt for the second perspective in deference to biblical themes emphasizing God’s sovereignty over his creation, including human faith. Both schools of thought would agree, however, that God’s knowledge of the creature must in some sense be different in kind from intercreaturely knowledge, as God relates to creation as Creator, the one upon whom the creation depends for its existence.

Doxology: Praise

Identity crisis: failure to know (or remember) who you are and/or why you exist.

The Doctrine of Omniscience communicates to us that God knows us perfectly.

The Doctrine of Omniscience reminds us that He knows our past, present, and knows our future.

The Doctrine of Omniscience gives us courage to share the things that have made us stray and distracted us of our image.

Discipleship

It’s time for you to be a theologian...

How can the doctrines that you’ve learned so far anchor your faith when you’re going through things that distract you from your faith and God.

If you had to define omniscience, what would you define it as?

Does omniscience contradict free will? A different way of asking this: if God knows everything that has, is, and will happen then are we really choosing freely or is every choice preplanned by God? Is there a middle ground?