1689 CHAPTER 2

Of God And The Holy Trinity

Introduction: As we begin to look into chapter 2, which primarily deals with the doctrine of God and the Trinity, we will see some things that should humble us in lack of knowledge. We will never fully understand the things of God as we should, and as we will on that day when we see him face to face.

“Nothing is more challenging in all of theology than theology proper—or, the doctrine of God. Here we come as finite beings face to face with the Infinite. What could be more intellectually challenging? In no other area of theology are we forced to grapple so continually with the Infinite. In the doctrines of the Word, Man, or Church we are at least dealing with matters that are related to humanity, but in this it is the infinite God about whom we attempt to speak and confess our faith. The doctrine of God above all is a call to a deep sense of our intellectual and spiritual insufficiency. As we study this chapter, our souls should humbly cry out again and again, “Who is sufficient for these things?” (2 Cor. 2:16).”

Sam Waldron

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Singularity - The Lord our God is but one only living and true God

I believe this is put simply. We have but one God, true and living. But, we also live in a world where we have many gods, in which one may be enslaved to. Deuteronomy 6:4 ““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” 1 Corinthians 8:4 “Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.””

Aseity - Whose subsistence is in and of Himself, infinite in being and perfection

Aseity literally means “a se” or in Latin “from Himself.” So, what we mean by aseity or subsistence, is that God, in all His glory and splendor, is contained within Himself, existing from all eternity. God has no cause. God was not created, nor “self-created.” Isaiah 48:12 ““Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.” John 5:26 “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.”

Incomprehensibility - Whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but Himself

What this means is that while, as Christians, we can have an extensive knowledge of the things of God, we cannot have a full understanding of God, and so we are still in awe of God’s eternal mysteries. Psalm 139:6 “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.”

Simplicity - a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions, who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto

Sam Waldron explains this much better than I can.

A New Exposition of the London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689 Simplicity

From one standpoint simplicity is an implication of aseity. If God is self-existent, immutable, and eternal, then He is not “composed.” This is the fundamental meaning of simplicity in classical theology. It asserts that God is not the product of composition.37 God is not composed of pre-existing things, nor the product of the combination of these entities. He is self-existent. His divine being is not the result of the combination of any pre-existing factors. Were this so, then those pre-existing factors would be more ultimate than God! The idea is unthinkable. Everything in God is God. Nothing that is God can be subtracted from God, and God still be God.

ii. Think about it this way, John 4:24 “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”” 1 John 1:5 “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” 1 John 4:8 “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” God IS spirit, God IS light, and God IS love. These things are in God and God is all of these things. We cannot pick and choose what we want or like of God because God is all God all of the time.

God’s incommunicable attributes - These are the attributes in which we do not share with God.

Immutable - God’s immutability is his freedom from change and his being the same at all times past, present, and future. Psalm 102:26-28 “They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end. The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you.”

Immense/omnipresence - Omnipresence is the name for the Christian belief that God is everywhere present and is not limited to any location or physical space. Psalm 139:7-10 “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.”

Eternal - God is eternal in that he does not exist within time but rather exists before and outside of time. Psalm 90:2-4 “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. You return man to dust and say, “Return, O children of man!” For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.”

Incomprehensible - Again, to say that God is incomprehensible is not to say that we can know nothing about God but, rather, that because God is infinite, no creature can ever come to comprehend, understand, grasp, or describe God in a manner that is worthy, adequate, or all-encompassing. Psalm 145:3 “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.”

Almighty/omnipotence - God’s omnipotence refers to God’s unconditional power to do that which he wills in accordance with his nature. Psalm 135:6 “Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.”

Infinity - God’s infinity is the perfection of God by which God is not bound by any limitation; no limit can be applied to his being or his attributes. Psalm 145:3 “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.”

Holiness - The holiness of God speaks to God’s existence as completely separate from his creation and, at the same time, to his pure and utterly incorruptible nature. Psalm 5:7 “But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.” Psalm 11:4 “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man.”

Wise - God’s wisdom is the perfect divine judgment and insight arising from his infinite knowing (omniscience)-and this wisdom is something he shares with his creatures according to their need and for their good. Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”

God’s decrees are for God’s glory

God’s communicable attributes

These are the attributes of God in which we do share in and display in our own lives. they are Love, grace, mercy, patience, goodness and truth, forgiveness.

Rewarder and punisher

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Self-sufficient and working His glory through His creation - God, having all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself, is alone in and unto himself all self-sufficient, not standing in need of any creature which he hath made, nor deriving any glory from them, but only manifesting his own glory in, by, unto, and upon them

In other words, God is simple and impassible. God does not need anything from us and is not in any way dependent upon us. While God may choose to manifest his glory within and through his creatures, it is not because he somehow needs our love, attention, fellowship, or support. Acts 17:25 “nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

A controller of His creation - He is the alone fountain of all being, of whom, through whom, and to whom are all things, and he hath most sovereign dominion over all creatures, to do by them, for them, or upon them, whatsoever himself pleaseth

Because God is the creator of all things, then all things are under his sovereignty and he can do as he pleases. If God alone is the possessor of heaven and earth, then God alone can exercise authority of all the heavens and the earth. Genesis 14:19 “And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;”

All knowing of His creation - in His sight all things are open and manifest, his knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature, so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain

In short, God knows absolutely everything, this is also known as God’s omniscience. God’s knowledge is not dependent on the creature nor is it dependent on time; God does not come to know something as His creatures complete that action. God is all knowing; past, present, and future. Psalm 139:1-4 “O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.”

Holy - he is most holy in all his counsels, in all his works, and in all his commands

Regardless of the way we see the deeds and ways of God, they are all perfectly holy. We are to stand in awe of the deeds of God, but far to often we want to judge God for what he has allowed to take place. In word, deed, laws God is nothing but perfectly holy. Isaiah 6:3 “And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!””

Creation under a Holy Creator - to him is due from angels and men, whatsoever worship, service, or obedience, as creatures they owe unto the creator, and whatever he is further pleased to require of them.

This is what is also known as the Creator creature distinction. In short we are the creatures and God is the creator, therefore God has the say in everything. We are in submission to Him, not the other way around. Psalm 135:6 “Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.”

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God revealed in the Trinity - This divine and infinite Being consists of three real person, the Father, the Word or Son, and the Holy Spirit.

There is only one God (substance), but three persons (subsistence's). The Bible clearly teaches that there is one and only one true and living God. Deuteronomy 6:4 ““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” But the Bible also teaches three distinct person’s. Matthew 3:16-17 “And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” All three person’s of the Trinity are involved here.

Same but different - These three have the same substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence without this essence being divided. The Father is not derived from anyone, neither begotten nor proceeding. The Son is eternally begotten of the Father. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. All three are infinite and without beginning and are therefore only one God, who is not to be divided in nature and being. Yet these three are distinguished by several distinctive characteristics and personal relations.

All three person’s are fully God, yet are distinct in their relations to us and us to them. Distinct in person/relation but same in essence. See the attached diagram.

A foundation for life - This truth of the Trinity is the foundation of all of our fellowship with God and of our comforting dependence on Him.

We need to understand the relations and distinctness of each person of the Trinity, because it is how we relate to our God who is relating to us. This sets a foundation for all of life and godliness.