The Doctrine Of God: Pt. 1
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The Doctrine Of God
The Doctrine Of God
How do we know that God Exists?
Inner Sense of God
Evidence found in Scripture and Nature
Inner Sense of God
Romans 1:21 “because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” Paul makes the statement here that even the Gentiles “knew God” even though “they did not glorify Him as God”.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.”
Psalm 10:3–4 “For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire; He blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord. The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.” The wicked renounces the Lord (therefore there has to first be an acknowledgement of God if they are to renounce Him) and then they in their pride will not seek God nor think of God. If we take this a step further to those who would like to say that God doesn’t exist in their hearts there is usually a lot of anger, and hatred towards a fictional creation.
Evidence found in Scripture and Nature
Romans 1:20 “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,” There are several truths here.
1st if God the creator it only makes sense that He would leave behind evidence of his creation. much like an artist signing their work. (SCRIPTURE)
2nd if God is the intelligent creator then His creation will show evidence of that creation. Psalm 19:1–2 “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge.”
3rd if God is creative then His creation that He claims is most like Him will have creativity just as their creator. We are creative therefore that must come from somewhere. We do not see it in the natural world. Of course in the natural world we see beauty and order and while animals can create they are not creative. Birds build the same nest that the birds before them built, Spider spin the same webs and some of them can have beauty but they are still the same webs. Apes can be taught to be moderately creative but that is not a skill they naturally posses.
We don’t see this in everything that we look at because our vision is marred by our sin. “If our hearts and minds were not so blinded by sin, it would be impossible for us to look closely at the complexity of a leaf from any tree and say, “No one created this: it just happened.” The beauty of a snowflake, the majestic power of a thunderstorm, the skill of a honeybee, the refreshing taste of cold water, the incredible abilities of the human hand—all these and thousands of other aspects of creation simply could not have come into existence apart from the activity of an all-powerful and all-wise Creator.” Grudem, Wayne. Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. Second Edition, Zondervan Academic, 2020, pp. 170–71.
What is God?
“there is the constant witness of the Old Testament that for sinful people, getting even a glimpse of God means instant death.”
“there is the witness of the Old Testament that God does not “dwell” in temples or other places that people build to worship Him.”
“there is the witness of John 1:18 that “no one has ever seen God.”
“there is the explicit statement of Jesus in John 4:24 that “God is Spirit.””
The Westminister Shorter Catechism: Q4. What is God?
A. God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.
The Attributes of God
The Attributes of God
The Trinity
The term, Trinity is a term that is never used in the Bible.
The Trinity at Creation: Genesis 1:26 “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.””
The Trinity in the Gospel of John.
Jesus: The Second Person of the Trinity. John 1:1, John 1:14, “Jesus is the “Word,” who is “God” - and who then becomes “Flesh” to dwell with human beings on the earth.
The Holy Spirit: The Third Person of the Trinity. John 16:5-15.
Summary of the doctrine of the Trinity
God has always existed as one God in three persons, and He will exist eternally in this way.
The three persons of the Trinity exist without confusion; that is, they are distinct persons of one God.
God remains perfectly one - unified in who He is.
No human analogy can perfectly describe how the Trinity exists and functions though many people have tried to use analogies. There is mystery here, we simply need to affirm what the Bible says.
In general, scripture presents God the Father as the person who initiates the Sovereign Plan of Salvation and judgment; God the Son as the person who carries out God's plan by taking on human flesh to die and rise again; and God the Spirit as the person who works in human hearts to bring belief, speak through the word, and point people to Jesus Christ, the savior.
The Eternality and Aseity of God
The Eternality and Aseity of God
God’s eternality:
Revelation 1:4 “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come,”
“There has never been a time when God has not existed, and there will never be a time when God will not exist.”
God’s Aseity:
“God does not need anything or anyone. God is completely sufficient and satisfied in Himself.”
Acts 17:25 “Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.”