Foundation
Rev. Brett Rogers
Foundations • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 7 viewsScripture is inspired by God & there is One God that is complex in His unity.
Notes
Transcript
1) The Scriptures Inspired
1) The Scriptures Inspired
For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
Scripture was produced by the authors partnering with the Holy Spirit and writing what the Spirit spoke to/breathed into them. He directed them to write and guided the process. He did not dominate the prophets and strip them of personal agency to bring us the scriptures. He did not overtake the hands or mouths of the prophets to cause them to automatically transcribe or dictate scripture. He partners with His people.
And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
How we respond to God’s word determines whether we are blessed or judged as a result of receiving it. If we receive it with the right heart then we will be fruitful, multiply, & our lives will be cleansed by the purifying fire and guidance of the Holy Spirit. If we reject His word or see application for everyone but ourselves then our hearts will harden like clay in His presence rather than melting like wax. God’s word is at work in and among us, working transformation for the better or worse every time we encounter Him. Selectively editing God’s word to appeal to modern audiences or using God’s word to run from Him invites a curse on us as we walk away from the source of life and blessing. Those who do so mock God at their own risk.
and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
God’s word is profitable for particular applications. It is true and correct in all that it teaches and affirms. When we learn how to understand and apply His word properly we will experience blessing. When we humble ourselves before the Lord and allow His word to work in and among us, we experience His presence and blessing. When we begin to see fault & sin with others and pay lip service to our own, when we bow up against the Holy Spirit, it only serves to highlight how spiritually and emotionally immature we are - the very opposite outcome desired by those who traffic in this heart motivation. Placing modern readings on scripture and faulting them for not holding our values misses the point of scripture itself entirely.
2) One True God
2) One True God
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Hebrew - Yahweh, Eloheinu, Yahweh - Echad (God, God, God - one - like a cluster of grapes is one).
“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord,
“and my servant whom I have chosen,
that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god was formed,
nor shall there be any after me.
I, I am the Lord,
and besides me there is no savior.
God states, not that there is no other resident of the unseen realm that desires our affection or allegiance or has power, but that everyone other than Him will consume and destroy us. He is the only One that rescues, reconciles, and redeems.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
There is one name, even though the persons are distinct. Are you having trouble understanding how God operates? Good. That’s the God scripture shows us. He doesn’t fit into a nice, little box; He’s not tame; He’s not “safe”, but He is the Lover of our souls and our soon-coming King. Embrace the mystery and complexity.
and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
What are we to make of the assertion that it’s Jesus-only? Is God schizophrenic? Is He jumping around creation and heaven to have an elaborate conversation with Himself? No; the Father is speaking to the Son & the Spirit is moving. All three are present, at work, seeking the glory of the other two persons, and are yet One.
The Adorable Godhead
The Adorable Godhead
Defining Terms
The terms "Trinity" and "persons" as related to the Godhead, are not found in the Scriptures, but are words in harmony with Scripture. Using these we can share with others our understanding of the doctrine of Christ respecting the Being of God, as distinguished from "gods many and lords many." We therefore may speak properly of the Lord our God who is One Lord, as a trinity or as one Being of three persons, and still be absolutely scriptural.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Each person of the Godhead is at work, bringing glory to the other persons of the Godhead, and are operating as One.
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
Jesus calls on the Father to send the Holy Spirit
Distinction & Relationship in the Godhead
And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
The Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary ushered the way into creation for Jesus, paving the way for His exaltation.
but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Jesus, as the incarnate Son of God, displays the power and wisdom of the Father for all to see.
At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 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.
A person other than Jesus cooperating with Him that Jesus calls out to and glorifies.
that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
fellowship is NOT just with Jesus, or just with the Father, or just with the Spirit of Christ. Fellowship is the Father & Son by the Holy Spirit.
Unity of the One Being of Father, Son, & Holy Spirit
These three persons in the Godhead are in a state of unity, there is but one Lord God Almighty and His name one.
No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
Jesus is the only One in creation who has seen the Father and is the perfect representation of Him.
John 15:26
“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.
The Spirit proceeds from the Father and brings glory to the Son
And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.
Reaffirmation of Deuteronomy 6:4, the Shema.
Identity & Cooperation in the Godhead
There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.
The Holy Spirit bears witness of Jesus & the witness He bears is true. This is why we can have confidence when we operate in the gift of tongues that we will not curse God - the Spirit of God supplies the words.
In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”
The Father also bears witness of the Son, not only the Holy Spirit
Lord Jesus Christ as a Proper Name
The title "Lord Jesus Christ" is a proper name. It is never applied in the New Testament, either to the Father or to the Holy Spirit. It therefore belongs exclusively to the Son of God. Not a first/last name, but the name that is applied only to the Son.
Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.
The title “Lord Jesus Christ” points to Him alone
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
