The Gospel, God, the righteous Creator

GOD, THE RIGHTEOUS CREATOR

GETTING STARTED

1. What do your non-Christian friends or family think about God? If they profess to believe in God, what do they believe about him?

MAIN IDEA

A right understanding of the gospel begins with a right understanding of God: that he is the righteous Creator, and that we are all accountable to him.

DIGGING IN

In order to rightly understand the gospel, we need to begin where the whole Bible begins: with God the Creator. In we read,

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. (1:1–3)

In the rest of we read of God creating the sea, the earth, plants, stars, and all kinds of animals. Then, as the culmination of God’s creating work, we read,

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.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

27 So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them. (1:26–27)

1. What does teach about the whole universe?

2. What does teach about humankind?

3. Many people in the West today believe that matter is all that exists, that humans evolved through purely natural processes, and that there are, therefore, no absolute standards of morality. How does ’s account of creation confront these beliefs?

4. Many people in the West today think of themselves as subject to no one, and free to do whatever they want. How does confront those attitudes?

5. Why is it important for people to understand that God is their Creator in order for them to understand that they need a savior?

While serves as a fountainhead of revelation about who God is as Creator, the rest of the Bible has plenty more to say about God’s holy character. Consider God’s revelation of his name to Moses in :

And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”

6. What are the aspects of God’s character we see in this passage that people are generally happy to embrace? Why do you think people are generally happy to think about God in these ways?

7. What are the aspects of God’s character we see in this passage that people generally reject or oppose? Why do you think people so often oppose these aspects of God’s character?

Countless other passages in Scripture testify that God is perfectly holy and righteous and that he will judge all people according to what they have done. Consider just a few:

— This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

13 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrongdoing. ( niv)

— You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, And cannot look on wickedness.

5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

— 5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath,

6 He will render to each one according to his works:7 to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life;8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. ()

— 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

8. What do these passages teach about God’s attitude toward sin? What do they say God will do to sin?

9. Many people in the West today think that morality is entirely determined by one’s culture. How would you respond to someone who believed this in light of these passages?

10. Many people today view God as an indulgent, grandfatherly figure who makes no demands on us and is very understanding of the fact that we all make mistakes. How does that view hold up to what these passages teach us?

11. Why would you say it’s important to tell our non-Christian friends that God is our righteous Creator when we attempt to share the gospel with them?

12. What are some ways that the church can testify that God is our righteous Creator:

a) In corporate worship services?

b) As members work throughout the week?

c) In the church’s expectations of its members?

ANSWERS...

GOD, THE RIGHTEOUS CREATOR

GETTING STARTED

1. What do your non-Christian friends or family think about God? If they profess to believe in God, what do they believe about him?

MAIN IDEA

A right understanding of the gospel begins with a right understanding of God: that he is the righteous Creator, and that we are all accountable to him.

DIGGING IN

In order to rightly understand the gospel, we need to begin where the whole Bible begins: with God the Creator. In we read,

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

In the rest of we read of God creating the sea, the earth, plants, stars, and all kinds of animals. Then, as the culmination of God’s creating work, we read,

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.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

1. What does teach about the whole universe?

That the whole universe was created by God and that he is therefore its Lord and Ruler.

2. What does teach about humankind?

That God created man in his image and gave him dominion over the earth. One implication of this is that man has a special relationship to God, in which he is supposed to represent God to the creation. Another implication is that all people are accountable to God our Creator for how we live.

3. Many people in the West today believe that matter is all that exists, that humans evolved through purely natural processes, and that there are, therefore, no absolute standards of morality. How does ’s account of creation confront these beliefs?

by asserting that God created the universe out of nothing and that he created humanity by a special, direct act. This means that the moral conclusion some draw from belief in evolution—that there is no absolute standard of morality external to humanity—is wrong. Instead, lays the foundation for understanding that morality is determined by conformity to the character and will of God.

4. Many people in the West today think of themselves as subject to no one, and free to do whatever they want. How does confront those attitudes?

4. ’s teaching that God is the Creator and therefore the Owner, Ruler, and Lord of all confronts these autonomous attitudes by teaching that all people are fundamentally creatures. We’re derivative beings. We get our life from another, which means that we are at his disposal and must conform our lives to his will. In other words, the fact that God created us means that we are accountable to him in all we do.

5. Why is it important for people to understand that God is their Creator in order for them to understand that they need a savior?

In order for people to know that they need a savior, it’s important for them to understand that God is their Creator because they need to understand that they are accountable to him. When we understand that God is our Creator, we realize that we can’t simply live however we want. Rather, we are accountable to God for our every thought, word, and deed.

While serves as a fountainhead of revelation about who God is as Creator, the rest of the Bible has plenty more to say about God’s holy character. Consider God’s revelation of his name to Moses in :

And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”

6. What are the aspects of God’s character we see in this passage that people are generally happy to embrace? Why do you think people are generally happy to think about God in these ways?

People are generally happy to embrace God’s compassion, grace, patience, love, and forgiveness. One obvious reason for this is that, at least on the surface, all of these aspects of God’s character seem to indicate that he has a favorable attitude toward us!

7. What are the aspects of God’s character we see in this passage that people generally reject or oppose? Why do you think people so often oppose these aspects of God’s character?

People tend to oppose God’s righteousness and justice, those aspects of his character that guarantee that he will punish sin, as verse 7 describes. One reason people so often oppose these aspects of God’s character is that if God is holy, we can’t simply live however we want and get away with it. If God is righteous, then he makes moral demands on our lives that we may not want to live with.

Countless other passages in Scripture testify that God is perfectly holy and righteous and that he will judge all people according to what they have done. Consider just a few:

— This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

— You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, And cannot look on wickedness.

— 5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath,

— 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

8. What do these passages teach about God’s attitude toward sin? What do they say God will do to sin?

These passages teach us that God is totally free from sin, is completely opposed to sin, and will punish sin and sinners.

9. Many people in the West today think that morality is entirely determined by one’s culture. How would you respond to someone who believed this in light of these passages?

In light of these passages, one could respond to someone who held such relativist beliefs by explaining that the Bible teaches that morality is grounded in God’s character. This means that it is universal and consistent, not relative to different cultures. Moreover, passages like these teach that God not only requires people to live a certain way, but that people will be finally, eternally held accountable by God for how they have lived.

10. Many people today view God as an indulgent, grandfatherly figure who makes no demands on us and is very understanding of the fact that we all make mistakes. How does that view hold up to what these passages teach us?

These passages explode the “benign grandfather” view of God by demonstrating that God is holy, righteous, and utterly, morally pure. These passages also teach that, far from sweeping sin under the rug like an slick janitor, God is so intensely holy, righteous, and good that he will punish evil and all those who do evil.

11. Why would you say it’s important to tell our non-Christian friends that God is our righteous Creator when we attempt to share the gospel with them?

There is a range of possible answers, but the basic idea is that in order to know why they need a savior, people need to understand:

• that God exists

• that God is the Creator and Lord of all

• that God is perfectly righteous and holy—that he is utterly morally perfect

• that we are all accountable to God for our actions

• that God will punish all sin

12. What are some ways that the church can testify that God is our righteous Creator:

a) In corporate worship services?

a) In the church’s corporate worship services:

• Acknowledging our dependence on him through prayers of petition

• Confessing in prayer how we’ve sinned against God and need his forgiveness

• Singing songs that magnify God for his power displayed in creation and for his holy character

b) As members work throughout the week?

• Trust that the God who made us will provide for us, which will lead to radically generous use of money and other resources

• Treat all people—regardless of age, gender, social status, ethnicity, or anything else—with compassion, respect, and love, since all people are made in God’s image

c) In the church’s expectations of its members?

c) In the church’s expectations of its members?

• In view of God’s holy character, churches should expect that their members will pursue lives of holiness, continually repenting of sin and striving to image God’s character to those around them.