Theology - Wk 1
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What is Theology?
What is Theology?
Simple answer - The study of God.
The word theos in Greek means “God ” and ology comes from the Greek word logos meaning “word ”.
Literal answer: theos - God ology - Word
Literal answer is “words about God” or “study of God”.
theos - God ology - Word
Source: https://bible.org/article/what-theology
theos - God
ology - Word
Christian theology seeks to understand the God revealed in the Bible and to provide a Christian understanding of God’s creation, particularly human beings and their condition, and God’s redemptive work. - Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine
-Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine
“Theology is reflection upon the God whom Christians worship and adore.” - Alister McGrath, Christian Theology’
- Alister McGrath, Christian Theology
What we’ll be talking about over these 5 weeks would be under the systematic theology umbrella.
Although there are overlaps with this, systematic theology is topically organized and biblical theology is historically organized.
Topics that we’ll plan to cover over these 5 weeks will include
The Nature of God
The Work of God
Humanity
Sin
Person and Works of Christ
The Holy Spirit
Salvation
The Church
The Last Things
All sorts of fancy names - Trinitarianism, Christology, Anthropology, Hamartiology, Pneumatology, Soteriology, Ecclesiology, Eschatology. These come from Greek words
Theology is a discipline of listening; it’s not just an intellectual exercise. Be aware of how and why your feel the way you do, theology is an emotional and relational discipline. Because of our active love for God, we should seek a deeper knowledge of God.
Anything about science?
The Nature of God
The Nature of God
What was God doing before creation?
God is immanent and transcendent.
“Theology is reflection upon the God whom Christians worship and adore.”
- Alister McGrath, Christian Theology
T
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
Theos - God
24 Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.
Logos - Word
God is a father, and a father is someone who gives life. This means that God is an eternal, life-giving God.
God is immanent and transcendent.
God is a father, and a father is someone who gives life. This means that God is an eternal, life-giving God.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
God is immanent and transcendent.
2 things we need to emphasize about God is his immanence within his creation and his transcendence of it. Both of these things can be found in 1 verse, Jeremiah 23:24
24 Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.
God is immanent and transcendent.
Immanence - God is present and active within his creation, and within the human race, even those members of it that do not believe in or obey him.
What are some examples of God’s immanence?
God does much of his work through natural means and He is not restricted to miracles.
God created the world, He uses people and organizations to make a difference, including science and medicine.
Immanence signifies that God does much of his work through nat
Transcendence - God is not a quality of nature and not simply the highest human being. Not limited to our ability to understand him. His holiness and goodness go far beyond, infinitely beyond ours.
What are some examples of God’s transcendence?
There is something higher than human being.
God can never be fully captured in human concepts. He is not limited to our understanding of him.
-God can never be fully captured in human concepts. He is not limited to our understanding of him.
Our salvation is not our achievement. We can’t raise ourselves to God’s level by fulfilling his standards.
There will always be a difference between God and human beings. We will always be his human creatures and will never become God.
We
While God is never fully within our grasp since he goes far beyond our ideas and forms, yet he is always available to us when we turn to him.” - Millard Erickson, Introducing Christian Doctrine
Let’s talk about the attributes of God that make up his greatness. This is different than the works of God. Zach will be teaching on that next week, we’re focusing on his attributes this morning that are permanent qualities.
God’s Greatness
God’s Greatness
1. Spirituality - He is a spirit; He does not have a physical body. ()
24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
There are passages that suggest that God has physical features like hands or feet. They express truth through human analogies. There are also temporary manifestations of God where God appears in physical form in the Old Testament.
2. Life - God is alive and is characterized by life. ( & )
14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ”
6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
God was never brought into being, He has life in himself. There was never a time when He did not exist (eternal). God doesn’t need us; God has chosen to use us to accomplish his purposes, but if He chose to do so He could have bypassed us.
3. Personality - God is an individual being with self-consciousness and will. He is capable of feeling, choosing, and having a relationship with others.
He has a name. God identifies himself as “I AM” or “”I WILL BE”
He also knows and communes with human purposes. In , he talks with Adam and Eve. Because God is a person, the relationship we have with him has a dimension of warmth and understanding. He is a knowing, loving, good Father.
4. Infinity - God is infinite. He is not only unlimited, but unlimitable.
God is unlike anything we experience. He is a limitless being, and it’s difficult to imagine.
a. Space - Omnipresent. God is everywhere. He is the one who brought space into being; He cannot be in one particular place, yet there is no place where he can’t be found. Nowhere within God’s creation is God inaccessible. ()
23 “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the Lord, “and not a God far away?
24 Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.
23 “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the Lord, “and not a God far away?
b. Time - Time does not apply to God. He was before time began. ()
How old is God? He is no older now than a year ago. Infinity plus one is no more than infinity. God is the one who always is.
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Just because God isn’t bound by time doesn’t maean that he is not conscious of points of time. Think of a man on the top of a tall building. He sees all parts of the parade at all the different points rather than only what’s going on in front of him.
God is aware of what is happening, has happened, and will happen at each point in time.
c. Knowledge - God’s understanding is immeasurable ()
Hairs on our heads are numberd; He sees and knows us totally. Another factor here is wisdom, meaning that when God acts, He takes all of the facts and correct values into consideration. He knows all things, and he knows that is good. God has access to all information
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.
d. Power - omnipotence. God is able to do all things which are proper objects of his power. (). He is also free. God’s decisions and actions aren’t determined by factors outside himself. They are simply a matter of his own free choice.
26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
This power of God is manifested in a couple different ways.
Constancy
Power over nature, God had created the whole universe
Power over course of history
Power in human life and personality, He can change human personality turning sinners to salvation.
There are certain qualifications of this all-powerful character of God. He can’t undo anything in the past, although he may wipe out its effects. He can’t act contrary to his nature; he can’t be cruel . He can’t fail to do what He has promised.
5. Constancy - God is unchanging ()
6 “I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.
God cannot increase in anything, because he is already perfection. He also can’t decrease because if He would he wouldn’t be God. God cannot change his mind, plans, or actions because they rest on his nature. God’s intentions as well as his plans are always consistent, simply because his will does not change.
God doesn’t only have great attributes (powerful, infinite, etc), that would make him immoral exercising his power and knowledge. God is a good God as well; He is a moral being. Purity, Integrity, and Love
God’s Goodness
God’s Goodness
1. Purity - God’s absolute freedom from anything wicked or evil, but is unable to tolerate the presence of evil as well. He’s “allergic to sin and evil”
a. Holiness - He is totally separate from all creation. Hebrew word for “holy” (qadosh) means “marked off” or “withdrawn from common, ordinary use”
Uniqueness. He is total separate from all creation
b. Righteousness -The holiness of God applied to his relationships to other beings.
The law of God, which is a true expression of his nature, is as perfect as he is. God commands only what is right, and what will therefore have a positive effect upon the believer who obeys.
The righteousness of God also means that his actions are in accord with the law which he himself has established.
What makes certain actions right and others wrong?
A: God follows a standard of right and wrong, but that standard that God adheres to is his own nature. He decides in accordance with reality, and that reality is himself.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous.
c. Justice - God’s official righteousness. Different than what we just described, which was God’s personal righteousness, this is his requirement that others adhere to standards as well. He is like a judge. ()
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The justice of God means that he is fair in the administration of his law. He does not show favoritism. Who we are is not significant, but what we have done or not done determines consequences and rewards. God expects his followers to emulate his righteousness and justice; we are to adopt his laws and standards.
2. Integrity - Truthfullness. Genuineness is the most basic dimension of truthfulness, but the other 2 derive from it.
10 But the Lord is the true God; he is the living God, the eternal King. When he is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot endure his wrath.
5 Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them; they can do no harm nor can they do any good.”
3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
a. Genuineness - God is real, and God is what he appears to be.
God does not simply seem to embody the qualities of greatness and goodness, but he is those attributes.
10 But the Lord is the true God; he is the living God, the eternal King. When he is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot endure his wrath.
3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
b. Veracity - God represents things as they are. Definition is “habitual truthfullness”
29 He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.”
Not only does Got not lie, but God cannot lie. Lying is contrary to his very nature. God has asked his people to be honest in all situations. This includes formal things we say, but also what we imply. A God of truth is best served by presentation of truth.
c. Faithfulness - God proves to be true. God keeps all his promises. ()
24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
God never has to revise his word. God’s faithfulness is found all throughout Scripture. (His promise to Abraham and Sarah of a son is, bringing the Israelites to the Promised Land). We’re to not speak thoughtlessly; when we give our word, we are to remain faithful to it.
3. Love - The very nature or definition of God. ( and 16)
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
Love
Love has always been present among the members of the trinity. There has eternally been love, even before there were created beings.
a. Benevolence - Basic dimension of God’s love. The concern of God for the welfare of those whom he loves. ()
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
God’s benevolence, the actual caring and providing for those he loves, is seen in numerous ways. God cares for the creation ; feeds the birds of the air, protection of us. God makes the sun rise, and sends rain. His love is active. We have a benevolence fund here at church, and it’s used to go to families to help out financially. It’s a way to show our love.
b. Grace - God deals with people on the basis of goodness and generosity, not based on what they deserve.
Grace is different than benevolence. Benevolence is the idea that God doesn’t seek his own good, but rather that of others. It’s possible for him to insist that this love be deserved. Grace, however, means that God supplies us with undeserved favors and requires nothing from us.
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
c. Mercy - God’s tenderhearted, loving compassion for his people. It is his tenderness of heart toward the needy. ()
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
If grace contemplates hum
An example of mercy is when Jesus felt compassion towards people suffereing from physical ailments. Their spiritual condition moved him.
d. Persistence - God withholds judgment and continues to offer salvation and grace over long periods of time.
15 But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
Psal
4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
22 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?
20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water,
An example of this is the love the Jesus showed to Peter over and over again. Peter denied Jesus 3 times, but Jesus forgave him.
15 Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.
Because God has attributes of goodness as well as greatness, he can be trusted and loved.
Trinity
Trinity
What was God doing before creation?
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
:John
NIV24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
The doctrine of the Trinity is crucial for Christianity. Our Christian faith is unique in making the claim that there is one God that is 3 persons; an eternal community of love.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
The doctrine of the Trinity is crucial for Christianity. Our Christian faith is unique in making the claim that there is one God that is 3 persons. It seems contradictory, but is fascinating to study.
God is One : Monotheism
Father is God, Jesus is God, and Holy Spirit is God. But there is only one God. One God existing in three persons. Triune God.
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before me.
The Deity of
The Deity of Three
The Deity of Three
Father
Father
Hardly anyone disputes the deity of the Father. Jesus himself refers to the Father often.
The Father is the life-giver
26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
4 So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.”
5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,
6 who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.
Son
Son
The Son functions as the Father’s agent (salvation being a biggie!)
The Son is the eternal Son. There was never a time when he didn’t exist. The Father is never without the Son, but like a lamp, it is the very nature of the Father to shine out his Son. And likewise, it is the very nature of the Son to be the one who shines out from his Father. The Son has his very being from the Father. He is the radiance of the Father’s own being. He is the Son. - Delighting in the Trinity, Michael Reeves
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
Hebrews
The Father’s love is primary; the Father is the loving head. That means that in his love he will send and idrect the Son, whereas the Son never sends or directs the Father.
3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
1 Corinthians 11:
The shape of the Father-Son relationship begins a gracious cacade, like a waterfall of love: as the Father is the lover and the head of the Son, so the Son goes otu to be the lover and the head of the church. As the Father is the lover and the Son is the beloed, so Christ becomes the lover adn the church the beloved. That means that Christ loves the church first and foremost: his love is not a response, given only when the church loves him; his love comes first, and we only love him because he first loved us. - Delighting in the Trinity pg 28
It’s important to note that Jesus never directly says “I am God”, but there are several verses that point to it.
He spoke of angels of God as his angels, he regarded the kingdom of God and the elect of God as his own, and he claimed to forgive sins. The Jews recognized that only God can forgive sins, which resulted in them accusing Jesus of blasphemy. Jesus also claimed the power to judge the world and to reign over it.
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the power in which the Father accomplishes things.
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
The Holy Spirit is also described as having the qualities and performing the works of God.
8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment:
9 about sin, because people do not believe in me;
10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Trinity in the Bible
Trinity in the Bible
The Trinity is never actually mentioned in the Bible. There are several places in Scripture, however, where the three persons are linked together in unity and apparent equality
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Note that “name” here is singular although there are three persons included.
4 For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him in our dealing with you.
2 Corinthains 13:4
14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Jesus’ Baptism echoing Creation
Jesus’ Baptism echoing Creation
33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’
34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Mt
26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
The Father declares his love for his son and his pleasure in him, and he does so as the Spirit rests of Jesus. The Father makes his love known through giving his Spirit.
5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.
15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”
14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
John
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
At creation, the Spirit also hovered, dove-like, over waters. Just as the Spirit sent Jesus into the lifeless wilderness after Jesus’ baptism, the Spirit appears as the power by which God’s Word goes out into the lifeless void.
Essential elements of the Trinity
Essential elements of the Trinity
God is one, not several
The deity of each of the three persons is equal
The Triune God is, and will be what he always has bbeen
God is three persons at every moment of time.
The Trinity is eternal. The Triune God is and will be what he always has been
Each member may have particular functions at a given time, but are always equal.
The Trinity is incomprehensible.
What was God doing before creation?
24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
God is a father, and a father is someone who gives life. This means that God is an eternal, life-giving God.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
1
Scripture equates God and Father. It’s not that Father is God’s day job, but God is Father. All the way down. All that he does, he does as Father. God is a father, and a father is someone who gives life. This means that God is an eternal, life-giving God. And Father without a child.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
The son is the eternal son. There was never a time when he didn’t exist.