What we Believe # 1 – “God”
Intro –
1. ILL – After listening to Chuck Swindoll on the radio, 8 year old Debbie asked her 6 year old brother David, “Do you know about Jesus?” Expecting a new slant on the old story, David replied, “No.” Sister continued, “Sit still, ‘cause this is really scary.” After explaining the gospel as only an 8 year old could, she popped the question. “Now David, when you die, do you want to go to heaven to be with Jesus, God, your mommy & daddy & your big sister, or do you want to go to the lake of fire to be with the devil & bank robbers?” David thought about it for a moment & then answered, “I want to stay right here!”
2. If you were talking to someone who knew nothing about the gospel & you wanted to explain who Jesus was & what he did, where would you begin?
3. You could begin with his death & resurrection, but what about his sinless life? You could begin with his ministry, but what about his miraculous birth?
4. Jesus spoke about being “sent into the world by the Father” (John 3:17, 10:36). The story of Jesus Christ didn’t begin in this world at all. Jesus existed before he came into this world – he had a heavenly origin & home from where he was sent to live among us.
5. John 1:1, 14 “1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
6. According to John, the gospel actually begins in eternity in the heart & mind & purpose of God himself. Therefore, the EFCA SOF starts with the character & nature of God himself.
7. Article 1 – We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
8. Beginning the SOF with God emphasizes the fact that the gospel itself begins with God.
9. Titus 1:1-3 (**Read)
10. The gospel is God’s saving work. It flows from within himself as the revelation of who he is & what he does! In other words, God does what he does because of who he is!
I. The Gospel Reveals Who God is –
**Remember, what we believe about God determines our reality.
Robert Lightner, “There is no greater or more important knowledge than that of God himself. Every Christian doctrine has its foundation in the doctrine of God – his reality & his work. All the other great truths of Scripture can be understood properly only as they are seen in relation to the person & work of the God of the Bible.”
The truth is we could spend all eternity mining the subject of God’s character & attributes.
Rom. 11:33-36 “33Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34’Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?’ 35‘Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?’ 36For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.”
**Let me mention 3 key elements of who he is.
A. He is 1 but 3 – trinity or tri-unity
1. “Trinity” is a term that describes the “threeness” of God. But that is only a partial description. God is also “one” – He is a unified being. So a good term to describe both truths is “Tri-unity.”
2. Definition –“There is only one God but in the unity of God there are three equally eternal Persons, the same in substance but distinct from each other in their roles.” (Adapted from B.B. Warfield).
3. This is incredibly important to our understanding of who the God of the Bible is.
4. Augustine, “In no other is error more dangerous or iniquity more laborious, or discovery of the truth more profitable.”
5. DIAGRAM – The Trinity…there is an element of mystery to this doctrine.
6. We see the doctrine of the trinity implied in the Old Testament (Gen. 1:26 “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness…”) & clearly revealed in the New Testament in the baptism of Jesus (Matt. 3:16-17) as well as the baptismal formula given to us by Christ (Matt. 28:19-20). .
7. Eph. 4:4-6 “4There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to one hope when you were called--5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”
8. The doctrine of the trinity (tri-unity) is “knowable” & “believable” but will never be completely “explainable” by human minds or human words. The mechanics of how God’s tri-unity exists & functions remains a mystery to us just as the how of the Incarnation (Christ is God & Man) does. We know God is One. We know He is Three. Thus we know that Tri-unity is true.
9. So what? For Christians, we know the triune nature of God was necessary because:
a. Only the perfect sacrifice of the divine Son could pay for our sin (John 3:16).
b. Only the divine Spirit could indwell all of us (John 14:16-17).
c. The Father Himself must be distinct to perform such a plan.
B. He is creator & sustainer
1. Gen. 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
2. From Genesis to Revelation the Bible affirms this divine act of creation (Ps. 19:1).
3. The creation account in Gen. 1 builds to its crowning act when God creates mankind, as male & female, in his own image! We are his special creation (Eph. 2:10)!
4. Jesus was God the Father’s agent involved in creating everything in the universe.
5. John 1:3 “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
6. God is not only the creator of the world but he is also its sustainer. In him, everything is held together, protected, & prevented from disintegrating into chaos.
7. Col. 1:16-17 “16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
8. Because Christ is the sustainer of all life, none of us is independent from him. We are all his servants who must daily trust him to protect us, care for us, & sustain us.
C. He is holy & loving
1. The attributes of God are a collection of descriptions from Scripture of who God is.
2. There are attributes of perfection (i.e. – belonging to God alone) such as eternity, immutability, omnipresence, etc… & attributes of personality (i.e. – shared in a limited sense with man) such as wisdom, holiness & love.
3. The 2 most misunderstood & misapplied attributes are God’s holiness & love.
a. God is holy – “separate from all that is unclean or evil.” God hates sin.
1) Isa. 6:3 “And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’”
2) Hab. 1:13 “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong”
b. Yet, God is love. He abounds with compassion & mercy for sinners.
1) Ps. 103:8 “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”
2) 1 Jn. 4:8 “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
4. Do these 2 attributes contradict one another? No. They are not contradictory but complimentary. God’s love is holy & his holiness is loving.
5. If man is to receive mercy from God, it has to be a mercy that satisfies the demands of Holiness. The cross of Jesus is God’s answer to the dilemma.
6. Rom. 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
7. So what? God’s plan for us as his people is to reflect his holiness & love to the world!
II. The Gospel Reveals What God does –
“In the beginning God created…” (Gen. 1:1) shortly after that Adam & Eve sinned. Since then God has been at work providing salvation for mankind.
John 5:17 “Jesus said to them, ‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.’”
What are some of the main works that God does in our world?
A. He reveals himself – in His Son & His Scriptures
1. God is a communicator & has always chosen to reveal himself to mankind.
2. Heb. 1:1-3 “1In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son…”
3. Jesus is the “exact representation” of God. He has clearly shown us what God is like.
4. John 1:18 (NCV) “No one has ever seen God. But God the only Son is very close to the Father, and he has shown us what God is like.”
5. ILL – J. J. & me…he is not exact, but pretty close…you can see me in J. J.!!
6. In Christ, God revealed his nature & essence in a way that could be seen & touched. When we see Jesus, we see God!
7. And of course, the Scriptures reveal to us who God is!
8. 2 Tim. 3:16-17 “16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
9. While God may not have revealed to us everything about himself, the Scripture gives us everything he wanted to reveal & everything we need to live for him!!
B. He purposes – His limitless knowledge & sovereign power
1. God’s omniscience & omnipotence are foundational truths for understanding God. If God is not unlimited in his knowledge & power – why would I trust him?
2. Isa. 46:10 “10I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.”
3. God has a plan for this universe, this world & each one of us & nothing can thwart God’s gracious purpose! That is not to say that we do not have a choice, but our choices do not determine God’s, rather they are in accordance with his will.
4. ILL – A. W. Tozer attempts to reconcile God's sovereignty & man's choice: An ocean liner leaves New York bound for Liverpool. Its destination has been determined by proper authorities. Nothing can change it. This is at least a faint picture of sovereignty. On board the liner are scores of passengers. These are not in chains, neither are their activities determined for them by decree. They are completely free to move about as they will. They eat, sleep, play, lounge about on the deck, read, talk, altogether as they please; but all the while the great liner is carrying them steadily onward toward a predetermined port. Both freedom and sovereignty are present here, and they do not contradict. So it is, I believe, with man's freedom and the sovereignty of God. The mighty liner of God's sovereign design keeps its steady course over the sea of history."
5. Rom. 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
6. Our response is not submission to an impersonal power but faith, love & trust in a loving heavenly Father who really is in control!!
C. He redeems sinners – His salvation
1. While we will cover the doctrine of salvation in Article 5 “the Work of Christ,” it is important to note that after the fall of Adam, God promised a redeemer (Gen. 3:15) & eventually sent Jesus to be the redeemer from sin (Gal. 3:13). Why?
2. 2 Pet 3:9 “…not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
D. He glorifies Himself – His self-exaltation
1. We must remember that ultimately all God does is for his own glory! What is God’s glory? It is the public display of his infinite worth & beauty.
2. Matt. 5:16 “let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
3. The goal of our lives should be to live so that when people know me well enough, they would say, “God is glorious!” Not “We are glorious,” but “God is glorious!”
4. One day “every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them,” will sing, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” (Rev. 5:13)
Conc. –
1. How do you view God? Is he your servant or are you his? Is your life glorifying God? Is he on public display for all to see? Do you know the one true God of the Bible?
2. John 17:3 “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”
