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a rEvIEw d. a. carSon, thE god who IS thErE – by john StarkE

from thE EdItor ‘what IS god’ – by rEv. flEtchEr matandIka 3

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thE bEIng of god – by john pIpEr

thE ImmUtabIlIty of god – by a. w. pInk

tEn thIngS It mEanS for god to bE who hE IS

thE EtErnal natUrE of god

8 profItablE wayS of rEadIng tEh bIblE – by j. c. rylE

oUr god, oUr hElp In agES paSt – by ISaac wattS

book rEcommEndatIonS

congrEgatIonal dEtaIlS

In the true knowledge of God, man acquires true knowledge of self. In a time when man is obsessed with self discovery, it is very sad to know that this truth is in short supply. Man is looking to find himself here, there and everywhere to no avail. Sadder still is the fact of man’s outright rejection and denial of God, the Only Reliable Source of truth, meaning and purpose. The sobering reality however is that as much as man may try to run away from God and reject His influence, he (man) must of necessity deal with the fact of God’s existence both in this life and in the life to come. To say it in a better, man has to deal not merely with the fact (the idea) of God and His existence - it’s much greater than that -man has to deal with God Himself, yes both in this life and in the life to come. With this in mind, we will endeavor with God’s help to get to know this God who Is, Was and shall forever be, world without end! I invite you to join me and the contributors to this magazine as we take a journey through the Scriptures

and the Westminster Shorter Catechism with the goal of getting to know the God of the Bible as He has revealed Himself to us in His written Word but also as He has revealed Himself in the Incarnate Word, namely, the LORD Jesus Christ, the only Redeemer of God’s elect. Here is our plan: We will make it our aim to study Question #4 in the Westminster Shorter Catechism which reads, “What is God?” Answer: “God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.” We have broken down this answer as follows to cover all the six issues planned for this year:Knowing God: Introductory IssueKnowing God Wisdom & PowerKnowing God’s HolinessKnowing God’s JusticeKnowing God’s GoodnessKnowing God’s Truth

What is God? God is a spirit, infinite, eternal and unchanGinG in his beinG, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, Goodness and truth (wsc, Q & a 4).

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In this introductory issue we will deal with the first part of the answer to the WSC Q #4 given above, namely: God as Spirit who is infinite, eternal and unchangeable in His being. That is the focus of this issue as you shall see in the featured articles. I am thankful to the LORD for yet another year of serving Him, the LORD (YHWH) who is my God and His Church which He purchased with blood of His own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ for the advancement of His redemptive purposes among the nations throughout time to the praise of His glorious grace. To Him be all the praise, glory and honor through Jesus Christ, now and forever more! Amen!

It is one of the excellencies of the Creator which distinguishes Him from all His creatures. God is perpetually the same: subject to no change in His being, attributes, or determinations. Therefore God is compared to a “Rock” (Deut 32:4, etc.) which remains immovable, when the entire ocean surrounding it is continually in a fluctuating state; even so, though all creatures are subject to change, God is immutable. Because God has no beginning and no ending, He can know no change. He is everlastingly “the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17).

First, God is immutable in His essence. His nature and being are infinite, and so, subject to no mutations. There never was a time when He was not; there never will come a time when He shall cease to be. God has neither evolved, grown, nor improved. All that He is today, He has ever been, and ever will be. “I am the Lord, I do not change” (Mal 3:6) is His own unqualified affirmation. He cannot change for the better, for He is

the immutability of God – by a. W. Pinkimmutability is one of the divine perfections which is not sufficiently pondered.

from the editor

already perfect; and being perfect, He cannot change for the worse. Altogether unaffected by anything outside Himself, improvement or deterioration is impossible. He is perpetually the same. He only can say, “I AM THAT I AM” (Exo 3:14). He is altogether uninfluenced by the flight of time. There is no wrinkle upon the brow of eternity. Therefore His power can never diminish nor His glory ever fade.

Secondly, God is immutable in His attributes. Whatever the attributes of God were before the universe was called into existence, they are precisely the same now, and will remain so forever. Necessarily so; for they are the very perfections, the essential qualities of His being. Semper idem (always the same) is written across everyone of them. His power is unabated, His wisdom undiminished, His holiness unsullied. The attributes of God can no more change than Deity can cease to be. His veracity is immutable, for His Word is “forever ... settled in heaven” (Psalm 119:89). His love is eternal: “I have loved

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God’s purpose never alters. One of two things causes a man to change his mind and reverse his plans: lack of foresight to anticipate everything, or lack of power to execute them. But as God is both omniscient and omnipotent there is never any need for Him to revise His decrees. No, “the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations” (Psalm 33:11). Therefore do we read of “His unchangeable purpose” (Heb 6:17).

Herein we may perceive the infinite distance which separates the highest creature from the Creator. Creaturehood and mutability are correlative terms. If the creature was not mutable by nature it would not be a creature; it would be God. By nature we tend toward nothingness, since we came from nothing. Nothing stops our annihilation but the will and sustaining power of God. None can sustain himself a single moment. We are entirely dependent on the Creator for every breath we draw. We gladly own with the Psalmist, You “holds our soul in life” (Psalm 66:9). The realization of this ought to make us lie down under a sense of our own nothingness in the presence of Him in Whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

As fallen creatures we are not only mutable, but everything in us is opposed to God. As such we are “wandering

stars” (Jude 13), out of our proper orbit. “The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest” (Isa 57:20). Fallen man is inconstant. The words of Jacob concerning Reuben apply with full force to all of Adam’s descendants: “unstable as water” (Gen 49:4). Thus it is not only a mark of piety, but also the part of wisdom to heed that injunction, “cease from man” (Isa 2:22). No human being is to be depended on. “Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save” (Psalm 146:3). If I disobey God, then I deserve to be deceived and disappointed by my fellows. People who like you today, may hate you tomorrow. The multitude who cried, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” speedily changed to “Away with Him, crucify Him!”

Herein is solid comfort. Human nature cannot be relied upon; but God can! However unstable I may be, however fickle my friends may prove, God changes not. If He varied as we do; if He willed one thing today and another tomorrow; if He were controlled by caprice, who could confide in Him? But, all praise to His glorious name, He is ever the same. His purpose is fixed; His will is stable; His word is sure. Here then is a Rock on which we may fix our feet, while the mighty torrent is sweeping away everything around us. The permanence of God’s character guarantees the fulfillment of His promises: “For the

you with an everlasting love” (Jer 31:3) and “Having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end” (John 13:1). His mercy ceases not, for it is “everlasting” (Psalm 100:5).

Thirdly, God is immutable in His counsel. His will never varies. Perhaps some are ready to object that we ought to read the following: “And it repented the Lord that He had made man” (Gen 6:6). Our first reply is, Then do the Scriptures contradict themselves? No, that cannot be. Numbers 23:19 is plain enough: “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent.” So also in I Samuel 15:29, “The Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for He is not a man, that He should repent.” The explanation is very simple. When speaking of Himself, God frequently

He is ever tHe same. His purpose is fixed; His will is stable; His word is sure. Here tHen is a rock on wHicH we may fix our feet, wHile tHe migHty torrent is sweeping away everytHing around us. tHe permanence of god’s cHaracter guarantees tHe fulfillment of His promises...

accommodates His language to our limited capacities. He describes Himself as clothed with bodily members, as eyes, ears, hands, etc. He speaks of Himself as “waking” (Psalm 78:65), as “rising up early” (Jer 7:13); yet He neither slumbers nor sleeps. When He institutes a change in His dealings with men, He describes His course of conduct as “repenting.

Yes, God is immutable in His counsel. “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (Rom 11:29). It must be so, for “He is in one mind, and who can turn from Him? and what His soul desires, even that He does” (Job 23:13).

“Change and decay in all around we see, May He who changes not abide with thee.”

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mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from you, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, says the Lord who has mercy on you” (Isa 54:10).

Herein is encouragement to prayer. “What comfort would it be to pray to a God that, like the chameleon, changed color every moment? Who would put up a petition to an earthly prince that was so mutable as to grant a petition one day, and deny it another?” (Stephen Charnock, 1670).

Should someone ask, But what is the use of praying to One whose will is already fixed? We answer, Because He so requires it. What blessings has God promised without our seeking them? “If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14), and He has willed everything that is for His child’s good. To ask for anything contrary to His will is not prayer, but rank rebellion.

Herein is terror for the wicked. Those who defy Him, who break His laws, who have no concern for His glory, but who live their lives as though He existed not, must not suppose that, when at the last they shall cry to Him for mercy, He will alter His will, revoke His word, and rescind His awful threatenings. No, He has declared, “Therefore will I also deal

Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: this is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” For the next seven Sundays I hope to preach a series of messages which was inspired last August when I read Psalm 9:10, “And those who know your name put their trust in you.”

People Who Know God’s Name Trust in Him

The aim of all my ministry is the advancement and joy of your faith to the glory of God (Philippians 1:20, 25). Preaching is one means to that end, and therefore when I ponder what to preach, I look for things that will stir you up to

in fury: My eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them” (Eze 8:18). God will not deny Himself to gratify their lusts. God is holy, unchangingly so. Therefore God hates sin, eternally hates it. Hence the eternality of the punishment of all who die in their sins.

The divine immutability, like the cloud which interposed between the Israelites and the Egyptian army, has a dark as well as a light side. It insures the execution of His threatenings, as well as the performance of His promises; and destroys the hope which the guilty fondly cherish, that He will be all lenity to His frail and erring creatures, and that they will be much more lightly dealt with than the declarations of His own Word would lead us to expect. We oppose to these deceitful and presumptuous speculations the solemn truth—that God is unchanging in veracity and purpose, in faithfulness and justice (John Dick, 1850).

trust God with all your heart. Psalm 9:10 says that people who know God’s name will trust him. It seemed to me therefore that the Lord would strengthen our confidence in him for the future of our life together if I could help you know the name of God better. “Those who know your name put their trust in you.” So for seven weeks, leading to a climax during our missions conference, I hope to unfold a different name of God each week.

What a Name Signifies

The reason knowing the names of God will help us trust him with our daily affairs and with our eternal destinies is that in Scripture a person’s name often signifies his character or ability or mission—especially when the name is given by God. Adam names his wife Eve, because she is mother of all the living (Genesis 3:20). God changes Abram’s name to Abraham to show that he had made him the father of many nations (Genesis 17:5). God changed Sarai’s name to Sarah (Genesis 17:15). He changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Genesis 32:28). And when the Son of God came into the world, his name was not left to

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chance: “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

I have four sons. The first was born in Germany. So we sought out a German name related to the word Christian and put our prayer in his name: Karsten, in the confidence that God would bring him to faith in Christ. Then came Benjamin whose birth announcement was a paraphrase of Moses’s blessing on the tribe of Benjamin in Deuteronomy 33:12,

Beloved of God he dwells secureUpon a cosmic boulder;Though small and to the world obscure,He rides on Yahweh’s shoulder.

Then came Abraham and we put the hope of Romans 4:20 in his name—that someday he might grow strong in his faith like Abraham of old and give glory to God. And finally came Barnabas, our son of consolation, and we took a name from a great man of encouragement who was full of the Holy Spirit and faith. In other words, we have tried to give our sons names that will be their destinies and their character. We have given them names to grow into and to strive for and pray for.

When God Names People

Now there is a big difference between me and God. When I name someone, I

Whenever you see the word LORD in all capital letters, you know that this name is behind it. In Hebrew the name had four letters—YHWH—and may have been pronounced something like Yahweh. The Jews came to regard this word with such reverence that they would never take it upon their lips, lest they inadvertently take the name in vain. So whenever they came to this name in their reading, they pronounced the word “adonai” which means “my lord.” The English versions have basically followed the same pattern. They translate the proper name Yahweh with the word LORD in all caps.

This is not a very satisfactory thing to do, because the English word LORD does not communicate to our ears a proper name like John or Michael or Noël. But Yahweh is God’s proper name in Hebrew. The importance of it can be seen in the sheer frequency of its use. It occurs 6,828 times in the Old Testament. That’s more than three times as often as the simple word for “God” (Elohim—2,600; El—238). What this shows is that God aims to be known not as a generic deity, but as a specific Person with a name that carries his unique character and mission.

(Note: The word Jehovah originated from an attempt to pronounce the consonants YHWH with the vowels from the word adonai. In the oldest Hebrew

don’t have the power or the authority to make the person fit the name. I give names in hope and prayer that my sons will become what their names imply. But God has the right and the power to cause anyone he names to become what the name implies. The names he gives are sure indicators of the destiny of those he names.

And when he names himself, we may be sure the name is packed with who he is and what he intends to do. God does not choose names for himself at random, say for the sound or for an ancestor or to avoid embarrassing nicknames. He chooses names for the sake of revealing things about himself that will deepen our love for him and enlarge our admiration and strengthen our faith.

So my prayer is that these seven messages will open our eyes to God’s glory, and enlarge our acquaintance with his magnificent character, and fan the flames of our love, and strengthen the fiber of our faith. My hope is in the word of God: “Those who know your name put their trust in you.”

The Most Important Name for God in the OT

The most common and the most important name for God in the Old Testament is a name that in our English versions never even gets translated.

texts there are no vowels. So it is easy to see how this would happen since whenever YHWH occurred in the text, the wordadonai was pronounced by the reverent Jew.)

The Meaning of Yahweh from Exodus 3

The most important text in all the Bible for understanding the meaning of the name Yahweh is Exodus 3:13–15. God has just commanded Moses to go to Egypt and to bring his people Israel out of captivity. Moses says to God in verse 13, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘The LORD (that is, Yahweh!), the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: this is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.”

Now notice that God gives three answers to the question, “What shall I tell them your name is?”

1. First, in verse 14 God says, “I AM WHO I AM.”

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2. Second, in verse 14 God says, “I AM has sent me to you.”

3. Third, in verse 15 God says, “Yahweh . . . has sent me to you . . . this is my name forever.”

So two facts persuade me that this text provides an interpretation of the name Yahweh. One is that the name Yahweh and the name I AM are built out of the same Hebrew word (hayah). The other is that Yahweh seems to be used here interchangeably with I AM. “I AM has sent me to you” (v. 14). “Yahweh . . . has sent me to you” (v. 15). I think it would be safe to say that God’s purpose in this meeting with Moses is to reveal, as he never had before (Exodus 6:2), the meaning of his personal name Yahweh. The key is in the phrase I AM and especially in the phrase, I AM WHO I AM.

So here is where we ought to spend a lot of time meditating. What does it mean when you ask your God, Who are you? and he answers, I AM WHO I AM? I hope you can begin to feel this morning how important these words are. There aren’t any words more important than these. Any words that you think might be are important only because these words are true. The more you ponder them, the more awesome they become. I know I can’t do them justice. But perhaps the Holy Spirit might take my stammering

act as if you do not believe he exists. You ignore him. He has no place in the affections of your heart. His gifts, not himself, are the center of your attention.

The vast majority of people who say they believe in God treat him this way. He is like hydrogen. You learned once in school that it is in the air you breathe, but after that your belief in it has made no difference in your life. Every time someone takes a poll, you say, “Of course, hydrogen exists.” Then you return to things that matter.

Put yourself forward a few years to the day when every human being will give an account of himself before the living God. God will say to millions of people, “Now it is my understanding that you said often during your life that you believed in me. You affirmed my existence. Is that right?” “Yes.” “And is it not true that in your life the more honor and importance and virtue and power and beauty a person had, the more regard he was paid and the more respect he was shown and the more admiration he received? Is that

attempt and open some vista for you.

Seven Implications in the Divine Name, I AM WHO I AM

I want to try to unfold at least seven implications that I see in the divine name, I AM WHO I AM.

1. God Exists First, God exists. Or as Francis Schaffer never tired of saying, God is there. At first this may seem so obvious and so basic that we wouldn’t need to mention it. Well, it is obvious and it is basic, but the reason we should mention it is that most people live as if it were not true, or as if it were a truth that makes no difference in life.

Suppose the president of the United States invited you and a few of your friends to the White House for a reception. As you enter the cozy green room, the president is sitting by the fire place and you walk right by him without a glance or a greeting. For the whole evening you neither look at him nor speak to him nor thank him nor inquire why he called you together. But every time the one reporter asks you if you believe in the existence of the president, you say, “Of course.” You even agree that this is his house and that all this food came from his kitchen. But you pay him no regard. Practically speaking you

not the case?” “Yes.” “Then why is it that I had such an insignificant place in your life since you say you believed in me? Why didn’t you feel more admiration for me and seek my wisdom more often and spend time in fellowship with me and strive to know the way I wanted you to make all your everyday decisions? Why did you treat me as though I were like hydrogen?”

What, I ask you, what is the world going to answer? What are thousands of so-called Christians going to answer, whose faith in God is virtually the same as their faith in hydrogen?

O how easy it is going to be for God to condemn the world at the judgment! Sometimes in our self-asserting pride we actually think that God is going to have trouble finding enough evidence to be just in sentencing people to hell. But if you allow yourself to think clearly for a moment about the overwhelming implications of the statement, “God exists,” you will see that it is going to be very easy for the Judge on that day. The

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defendants will be utterly speechless because of the manifest inconsistency of their lives. The portfolio of the prosecuting attorney will not have to be opened beyond page 1 where it says, “Defendant affirmed that God exists; personal life lived as though God made no difference.”

Contained in the name Yahweh is the first and most important truth about God: he exists. And for those who will stop pursuing their own glory and their own private pleasure long enough to consider it, that makes all the difference in the world.

2. No Reality Exists Behind God The second implication in the name I AM WHO I AM is that God’s personality and power are owing solely to himself and to no other.

Push back with me before there was any earth or any solar system or galaxies or universe at all. Push back in your imagination to when there was only God. Then, if you can, push back behind God. Where did he come from? How did he get to be the way he is? If you asked me how I got to be the way I am, I would answer that my father and mother gave me a set of genes and they reared me a certain way and I have been surrounded by thousands of influences in my environment—that’s how I got to be the way I am.

then he is not subject to the changes we are. People change their mind because of unforeseen circumstances or weak resolution. God foresees all circumstances and has no weaknesses. Nothing in all creation takes him off guard and backs him into a corner where he might have to act out of character or compromise his integrity.

He is who he is, and therefore, as James says, “With him there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17). He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His absolute name is the granite foundation of our confidence in his ongoing faithfulness.

4. God Is an Inexhaustible Source of Energy The fourth implication of the name I AM WHO I AM is that God is an inexhaustible source of energy. Isaiah 40:28 says, “Yahweh is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary.” If God is the everlasting absolute Reality, then he is the Creator of the ends of the earth and of the universe. And if he is the Creator of everything, then all energy—all motion and combustion and fusion and fission—originate in him. Somehow all the energy in the universe must get started. And since God is the first and absolute reality, it all starts in him. He is an inexhaustible reservoir of power.

But when we ask God how he got to be who he is, he answers, I AM WHO I AM. In other words, nobody gave me a set of genes. Nobody and no power brought me into existence or shaped my personality. I had no beginning. There is no reality outside myself that did not come from me. And so there is no force or influence upon my character and power except what comes from me and is controlled by me. I am utterly absolute. Behind me there is no reality.

Asking the question, Why is God the way he is? is like asking me, When are you going to stop beating your wife? It is unanswerable because it assumes a state of affairs that does not exist. I am not beating my wife and so I cannot stop. And there is nothing behind or outside God that could be an answer to the question, why he is the way he is. The utterly self-determined character of an everlasting God is the endpoint of all our questions. There comes a point when you stand face to face with absolute reality and realize that he simply is who he is.

3. God Does Not Change A third implication of the name I AM WHO I AM is that God does not change. In Malachi 3:6 God says, “I Yahweh do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.” Within the name Yahweh is the affirmation I AM WHO I AM. But if who God is is not determined by any forces outside himself,

This must mean that he is energy. He is power. His personality is radiant with infinite energy. He never needs recharging. He never needs a backup system. There is nothing for him to plug into. Everything in the universe plugs into him. If he ever shut down, there would be absolute nothingness. In him we live and move and have our being. He cannot faint or grow weary. He is an unending river of life and the source or our strength every morning—and will be for all eternity.

5. Objectivity Is Crucial The fifth implication of the name I AM WHO I AM is that objectivity is crucial. What I mean is that it is very important that we believe in objective truth that is more than our own subjective feelings or desires. We may desire God to be a certain way. We may feel that he simply can’t be the way some people say he is. But what we feel or what we desire does not make God what he is.

When God says I AM WHO I AM, he summons us to humble objectivity. He puts an end to the notion that everybody’s view of God is as good as everybody else’s. God is who he is and nobody’s opinion of him makes any difference. Therefore, our calling as his creatures is to strive to know him for who he is, not for who we would like him to be.

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6. We Must Conform to God, Not He to Us The sixth implication of the name I AM WHO I AM is that we must conform to God, not he to us. If children should learn their manners from their parents and not the parents from the children; if players should learn their moves from the coach and not the coach from the players; if soldiers should learn their strategy from the general and not the general from the soldiers; then surely it is plain that creatures should conform all their lives to the will of their Creator!

But O how few of God’s creatures follow this path of reasonableness. The vast majority of God’s creatures go their own way with little or no thought of conforming their lives to the daily will and character of an absolute God. And when they think of God, they picture him arbitrarily in images of their own making, to suit their own desires. But if God simply is who he is and not who we make him out to be, then it is we who must conform to God and not he to us.

7. This God Has Drawn Near to Us in Jesus Christ One final implication of this magnificent name, I AM WHO I AM, is that this infinite, absolute, self-determining God has drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. In John 8:56–58 Jesus is answering the criticism of the Jewish leaders. He says, “Your father Abraham rejoiced

1. Begin reading your Bible this very day. The way to do a thing is to do it; and the way to read the Bible is actually to read it! It is not merely meaning, or wishing, or resolving, or intending, or thinking about it , which will advance you one step. You must positively read. There is no royal road in this matter, any more than in the matter of prayer. If you cannot read yourself, you must persuade somebody else to read it to you. But one way or another, through eyes or ears, the words of Scripture must actually pass before your mind.

2. Read the Bible with an earnest desire to understand it. Do not think for a moment, that the great object is to turn over a certain quantity of printed paper, and that it matters nothing whether you understand it or not. Some ignorant people seem to imagine, that all is done if they advance so many chapters every day, though they may not have a notion what they are all about, and only know that they

that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad.” The Jews then said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly! I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

Could Jesus have taken any more exalted words upon his lips? When Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I AM,” he took up all the majestic truth of the name of God, wrapped it in the humility of servanthood, offered himself to atone for all our rebellion, and made a way for us to see the glory of God without fear.

In Jesus Christ we who are born of God have the unspeakable privilege of knowing Yahweh as our Father—I AM WHO I AM—the God• who exists• whose personality and power is owing

solely to himself• who never changes• from whom all power and energy in the

universe flows• and to whom all creation should

conform its life.

This is the name of God: I AM WHO I AM! And may those who know the name of God put their trust in him.

©2013 Desiring God Foundation. Used by Permission

have pushed on their bookmark ahead so many pages. This is turning Bible reading into a mere ritual form. Settle it down in your mind as a general principle, that a Bible not understood is a Bible that does no good! Say to yourself often as you read, “What is this all about?” Dig for the meaning like a man digging for gold.

3. Read the Bible with child-like faith and humility. Open your heart as you open God’s book, and say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening!” Resolve to believe implicitly whatever you find there, however much it may run counter to your own desires and prejudices. Resolve to receive heartily every statement of truth, whether you like it or not. Beware of that miserable habit into which some readers of the Bible fall, they receive some doctrines because they like them; and they reject others because they are condemning to themselves, or to some relation, or friend. At this rate, the Bible is useless! Are we to be judges of what ought to be in God’s

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8 Profitable Ways of readinG the bible by j. c. ryle

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Word? Do we know better than God? Settle it down in your mind that you will receive all and believe all, and that what you cannot understand, you will take on trust. Remember, when you pray that you are speaking to God, and God hears you. But, remember, when you read Scripture that God is speaking to you, and you are not to “dictate,” but to listen!

4. Read the Bible in a spirit of obedience and self-application. Sit down to the study of it with a daily determination that you will live by its rules, rest on its statements, and act on its commands. Consider, as you travel through every chapter, “How does this affect my thinking and daily conduct? What does this teach me?” It is poor work to read the Bible from mere curiosity, and for speculative purposes in order to fill your head and store your mind with mere opinions; while you do not allow the book to influence your heart and life. That Bible is read best which is practiced most!

5. Read the Bible daily. Make it a part of every day’s business to read and meditate on some portion of God’s Word. Private means of grace are just as needful every day for our souls as food and clothing are for our bodies. Yesterday’s food will not feed the laborer today; and today’s food will not feed the laborer tomorrow. Do as the Israelites

8. Read the Bible with Christ continually in view. The grand primary object of all Scripture, is to testify of Jesus! Old Testament ceremonies are shadows of Christ. Old Testament judges are types of Christ. Old Testament prophecies are full of Christ’s sufferings, and of Christ’s glory yet to come. The first coming and the second; the Lord’s humiliation and His glorious kingdom; His cross and the crown shine forth everywhere in the Bible. Keep fast hold on this clue, if you would read the Bible aright!

I might easily add to these hints, if space permitted. Few and short as they are you will find them most profitable when implemented.

Practical Religion, “Bible Reading”, [Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1998], 131-134.

did in the wilderness. Gather your manna fresh every morning. Choose your own seasons and hours. Do not scramble over and hurry your reading. Give your Bible the best, and not the worst part of your time! But whatever plan you pursue, let it be a rule of your life to visit the throne of grace and God’s Word every day.

6. Read all of the Bible and read it in an orderly way. I fear there are many parts of the Word which some people never read at all. This is to say at the least, a very presumptuous habit. “All Scripture is profitable.” [2 Timothy 3:16]. To this habit may be traced that lack of well-proportioned views of truth, which is so common in this day. Some people’s Bible-reading is a system of perpetual ‘dipping and picking’. They do not seem to have an idea of regularly going through the whole book.

7. Read the Bible fairly and honestly. Determine to take everything in its plain, obvious meaning and regard all forced interpretations with great suspicion. As a general rule, whatever a verse of the Bible seems to mean it does mean! Cecil’s rule is a very valuable one, “The right way of interpreting Scripture is to take it as we find it, without any attempt to force it into any particular theological system.”

8 profitable ways of reading the bible8 profitable ways of reading the bible

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here is what it means that God is who he is.

1. God’s absolute being means he never had a beginning. This staggers the mind. Every child asks, “Who made God?” And every wise parent says, “Nobody made God. God simply is. And always was. No beginning.”

2. God’s absolute being means God will never end. If he did not come into being he cannot go out of being, because he is being. He is what is. There is no place to go outside of being. There is only he. Before he creates, that’s all that is: God.

3. God’s absolute being means God is absolute reality. There is no reality before him. There is no reality outside of him unless he wills it and makes it. He is not one of many realities before he creates. He is simply there as absolute reality. He is all that was eternally. No space, no universe, no emptiness. Only God. Absolutely there. Absolutely all.

7. God’s absolute being means that God is constant. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He cannot be improved. He is not becoming anything. He is who he is. There is no development in God. No progress. Absolute perfection cannot be improved.

8. God’s absolute being means that he is the absolute standard of truth and goodness and beauty. There is no law-book to which he looks to know what is right. No almanac to establish facts. No guild to determine what is excellent or beautiful. He himself is the standard of what is right, what is true, what is beautiful.

9. God’s absolute being means God does whatever he pleases and it is always

4. God’s absolute being means that God is utterly independent. He depends on nothing to bring him into being or support him or counsel him or make him what he is. That is what the word “absolute” being means.

5. God’s absolute being means rather that everything that is not God depends totally on God. All that is not God is secondary, and dependent. The entire universe is utterly secondary. Not primary. It came into being by God and stays in being moment by moment on God’s decision to keep it in being.

6. God’s absolute being means all the universe is by comparison to God as nothing. Contingent, dependent reality is to absolute, independent reality as a shadow to substance. As an echo to a thunderclap. As a bubble to the ocean. All that we see, all that we are amazed by in the world and in the galaxies, is, compared to God, as nothing. “All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness” (Isaiah 40:17).

right and always beautiful and always in accord with truth. There are no constraints on him from outside him that could hinder him in doing anything he pleases. All reality that is outside of him he created and designed and governs as the absolute reality. So he is utterly free from any constraints that don’t originate from the counsel of his own will.

10. God’s absolute being means that he is the most important and most valuable reality and the most important and most valuable person in the universe. He is more worthy of interest and attention and admiration and enjoyment than all other realities, including the entire universe.

©2013 Desiring God Foundation. Used by Permission

ten things it means for god to be who he is

ten thinGs it means for God to be Who he isexcerpt on the “beinG of God” from a sermon based on exodus 3:13-15.

“13 and moses said unto God, behold, when i come unto the children of israel, and shall say unto them, the God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall i say unto them?

14 and God said unto moses, i am that i am: and he said, thus shalt thou say unto the children of israel, i am hath sent me unto you.

15 and God said moreover unto moses, thus shalt thou say unto the children of israel, the lord God of your fathers, the God of abraham, the God of isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.”

exodus 3:13-15

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review by: john starke

It can be assured that if you were to go into any theological library fifty years ago, you would not find a quarter of the biblical commentaries there are today, not to mention the growing number of kinds of commentaries - from expository to socio-rhetorical. Yet, despite this surge, the level of biblical illiteracy in our Western Culture (even in our churches) is remarkable and far-reaching. Somehow, these two movements have been able to grow rapidly side-by-side. The question, then, is raised for Christians, how do you explain the Christian message to a largely biblically illiterate culture? Enter D. A. Carson’s book The God Who is There. Carson’s book assumes no knowledge of the Bible and is a basic introduction to biblical faith and the big story of Scripture.

Somewhere else, Carson has observed that twenty or thirty years ago, when you were talking to an atheist, he was usually a Christian atheist, that is, the

provide a sacrifice that far exceeds the value of some ram caught in a thicket” (55).

The anticipation of this sacrifice is found in the storyline of God’s people, Israel - the rise and fall of the nation and her kings. From this history comes literature that reflects upon the nation’s rebellion, exile, and the need for God to act on their behalf. Carson explains the incarnation through John’s prologue (1:1-18) and the new birth through John 3. Following his classic book The Difficult Doctrine of Love, his chapter “The God Who Loves” redirects the popular, worldly confusion of divine love to God’s love in Christ that recognizes God’s holiness, our sin, impending judgment, and a substituting Savior.

The remaining chapters of The God Who Is There works out the explicit gospel message of the New Testament: The

God who the atheist disbelieved in was the Christian God. One could explain the significance of the death and resurrection of Jesus and the need for repentance and it would be fairly well understood. That is not the case today and Carson, in The God Who is There, doesn’t make this assumption. Like Paul at Mars Hill in Acts 17, Carson orients his readers with the God of the Bible by explaining the contents of the Bible.

Of course, Carson begins at the beginning. The Christian worldview begins with the God who creates. The rest of the storyline of the Bible depends much upon the reality of Genesis, so it’s no surprise that Carson spends almost a quarter of the book there. A biblical understanding of sin and God’s promises are dependent upon its beginnings. Yet, Carson never loses the storyline in the details. For example, after describing the narrative of Abraham and the sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22), Carson explains, “The stories and the account begin to multiply through Old Testament pages in anticipation of the time when God would

cross and its ironies (Matthew 27:27-51), the message of saving righteousness and justified sinners (Romans 3:21-26), the gathering and transformation of God’s people (Ephesians 2:1-22; 4-5:10;Galatians 5:13-26), the coming judgment against sin, the need for repentance and Christ’s return (Revelation).

There are a slew of biblical theologies, working out any one issue through the storyline of the Bible (see Carson’s edited series “New Studies in Bible Theology”). However, few, if any, accomplish what Carson has through The God Who Is There. This book is the fruit from decades of campus evangelism. Undoubtedly, he has countless objections and questions in mind within these pages, making it an ideal give-away book for skeptics and new believers. Let me highlight a few things to account for its value:

1. The God Who Is There is an apologetic of coherence. Very early on, it becomes clear that Carson is making the case for the reliability and truthfulness of the Bible based upon its one coherent message, its storyline, which spans thousands of years and dozens of authors. In an age of skepticism, demonstrating the Bible’s unity over centuries of history is compelling and Carson does it preeminently.

book review

book revieW - the God Who is there - a revieWd. a. carson, the God who is there: findinG your place in God’s story (baker, 2010), 240 paGes.

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2. Carson clearly and plainly explains difficult biblical concepts. I’ve already mentioned his chapters on incarnation, the new birth, and God’s love. Even in explaining the “already/not yet” complexion of the New Testament, he clarifies the difficulties and preserves the profundity. The God Who Is There has obvious usefulness for small group or Sunday school settings.

3. From the Bible, Carson makes sense of reality. The message of the Bible is not an ethereal concept separate from true life. No, its earthy and is concerned with sin, human nature, death, and redemption. Yet, the message of the Bible, as Carson demonstrates, displays our need for help from outside ourselves, namely the incarnate Son of God and a substitutionary death.

4. Sadly, very few Christians have a grasp of the storyline of the Bible

and its unifying message. It would be difficult to find a better book to hand young Christians. A grasp of the over-arching story of Scripture gives teeth to theology and The God Who Is There is the ideal place to begin.

It is difficult to comment on the importance of a book when it has only been out for less than a month. These days, too many book reviewers are zealous to exclaim the immortality of their book in review. So, let me give this tempered recommendation: Buy the book; read it and then buy a box of them in order to hand them out to as many people as you can afford. It may be one of the most important books you or those whom you give it to read.

This article first appeared on www.thegospelcoalition.org. Copyright © 2013 by James Starke. Used by permission.

book recommendationsbook review

the eternal nature of Godnorm Geisler addresses a Question skeptics often ask about God’s eternality...

tHe question, tHen, is raised for cHristians, How do you explain tHe cHristian message to a largely biblically illiterate culture? enter d. a. carson’s book tHe god wHo is tHere. carson’s book assumes no knowledge of tHe bible and is a basic introduction to biblical faitH and tHe big story of scripture. if God is eternal, when did he

create the world?

This asks a confused question. Being in time, we can imagine a moment before the beginning of time, yet there really was no such moment. God did not create the world in time; He is responsible for the creation of time. There was no time “before” time. There was only eternity. The word “when” assumes that there was a time before time. This is like asking, “Where was the man when he jumped off the bridge?” On the bridge? That was before he jumped. In the air? That was after. In this question, “when” assumes a definite point for a process action. Jumping is the process of going from the bridge to the air. In the question about Creation, it tries to put God into time rather than starting it. We can speak of a creation of time, but not in time.

(Geisler, N. L., & Brooks, R. M. When Skeptics Ask Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books)

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“gIft aId – ScottISh congrEgatIonS

The UK tax authorities have asked charities to amend the Gift Aid declaration form for those contributors who make offerings to the God’s work. The General Treasurer of the Scottish Presbytery, Mr Laurence Mackenzie, respectfully asks that Congregational Treasurers ensure that all contributors have signed the new forms and mailed them to him at the following address: 3 Sunnybank Lane, GreetlandHalifax, HX4 8LN.

If anyone has any questions, please do contact Mr. L. Mackenzie at this email address: laurence.r.mackenzie@btinternet.com.

Our ability to continue, financially, as a denomination is completely dependent on reclaiming the tax you have paid on your contributions. May the Lord bless you for your kindness.

If you are a UK tax-payer and are not currently contributing through Gift Aid I would urge you to prayerfully consider this matter; essentially it adds 20% to what you give to the work of Christ. A Gift Aid declaration form is available for download on our website: www.apchurches.org/gift-aid-scottish-congregations.

SUbScrIptIonS & rEnEwalS for apc nEwS

The APC News is published 6 times per year beginning with the January/ February issue. The cost is £10 per year including postage and is considered as a donation.

I would like to thank everyone who has paid their subscriptions also those who have given generous donations. However there are still a few who have yet to pay their subscriptions. Therefore, I would like to remind you to please send your subscriptions to the address below at your earliest convenience. Thank you.

Clark Walls, Treasurer (APC News)

Please send your subscription fee to:

Mr. Clark Walls2A Stratton Road, Inverness

IV2 3XA, Scotland, UK

Telephone: 01463 221597Email: clark.walls@btinternet.com

book recommendations

Our God, our help in ages past,Our hope for years to come,Our shelter from the stormy blast,And our eternal home.

Under the shadow of Thy throneThy saints have dwelt secure;Sufficient is Thine arm alone,And our defense is sure.

Before the hills in order stood,Or earth received her frame,From everlasting Thou art God,To endless years the same.

Our God, our help in ages past,Our hope for years to come,Be Thou our guard while troubles last,And our eternal home.

our God, our helP in aGes Past by isaac watts

The Shorter Catechism, by Roderick Lawson

The Attributes of God, by A. W. Pink

The Institutes of the Christian Religion, by John Calvin

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dUndEERev. Donald C. Macaskill238 Arbroath Road, Dundee, DD4 7SBTel: 01382 451798email: donandmargo@me.com www.apcdundee.org.ukDens Road Church11 Dens Road – Sunday 11am & 6.30pm; usually Wed 7pm

EdInbUrghRev. John Ross6 Frogston Grove, Edinburgh EH10 7AGTel: 0131 466 6247email: jrossapc@googlemail.comSunday11:30am and 5pmBible Study Wed 7:30pm at 47 Southhouse Broadway, EH17 8AS

fort wIllIamServices held jointly with the Free Church, High Street11am & 6:30pm, Wednesday 7:30pmContact: Donald MacNicolTel: 01397 712405

InvErnESSRev. Dr John C A Ferguson16 Drummond Road, Inverness, IV2 4NBTel: 01463 223983Kingsview Christian Centre Balnafettack Road; Sundays 11:30am & 6pm,Wed 7:30pm

Centre Manager: Ken MacDonaldTel: 01463 716843 email: kenmac.arnish@gmail.comwww.sermonaudio.com/kingsview

kInlochbErvIE & laIrg & rogartRev. Gordon MurrayAPC Manse, Saval Road, Lairg, IV27 4EHTel: 01549 402176 email: revgordonmurray@gmail.com

Kinlochbervie: Day Care Centre Main Street, 11:30amLairg Church: 6pmRogart Church: 11am (2nd and 4th Sunday only)www.lairgchurch.blogspot.com

lochInvEr & StoEr & drUmbEgServices held jointly with Free Church of ScotlandMorning services alternating between Stoer Free Church & Drumbeg APC – 11am

Lochinver Free Church at 6pmContacts: Mrs E. MacKenzie Tel 01571 855279 or Mrs I Macaulay Tel: 01571 855214

obanRev. Archibald McPhailFernhill, Polvinister Road, Oban PA34 5TNTel: 01631 567076Email: archibald.mcphail@virgin.net

Campbell Street Church – 11am & 6:30pm, Wed 7:30pm

poolEwEJoint Worship with Free Church, Services Inverasdale10.30am (with Sunday School); Aultbea 12 noon (with Sunday School); Poolewe 6pm

SkyE and harrISRevd. Dr Wayne PearceBruach Taibh, 2 Borve, Arnisort, Portree, Skye, IV51 9PSTel: 01470 582421 Email: wayne.pearce66@btinternet.com

SKYE: Portree APC Church, Staffin Road – 11am & 4:45pm, CofS, Dunvegan – 12:45 & 6:30pm. Mid-week service Wed 7:30pm, 1st, 3rd, 5th Portree; 2nd, 4th Dunvegan. Thurs – Bible Study Portree 2nd & 4th at 7:30pm

HARRIS: Seilabost Primary School – 12 noon and 6pm (2nd Sabbath each month 6pm service is a joint service with and at Scarista CofS) Local Contact: Mr Finlay Maclennan Tel: 01859 550252

StornowayInterim Moderator: Rev. John van Eyk TAIN & Fearn; 72 Keith Street – 11am & 6:30pm, Thu 7:30pm. www.apcstornoway.com

taIn & fEarnRev. John van EykAPC Manse, 2 Cameron Gardens, Tain, IV19 1NTTel: 01862 892199email: jvaneyk@gmail.com

Tain Church, Upper King Street – 11:30am; Hilton Church 10am, Wed 7:30pm. Joint evening services, 1st, 3rd, 5th Lord’s Day Hilton; 2nd, 4th in Tain; www.sermonaudio.com/tainfearnapc

wIck & StrathyRev. Ross MacaskillCastleview, 64 Roxburgh Road, Wick, KW1 5HPTel: 01955 928 075emailjrrm@gmail.comWick Church – 11am; Strathy Church – 2pmwww.wickpresby.weebly.com

abroad

nEw wEStmInStEr, canadaRev. F Matandika#203, 204 Sixth StreetNew Westminster, BCV3L 3A1 CanadaTel/Fax: +1-604-544-5040www.newwestminsterchapel.org

Lord’s Day Services: Sunday School: 1pmMorning Worship: 11amEvening Worship: 6:30pmWed/Thr Prayer & Bible Study: 7:00pm. Call for the venues regarding the mid-week meetings.

Details of congregational treasurers can be obtained on the website at www.apchurches.org or by contacting the General Treasurer of the Scottish Presbytery:Mr Laurence R. MacKenzie; 3 Sunnybank Lane, Greetland, Halifax,West Yorkshire HX4 8LNTel 01422 604458Email: laurence.r.mackenzie@btinternet.com

modErator of ScottISh prESbytEryRev. John van EykTAIN/FEARN

clErk of ScottISh prESbytEryRev. Archibald McPhailOBAN

aSSIStant clErk of ScottISh prESbytEry pro tEmRev. Ross MacaskillWICK & STRATHY

modErator of canadIan prESbytEryRev. Fletcher. MatandikaNEW WESTMINSTER, BC

clErk of canadIan prESbytEryMr. Hugh. FraserNEW WESTMINSTER, BC

pUblIcatIonS trEaSUrErMr. Clark WallsINVERNESS Tel. 01463 796952

EdItor of ‘apc nEwS’ Rev. Fletcher MatandikaNEW WESTMINSTER, BC

aSSIStant EdItorRev. Gordon MurrayKINLOCHBERVIE, LAIRG & ROGART

Our ScOttiSh charity NO iS:Sc 02313

aPc webSite addreSS iS:www.apchUrchES.org

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