what do christians believe?. review what you believe is important. why?

WHAT

DO C

HRISTI

ANS

BELIEVE?

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What you believe is important. Why?

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What you believe is important. Why?1.What you believe is foundational for what you choose to do and how

you feel.

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you feel.2.Whether or not what you believe lines up with reality has profound

consequences.

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consequences.

Why is it important to know Christian beliefs?

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consequences.

Why is it important to know Christian beliefs?3.Polemics (how our beliefs differ from or line up with others)

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consequences.

Why is it important to know Christian beliefs?3.Polemics (how our beliefs differ from or line up with others)4.Catechetics (right knowledge of God is necessary for spiritual growth)

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consequences.

Why is it important to know Christian beliefs?3.Polemics (how our beliefs differ from or line up with others)4.Catechetics (right knowledge of God is necessary for spiritual growth)5.Contextualization (the continual need to ‘re-summarize’ as language

and thought forms change)

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consequences.



Where do Christian beliefs come from?

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consequences.



Where do Christian beliefs come from?6.The message of the Bible

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consequences.



Where do Christian beliefs come from?6.The message of the Bible7.The conclusions of Christians before us (particularly where there’s

consensus)

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consequences.



Where do Christian beliefs come from?6.The message of the Bible7.The conclusions of Christians before us (particularly where there’s

consensus)8.The words and language of contemporary culture

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What is the most basic summary (i.e. theology) of the biblical message?

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What is the most basic summary (i.e. theology) of the biblical message?• The “inbreaking of the kingdom (community) of God.”

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The logical order to explain the who, what, when, where, why and how of this coming Kingdom of God is as follows:

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The logical order to explain the who, what, when, where, why and how of this coming Kingdom of God is as follows:1.Theology Proper – Who is God?2.Anthropology – Who are we?3.Christology – Who is Jesus and what did He do?4.Pneumatology – Who is the Spirit and what does He do?5.Ecclesiology – What is the Church and what is its mission?6.Eschatology – Where is it all going? What is the “end goal”?

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The logical order to explain the who, what, when, where, why and how of this coming Kingdom of God is as follows:1.Theology Proper – Who is God?2.Anthropology – Who are we?3.Christology – Who is Jesus and what did He do?4.Pneumatology – Who is the Spirit and what does He do?5.Ecclesiology – What is the Church and what is its mission?6.Eschatology – Where is it all going? What is the “end goal”?

• Today we start with Theology Proper and the question, “Who Is God?”

THEOLOGY PROPER

THEOLOGY PROPER

• God is both the source and the foundation of all that exists , therefore it is logical to start with God and build out from Him towards an understanding of ourselves, our world and where it’s all going.

THEOLOGY PROPER


• However, it is important to note that our personal relationships with God do not start here. Rather, what we know of God is revealed to us through His creation and particularly His special revelation (i.e. the Bible).

THEOLOGY PROPER



• Therefore, many of the beliefs we will talk about here at the beginning are some of the latest conclusions in Christian history.

THEOLOGY PROPER




• So although theology proper forms our logical starting point, it is also an endpoint in terms of historical development.

THEOLOGY PROPER




• So although theology proper forms our logical starting point, it is also an endpoint in terms of historical development.

• This is important to know when it comes to sharing your faith. Starting by trying to explain how God is Triune or by giving a list of His attributes is backwards. Rather evangelism should start with Jesus and creation and this will lead to believing that God is Triune and that He is both eternal and good.

THEOLOGY PROPER

So who is this God we, as Christians, worship? What is He like?

THEOLOGY PROPER


• Today’s overview is grouped under three headings:

THEOLOGY PROPER


• Today’s overview is grouped under three headings:1.The Attributes of God

THEOLOGY PROPER


• Today’s overview is grouped under three headings:1.The Attributes of God2.The Triune God

THEOLOGY PROPER


• Today’s overview is grouped under three headings:1.The Attributes of God2.The Triune God3.The Creator God

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

What are the “Attributes of God?”


What are the “Attributes of God?”• “The Characteristics or qualities of God that constitute God’s very being.” –Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms


What are the “Attributes of God?”• “The Characteristics or qualities of God that constitute God’s very being.” –Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms• For example, God is infinite, eternal, just, merciful, good, etc.



How can we summarize the attributes of God in a way that is helpful?



How can we summarize the attributes of God in a way that is helpful?• The most popular way to summarize the attributes of God has been to group them.



How can we summarize the attributes of God in a way that is helpful?• The most popular way to summarize the attributes of God has been to group them.• There have been many attempts at this but we are going to look at only two ways.



How can we summarize the attributes of God in a way that is helpful?• The most popular way to summarize the attributes of God has been to group them.• There have been many attempts at this but we are going to look at only two ways.• The first is the most popular way amongst Protestants which divides God’s attributes into those which are “communicable” vs. those which are “incommunicable.”



How can we summarize the attributes of God in a way that is helpful?• The most popular way to summarize the attributes of God has been to group them.• There have been many attempts at this but we are going to look at only two ways.• The first is the most popular way amongst Protestants which divides God’s attributes into those which are “communicable” vs. those which are “incommunicable.”• The second way is a more recent way of grouping that divides God’s attributes into those which are “eternal” and those which are “good.”

COMMUNICABLE VS. INCOMMUNICABLE


• Communicable attributes are “those attributes of God considered to have corresponding characteristics in human beings.” – WDTT



• These attributes “arise out of God’s spiritual, intellectual and moral nature [and] include knowledge, wisdom, veracity, goodness, holiness, righteousness, and sovereignty in will and power.” – Grenz (pp.90-91)




• In contrast, incommunicable attributes are “those attributes of God for which there is no corresponding attribute in humans, such as perfection, omnipotence, and omniscience.” – WDTT





• This grouping is helpful in that it can keep us from wrongly assuming that God is “altogether like you [and me]” (Ps 50:21).





• This grouping is helpful in that it can keep us from wrongly assuming that God is “altogether like you [and me]” (Ps 50:21).

• Although we are made in God’s image or likeness, this does not mean we share everything in common with God. There are still attributes of His that we do not share. They are incommunicable. Everything we are comes from God, but God has attributes in addition to this which are His alone.

ETERNAL AND GOOD

ETERNAL AND GOOD

• God’s “eternality” can be hard to define. But what Christians mean by it is not simply that God exists forever, but that God is present at all points in time. It is not about God’s endurance, His lasting longer than us, but about His presence with us.

ETERNAL AND GOOD


• As Stanley Grenz says, “we ought to conceive of God’s eternality … as omnipresence with respect to time. God is present in all time, and therefore all time is present to God.” (p. 91)

ETERNAL AND GOOD



• We divide time into past, present and future. But to God it is all present.

ETERNAL AND GOOD



• We divide time into past, present and future. But to God it is all present.

• Therefore, in our ‘present’ we experience only a small part of what is present to God.

ETERNAL AND GOODThere are three attributes of God that fit within the attribute of

God’s eternality:


God’s eternality:1.God is omnipresent



The best way to think about this is not that God is near or present to all things, but the reverse. All things are near and present to God. Whatever things exist, exist in God’s presence.




2.God is omniscient (all-knowing)




2.God is omniscient (all-knowing) This is not intended as a claim to God’s theoretical knowledge, but

to affirm His actual knowledge of world.





to affirm His actual knowledge of world. As Grenz puts it, “The divine mind perceives the entire temporal

sequence – all events – simultaneously in one act of [knowing].” (p. 92)







3.God is omnipotent (all-powerful)







3.God is omnipotent (all-powerful) Again, not a theoretical claim. (No dilemmas about God creating a

rock heavier than He can lift).







3.God is omnipotent (all-powerful) Again, not a theoretical claim. (No dilemmas about God creating a

rock heavier than He can lift). Rather, as Grenz says, “Through this term we acknowledge God’s

ability to bring to completion his design for creation.” (p. 93)

ETERNAL AND GOODGod’s goodness is a reference to the fact that He is morally

perfect. This moral perfection of God may be best described in two dimensions. That is, there are two main ways that God is good:



1.God is holy.



1.God is holy. That is, He is totally upright, fair, just and righteous in his treatment

of his creatures.




of his creatures. Holiness can also refer to God’s transcendence and His uniqueness.

But, in regards to goodness, holiness refers to the fact that God is the moral standard of all that is just and fair.






2.God is compassionate






2.God is compassionate That is, God is gracious, benevolent and long-suffering with us.






2.God is compassionate That is, God is gracious, benevolent and long-suffering with us. It is God’s compassion that moves him to action, to showing us

mercy in spite of our rebellion.






2.God is compassionate That is, God is gracious, benevolent and long-suffering with us. It is God’s compassion that moves him to action, to showing us

mercy in spite of our rebellion. The supreme act of God’s compassion is the sending of His Son

Jesus.



1.God is holy. That is, He is totally upright, fair, just and righteous in his treatment of

his creatures. Holiness can also refer to God’s transcendence and His uniqueness.


2.God is compassionate That is, God is gracious, benevolent and long-suffering with us. It is God’s compassion that moves him to action, to showing us mercy

in spite of our rebellion. The supreme act of God’s compassion is the sending of His Son Jesus. God’s compassion is the basis of our hope and the reason why we

praise Him.

THE TRIUNE GOD

THE TRIUNE GOD• All of the attributes of God that have been named so far can

be easily traced directly to particular biblical passages.



• But there is one attribute of God that is neither named nor directly spoken of in the Bible, but which Christians have come to a consensus claiming that it must be true about God on the basis of several claims within Scripture.




• This attribute is that God is a Trinity.





• God is One & God is Three. God is one essence in three persons.






• Ultimately this is a mystery. In other words, there are three biblical truths that when taken together mean that God must be triune, three in one and one in three, but no human completely understands how that works itself out







• The three truths are:







• The three truths are:1.Monotheism – there is only one God.







• The three truths are:1.Monotheism – there is only one God.2.Jesus’ lordship – God with us as one of us.

THE TRIUNE GOD• All of the attributes of God that have been named so far can be

easily traced directly to particular biblical passages.





• The three truths are:1.Monotheism – there is only one God.2.Jesus’ lordship – God with us as one of us.3.The presence of the Holy Spirit – God in us.

THE TRIUNE GOD

• Yahweh, the I AM, is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

THE TRIUNE GOD


• In other words, although God is a unity, one in essence, He is also a “relationality,” existing in three persons.

THE TRIUNE GOD



• The three persons are not “parts” of God, they are each fully God, and the one God is never divided, He is always the three persons.

THE TRIUNE GOD




• Therefore, within the one God, apart from any created thing there is both differentiation and perfect unity.

THE TRIUNE GOD





• The wording of our creeds points to this. The Father “generates” or “eternally begets” the Son (differentiation). And the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son binding the two together (unity).

THE TRIUNE GOD





• The wording of our creeds points to this. The Father “generates” or “eternally begets” the Son (differentiation). And the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son binding the two together (unity).

• Again, this is a mystery, but the fact that this relationality exists within the one God apart from any created thing means that love is the “fundamental divine attribute.” – Grenz (p. 72).

THE TRIUNE GOD

• The most central characteristic of God is the perfect love relationship that exists within Him on account of His Triune nature.

THE TRIUNE GOD


• This is an important point of difference between Christianity and every other religion or worldview.

THE TRIUNE GOD



• Christianity is the only religion that can claim selfless love as its foundational virtue on account of the fact that God already experienced perfect love within Himself before the creation of the world.

THE TRIUNE GOD




• Any god who is not triune, cannot have created the world and human beings out of love, but rather so that he could get love.

THE TRIUNE GOD





• Christianity alone can claim to have selfless love at its center because Christianity alone has a God who already lived in perfect love before the creation of the world.

THE TRIUNE GOD





• Christianity alone can claim to have selfless love at its center because Christianity alone has a God who already lived in perfect love before the creation of the world.

• This brings us to our final topic: God as our Creator.

THE CREATOR GOD

THE CREATOR GOD

• One final attribute of God remains to be discussed: God is the Creator.

THE CREATOR GOD

• One final attribute of God remains to be discussed: God is the Creator.

• Under this attribute comes both the Christian beliefs about creation, that is, the nature of the relationship between God as “Creator” and the universe, including us, as His “creation,” and the Christian beliefs about “providence,” how God directs His creation in order to accomplish His purposes for it.

DOCTRINE OF CREATION


• Christian beliefs (i.e. doctrine) about the creation of the universe emphasize two things:



1. Creation is a loving act of God.



1. Creation is a loving act of God. “The act of creation is the outflowing of the eternal love relationship

within the Triune God.” – Grenz (p. 101)




within the Triune God.” – Grenz (p. 101) Love is the reason why God creates and this if in keeping with His

character.





character.2. Creation is a free act of God.






Although God created the world as an outflow of His love, He did not need to create the world in order to be who He is. The Triune God experiences perfect love apart from creation.







Also, the Bible affirms that God created the world ex nihilo, that is “out of nothing.”







Also, the Bible affirms that God created the world ex nihilo, that is “out of nothing.”

Taken together, this means that creation is a free act of God. In other words, God as Creator does not need his creation, but His creation needs him. Or to put in another way, God is not dependent on creation, but all creation is dependent on Him.


• This means that as Creator God is sovereign over His creation. He is ruler of the universe.



• This, of course, seems to be contradicted by the current state of the world. If God is both good and sovereign, shouldn’t the world be a lot different that it is?




• There are two helpful distinctions in this regard when talking of God’s sovereignty as Creator:





1. Present vs. Final Sovereignty





1. Present vs. Final Sovereignty The “real” creation is what we will arrive at when the kingdom of

God has come in full.






God has come in full. In other words, it is not wise to judge God on the basis of current

affairs because He is not finished creating!







affairs because He is not finished creating!2. De Juro vs. De Facto Sovereignty







affairs because He is not finished creating!2. De Juro vs. De Facto Sovereignty

God is sovereign “by right” (de juro), but on account of human rebellion and His gracious plan for our redemption He is not currently sovereign “in fact” (de facto)

DOCTRINE OF PROVIDENCE


• Knowing that God is sovereign by right, but not yet in fact leads us to Christian beliefs on providence. In other words, how is the sovereign God directing His creation so that it will one day become what He in fact intended it to be?



• First, we must understand what God’s intention for creation is.




• In a word, community.




• In a word, community.

• God’s intention for creation is to establish His kingdom, that is, a community of “redeemed people dwelling in a renewed earth, enjoying reconciliation with their God, fellowship with each other, and harmony with all creation.” – Grenz (p. 115)


• God’s means for directing creation towards His intended purposes typically fall under three headings:



1. Preservation



1. Preservation God “prevents the universe and its history from slipping into

meaninglessness.” – Grenz (p. 120)




meaninglessness.” – Grenz (p. 120) Through our union with Christ, being “in” Him, our lives and

actions become part of God’s work towards His final purposes for the world. Therefore our individual lives share in God’s purpose.






2. Concurrence






2. Concurrence Despite the appearance that we are free to act however we wish,

only God’s will is ultimate. All other wills still remain dependent on Him.






2. Concurrence Despite the appearance that we are free to act however we wish,

only God’s will is ultimate. All other wills still remain dependent on Him.

Positively, this means God can and does ‘get behind’ certain actions and restrains others.



1. Preservation2. Concurrence



1. Preservation2. Concurrence3. Government




“This doctrine emphasizes the greatness of God in the face of evil. God governs the world in that He brings good out of evil, whether partially in this life or fully in the eschatological new creation.” – Grenz (p. 122)





The great example of this providential governance of God is Jesus’ death.





The great example of this providential governance of God is Jesus’ death.

God used the great atrocity of Jesus’ crucifixion as the means of bringing salvation to the world. God used the greatest evil (Jesus’ crucifixion) to bring us the greatest good (salvation).

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION• In the end we must conclude that God is far greater than we

will ever understand.



• However, He has revealed to us many things about who He is and what He is like.




• Today we have summed up these beliefs under three headings:





1. The Attributes of God





1. The Attributes of God2. The Triune God





1. The Attributes of God2. The Triune God3. The Creator God





1. The Attributes of God2. The Triune God3. The Creator God

• In studying the Attributes of God we learned that although we are created in God’s image and share many of His attributes (the communicable ones), God has other attributes that make Him unique and transcendent (the incommunicable ones).

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION• In the end we must conclude that God is far greater than we will

ever understand.


• Today we have summed up these beliefs under three headings:1. The Attributes of God2. The Triune God3. The Creator God

• In studying the Attributes of God we learned that although we are created in God’s image and share many of His attributes (the communicable ones), God has other attributes that make Him unique and transcendent (the incommunicable ones).

• We learned that God’s eternality clarifies what it means for Him to be omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent. These attributes describe his relationship to the actual events of history past, present and future, rather than theoretical speculation about what might be possible for God.


• We also learned that God is good and that He expresses this goodness as one who is both holy and compassionate.



• Next we explored what it means for God to be Triune and discovered that His Trinitarian nature reveals that God’s fundamental divine attribute is love.




• Finally, we explored what it means for God to be the Creator of all things.





• We learned that creation is a free act of God motivated by the love that eternally exists between Father, Son and Holy Spirit.






• This means God is sovereign over all creation by right and will be sovereign in fact when His kingdom comes in full and His creation is truly complete.






• This means God is sovereign over all creation by right and will be sovereign in fact when His kingdom comes in full and His creation is truly complete.

• In the meantime God providentially guides His creation towards this end through our union with Christ (preservation), through retaining the ultimate will over all free wills (concurrence), and through bringing good out of evil (government).


• Therefore, as Christians, on the basis of Scripture and the affirmation of 2000 years worth of believers before us, we should confidently believe that the God we worship is an eternal, holy, compassionate, sovereign and triune God whose central characteristic is self-giving love.



• This is the answer to the question of Theology Proper, the question, “Who is God?”



• This is the answer to the question of Theology Proper, the question, “Who is God?”

• Next time, we will turn to Anthropology and the question “Who are we?”

what do christians believe?. review what you believe is important. why?

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