Theology Proper - God Systematic Theology Pastor Brett Peterson.

Theology Proper - GodTheology Proper - God

Systematic Theology

Pastor Brett Peterson

Who is God?Who is God?

• Theology proper is a glimpse at God the Father

• Describe God the Father….

04/19/23 Pastor Brett Peterson, CCBCU.EDU 3

First Assumption – God never changes…

First Assumption – God never changes…

• Heb 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

• Covenant: The only difference between the Old and New covenant is the blood of Christ! Both have salvation through faith, blood sacrifice, changed behavior, and relationship.

• James 2:23,24; Matt.5:17-24• 2Co 3:6 who also made us adequate as servants of a

new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.


A CLASSICAL APPROACHA CLASSICAL APPROACH• We begin with the God of the Bible

• The same God of the Old covenant and the New – physical vs. spiritual• We know him because he has made Himself known

• We trust his Revelation • “Scriptural authority comes from God. In its total extent and in all its

parts Scripture is the inspired, and thus also the authoritative Word of God. What Paul says, God says.” Spykman, Reformational Theology, 123

• Reason is subordinated to Scripture, yet faith is reasonable.• We do not begin with any a-priori concepts regarding the nature of God

or his method of dealing with his creatures• This avoids the problems of blind believism – it gives us a system that

is empirically determined through the study of God’s Word.• True theology is not the product of philosophical speculation, it is the

absolute truth revealed by a personal God.


THE ANTITHESIS- SATANTHE ANTITHESIS- SATAN

• Concept offered by Dutch Calvinists • It seeks to provide a way of viewing the entire cosmos as

belonging to God

• But, short of the heaven, all creation is under siege by the forces of evil

• The antithesis is critical to all theological enterprise • It runs through every part of the created order

• It affects every issue arising in creation

• It reminds us of the danger of relying upon only reason.


THE ANTITHESIS THE ANTITHESIS • “The antithesis represents a spiritual warfare between good

and evil which knows no territorial boundaries. It is not geographically, locally, or spatially definable. The enmity between these two hostile forces does not coincide with two parts of reality, as though one sector of life were holy and the other unholy, or one bloc righteous and the other unrighteous. It is a directional antithesis which runs through all the structures of life. Sin is totally pervasive. Grace, too, lays its claim on all reality. The antithesis may therefore not be dualistically misconstrued as though it drives a wedge between soul and body, faith and reason, theology and philosophy, church and world- with the former viewed as good and the latter as evil.” Spykman, Reformational Theology, 66


REVELATI0N AND REASON REVELATI0N AND REASON • Scientific Investigation employs Logic, the use of

Reason: Induction and Deduction• Scientific Investigation employs the use of the senses,

perception• Reason and the Senses are both employed to discover

absolute truth• Both have validity, enabling us to analyze the data of

creation, to think and ponder its implications• Ultimately, revelation is reasonable


THEOLOGY AS SCIENCE:THEOLOGY AS SCIENCE:• It is a Practical Science; it has more than mere

Ontology (existence)• Theology has Teleology; it has purpose and

direction• The end of theological inquiry is not merely

mental equilibrium – a stagnate state of existance• The goal of scientific inquiry is knowledge that

must produce a response and a transformation.

• Theology is more than philosophical ascension – it is experienced in all we do!


THEOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY: THEOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY: • The relationship is as follows:

• Philosophy is merely a mental exercise• Theology is both mental and spiritual

• Philosophy is human understanding

• Theology is God’s revelation imparted to human understanding

The Attributes of GodThe Attributes of God

1. A quality or characteristic inherent in or ascribed to someone or something.

What Are Attributes?What Are Attributes?

• Qualities of the entire Godhead - not just one Person of the Trinity

• Permanent - will not change over time

• Intrinsic - cannot be gained nor lostInseparable from God’s being, essence and existence

• NOTE: Jesus gave up His divine attributes when He became a man:

• Joh 5:18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

What Are Attributes?What Are Attributes?

• Qualities of the entire Godhead - not just one Person of the Trinity

• Permanent - will not change over time

• Intrinsic - cannot be gained nor lostInseparable from God’s being, essence and existence

• NOTE: Jesus gave up His divine attributes when He became a man:

Phi 2:5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

• Mar 6:5 And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.

• Mat 24:36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

InscrutabilityInscrutability

• There is a sense in which God will never be known by any created being

• God is infinite, and an infinite amount of time would be required by a finite being to even get close to understanding God

• God’s attributes are infinite - even though we can share some of God’s attributes, e.g. love, - our expression of that attribute is only a mere fraction of God’s

• We only know what God has revealed.• We will spend eternity getting to know God!

General RevelationGeneral Revelation

• We can know what God has revealed through His general revelation-creation-physical laws - physics-science-mathematics-biology-morality and conscience

• Psalm 19:1-4 “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

• Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities — His eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

• The ability to love unconditionally is a reflection of divine love.

"It's not for lack of evidence that people turn from God; it's from their pride or

their will. God is not going to force anyone into the fold. Love never works coercively.

It only works persuasively. And there's plenty of persuasive evidence there.”

Norman Geisler, The Case for Christ; quoted in Servant.

HOW DO WE STUDY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?HOW DO WE STUDY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?

• The attributes are in harmony with one another. That is, they complement one another, work together with one another, are not in conflict with one another, and no attribute is superior or inferior to any other. All His attributes are always fully active. So, God can be just and loving without the one being in conflict with the other. This demonstrates the SIMPLICITY of God.

“The harmony of His being is the result not of perfect balance between the parts but of the absence of parts. Between His attributes no contradiction can exist. He

need not suspend one to exercise another, for in Him all His attributes are one. All of God does all that God does; He does not

divide Himself to perform a work, but works in the total unity of His being.”

A. W. Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy.

HOW DO WE STUDY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?HOW DO WE STUDY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?

• The attributes are in harmony with one another.

• We recognize that all God’s attributes are infinite, i.e., they are complete (not maturing or changing), they have always existed completely and always will exist completely. Thus, He is a unique, singular God. There is no one like Him and all other beings exist from, through, and for Him (1 Cor. 8:6). This demonstrates the UNITY of God.

WHAT ARE THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?WHAT ARE THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?

“An attribute of God is whatever God has in any way revealed as being true of

Himself.…An attribute, then, is a part of God. It is how God is, and as far as the

reasoning mind can go, we may say that it is what God is, though…


“… exactly what He is He cannot tell us. Of what God is conscious when He is conscious of self, only He knows. ‘The things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.’ [1

Cor. 2:11] Only to an equal could God communicate the mystery of His Godhead; and to think of God as having an equal is to

fall into an intellectual absurdity.”

Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy.


• God’s INCOMMUNICABLE attributes have nothing analogous in God’s created beings.

INFINITY — “God is free from all limitations to His Being and attributes by the bounds of the spacio-temporal horizon of the universe.” God is limitless, measureless and knows no bounds (Job 5:9; 9:10; Ps. 145:3).


• God’s INCOMMUNICABLE attributes.

INFINITY

ETERNALITY — God is without beginning or end; He is free from all succession of time; He is the cause of time.

Before the mountains were bornOr You gave birth to the earth and the

world,Even from everlasting to everlasting,

You are God.

Psalm 90:2

“‘From everlasting to everlasting, thou art God,’ said Moses in the Spirit. ‘From the vanishing point to the vanishing point’ would be another way to say it quite in keeping with the words as Moses used

them. The mind looks backward in time till the dim past vanishes, then turns and looks into the future till thought and imagination

collapse from exhaustion; and God is at both points, unaffected by either.”

A. W. Tozer.


• God’s INCOMMUNICABLE attributes.

INFINITY

ETERNALITY IMMENSITY— He cannot be localized in one

place. God transcends all spatial limitations; He is present in every point in space with His entire being through the agency of the Holy Spirit.


• INCOMMUNICABLE

INFINITY SELF-EXISTENCE IMMUTABILITY UNITY

• COMMUNICABLE HOLINESS OMNISCIENCE OMNIPOTENCE OMNIPRESENCE WISDOM SOVEREIGNTY LOVE JEALOUSY GRACE PATIENCE GOODNESS RIGHTEOUSNESS TRUTH

“God is omniscient; He knows everything. God is infallible; it is impossible for Him to fail. God is inerrant; He never errs. Not only does God not commit error, but He

does not inspire error. God is neither the source of nor the inspirer of error. What

comes from His divine mind is truth. What He inspires is truth.…If a book has errors, it

is not the Word of God. If a book is the Word of God, it does not have errors. We cannot have a book that is both the Word

of God and errant.”

Sproul, One Holy Passion.

“But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I

should build a house for Him, except to burn incense before

Him?”

2 Chronicles 2:6

• Psa 139:7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

• God is omnipresent through the agency of the Holy Spirit. Where is Jesus today?

• Col 3:1 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

• Gen 1:26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.“ 27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

• Image – “A masculine noun meaning an image, a likeness, a statue, a model, a drawing, a shadow”

• Likeness – “A feminine noun meaning resemblance; concretely model, shape”

• The Hebrew is very clear here – we are made in the physical likeness of The Father and the Son!

Angels are the likeness of God as well…

Angels are the likeness of God as well…

• Dan 10:16 And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, "O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and I retain no strength.

• Gen 5:1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God.

•

• Gen 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.

• Gen 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.

• Gen 1:26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;

• Same words!!!!

Where is God the Father?Where is God the Father?

• Rev 7:15 "For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.

• Dan 7:9 "I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.

• This is the Father, seated on His Throne

• Dan 7:10 "A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened.

• Dan 7:13 "I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him.

• Dan 7:14 "And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.

• Rev 19:4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, "Amen. Hallelujah!"

• Rev 7:10 and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"

What does the Father look like?What does the Father look like?

• Let’s ‘see’…

• Rev 4:2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

• Rev 4:3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.

Dan 7:9 As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool;

• Rev 1:12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hairs of his head were white like wool, as white as snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters.

• Rev 5:6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

• Rev 5:7 And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.

• Rev 5:13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"

• Mat 23:22 And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.

Balance of AttributesBalance of Attributes

• God’s attributes exist in perfect balance with each other• God would not make a rock too big to lift since it

would violate His attribute of wisdom• God cannot sin because He IS the mark and sin is

missing the mark, and He can not miss Himself• God cannot lie since it would violate his attribute of

Truthfulness and Faithfulness• God cannot forgive sin without a satisfactory payment

as it would violate His attributes of Justice and Righteousness, and it would violate the law, which would be sin, and God cannot sin.

CategorizationsCategorizations• Moral vs. Natural

• Moral - deals with the concept of right and wrong

• Natural - non-moral superlatives, e.g. omnipotence

• Relative vs. Absolute• Relative - manifested in His relationship to creation

• Absolute - qualities which exist apart from creation

• Communicable vs. Incommunicable• Communicable - shared with other beings, e.g. love

• Incommunicable - no counterpart exists for created beings, e.g. omnipotence

SpiritualitySpirituality

• God, the Holy Spirit - John 4:24• No physicality• No spatial limitations• Not destructible like ordinary matter• Timeless and ageless• Invisible• Cannot be reduced to an image

PersonalityPersonality

• Self-conscious - Exodus 3:14

• Relational - Genesis 3

• Intelligent - Isaiah 55

• Has a will - 2 Peter 3:18

• Has emotions

• Manifested in God’s many names• Elohim• Yahweh/Jehovah

• Yahweh (YHWH): Some use ‘Jehovah’, however the most probably pronunciation is ‘Yahweh. Comes from a verb which means “to exist, be.” Compounds of Yah-weh

• Let’s look at the names of God…

Personality: Names of GodPersonality: Names of God

• Elohim - refers to God’s power and might in relation to His creationThe plural form of EL, meaning “strong one.” Is used of false gods, but when used of the true God, it is a plural of majesty and intimates the trinity.

• Used 2,570 times in the Bible• Four compound names exist using Elohim

El-Shaddai - the God who Provides - Genesis 17:1El-Elyon - God Almighty - Genesis 14:17-20El-Roi - the God who Sees - Genesis 16:13El-Olam - the Everlasting God - Isaiah 40:28-31


• Yahwey - refers to God in His special relationship with humanity

• Most common name - occurs 6,823 times• Has as it’s root form the meaning “Self-Existent

One” - the “I AM” of Exodus• Often referred to as the tetragrammaton - referring

to the four Hebrew letters that make up the name - “Y H W H”

• If it is Jehovah, remember there is no ‘J’ sound in Hebrew – it would be yehovah.

• Highly revered by orthodox Jews - they won’t even pronounce it out loud


• Nine compound names exist using Jehovah• Yahweh-Jireh - the Lord Provides - Genesis 22:13-14

• Yahweh-Nissi - the Lord my Banner - Exodus 17:15

• Yahweh-Shalom - the Lord is Peace - Judges 6:24

• Yahweh-Sabaoth - the Lord of Hosts - Isaiah 6:1-3

• Yahweh-Maccaddeschem - the Lord thy Sanctifier - Exodus 31:13

• Yahweh-Rohi - the Lord my Shepherd - Psalm 23

• Yahweh-Tsidkenu - the Lord our Righteousness - Jeremiah 23:6

• Yahweh-Shammah - the Lord who is Present - Ezekiel 48:35

• Yahweh-Rapha - the Lord our Healer - Exodus 15:26

• Exo 34:13 You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim

• Exo 34:14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God),

The Jealousy of God summarizedThe Jealousy of God summarized

• Ex. 20:4-5 — God is jealous for His name• 1 Pt. 1:3-5 — God uses His power to protect

the inheritance of His people• Hosea 1-3 — God is jealous for the fellowship

of His people.

InfinityInfinity

• Limitless and unlimitable - 1 Kings 8:22-27, Jeremiah 23:24

• Exists outside the boundaries of our universe yet sits on a throne in heaven

• Implies a sense in which God can never be fully known by a finite being

Infinity: OmnipresenceInfinity: Omnipresence

• God, through the Holy Spirit, is everywhere, at the same time- Jeremiah 23:23, Psalms 139

• The Father is seated on the throne, but being one with the Spirit makes his presence everywhere the Spirit is.

Infinity: OmnitemporalInfinity: Omnitemporal

• God equally knows everything from any time - He knows the future equally as well as the past - Psalm 90, Isaiah 40-48, Revelation 1:8

• Implied in this concept is the notion of omniscience - since the past, present, and future are equally clear to God he knows all events equally well

• His foreknowledge does not negate free will and natural events. He will never violate free will yet at times will intervene in natural events.

Infinity: OmniscienceInfinity: Omniscience

• God knows everything, in infinite detail, with no effort - Psalm 147:5, Proverbs 15:3, Matthew 10:29, Hebrews 4:13

• God’s knowledge is boundless• God knows what could have happened but did

not as well as what will happen

Infinity: WisdomInfinity: Wisdom

• God knows ALL the facts and makes all decisions with full knowledge of them and in light of what is ultimately best - Romans 11:33, 1 Corinthians 2:7, 1 Timothy 1:17

• God makes no mistakes in His dealings with mankind and His purposes in history

• We need to submit to God’s Word and His direction in our lives because He knows what could happen and what will happen and His plan is much better than ours.

Infinity: OmnipotenceInfinity: Omnipotence

• God can do anything that is in harmony with His other attributes - Genesis 18:10-14, Jeremiah 32:15-17, Matthew 19:26

• God’s power is unlimited• God’s purposes are never frustrated as He has

the power to bring about His will

Infinity: SovereigntyInfinity: Sovereignty

• God is sovereign over nature• God is sovereign over history• God is sovereign over salvation• God is sovereign over creation• God’s will is never frustrated as His

sovereignty is connected to His omnipotence

Infinity: SovereigntyInfinity: Sovereignty

• The problem of evil - Theodicy• God allowed evil to exist in the universe in

order to reveal many of His attributes that would never be known if evil had not existed

• God WILL deal with evil - someday all wrongs will be righted

• God’s timetable is not ours• Human history, when compared to eternity, is a

mere blip on the screen

Infinity: AseityInfinity: Aseity

• Refers to God’s self-existence - He depends on no other being for His existence• Expressed best in God’s name as given to

Moses in Exodus 3:13-14 - I AM

• God is independent in His:• Thoughts - Romans 11:33-34• Will - Romans 9:9, Ephesians 1:5• Power - Psalms 115:3• Counsel - Psalms 33:10-11

Infinity: EternalityInfinity: Eternality

• God is absolutely free from the boundaries of time - He was, is, and is to be - Deuteronomy 33:27, Psalms 102:11-12, John 8:56-57

• His eternality is bi-directional - He existed from eternity past - and will exist to eternity future

• In contrast, all men had a beginning - God always was - the eternal I AM

Infinity: Self-SufficiencyInfinity: Self-Sufficiency

• God does not need anything or anyone to complete Himself - He is completely free from any outside requirements for happiness or fulfillment - Psalm 50:10-12

• God did not need to create the creation - but He did for His own purposes and pleasures - Revelation 4:11, Ephesians 1

ImmutabilityImmutability

• God does not change - Psalm 102:26-27, Psalm 33:11, Malachi 3:6• God is not becoming - He is not learning new

things as history progresses nor is He forgetting past events

• God’s will and purposes do not change• God’s decrees will never change• God cannot lie

HolinessHoliness

• Refers to God’s utter “otherness”

• Has as a root concept God’s total disconnection from creation - God and creation are completely separate

• Most often mentioned attribute of God in the Scriptures

• Is pictured by the Seraphim protecting creation from God in heaven - Isaiah 6

HolinessHoliness

• When used in a moral context - refers to God’s total moral perfection and complete separation from sin - James 1:13, Job 34:12• God does not do something because it is right -

rather it is right because God does it• God is the universal “ruler” for determining

right and wrong

JusticeJustice

• Defined as God acting in perfect conformity with His own law and character

• Demands that sin be paid for by the sinner or an acceptable substitute

• God is the definition of Just• God does not do something because it is just - rather

something is just because God does it

• God’s justice is totally impartial and fair• The ultimate realization of God’s justice will be

seen in the Eternal State - Heaven or Hell

TruthTruth

• God is Truth - Titus 1:2, John 17:17, 19

• God cannot lie - Hebrews 6:18

• God will not deceive or lead anyone astray

• The truthfulness of God does not mean that God says everything - He may withhold information, but He will never lie

• God demands truthfulness for all who name His Name

FaithfulnessFaithfulness

• God’s faithfulness is closely connected with his Truthfulness

• God will never let any of his children down - He never has in 6,000 years of human history - He never will - Deuteronomy 7:9, Psalm 36:5, Psalm 89:1-2, Lamentations 3:22-23

LoveLove

• Refers to God’s self-sacrificial love• God’s love is not dependent on the response of

the one being loved• God’s love is based on a decision - not a “giddy

feeling” in His stomach• Is not an emotion - but rather a choice

• Two concepts• Unselfish concern for another’s welfare• Seeks the highest good for the one loved

LoveLove

• Most thought of, and most misunderstood of all God’s attributes

• God’s love was best expressed in His gift - the life of his Son for us - John 3:16, 1 John 4:8ff, Romans 5:8

Love: GoodnessLove: Goodness

• Refers to Gods benevolence towards mankind - Psalm 107:8, 23:6, Romans 2:4

• Is given to both sinner and saint alike

• Is closely connected with the concept of common grace

Love: MercyLove: Mercy

• Refers to God’s pity for the wretched state of the sinner - Psalm 103:8-17, Hebrews 8:8, 12, Jonah 4:2

• “Not getting what we deserve”• It is God’s mercy that moves Him to seek a

solution to man’s sin problem• God’s mercy, however, does not last forever

- there is a day when mercy ends and judgment begins

Love: GraceLove: Grace

• Refers to God’s unmerited favor towards man in providing a means of redemption and forgiveness - Psalm 116:5, Titus 2:11, Ephesians 2:8-9“Getting what we don’t deserve”

• Grace is:• Unmerited - nothing exists intrinsically in man

that would cause God to exhibit grace towards him - Titus 3:5

• Unearned - nothing man can do can ever earn God’s grace - Titus 3:5

Love: GraceLove: Grace

• Grace is• Unpayable - nothing man can do can ever repay God

for His grace

• Unending - God’s grace towards the believer is unending and eternal - it can never be undone

• Unfathomable - God alone knows why He shows grace to the sinner - Romans 9, Ephesians 1

Love: PersistentLove: Persistent

• Refers to God’s persistent pursuit of the sinner in order to display His love and forgiveness - Romans 2:4, 1 Peter 3:20, 2 Peter 3:15

• Closely connected with God’s patience in not immediately exacting the proper and right punishment for sin

WrathWrath

• Refers to God’s automatic and intrinsic response to sin - Romans 1:18ff.

• Comes from the Greek word “thumos” - which literally means “to blow one’s stack”

• God’s wrath will be fully realized in the condemnation of the wicked to the Lake of Fire

WrathWrath

• Has two components• Temporal - evidenced by the “bad things” that

happen to people• Disease

• Disaster

• Death

• Eternal - evidenced by the Lake of Fire

ImmanenceImmanence

• Refers to God’s immediate and personal involvement in creation - specifically in His relationship with men

• God is not the “absentee Landlord” of Deism

• God is not the apathetic creator of Islam and other pagan religions

TranscendenceTranscendence

• Embodies the concept that God is infinitely beyond His creation

• When creation is subtracted from the universe - God is still there - He is transcendent over creation and all existence

Theology Proper - God Systematic Theology Pastor Brett Peterson.

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