The Truth About God The Father
Part 03
Theology Proper The Study of God the Father
Theology
proper should begin with some proper Scriptures.
That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is
God,
and that there is none else. 1Kings 8:60
Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high, Who
humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the
earth!
Psalm 113:5-6
O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that
trusteth in him. Psalm 34:8
Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD
he
is God; there is none else beside him.... Know therefore this day,
and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven
above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.
Deuteronomy 4:35,39
I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside
me:
I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:... That they may know
from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none
beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. Isaiah
45:5-6
Theology Proper is designated 'Proper' to distinguish this study from
the larger use of the word Theology. It is thus narrowed to just the
study of Theos. literally the
study of God, but such is not by any means narrow. Again, the second
part of the term, ology
comes from the word logos,
and means a “word, a discourse, a
doctrine, a teaching, a
matter under discussion, a thing spoken of or talked about, also the
mental faculty of thinking, meditating, or reasoning about” Again,
the English word science,
cannot capture the depth of ology
in Theology, nor can
the English word study.
Ergo, Theology Proper shall be genuine Theology
and it shall be thorough.
A legitimate beginning of such a topic might be framed in a question.
Where
did God come from?
In a creation debate of years gone by Kent Hovind answered the
question “Where did God come from?” with great
finesse as
follows:
The question where did God come from assumes, obviously it displays,
that you are thinking of the wrong God, because the God of the Bible
is not effected by time, space, or matter. If he is effected by
time, space, and matter, then obviously he is not God. Time, space,
and matter is what we call a continuum; all of them have to come into
existence in the same instant. Because if there were matter and no
space, where would you put it? If there were matter and space and no
time, when would you put it?
You cannot have time, space, and matter independently, they have to
come into existence simultaneously. The Bible answers that in ten
words, “In the beginning..” there is time,
“God. Created the
heaven...” there is space, “and the
earth,” there is matter.
So there you have time, space, and matter, created. It is a trinity
of trinities, because you know time is past, present, future, space
has length, width, and height, and matter has solid, liquid and gas.
You have a trinity of trinities created instantaneously, and the God
who created them has to be outside of them.
If he is limited by time, he is not God. The god who created this
computer is not inside the computer, he is not running around in
there changing the numbers on the screen. The God who created this
universe is outside of the universe. He is above it, outside it,
beyond it, through it...he is unaffected by it. So in the concept
that a spiritual force cannot have any effect on a material body...
well then I guess you would have to explain to me things like
emotions, and love, and hatred, and envy, and jealousy, and
rationality.
I mean if your brain is just a random collection of chemicals that
formed by chance over billions of years, how on earth can you trust
your own reasoning processes and the thoughts that you think?
(Applause) Your question, “Where did God come
from?” is assuming
a limited God, and that is your problem. The God that I worship is
not limited by time, space, or matter. If I could fit the infinite
God into my three pound brain, he would not be worth worshiping, that
is for certain. So that is the God I worship, Thank you.
Dr. Hovind certainly
adds some
sound ology to this
topic but a more formal consideration of Theology Proper is in good
order here.
A
Proper Theology Proper
A systematic theology section titled “Theology
Proper” is want to
be written. One which captures all the organization of Charles Hodge
and all the detail of Augustus Strong, while avoiding, yeah even
exposing all the error of Westminster decrees and other foreign
sources they cited. One which instead uses the Holy Bible as its sole
source and final authority. One which sidesteps the overriding
bearing of Hodge's reformed theology. One which exposes Strong's
evolutionary blunder and glorifies the LORD God in detailing his
wondrous work of creation. A systematic theology needs to have Holy
Scripture as its sole authority and expose the vain philosophies of
man and dogma's of the Romans. Such a work is want to be made, and
its draft is presently before you.
Excellently organized works of theology have gone before. Charles
Hodge, known as the Father of Printed Systematic Theologies, is best
organized, and Augustus Strong is most detailed. Both outlines are
shown below and they should, in reality, be merged into one work for
completeness in a thorough and sound work. Such merging would need
sound and careful attention because neither Hodge, nor Strong used
the Holy Bible as their sole source. Indeed, neither did Thiessen,
Chafer, or Geisler. Previous systematic theologies all attempt to
compile “everything that was ever believed about
God,” whether
that be philosophers or Roman theologians. This work strives to
document everything revealed about God, and revelation comes only
from the Holy inspired, inerrant, infallible, preserved words of God.
Charles Hodge organized his Theology Proper thus: 1) Origin of the
idea of God, 2) Theism, 3) Anti-Theistic theories, 4) knowledge of
God, 5) The Nature of God and His Attributes, 6) the Trinity, 7) The
Divinity of Christ, 8) The Holy Spirit, 9) The Decrees of God, 10)
Creation, 11) Providence, and 12) Miracles.
Augustus Strong had a more detailed and slightly variant organization
of his theology proper. It is shown below:
PART IV. ”THE NATURE,
DECREES, AND WORKS OF GOD,
243-370
Chapter I. The
Attributes of God, 243-303
I. Definition of the term
Attributes, 244
II. Relation of the Divine
Attributes to the Divine
Essence, 244-246
III. Methods of Determining the
Divine Attributes,
246-247
IV. Classification of the
Attributes, 247-249
V. Absolute or Immanent
Attributes, 249-275
First Division. Spirituality,
and Attributes therein
involved, 249-254
1. Life, 251-252
2. Personality, 252-254
Second Division. Infinity, and
Attributes therein
involved, 254-260
1. Self-existence, 256-257
2. Immutability, 257-259
3. Unity, 259-260
Third Division. Perfection, and
Attributes therein
involved, 260-275
1. Truth, 260-262
2. Love, 263-268
3. Holiness, 268-275
VI. Relative or Transitive
Attributes, 275-295
First Division. Attributes
having relation to Time and
Space, 275-279
1. Eternity, 275-278
2. Immensity, 278-279
Second Division. Attributes
having relation to Creation
279-288
1. Omnipresence, 279-282
2. Omniscience, 282-286
3. Omnipotence, 286-288
Third Division. Attributes
having relation to Moral
Beings, 288-295
1. Veracity and Faithfulness,
or Transitive Truth,
288-289
2. Mercy and Goodness, or
Transitive Love, . . 289-290
3. Justice and Righteousness,
or Transitive Holiness,
290-295
VII. Rank and Relations of the
several Attributes,
295-303
1. Holiness the Fundamental
Attribute in God, 296-298
2. The Holiness of God the
Ground of Moral Obligation,
298-303
Chapter II. Doctrine op
the Trinity, 304-352
I. In Scripture there are Three
who are recognized as
God, 305-322
1. Proofs from the New
Testament, 305-317
A. The Father is recognized as
God, 305
B. Jesus Christ is recognized
as God, 305-315
C. The Holy Spirit is
recognized as God, 315-317
2. Intimations of the Old
Testament, 317-322
A. Passages which seem to teach
Plurality of some sort
in the Godhead, 317-819
B. Passages relating to the
Angel of Jehovah, . . .
319-320
C. Descriptions of the Divine
Wisdom and Word, 320-321
D. Descriptions of the Messiah,
321-322
II. These Three are so described
in Scripture, that we
are compelled to conceive them as distinct Persons, 322-326
1. The Father and the Son are
Persons distinct from
each other, 322
2. The Father and the Son are
Persons distinct from the
Spirit, 322-323
3. The Holy Spirit is a Person,
323 326
III. This Tri-personality of the
Divine Nature is not
merely economic and temporal, but is immanent and eternal, 326-330
1. Scripture Proof that these
distinctions of
Pesonality are eternal, 326
2. Errors refuted by the
Scripture Passages, . . .
327-330
A. The Sabellian, 827-328
B. The Arian, 328-330
VI While there are three
Persons, there is but one
Essence, 330-334
V. These three Persons are
Equal, 334-343
1. These Titles belong to the
Persons, 834-336
2. Qualified Sense of these
Titles, 335-340
3. Generation and Procession
consistent with Equality,
340-343
VI. The Doctrine of the Trinity
inscrutable, yet not
self contradictory, but the Key to all other Doctrines, 344-352
1. The Mode of this Triune
Existence is inscrutable,
344-345
2. The Doctrine of the Trinity
is not
self-contradictory, 345-347
3. The Doctrine of the Trinity
has important relations
to other Doctrines, 347-352
Chapter III The Decrees
of God, 353-370
I. Definition of Decrees,
353-355
II. Proof of the Doctrine of
Decrees, 355-359
1. From Scripture, 355-356
2. From Beason, 356-359
A. From the Divine
Foreknowledge, 356-358
B. From the Divine Wisdom, 358
C. From the Divine
Immutability, 358-559
D. From the Divine Benevolence,
359
III. Objections to the Doctrine
of Decrees, 359-368
1. That they are inconsistent
with the Free Agency of
Man, , 359-362
2. That they take away all
Motive for Human Exertion,
363-364
3. That they make God the
Author of Sin, 365-368
IV. Concluding Remarks, 368-370
1. Practical Uses of the
Doctrine of Decrees, 368-369
2. True Method of Preaching the
Doctrine 369-370
These two outlines need to be absolutely stripped of their
Presbyterian - “Doctrine of Decrees” and then
molded into one
Theology Proper section in a new 21st century
Systematic
Theology work. Alternatively, this work relies on Dr. Cambron's
thorough and Biblically accurate Bible Doctrines book's address of
Theology Proper.
A
Proper Naturalistic Theism
What
does man know about God with no exposure to the Scriptures wherein
God reveals himself? The study and analysis of that question is
called naturalistic theism
because man by his nature knows of the existence of God. In times
past otherwise genius theologians have left their Biblical mooring
and ventured into rationalistic thinking and philosophical journals
and made naturalistic theism some sort of traditional proof of the
existence of God. A wise theologian assembling a valid systematic
theology must be ever vigilant and circumspect to stay secured in his
Biblical moorings and answer naturalistic theism by analyzing,
“What
does the Bible say about mans natural and intrinsic knowledge of
God?” That analysis will always be all sufficient for a
Biblical
systematic theology.
In
that other works of systematic theology have invested great effort in
a rationalistic approach to naturalistic theism, their arguments are
herein introduced, found baseless and philosophical and then a valid
naturalistic theism is found more adequately answered in Scripture.
It is caprice, i.e. a sudden unaccountable change of behavior, that
any theologian would spend effort analyzing an ontological
argument for the
existence of God. But that they did, Hodge, pg 204-207, Chafer, pg.
158-168, and unfortunately even Baptist theologians, Strong, pg
85-89, and Thiessen, pg. 55-63. Ontology is the branch of philosophy,
or metaphysics,which
deals with the nature of being and the existence of reality. When
Moses was nervous about the existence of God, God said to Moses,
“I
AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shall thou say unto the children of
Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exod 3:14). God spends
no
time, effort, or word in proving the existence of His being or the
existence of reality, and it is, thus, capricious for a theologian to
pursue the vain philosophies of man down the vein of ontology.
It
is equally vain to incorporate a teleological
philosophy lecture in a systematic theology. Supposing that
“an
ultimate purpose and design” proves the existence of God is
trite.
God does not use their verbose volumes but presents His teleological
argument in four redundant questions: “He
that planted
the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?
He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that
teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?”
(Psalm 94:9-10). This, God's profound acknowledgment of their whole
teleological argument, is not given to the seeking saint or
inquisitive theologian, it is given to the brutish and the fool! The
verses preceding says “Yet they say,
The LORD shall not
see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it. Understand, ye brutish
among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?”
(vr. 7-8). For the systematic theologian to set aside his task of
systematizing truth, and pursue a proof of the existence of God to a
group of unregenerate vain philosophers is worse than vain, it is
unadulterated foolishness.
The
whole point of this teleological proof text (i.e. Psalm 94:7-11) is
the “The LORD knoweth the thought of
man, that they are
vanity.”
(vr. 11) Ergo the
theologian has no business wandering in the corridors of vain
philosophy, nor attempting the proof of God's existence. If God
himself dos not dabble in the proof, neither will the wise
theologian. One need not spend a good chapter developing such trite
philosophy when God has already expressed it in a succinct thirty six
words. Just give the infidel, agnostic or atheist God's words; they
are quick and powerful, while philosophy is vain and conceited.
This
teleological proof text (Psalm 94:7-11) rests in this context;
“Blessed is the man whom thou
chastenest, O LORD, and
teachest him out of thy law; That thou mayest give him rest from the
days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.”
(Psa 94:12-13) God's law,
our pure source text for theology “is
profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness”
(2Tim 3:16-17),
and the brutish philosophers have only the itching ear, the wanting
eye, ergo they need God's chastisement and the teaching of knowledge
(cf Psa 94:9-10). The parallels are not coincidental and the
theologian should stay in his own camp, using Scripture as his sole
authority.
Hodge,
Strong, and Chafer also appeal to an anthropological argument and a
cosmological argument in their effort to provide the vain, brutish
philosopher a proof of the existence of God. Indeed analyzing the
constitution of man may reveal some characteristics of God, for man
is, after all, made in His image; and analyzing the constitution of
the universe will reveal the glory of God and can reveal his
handiwork, exactly as Psalm 19 points out; however, again, the
theologian that uses these entities to make a proof for the existence
of God is not wise, and is not following a Biblical systematic
theology. Just as Psalm 94 points the wise theologian to the perfect
law of the LORD for his source of truth, so to does Psalm 19. It
opens with a profound cosmological argument, but it has for its
theme:
The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the
testimony
of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD
are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for
ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold:
sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy
servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.
To determine what natural man knows about God naturally the
theologian should set aside all
his philosophy books and
look only into the perfect, sure, right, and pure sole source of
theology: God's plenary, verbally inspired, infallible, inerrant
Word.
Naturalistic
Theism, what man
knows about God naturally, what man intrinsically understands about
God, is spelled out in God's Word. God's Word was previously
categorically declared, even by these theologians, to be the sole
authority of all faith and practice, ergo it is the supreme source
for our naturalistic theism. It says...
For
I am not ashamed of the
gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every
one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For
therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as
it is written, The just shall live by faith. For the wrath of God is
revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of
men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
Because
that which may be
known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For
the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his
eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
Romans 1:16-20
It
says his Light lighteth every
man that cometh into the world...
In
the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was
not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was
the light of men.
And
the light shineth in
darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. ... He (John) was not
that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That
was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the
world. John 1:1-5,8,9
It
says God tries the reins of
every man...
I
the LORD search the heart, I
try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and
according to the fruit of his doings.... But, O LORD of hosts, that
triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart, let me see
thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I opened my cause.
Jeremiah 17:10, 20:12
And
again...
And
I will kill her children
with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which
searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you
according to your works. Revelation 2:23
And,
God continues his letter to
the Romans, man knew God...
Because
that, when they knew
God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became
vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the
glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible
man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Romans 1:21-23
One
needs no further philosophy of
man to understand a naturalistic theology. God has adequately
revealed mans 'natural' knowledge of God, and even that is not
natural, it is supernatural.
(Psalm 19:7-11)