DOCTRINE OF GOD

From WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES

by F. G. Smith

By the term "God" we mean a perfect, conscious, intelligent Being existing from eternity, the Cause of all created things. This idea seems so natural that the majority of men accept it as self-evident truth, without hesitating to give it any particular thought. But when able thinkers, as Kant, assert that God can not be known by means of pure reason, that he is not immediately discernible by the physical senses, we are led to reflect on the subject. If it be true that God cannot be discovered by the five physical senses, we assert that there is in man a sort of sixth sense-an internal consciousness, a spiritual insight-that is able to discern our Creator, to realize his presence, and to feel his spiritual power.

But aside from this, God has not left us without a witness whose testimony is sufficiently clear to satisfy all reasonable minds that there is a God. The simple argument is this: We are conscious that we exist and that we are something. Of this there can be no doubt. We are also certain that from nothing nothing comes; therefore we know that something has existed from eternity; for everything that has not existed from eternity had a beginning and must have been produced by something else. We are also aware that anything that has been produced by another has derived all of its powers from that source; hence the eternal Being must be the most powerful. Furthermore, man possesses moral consciousness, knowledge and intelligence, from which fact we are certain that the First Cause of our existence was from eternity a moral, knowing being. Only "the fool hath said in his heart, There is no God"; and he can say this only in his heart, not with the full consent of his mind; for if it be difficult to prove by means of the reason that there is a God, it is altogether impossible to prove by this means that there is no God. The wish is the father of the thought; for such sinful characters would be happy indeed if it were true that there is really no God.

The writers of the Scriptures do not argue the existence of God, The first chapter of the Bible opens with the words "In the beginning God," and everywhere his being is assumed. But the Scriptures contain the revelation that he has made of his own nature and attributes. These attributes are so well understood and so generally acknowledged that I will merely refer to them, not giving the multitude of texts by which they are set forth in the Scriptures.

HIS ATTRIBUTES.

1. Self-Existence. "The Father hath life in himself" (John 5:26). "For with thee is the fountain of life" (Psa. 36:9). He is underived and inexhaustible.

2. Eternity. "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God" (Psa. 90: 2). The high and lofty One "inhabiteth eternity" (Isa. 57:15).

3. Spirituality. "God is a Spirit" (John 4:24).

4. Unity the One true and living God. "There is no God else beside me" (Isa. 45:21).

5. Immutability. "I am the Lord, I change not" ( Mal. 3:6). "The Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning" (Jas. 1:17).

6. Omnipresence; that is, he is everywhere present. "Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth?" (Jer. 23:24). He is "not far from every one of us: for in him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:27, 28).

7. Omniscience; that is, he is all-knowing. "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world" (Acts 15: 18). "Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his eight: but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do (Heb. 4:13).

8. Omnipotence; that is, he has unlimited and universal power. "His eternal power and Godhead" (Rom. 1:20). "With God all things are possible" (Matt. 19: 26)

9. Wisdom. "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever: for wisdom and might are his" (Dan. 2:20). "Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" (Rom.11:33).

10. Holiness and truth. "I am holy" (1 Pet. 1:16). "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity" (Hab. 1:13). "God that can not lie" (Tit. 1:2).

11. Justice. God demands righteousness of all his intelligent creatures, and deals righteously with them. "Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne" (Psa. 89:14). "In every nation he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted with him" (Acts 10:35).

12. Goodness -benevolence, love, mercy, and grace. "The goodness of God" (Rom. 2:4). "God so loved the world" (John 3:16). "His mercy endureth forever" (Psa. 136:26). "The God of all grace" (1 Pet. 5:10).

13. Faithfulness. "God is faithful" (2 Thess. 3:3). Sarah "judged him faithful who had promised" (Heb. 11:11).

THE TRINITY.

The theological term "trinity" signifies the union of three Persons-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-in the Godhead. This subject was a most fruitful source of theological controversy in the past ages, and even at the present day there are not wanting professed Christians who deny it altogether. Our present limits preclude an extended discussion of the matter, but I will bring forward a few points in its favor.

The greatest controversy concerning the Trinity began to rage during the third century and continued until the Council of Nice, A. D. 325. The special emphasis of the Alexandrine, or Greek, Fathers during this period was laid on the doctrine of the incarnation of Christ; and this, of course, precipitated a warm controversy as to his nature. In the beginning of the fourth century the Unitarians were led by an able man named Arius, who contended that Christ, being the Son of God, was not eternal, but was a creation of God, the highest, however, of all created beings. This doctrine spread with great rapidity. When Constantine ascended the imperial throne and made Christianity the religion of the Roman state, he convoked the First General Council, at Nice, for the purpose of settling this great controversy. Athanasius, of Alexandria, was the leader of those who contended for the essential divinity of Christ and his equality with the Father. This party was successful in the council, thus preserving to the world the idea of God triple in his unity, and one in his triplicity. The rejected doctrine is generally known as the Arian heresy.

To many this doctrine of the Trinity appears like an unimportant matter, but in reality it is not. If Christ, with his marvelous perfections, be not truly God, then instead of bringing man to God, he has only succeeded in revealing to us the impassable gulf that exists between us and the divine One; but if he truly is "God manifest in the flesh" for the purpose of transforming sinful man into his own image, then we are assured of our moral and spiritual correspondence and communion with the Father in heaven.

But the real cause of the rejection of this doctrine by many is its mystery or incomprehensibleness. But what of that? No one has yet shown that it involves a real contradiction. What demonstrated truth does it oppose? Are we not surrounded by many things that are in their real nature mysterious? Even man himself is a sort of trinity, possessing intellect, sensibility, and will; and yet these distinct elements are in some unexplained and perhaps unexplainable, manner wondrously blended in an undoubted unity. While this does not explain nor prove the exact nature of the Godhead, yet it should lead us to expect in the Infinite One a greater degree of mystery than exists within ourselves, and should caution us against rejecting everything that can not be brought down to the level of the finite mind.

Since the enact manner of existence in the Godhead manifestly lies above and beyond the range of mortal mind, the basis of our theology respecting God should be laid solely in what is revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures. And if we appeal directly to them, we find it is impossible to avoid the doctrine of the Trinity taught therein without doing great violence to scores of plain teats hearing on the subject. The course of argument is as follows:

1. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are represented as special persons distinct from each other.

2. They are classed together, separate from all other beings.

3. Divine titles are applied to each.

4. Divine attributes are ascribed to each.

5. Divine works are attributed to each.

THE FATHER.

The word "Father," referring to the Godhead, is used in Scripture in a twofold sense. First, it is applied to God without any personal distinctions. "Blessed be thou, Lord Gad of Israel our Father" (1 Chron. 29: 10). "Thou art my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation" (Psa. 89:26). So also 2 Chron. 6:18; John 4:21, 23, 24,etc. Second, it is applied to God in contrast with Christ, who is thus distinguished as Son in his office of Redeemer. "All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son but the Father" (Matt. 11:27). Jesus answered them, "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work" (John 5:17).

So also Acts 2:33; Rom. 15:6; Gal. l:l-4; and numerous other teats.

THE SON.

The passages already cited show that Christ is a person distinct from the Father. The following facts prove Scripturally that he is divine-equal with the Father himself:

I. DIVINE TITLES ARE APPLIED TO HIM THE SAME AS

TO THE FATHER.

"Unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom" (Heb. 1:8). "For unto us a child is born, onto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulders: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (Isa. 9: 6). "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us" (Matt. 1:23). "In the beginning ... the Word was God." "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us" (John 1:1, 14). "The church of God, which he has purchased with his own blood" (Acts 20:28). So also John 20:28; Rom. 9:5; Phil. 2:6; Col. 2:9; Tit. 1:3; 1 John 5:20; Rev. 17:14, etc.

II. DIVINE ATTRIBUTES ARE ASCRIBED TO HIM.

1. Preexistence, or eternity. "Before Abraham was, I am" (John 8:58). "The second man is the Lord from heaven" (1 Cor. 15:47). "That which was from the beginning" (1 John 1:1). "Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men" (Phil. 2:6, 7). "O Father, glorify thou me with throe own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was" (John 17:5). "And he is before all things" (Col. 1: 17). "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judea, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting [from the days of eternity, margin]" (Micah 5: 2). Nothing can be plainer than this last statement, that the Bethlehem babe preexisted, even from the days of eternity -- coexistent with God himself. So also in the Revelation he is represented by that symbolic title signifying eternity, "Alpha and Omega." "I Jesus have sent mine angels to testify unto you these things. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last" (Rev. 22: 16, 13). Therefore the statement that Christ is the Son of God does not signify that he originated from the Father in the ages past, but should be interpreted with reference to his miraculous Virgin birth, thus denoting God's special relation to him in his office-work as the world's Redeemer.

2. Omnipotence. "The government shall be upon his shoulder" (Isa. 9:6). "Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matt. 28:18). "I am the resurrection and the life" (John 11:25). "He is able even to subdue all things unto himself" (Phil. 3: 21). He "is the head of all principality and power" (Col. 2:10). So also John 10:17, 18; Heb. 1:3; 2 Tim. 1:10, etc.

3. Omnipresence. "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:20). "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" (Matt. 28:20).

4. Omniscience. "He knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man; for he knew what was in man" (John 2:24, 25). "Lord, thou knowest all things" (John 21:17). "Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men" (Acts 1:24). "In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col. 2:3) Matt. 11:27; Rev. 2:23.

Also, holiness, truth, justice, goodness, faithfulness, etc., are attributes of Christ.

III. DIVINE WORKS ARE ASCRIBED TO HIM.

1. Creation. "God .... bath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son . . . . by whom also he made the worlds" (Heb. 1:1, 2). "And thou, Lord, in the beginning bast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of throe hands" (verse 10). "All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:3). "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible . . . . all things were created by him and for him" (Col. 1: 16, etc.).

2. Redemption. "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins" (Eph. 1: 7). "He entered in once into the holy place having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Heb. 9:12). This phase will be more fully considered hereafter.

IV. HE IS PREEMINENT-ABOVE ALL THINGS.

"He is Lord of all" (Acts 10: 36). "Lord both of the dead and living" (Rom. 14:9). "God hath . . . . given him a name which is above every name" (Phil. 2:9). "He is the head of the body, the church . . . . that in all things he might have the preeminence" (Col. 1:18). "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him" (1 Pet. 3: 22, etc.).

V. HE IS A PROPER OBJECT OF DEVOTION AND WORSHIP.

While the Scriptures denounce idolatry and enjoin the worship of the one true and living God only, they set forth Christ as A PROPER OBJECT OF DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. "Let all the angels of God worship him" (Heb. 1:6). "All men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father" (John 5:23). "And they worshiped him" (Luke 24:52). Saints "in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord" (1 Cor. 1:2). "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow" (Phil. 2:10). So also Rev. 5:13; 2 Tim. 4:18; et al.

THE HOLY SPIRIT.

The Holy Spirit is also divine and is a distinct person from the Father and the Son. He is called the "Spirit of God" (Rom. 8:9), because of his proceeding from God; (John 15:26) also the "Spirit of Christ" (Rom. 8:9), because he is sent to do the work of Christ.

I. HIS DIVINITY.

This is shown by many scriptures. "It is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in yon" (Matt. 10:20). Compare Ezek. 36:27 with Acts 2:17, 18. "Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet" (Acts 28:25). "As many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the sons of God" (Rom. 8:14). "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Cor 3: 16). Eph. 1:13; et al.

II. HIS PERSONALITY.

The personality of the Holy Spirit is shown by the following facts:

1. He is associated with two other persons-Father and Son- as their equal. "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matt. 28:19).

2. The personal pronoun "he" is applied to him. "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come" (John 16:13).

3. Personal acts are ascribed to him. "He shall teach you all things" (John 14:26). "He shall testify of me" (John 15:26). "He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13). "The Holy Ghost said" (Acts 13:2). "Being sent forth by the Holy Ghost" (verse 4).

4. Particular attributes are ascribed to him. For example: Knowledge, 1 Cor 2:11; will, 1 Cor. 12:11; power, Rom. 15:13.

III. HIS WORKS.

1. In creation. "In the beginning God created . . . . and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters" (Gen.1:1,2). So also Job 33:4; 26:13; Psa. 104:30.

2. In redemption. "Salvation through sanctification of the Spirit" (2 Thess. 2:13). God "giving them the Holy Ghost . . . . purifying their hearts by faith" (Acts 15:8, 9). " He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost" (Tit. 3:5). So also 1 John 3:24; Rom. 8:9,14,16,etc.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are classed together, separately from all other beings, as divine. "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matt. 28:19). "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all" (2 Cor. 13:14). Also Jude 20,21;1 Pet. 1:2; Rom. 8:14-17,etc.

GOD'S WORKS.

I. CREATION.

1. Of angels. "Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excell in strength, . . . . harkening unto the voice of his word" (Psa. 103:20). "Where roast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth . . . . When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" (Job 38:4, 7). "His mighty angels" (2 Thess. 1:7).

2. Of the material universe. " In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Gen. 1:1).

3. Of man. "So God created man in his own image" (Gen. 1:27).

II. PROVIDENCE.

Having created all things, God now controls and conserves all things in his vast universe in accordance with his own will. His intelligent creatures are made the subjects of a moral providential government.

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