Week 2: What is God Like?

"What is God like?"
* When you deny the inspiration of Scripture, you can make God whatever you want
* Important to know who God is (not what you think He is or want Him to be) {Dan11:32b}
* Attributes of God
- Eternal {Gen21:33; Ps90:2} -- God is free from the limitations of time
- Independent {Isa40:13-14; Acts17:24-25}
- Unchangeable {Num23:19; Mal3:6; Jam1:17} -- God is unchangeable in His being, attributes, purposes, and promises
- Holy {Ps99:9; Isa6:3; Lev19:2; 1Pet1:15-16}
- Righteous & just {Gen18:25; Acts17:31)
- Love {Eph2:4-5; 1John4:8}
- Omniscient {1John3:20} -- God knows all things, both actual and possible
- Omnipresent {Ps139:7-12}
- Sovereign {Eph1:11; Rev19:6}
- Truth, Wisdom, Goodness, Grace, et al
* Tri-unity of God: Eternally existent in three distinct persons, each fully God, yet one God
- Adoptionism wrong (i.e. Christ given powers after baptism)
- Modalism wrong (only one person in three different forms)
- Arianism wrong (denies deity of Son & Spirit)
- JW wrong
- The Shack controversy (See also HERE and HERE)
* OT Intimations {Gen1:1, 26; Gen22:11-16; Isa6:8}
* NT Confirmation
- Father is God {John6:27; Eph4:6}
- Jesus is God {Heb1:8}
- Spirit is God {Acts5:3-4}
* Distinct roles of the Trinity
- Distinction in ways they relate to each other and to Creation {Gen1:2; John1:3}
- Ordinarily we direct prayers to the Father (through His Son, by His Spirit)
- Submission w/o inferiority {1Cor11:3}

Week 1: The Bible: God-Breathed

* Doctrine = "The teaching/instruction" {Titus2:1}
* Why study doctrine?
- To be more mature {Col2:6-7; Heb6:1}
- To not be led astray {Eph4:13-14}
- To have better judgment {Heb5:11-14}
* What is revelation?
- Disclosure of God's self & message to mankind
- General revelation {Ps19; Rom1:19-21}
- Special revelation {2Tim3:16; Heb1:1-2}
- Living Word = Christ; Written Word = Bible
- Sufficiency of Scripture -- everything we need to know, believe, & live as believers in Word
- Don't add to Scripture
- Nothing is sin unless explicit or implied in Word
* Plenary = "all of them"
* Proofs of Inspiration
- 1Tim3:16
- 2Pet1:21
- Commands to write down His Word {Ex17:14}
- Use of quotation {Matt15:4}
- Jesus' use of Scripture {Matt5:17-18; John10:35}
- NT assertions {1Tim5:18; 2Pet3:16}
- Writers' claims {1Cor2:13; 1Pet1:11-12}
- Historical manuscript sources
- Fulfilled prophecy