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Theology of God
by Bobby Bruno To know God is to study theology the study of God. The Holy Bible is the source for all correct and truthful knowledge of who God is and what He wants us to know as His followers. God is a loving God who wants everyone to know that He loves us and truly cares for us, His creation. Nowhere in all of humanity can we find the words written by God's own hand. The Bible is all we need to know that the salvation of the Lord is all we need for life and for living out our days here on this earth in a way that worships God and pleases God. Within theology we have many ways to talk about our Lord God -- ways that help us explain the myriad facets of God's personality, His ways, His laws and commands, and what His Son, Jesus, mean to this sinful and disintegrating world we call home. In his book "Theology for Disciples" (1996), Gilbert W. Stafford gives us four kinds of arguments that show us how we know that there is a God who created all time and matter, and who came to earth to show Himself to us. The first argument for the existence of God is the Ontological Argument states that for anything to exist, God must exist. Since God is the one who created everything we see, hear, and touch, people must know that God exists (pg. 59). The Bible says that no one is without excuse when they see the order of nature around them (Romans 1:20), so no one can say that God does not exist. God continues daily to show himself in the way nature cycles itself year after year after year. It is not coincidence that the sun and moon can be tracked with complete accuracy each day and years into the future. God has made it so we can "see" Him in everything that He has created. The second argument is the Cosmological Argument which states that for anything to exist it must have a cause, therefore, God must exist, since everything around us had to begin somewhere. You can't get something out of nothing (pg. 59). The Big Bang Theory is a lie, and this universe has not been around for millions of years, and, if we read scripture correctly, man walked with the dinosaurs. The Bible says that God created the universe and everything in it in six, twenty-four hour days. To believe anything else is to call God a liar. The third argument, called the Teleological Argument, states that nature has design and purpose, so it must have been designed by someone (pg. 59). Every year the four seasons change like clockwork; the sun and moon rise and set as if run by a computer; the tides roll in and out with mathematical precision; and we humans breath in and out thousands of times a day without even thinking about it or forcing it to happen. Only an intelligent Being, who is above space and time, could create a world that has such precise order built into it. Only a Creator who has the power to create and destroy could have made us marvel at the morning sky, and be amazed at the blazing stars in the night sky. Could a mere human do any of these things? The fourth argument has attached to it the name of the Moral Argument, which tells us that our morals show us that someone must have determined what is wrong and what is right (pg 60). Who in this world determines for us what is right and wrong? Left alone to ourselves, we would, as individuals, most likely decide that everything was right and everything was wrong, depending on our way of living, on our own Lifeology. Some say that we are shaped by our environments and the way we were raised, and some of that may be true. But deep down in our hearts we know what right and wrong is, because it was God who put those morals into our hearts. Only a God who created us could tell us what is truly right or wrong, so that all confusion falls by the wayside of our human thinking. Stafford also gives us three ways that we must speak about the Biblical God. He begins with that fact that "God initiates conversation and calls us to communion" (pg. 62). We cannot come to God unless God calls us to him (1 Corinthians 1:9), and unless God calls us we can never know Jesus as His Son. In our sinful natures, we do not think about God in the way that He is to be thought about, if we think about Him at all. As sinners, we see God as our punisher, and not as someone who loves us greatly. Without God calling us into His family, there cannot be unity within it, and our communion with Him would be lacking in response. On our own, we would never come to God unless He makes the first move. We must speak about the Biblical God that lets people know that "God comes to where we are and calls us into faith" (pg. 63). It doesn't matter if you are rich or poor, male or female, God can call you to be His at any time. It doesn't matter what evil things you've done in your life, or who has done evil things to you, God will call you into faith with His Son, Jesus Christ, and give you a life worth living in your eyes, and in His eyes, as well. The Apostle Paul wanted to kill Christians, God's people, but God called Him to preach to the nations the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Matthew was a tax collector, hated by his own people, yet God called Him to personally know His Son as He walked the earth from birth to death. God can and does use anyone He will. Lastly, we must speak boldly that "God takes us by surprise and calls us into mission" (pg.64) to faithfully proclaim the Gospel to others, both individually and through the church. There is a reason God calls us, and that is to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19). When we were not looking, as the apostle Paul found out, God spoke to us through His Spirit and called us to join Him in proclaiming that Jesus is the Son of God, and is the only way to be forgiven of our many sins. We are to do this as individuals to our neighbors and friends, or anyone who asks about the joy we have as Christians. Our churches must proclaim the true Gospel that God has given us to show the world of His great love and compassion for His creation. In thinking about the Trinitarian God, one must place importance on it because the Bible demands it. In the Bible we find three separate entities know as God: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. If Jesus Christ was not God in the flesh then our salvation never happened. If Jesus never suffered as God, then our suffering would be devastating to us, with no hope for its easement. If Jesus had not come, then the Old Testament would be one big lie, as each prophecy that foretold His coming would fall apart in untruthfulness. Without believing that God is three persons, the church would fall down around our ears because we all would be believing a lie that many people have died trying to protect from those mocked them for believing. God is a God of love, mercy, and healing. The way we think about God determines the kind of life we are going to have. We must make sure that our theology is based on the truth of God, not on the beliefs of man. References Stafford, Gerald W. (1989, 1996). Theology for disciples: systematic considerations about the life of Christian faith. Warner Press Bobby Bruno was saved 15 years ago in a way that left him no doubt that Jesus wanted him to reach others with His great and abounding love. He started writing at the age of 12 and hasn't stopped since. He achieved Associates Degree in Biblical Studies from Ohio Christian University in early 2014. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |