THE NATURE OF GOD
I believe that God is (Exod. 3:14). He is the true (Jer. 10:10), living (1 Thess. 1:9), and only God (1 Cor. 8:4). Besides Him is no other (Isa. 44:6).
I believe that God exists eternally as Trinitarian community of mutual glorification (Jn. 17:5). God is one indivisible essence (Deut. 6:4) yet three distinct persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14)—interrelated within Himself (Gen. 1:26, 11:7), co-equal in nature yet distinct in roles (1 Pet. 1:2, Tit. 3:4-6). The three members of the Godhead are distinguishable, but not separable.
I believe that God is spirit (Jn. 4:24), invisible (1 Tim. 1:17), and without form (Deut. 4:15-16), yet is not a force. He is personal and relational (Exod. 3:13-14; Jas. 4:8). God is transcendent (Job 11:7-8) and separate from creation (1 Ki. 8:27), yet is immanent (Jer. 23:23-24), everywhere present (Ps. 139:7-10), and intricately involved in creation (Acts 17:27-28).
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
I believe that from God’s nature flow a variety of attributes—incommunicable (possessed by God alone) and communicable (shared with humanity). These attributes display the infinite richness of God’s being (Job 11:7)!
God alone is self-existent—the ground of His being is in Himself (Jn. 5:26). God alone is eternal—without beginning or end (Rev. 22:13), outside of time (2 Pet. 3:8). God alone is everlasting—existing in an unending succession of moments (Ps. 90:1-2). God alone is omnipotent—infinite in power (Ps. 147:5), capable of anything (Matt. 19:26). God alone is omniscient—infinite in knowledge (Rom. 11:33-34). God alone is omnipresent—everywhere at once (Ps. 139:7-10). God alone is immutable—unchanging in essence, attributes, and decree (Mal. 3:6). God alone is perfect (Matt. 5:48). God alone is utterly incomprehensible (Ps. 145:3)!
Some of God’s communicable attributes are His holiness (1 Pet. 1:16), love (1 Jn. 4:8), faithfulness (2 Tim. 2:13), goodness (Nah. 1:7), righteousness (Ps. 89:14), justice (Rom. 3:25-26), mercy (Eph. 2:4), and grace (Exod. 34:6-7). God is the source of all these things, displaying them in profound perfection.
THE WORK OF GOD
I believe that God acts. He works. He is neither static nor passive. He decrees, elects, creates, and sustains. God does whatever He pleases (Ps. 115:3, 135:6).
I believe that everything God decrees comes to pass (Isa. 14:27). God ordains all things by the counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11; Dan. 4:35) according to His purpose and plan (Isa. 14:24; Acts 2:23) to the praise of His glory (Rom. 11:36). God does not, however, ordain evil (Jas. 1:13), but does permit it, is not surprised by it, may interfere to stop it (Ps. 33:10), and works to bring about redemption through it (Gen. 50:2). God uses evil to serve His purposes, but always holds people accountable for the evil they do (Jer. 17:10; Rom. 2:5-6).
I believe that God has chosen some for salvation (2 Thess. 2:13-14). This election occurred before the foundations of the world, was according to God’s purpose and for God’s glory (Eph 1:3-6). It was not based not on human effort or foreknowledge of human decision, but solely on God’s grace (Eph. 2:8-9; 2 Tim. 1:9). God has chosen to dramatically save some (Acts 9:3-16) while gently drawing others (Acts 16:14, 17:27).
I believe that God created all things (Isa. 40:28; Acts 17:24)—the heavens and the earth (Neh. 9:6; Isa. 42:5) and everything in them (Acts 14:15) visible and invisible (Col. 1:16). In God’s initial creation, He spoke (Gen. 1:1; Ps. 33:6) and out of nothing everything came to be (Heb. 11:3). Like all that God does, He created according to the counsel of His will for His own glory (Isa. 43:7; Rev. 4:11).
I believe that God’s creation is dependant upon His providential care. God governs (Dan. 5:21), rules (Ps. 66:7), sustains (Acts 17:25), and directs (Isa. 48:17) all things. Through this providential action, He holds the universe together (Col. 1:17) and keeps it aligned by the word of His power (Heb. 1:3).
GOD THE FATHER
I believe that God the Father, the first member of the Trinity, possesses the full nature and attributes of the Godhead (1 Cor. 8:6). He is the source of all the Godhead is (Jn. 1:18, 5:26) and the initiator of all the Godhead does (Jn. 5:19). The Father begets the Son (Jn. 3:16) and the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son (Jn. 15:26). The Father is the composer of creation and the author of salvation (Eph. 1:3-6). The Father always sends the Son (Jn. 6:44) and the Spirit (Jn. 14:26) to accomplish His purpose and carry out His plan.
(more to come on God the Son and God the Spirit…)
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