DP Doctrinal Statement of God
- 1. Daniel S. Payne ST 102 OL Dr. J. Scott Horrell Doctrinal Statement of God I believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons—namely, Father, Son, and Spirit. I1 believe these three are coequal, coeternal, and are of the same essence, thus worthy of worship and obedience. I believe that God is completely satisfied within himself, and is never in need of2 anything outside himself. I believe that God is not bound by anything outside himself, thus he is3 not obligated to anyone/thing whatsoever, unless he freely chooses to initiate an obligation. I4 believe God is revealed in Scripture as Triunity. As noted above, I believe there is one God who exists in three persons—this truth is termed Trinity. I believe Trinity means that the Father is5 God, the Son is God, the Spirit is God, all one God, yet these three are distinct persons.6 I believe the Father has revealed himself as YHWH, the I am, or Self-Existent One. I believe the7 Father is also known as Elohim, God the Creator. I believe the same God (the Father) of the Old8 Testament is the same God of the New Testament. I believe the Father is love, chiefly expressed9 in inter-Trinitarian love, and given to the entire world as demonstrated in sending his Son. I10 believe there is a sense in which the Father is chief (though not greater than in essence), a conceptual centrality. I believe the Father is the divine source of all created existence. I11 12 believe that, in a real sense, he is the Father of all those who have believed into his Son. I13 believe that the Father is immanent with his creation, personally involved with natural creation and humanity.14 I believe the Son has eternally existed with the Father and the Spirit in regards to his deity, and I believe that he was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary. I believe that the Son15 of God became fully human, taking on a physical body and a human nature that is in every way like our own, accepting sin. I believe that, in regards to his humanity, he took on flesh and16 continues to be completely human—and also lived his entire life on earth in sinless perfection.17 Though this is true, he maintained throughout his entire life complete deity, being completely God and human. I believe the Son is the exact representation of the Father, and was directly18 involved in all creation. I believe that in kenosis, the self-emptying, the Son emptied himself by19 taking on human flesh, thus temporarily giving up his position in the heavenly glory.20 I believe that the Holy Spirit, fully God, is the third member of the Godhead. I believe the Holy Spirit is fully personal, not merely a force or power. I believe the Holy Spirit is perfect wisdom,21 grace, and truth. I believe that the Holy Spirit is the particular presence of God in the earth, and in the believer. I believe the Holy Spirit regenerates the believer, and gives gifts to all those22 who believe on the Son. I believe the Holy Spirit was particularly involved with the birth of the23 Son through the virgin Mary, thus demonstrating his distinct personhood within the Godhead. Further demonstrating his distinct personhood was his presence at the Son’s baptism.24
- 2. Gen 1:2; Deut 6:4; Jn 1:1-3. 102 1d Attributes of God. pdf (p. 5) Horrell Notes1 Jn 8:58; 10:30; 17:21. This truth is important in that it demonstrates the unity within the2 Godhead, and maintains that each deserve worship and obedience. R.A. Torrey brings out the issue of worship of the Spirit. If the Spirit is God he is just as much God as the Father and the Son (in Herbert Lockyer) All the Divine Names and Titles in the Bible, Zondervan, 1975, p. 308-9. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, Zondervan, 1994, 160. This one is big. The concept of3 aseity is of particular importance. God does not need his creation, he does not need humanity. He is perfect in everything. “…nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things” (Acts 17:25, NASB). Ryrie, Basic Theology, Victor, 1986, 37. Ps 115:3; Isa 40:12-28; Da 4:35; Relevant here, too, is4 the understanding that the Potter can do whatever he wills with the clay. He is under no obligation to save anyone or to act, except that he himself is self-limiting (in a sense) confining himself to his attributes (in other words God cannot be evil, Rom 9:21-24). Trinity is an English translation of the Greek trial used by Theophilus c. 180 (102 1h Ch15 IntroTrinity.1’15DTS.pdf p.16). Tertullian, a North African, used the Latin trinitas to refer to the the fact that each member of the Godhead is, in fact, God. This is the crux of what we mean when we say Trinity. Each person is fully distinct, yet is fully6 God. There are not three gods, but one. Dt 6:4; Matt 28:19; Lk 3:22. Important is the issue that this is the first name that God reveals in Scripture, and he speaks it7 directly (Exod 3:14). He is the creator of all existence (Gen 1:1; Isa 40:28).8 (Horrell Notes 102 2c GodFather’15. pdf p.6). Continuity between the testaments is of9 paramount importance. While, admittedly, God is chiefly expressed in the Son as the image of the invisible God (Heb 1:3), the same God of the Old Testament, is the Father in the New Testament. Jn 3:16; 14:31; 17:6-12; 1 Jn 4:1610
- 3. Jesus prays to the Father addressing him as the “only true God” in Jn 17:3 (102 2c Ch311 GodFather’15.pdf p. 7). It is important to note is the concept of the missio dei, the mission of God. The Father sent the Son (1 Jn 4:14), and they sent the Spirit (Jn 15:26). Who sent the Spirit was (is?) a major source of division between the Eastern and Western churches. The Eastern church did not want to affirm that both the Father and the Son sent the Spirit, because they felt that undermined the personhood of the Spirit. The Western church did affirm that both the Father and the Son sent the Spirit, and I do as well (Jn 15:26). An apt term is the the Father has a functional superiority in that he, as stated above, is the sender of the Son and Spirit. Rom 16:26; Rev 4:11; (102 2c Ch3 GodFather’15.pdf p. 7)12 “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of13 God. And that is what we are” (1 Jn 3:1, emphasis added). Isa 57:15; (102 2c Ch3 GodFather’15.pdf p.17). Many worldviews have a conception of God14 does not include this aspect of who God is. For instance, Deism teaches that God created the world, and then removed himself from the present, everyday activities of humanity (James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door, p. 51). Contra this, orthodox Christianity teaches an important and very comforting aspect of who the Father is: while he is the “Father in heaven” he also is very personal with humanity, and is uniquely personal with those who believe (Matt 6:9; Ps 75:1). The hypostatic union, the humanity and deity of Christ, is essential for an orthodox15 understanding of the Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth. In being fully human, the Son was able to take on sin and pay for it so that all who believe may become righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). In being fully God, the Son is able to affectively deal with sin as a propitiation (Rom 3:25). Also, the importance of the virgin birth is crucial for understanding that the Son, who took on real flesh, was not corrupted with sin (Matt 1:18; Luke 1:31-32). As above, it is important to note that the Son did not just appear to be human, he was in fact16 flesh and blood (Heb 2:14). Jesus, the Son of God, maintains his human body throughout eternity. “This same Jesus…will17 come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11, NIV). This is a great mystery of the Son of God. Although he maintains his physical body, he is not limited by that body. In Matthew 28, Jesus tells his disciples that he will be with them “even to the end of the age,” thus communicating his omnipresence even with the physical body (v. 20). One of the clearest verses in support of both the deity and humanity of Jesus, the Son of God,18 is “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Col 2:9, ESV), indeed clear language from the Apostle Paul. Jesus is the eikon, the image of God (Heb 1:3). “For by him all things were created, both in the19 heavens and on the earth” (Col 1:16). If one denies creation, he or she denies the Son of God.
- 4. Phil 2:7; (Horrell Notes 102 2f One Person,2Natures.pdf p. 6). κενόω literally means to make20 empty, to empty. In this context BDAG states this verb speaks of Christ’s, “divestiture of position or prestige (not essence)…who gave up the appearance of his divinity and took on the form of a slave (p. 539, 1b). The Holy Spirit is inherently personal. He teaches (1 Cor 2:10-13). He convicts (Jn 16:8). He21 guides (Jn 16:13). Ez 36:27; Jn 1:26; (Horrell Notes 102 2h Other Comforter’15.pdf p. 2). I believe the Holy22 Spirit is active in the world convicting of sin, righteousness, and judgment. His chief role in convicting of sin, is the sin of unbelief (Jn 16:8-9). The Holy Spirit is chief in bringing about the rebirth of the believer (Titus 3:5). Further, he23 gives gifts, as he wills, to all those who believe (1 Cor 12:7-11). Matt 1:18; Again, the presence of the Spirit and his involvement in the birth of the Son vividly24 demonstrates a distinctiveness within the Godhead. If the Spirit was the Son, then he could not be involved with the virgin birth in this manner. It would most assuredly be illogical. Further, the Spirit of God was uniquely present at the baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:16). With this, we see yet more evidence of the distinct personhood of the Spirit.