THE EXISTENCE OF GOD & THE KNOWABILITY OF GOD

THE EXISTENCE OF GOD

How do we know that God exists?

EXPLANATION AND SCRIPTURAL BASIS

A. Humanity’s Inner Sense of God

All persons everywhere have a deep, inner sense that God exists, that they are his creatures, and that he is their Creator.

- even Gentile unbelievers “knew God” (Romans 1:21)
- “exchanged the truth about God for a lie” (Romans 1:25)
- “what can be known about God is plain to them”
- “because God has shown it to them” (Romans 1:19)
- it is “the fool” who says in his heart, “There is no God” (Psalms 14:1)
- the wicked person first “curses and renounces the Lord” then in pride repeatedly thinks “there is no God” (Psalms 10: 3-4)

B. Believing the Evidence in Scripture and Nature

If we are convinced that the Bible is true, then we know from the Bible not only that God exists but also very much about his nature and his acts.

- God’s eternal nature and deity have been “clearly perceived in the things that have been made” (Romans 1:20)
- The “rains and fruitful seasons” as well as the “food and gladness” that all people experience and benefit from are also said by Barnabas and Paul to be witnesses to God (Acts 14:17)
- “The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge” (Psalms 19:1-2).

In one sense everything that exists gives evidence of God’s existence. Everything in Scripture and everything in nature proves clearly that God exists and that he is the powerful and wise Creator that Scripture describes him to be. Therefore when we believe that God exists, we are basing our belief not on some blind hope apart from any evidence, but on an overwhelming amount of reliable evidence from God’s words and God’s works.



C. Traditional “Proofs” for the Existence of God

Constructed by Christian (and some non-Christian) philosophers in attempts to analyze evidence, especially from nature, in extremely careful and logically precise ways, in order to persuade people that it is not rational to reject the idea of God’s existence.

4 major types of proofs:

The cosmological argument
The teleogical argument
The ontological argument
The moral argument

The value of these proofs lies chiefly in overcoming some of the intellectual objections of unbelievers.

D. Only God Can Overcome Our Sin and Enable Us to Be Persuaded of His Existence

“the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4)

“since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe” (1 Corinthians 1:21).

“in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1 Corinthians 2:5).

In this sinful world, human wisdom is inadequate for coming to know God. We are dependent upon God to remove the blindness and irrationality caused by sin and to enable us to evaluate the evidence rightly, believe what Scripture says, and come to saving faith in Christ.









THE KNOWABILITY OF GOD

Can we really know God? How much of God can we know?

EXPLANATION AND SCRIPTURAL BASIS


A. The Necessity for God to Reveal Himself to Us

“because God has shown it to them” (Romans 1:19)
“No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11:27)
“in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom” (1 Corinthians 1:21)

The Bible alone tells us how to understand the testimony about God from nature. Therefore we depend on God’s active communication to us in Scripture for our true knowledge of God.

B. We Can Never Fully Understand God

It is not true to say that God is unable to be understood, but it is true to say that he cannot be understood fully or exhaustively.

“Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable” (Psalms 145:3)
“Great is our LORD, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Psalms 147:5)
“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it” (Psalms 139:6)
“no one comprehends the things of God except the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 2:12)

It is not only true that we can never fully understand God; it is also true that we can never fully understand any single thing about God.

C. Yet We Can Know God Truly

Even though we cannot know God exhaustively, we can know true things about God.



God is:
- love (1 John 4:8)
- light (1 John 1:5)
- spirit (John 4:24)
- just (Romans 3:26)

Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the might man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth; for in these things I delight, says the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24).

Next Meeting...

Hey kids! Hope that this post finds all well. Just wanted to let you all know that we will be meeting next @ the Bennett house on Tuesday October 6th @ 6pm. We will take up our studies w/Part 2: The Doctrine of God.

Notes for this next meeting will be posted soon...(before the 1st) for your perusal & to make available for printing off this site to bring w/you!

See you soon...

Introduction

Systematic Theology for Dummies

EXPLANATION & SCRIPTURAL BASIS

A. Definition of Systemic Theology

Systematic theology is any study that answers the question, “What does the whole Bible teach us today?” about any given topic.

1. Relationship to Other Disciplines.

Emphasis not on:

Historical theology – a historical study of how Christians in different periods have
understood various theological topics

Philosophical theology – studying theological topics largely w/out use of the
Bible, but using the tools & methods of philosophical reasoning and
what can be known about God from observing the universe

Apologetics – providing a defense of the truthfulness of the Christian faith for the
purpose of convincing unbelievers

**only Scripture has the final authority to define what we are to believe

2. Application to Life

Systematic theology focuses on summarizing each doctrine as it should be understood by present-day Christians.

3. Systematic Theology & Disorganized Theology

Most Christians actually do systematic theology (or at least make systematic-theological statements) many times a week.

Ex: “The Bible says…”

Systematic – carefully organized by topics

4. What are Doctrines?

A doctrine is what the whole Bible teaches us today about some particular topic.



Part 1: The Doctrine of the Word of God
Part 2: The Doctrine of God
Part 3: The Doctrine of Man
Part 4: The Doctrines of Christ and the Holy Spirit
Part 5: The Doctrine of the Application of Redemption
Part 6: The Doctrine of the Church
Part 7: The Doctrine of the Future

Criteria:
1) doctrines most emphasized in Scripture
2) doctrines that have been most significant throughout the history of the
church & have been important for all Christians at all times
3) doctrines that have been important for Christians in the present situation
in the history of the church

B. Initial Assumptions

1. The Bible is true & our only absolute standard of the Truth
2. The God who is spoken of in the Bible exists, and that he is who the Bible says
he is.

C. Why Should Christians Study Theology?

1. The Basic Reason

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all
that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the
age. (Matthew 28:19-20)

2. The Benefits to Our Lives

Studying theology helps us: overcome our wrong ideas.
be able to make better decisions later.
grow as Christians.

Major vs. Minor Doctrine

D. A Note on Two Objections to the Study of Systematic Theology

1. “The Conclusions Are ‘Too Neat’ to be True.”

1. Find specific points of misinterpretation & make corrections
2. Internal consistency is an argument for individual results of systematic theology.

2. “The Choice of Topics Dictates the Conclusions.”

“The whole counsel of God” Acts 20:27
“children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine”
Ephesians 4:14

E. How Should Christians Study Systematic Theology?

1. We should Study Systematic Theology With Prayer

Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law
Psalm 119:18

The unspiritual man does not receive the gifts of the Spirit of God, for they
are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are
spiritually discerned. I Corinthians 2:14

2. We Should Study Systematic Theology With Humility

Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for ‘God
opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble’ I Peter 5:5

Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for the anger
of man does not work the righteousness of God James 1:19-20

3. We Should Study Systematic Theology With Reason

We are free to use our reasoning abilities to draw deductions from any passage of
Scripture so long as these deductions do not contradict the clear teaching of some other passage of Scripture.

Paradox – a seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true

Ex: God is 3 persons and 1 God…seemingly contradictory

Vs.

God is 3 persons & God is not 3 persons…true contradion

4. We Should Study Systematic Theology With Help From Others

And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third
teachers… I Corinthians 12:28


5. We Should Study Systematic Theology by Collecting and Understanding All
the Relevant Passages of Scripture on Any Topic

1. Find all relevant verses
2. Read, make notes on & summarize verse points
3. Summarize teachings


6. We should Study Systematic Theology With Rejoicing and Praise

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart Deuteronomy 6:5

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! Psalm 139:17

I rejoice at your word
Like one who finds great spoil. Psalm 119:162