The Nature of God
Essence is simple – only spirit
Three separate Persons sharing the same essence and attributes
He is one God with three persons who share the same essence and attributes
Revealed aspects of God's Nature
God cannot go against His nature
God cannot lie, Hebrews 6:18; Titus 1:2
God cannot deny Himself, 2 Timothy 2:13
God is not a man, Numbers 23:19
Persons
A person is not a separate being
Three Persons, one essence, One Being
Three Persons, the same attributes, One Being
The Trinity is not stated in Scripture, it is a result of proper Hermeneutics
Hermeneutics - the methodology of interpretation
Textual issue in 1 John 5:7, 8
All three persons of the Godhead are referred to as God
God the Father, John 6:45
God the Son, 2 Peter 1:1; John 5:18
God the Holy Spirit, Acts 5:3,4
Essence is the substance or underlying makeup of a being (That which makes the being a being)
God is Spirit, John 4:24
He is self-existing, John 5:26; Exodus 3:14(The self-existing one)
Spirit is not complex in its makeup and cannot be divided
God is incorruptible, 1 Timothy 1:17
God never changes, James 1:17
Spirit is always united – never divided, Deuteronomy 6:4; John 10:30; James 2:19
All three persons possess the same essence, Isaiah 44:6; 1 Corinthians 8:4
They are not three separate essences that are of the same substance
There is only one Divine essence and all three share it
God’s Spirit is immense (Larger than Creation), 1 Kings 8:27; Isaiah 66:1
No man has seen with discernment God’s essence, John 1:18
Attributes are what the essence can do and must be true at all times. There are Seven Attributes To God's Nature.
Omniscience (Having all knowledge; the capacity to know everything)
God knows the beginning from the end, Isaiah 46:9, 10
God’s knowledge is beyond a man’s knowledge, Isaiah 55:8,9
The depth of His knowledge is unsearchable, Romans 11:33
He knows the past, present, and future, Romans 4:17
Prophecy and its fulfillment, Psalm 22:8, 9 fulfillment Matthew 27:43; Psalm 22:18 fulfillment John 19:24
Foreknowledge
The knowledge of something that will happen that was decreed by God to happen, Acts 2:23; 1 Peter 1:2
Relates to the decree rather than Omniscience
God knows the possible from the actual, Matthew 11:21-23; 1 Samuel 23:5-14; Psalm 139:1-12
Omnipotence (Ultimate power; all powerful)
God has an inherit ability to perform whatever He determines to do
Nothing is too difficult or wondrous for the Lord, Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17, 27
God can cause something to happen by His will, Genesis 1:3
He made the earth by His own strength, Jeremiah 10:12
He made the inhabited world by His wisdom, Jeremiah 10:12
He stretched out the heavens by His understanding, Jeremiah 10:12
He is the beginning and ending of all things, Revelation 1:8; 21:6; 22:13
Love (Seeking the best for the one loved)
God’s love existed before the foundation of the universe, John 17:24
The characteristics of this love is revealed in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Longsuffering – a long holding out against unreasonable people
Kind – making others feel at ease
Not zealous
Does not speak arrogantly
Is not puffed up
Does not act unbecoming
Does not seek its own
Does not provoke
Does not reckon to someone something that is wrong
Does not rejoice in unrighteousness
Rejoices in truth
Protects all – keeps a secret
Believes all – takes a person at their word
Hopes all
Bears up under all
Never falls
God is love, 1 John 4:8
God did not attain to love
God does not by effort maintain love
Without love God is not Who He is
Seeks the best for the one loved, 1 John 3:16-18
Grace is an expression of this love, Ephesians 2:4, 5, 7
Grace is giving a benefit without consideration of merit
Jesus was given grace, Luke 2:40
Grace does not hold any value to a person’s worth (their work or their position), Romans 4:4
Grace seeks the best for the one loved regardless of their ability to earn the benefit
In love abounding in grace, 2 Corinthians 8:6-9
Kindness is an expression of Love
Saved by the kindness of God, Romans 2:4
Affects our lives, 1 Peter 2:3
None that do kindness (Not an aspect of the human nature), Romans 3:12; Psalm 14:1
Holiness (Separation)
The separation of the three persons of the Godhead
They are continual and always maintain their individual personalities from each other, Isaiah 6:3
God is holy and expects His people to be holy, Leviticus 11:44; 1 Peter 1:16
Goodness (Beneficial)
God is good, Matthew 19:17
A sense of well-being and enjoyment
The inner sense of well-being results in happiness
Happiness is a result of Goodness
God is a happy God, 1 Timothy 1:11
The Lord Jesus Christ is happy, 1 Timothy 6:15
Mercy is an expression of goodness, Ephesians 2:4, 5; Titus 3:5; 2 Corinthians 5:18-21; 1 Peter 1:3
Old Testament word translated “mercy” has a root in a word that means “kindness” - חֶ֫סֶד
Mercy is relief from sin, Psalm 25:6
Truth (Seeing things as they really are)
God always expresses things as they really are, Romans 3:4; Psalm 12:6
The Spirit of truth, John 15:26
His Word is truth, John 17:17
God always does what He says He will do, Number 23:19
He is faithful, Hebrew 10:23
Fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham, Genesis 15:13, 14 cf. Exodus 12:41
God does not lie, Hebrews 6:18
I am the truth, John 14:6
Righteousness (Doing what is right)
God is righteous in all His ways, Psalm 145:17
God always acts right – He always acts according to who He is
All of God’s judgment comes from His righteousness, Psalm 9:8; Isaiah 11:4; 2 Timothy 4:8
Salvation is linked to the righteousness of God, Isaiah 45:8; Romans 1:16, 17
Dealing with the sin of a Christian is done in righteousness, 1 John 1:9
The righteousness of God was satisfied through the work of Christ on the cross
Christ shows the righteousness of God by his propitiatory work, Romans 3:25
Death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, Romans 1:17; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4
Manifested apart from any law, Romans 3:21, 22
We have peace with God through the resurrection of Christ, Romans 5:1
Christ is our righteousness, 1 Corinthians 1:30