Theo 116: The Nature of God 2 Flashcards
What does it meant when we say that God is omnipotent
“God is able to do all things that are proper
objects of His power.” Millard Erickson
“Power can do all things that power can do”
“Since Logic is rooted in God’s nature, and God does not act against His own nature, God can do all things that are logically possible to do”
God is omnipotent
MATTHEW 19:26
And looking at them Jesus said
to them, “With people this
is impossible, but with God all
things are possible.”
What is Goodness
Moral excellence
Is God always Good?
According to MARK 10:18, only God is Good:
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.
God shows people Love, Benevolence, Compassion and Mercy
Love
“I in them and You in Me, that they may
be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.”
John 17:23
Benevolence
so that you may be sons of your Father
who is in heaven; for He causes the sun
to rise on the evil and the good,
and sends rain on the righteous
and the unrighteous. MATTHEW 5:45
Compassion and Mercy
Behold, we count those blessed who
endured. You have heard of the patience
of Job and have seen the outcome
of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full
of compassion and is merciful.James 5:11
IS GOD ALWAYS IN CONTROL?
God is sovereign and rules over all
PSALM 115:3
“But our God is in the heavens;
He does whatever He pleases.”
“Both riches and honor come from You,
and You rule over all”
1 Chronicles 29:12
“which He will bring about at the proper time. He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.”
1 Timothy 6:15
God is the source and sustainer of all things
God is the source of all things
Gen 1:1
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
1 John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.
God sustains all things
Hebrews 1:3
“And He is the radiance of His glory
and the exact representation of His nature,
and upholds all things by the word of His power”
If God is good, then why does evil exist
God is not the source of Evil
“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being
tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.”
James 1:13-14
God gave man free will so that they could love him
God gave His creatures freedom so they could love Him. “One of the scribes . . . asked Him, ‘What commandment is foremost of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” Mark 12:28-30
But man used their freedom to choose evil
“When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate;
and she gave also to her husband with her,
and he ate.” Genesis 3:6
God often restrains man from doing evil.
“Then God said to him in a dream, ‘Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also kept you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.” Genesis 20:6
God sometimes permits sin to take its course.
“Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone.”
Hosea 4:7
God directs the way evil goes.
“After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly.’” John 13:17
God determines limits to which evil
and its effects may go.
“Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold,
all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand upon him.’” Job 1:12
God overrules evil for good.
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
God will one day completely conquer evil.
“And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” Revelation 21:4
Attributes of God
God is Omnipotent
God is the source and sustainer
God is Good
God is Sovereign
God’s Sovereign will vs his Desired will
God’s Sovereign will makes a place for sin and it’s consequences
God’s desired will has no place for sin.
2 PETER 3:9 God’s desired will
“The Lord is not slow about His
promise, as some count slowness,
but is patient toward you,
not wishing for any to perish but for all
to come to repentance.”
EPHESIANS 1:11 God’s Sovereign will
also we have obtained an inheritance,
having been predestined according to
His purpose who works all things after
the counsel of His will.
- IS GOD UNJUST TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO
CRUELLY HARM OTHERS?
No, the question assumes that people are good and therefore justly deserving of Good. Jesus made it clear that no one but God is good, and no one can claim that they are undeserving of evil, or God’s wrath.
(LUKE 13:1-3)
13 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? 3 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.
IS GOD UNJUST TO ALLOW NATURAL
DISASTERS TO CRUELLY HARM SOME PEOPLE?
No for no one is truly good and we are all deserving of God’s wrath
(LUKE 13:4-5)
4 Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”
WHAT IS THE GREATEST EXAMPLE OF
GOD BRINGING GOOD FROM EVIL?
God used the the ultimate evil, the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, to bring salvation to millions of people,
(ACTS 2:31 - 32 )
31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.
Our disappointment and God’s sovereignty
Because God is sovereign, you can know that He has not abandoned you when you are disappointed, when your plans do not work out, that He is in control when you are facing a chronic problem.
[Paul talking about why he is unable to visit the church in Rome] “I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.”
Romans 1:13
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Acts 16:6-10)
