God the Father
THE UNIVERSAL GOD BECAME SPECIFIC
God the Father
THE UNIVERSAL GOD BECAME SPECIFIC
As Creator, God provided the context in which we live. We are of the earth. God arranged for us to have an ideal place in which we could live in harmony with Him, each other, and nature. This “heaven on earth” vanished when sin entered into the world. That first human pair was separated from God by sin. The earth began to exhibit some hostile features that made life difficult for them. Satan ran rampant. The gigantic battle between God and Satan raged.
God had provided a way for humans to choose the path of full fellowship with Him. The risk was real. It was the only way the relationship could be authentic; otherwise, their ability to choose would have been null and void. The relationship would have been mechanical, robot-like, and servile. Adam and Eve made a horrible mistake. They made the wrong choice, freely. The consequences were staggering, and many were immediate. The life-giving spirit that God had given to them was thwarted. They were separated from Him the day they sinned. Death means separation. Adam and Eve were cut off from the tree of life; therefore, they were destined to die physically.
“This is terrible” we say. How we sympathize with them! However, we must realize that this is not the end of the story. The results of their sin were not merely personal. They had a widening effect. As ripples on a calm lake spread out and reach the shore when a stone is dropped in the water, so the consequences of their sin reach our lives. Sin, condemnation, and death have spread to all. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men . . .” (Romans 5:18). As accountable beings, we, too, stand “outside the garden.” Their fall led to our fall. Their separation from God led to our separation from God. We stand before God and cry out with Isaiah of old, “Woe is me, for I am ruined!” (Isaiah 6:5)
Are we hopeless? Are we doomed to become Satan’s exhibit pieces in his infamous museum of horrors? Are we to be eternity's proof of God’s failure in His attempt to create beings able to have everlasting fellowship with Him? While these are sobering questions, we can give an emphatic answer in chorus: “No!” We need not lose hope, because God has not given up on us. We can actually establish God’s victory – and dismiss any thought of failure. These are encouraging words, but do they have substance? Is there any basis for them? What assurance do we have that this is not just wishful thinking? The answer requires a shift in focus. The answer must come from God, not us.
In the previous lesson we looked at God’s creative work. We saw His genius, presence, and power displayed. We also saw His intention to have humans always in full fellowship with Him. We saw all of this in His creative work. In addition, we saw the context for this fellowship as a sort of “heaven on earth.” To conclude that everything ended in failure would be a tragic mistake. We would be overlooking a crucial fact: God is not only creative but also historical. His work in history is as significant for us as His work in creation. Both are indispensable for our eternal life with Him. First, if He had not created us, we would not exist. Second, if He were not active in the history of His creation, we would be doomed.
How do we know that God is working in history? We know the same way we know of His work in creation. Creation reveals His handiwork; history reveals His involvement. We have both God's creative work and His historical work described in His Word, the Bible.
So, let’s now note God outside of history. Nothing is more basic to the Bible than its historical view of God. God dwells in eternity as well as time. Let us envision time as a submarine in an eternal sea. We live in the submarine. We are presently confined to the space within the vessel. History is being acted out within the submarine. God, however, is not only in the submarine (time); He is also in the sea (eternity). His actions in the submarine are taken from His perspective in the sea. This has great implications for us.
First, since we do not have His perspective, we cannot always understand, or even see, His actions. Second, His presence in history may be seen by the way He steers the vessel, just as His work in creation may be seen in the finished product (Psalms 19:1). Third, just as we see God’s creative work in both general revelation (nature) and specific revelation (the Bible), we also see His historical work. It may be difficult for us to recognize His work in general history, but it is shown specifically in biblical accounts of His dealings with His chosen people. Therefore, we turn to the Bible to consider God as historically active.
And that brings us to God within history. In the Bible we discover something marvelous. We find that history is more than a record of sequential events. There is a sense of purpose. God’s first context for us was creative – now it is historical. God has not given up on us, even though the first context was marred by sin. The second context gives us the opportunity to escape from sin. Therefore, history is often called salvation history. This does not mean that everything in history saves, but that God has a saving purpose within history.
This saving purpose in history is sometimes observed in the way God directs people to the accomplishment of His grand design. For example, God directed Noah to build an ark to save himself, his family, and the species of all living things. This was certainly good news for Noah and his family, but it was even better news for the human race. Evil was purged, and life was spared (Genesis 6:1-9:17, KJV). God saved Noah, but He had even greater plans in store.
God directed Abram to leave his home and his clan and journey to a country he did not know. Why did God direct this man to do the extraordinary? It was God’s plan that Abram, whose name meant “exalted ancestor,” become Abraham, “ancestor of a multitude,” and that through him all nations of the earth would be blessed. Abraham became the Hebrew, the father of the Hebrew people (Genesis 12:1-4; 14:13; Isaiah 41:8), and eventually every person who surrendered to Jesus the Messiah would be the offspring of Abraham (Galatians 3:26-29). The course of history was in God’s hands.
Joseph, Abraham’s great-grandson, led an eventful and unpredictable life. Who would have thought that the son of a nomadic chieftain in Canaan would become a slave in the house of Pharaoh’s army commander? Who could have foreseen that this Hebrew slave would be disgraced and imprisoned but eventually exalted to the most authoritative position in all Egypt, Pharaoh excepted? Finally, could anyone have predicted that Joseph would come to the rescue of God's people, the Hebrews?
God’s working in history is usually impossible to see. However, just because we do not see His providence does not mean it is not working. God’s direction of Joseph's life was for a greater purpose than saving Joseph (Genesis 45:4-15). It was for the preservation and perpetuation of His people!
The mighty power of Egypt was brought to naught by an incredible series of events. The Hebrew infant Moses was under sentence of death at his birth, as were all newborn Hebrew male children. He escaped death by the unlikely occurrence of being found by Pharaoh’s daughter in the Nile River. This son of Hebrew slaves was reared in the palace of the king. Both the Jewish historian Josephus and the Christian writer Tertullian wrote of Moses. They asserted that Moses was a great general in the Egyptian army and described his military victory over the Ethiopians. Moses later fled into the exile in Sinai Peninsula and remained isolated from world affairs until the age of eighty.
In the desert, Moses received a directive from God to bring His people out of Egypt to freedom. Imagine a shepherd telling an Egyptian pharaoh what he must do! Pharaoh stubbornly refused to allow his host of slaves to leave. However, after much hardship and chaos in the land – and grief in every Egyptian household – he relented. The Hebrews left Egypt as slaves and became a nation of free people at Mount Sinai. The course of history was altered. Once again, an historical God had displayed His power and His providence (Exodus 3-20, KJV).
“Great are the works of the Lord; they are studied by all who delight in them. Splendid and majestic is His work; And His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonders to be remembered; The Lord is gracious and compassionate. He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever. He has made known to His people the power of His works, in giving them the heritage of the nations ... The works of His hands are true and justice; All His precepts are sure ... He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name.” (Psalm 111:2-9)
In our continued study of The Universal God Became Specific, we now want to look at the morality of God. In our study of God so far, we have found Him to be omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, creative, and historical. We have discovered that each of these qualities has a bearing and influence on our lives. In fact, we would not exist if the God we have been studying did not exist: “In Him we live and move and exist . . .” (Acts 17:28). Our God is near, strong, and understanding. He has provided for us and guided us. For all of this, and more, we are indeed thankful.
We have not yet considered one attribute of God that is crucial for our well-being. All of the qualities of God we have examined could have led us to a grotesque, miserable state if God were not a moral Being. It is not too much to say that our well-being in life here, as well as our eternal destiny, hangs upon God’s morality. Therefore, let us study carefully this supreme attribute.
First, we notice that this truth is affirmed many ways. To be absolutely moral is to be absolutely holy. Absolute holiness is a state of moral and spiritual perfection. Of course, this can only be said of God. The Bible has many affirmations of God’s holiness on earth and in heaven. Let us consider the following: Mary burst forth in song as she anticipated the birth of her son: “. . . the Mighty One has done great things for me . . . holy is His name.” (Luke 1:49)
As a heavenly scene unfolded before the apostle John, he saw God’s throne surrounded by men and angels. The “living creatures” sang unceasingly, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come” (Revelation 4:8). The “living creatures” ascribed glory and honor to Him on the throne. They were joined by the twenty-four elders who worshiped the eternal One, singing “Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 4:9-11)
We see from their “heavenly perspective” that God was holy even before the creation of the world. It is His nature to be holy, just as it is His nature to be all-knowing and all-powerful.
Again, the “heavenly perspective” came to the forefront as the prophet Isaiah saw God sitting on a high and lofty throng attended by seraphs who called out, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” (Isaiah 6:1-3)
These scenes emphasizing God’s holiness on earth and in heaven are expressly related to His creation: “The whole earth is full of His glory.” He is worthy to receive glory and honor because He created everything. Therefore, it may be said that His creation is crowned with a halo of holiness. We find a moral quality in creation just as we find energy, beauty, and order.
Having discussed God’s context for us in creation and in history, we now want to become aware of God’s moral context for us. He is the Originator (in creation) and Perpetuator (in history) of our lives. Since He is supremely holy, it is to be expected that humans are moral beings. That expectation is correct. We were created moral. This was the state of man and woman before the fall. They had direct fellowship with God because they, like God, were holy. However, after they sinned, they were afraid and ashamed. Their pristine state turned ugly. Their moral purity was gone. It is an age-old truism that we all sense: “. . . yet I know, where’er I go, that there hath passed away a glory from the earth.” What once was pure is now scarred.
God’s people were called upon to turn to God and once again share in His holiness: “I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44). This desire of God for them to come back to Him, and by His help lead a holy life, accounts for a great number of biblical teachings about morality. God’s holiness is the basis for our moral obligation. He has mandated the way we are to live. Therefore, there is an “oughtness” about our lives. Our morality must conform to His teachings if we are to be accepted by Him. This “oughtness” of what we should be and do cannot be settled upon the basis of conscience. The appeal to conscience is often a noble appeal. However, we must realize that our consciences have fallen under the presence of sin just as all other aspects of our beings have. Our consciences are, therefore, defective. On one hand, we must never violate our consciences; on the other hand, we must never let them be our ultimate guide. God’s commandments must be our guide, informing our minds and consciences. This means that our morality will be objectively based on God’s Word, not on our subjective inclinations.
