The Doctrine of God
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. (Dt. 6:4-5)
I believe in the one eternal, sovereign, living God (Is. 45:21-22; Jer. 10:10; Eph. 4:6; 1 Ths. 1:9) who created and sustains all things (Neh. 9:6; Rom. 11:36). He is both one unique God, wholly and indivisibly (Dt. 6:4; Jn. 10:30), and three Persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Mt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14) – each bearing all the attributes of the Godhead equally and completely, yet fulfilling distinct offices in perfect harmony with one another (Jn. 14:26; Heb. 1:1-3).I believe that God is a Spirit (Jn. 4:24; Mt. 10:20; Rom. 8:9; Jn. 15:26), both transcendent (Ps. 113:3-5) over all Creation and immanently present (Ps. 113:6-9). He is omnipotent (Jer. 32:17; Rev. 1:8), omnipresent (Ps. 139:7-11), and omniscient (Ps. 147:5; Ac. 15:18), and infinite (1 Ki. 8:27). He is perfect in love (1 Jn. 4:8), holiness (Lev. 11:44-45), righteousness (Ps. 11:7), justice (Dt. 32:4), goodness (Ps. 52:1), truth (Tit. 1:2), and mercy (Eph. 2:4). He does not change (Mal. 3:6). He alone is worthy of all worship (Rev. 4:10-11), as well as undivided love (Dt. 6:4-5), trust (Gal. 3:5), and obedience (Deut. 10:20).I believe that God has graciously chosen to reveal Himself to mankind in order to redeem him from sin and restore him to perfect fellowship and service (Jn. 17:3; 1 Tim. 2:4; 1 Jn. 5:20). He has revealed Himself generally through the order and beauty of Creation (Ac. 17:24-27; Ps. 19:1-6; Rom. 1:19-20), the human conscience (Rom. 2:14-15), and the operation of common grace (Mt. 5:45; Ac. 14:17). He has revealed Himself specifically through special, personal interactions with the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles (Eph. 2:20; Heb. 1:1), as revealed in the Bible – the authoritative, written record of God’s special revelation to mankind (Ps. 19:7-14; Rom. 10:17; 2 Pt. 1:3-4). Ultimately, all that God does and permits is for His glory to be revealed in fullness (Pro. 16:4; Rom. 11:36; 1 Cor. 8:6; 1 Pt. 4:11; 5:11; 2 Pt. 3:18; Rev. 1:6).
