Theology of God

For those of you not participating in my CPU course on Wednesday nights, I thought I’d give you a sample of what we are discussing each week in Systematic Theology.

Last night’s topic was “How Do I know that God Exists?” Our discussion was broken down into four segments:

Part One: Humanity’s Inner Sense of God
Part Two: Believing the Evidence of Scripture & Nature
Part Three: Traditional “Proofs” for the Existence of God
Part Four: One Final Argument

The One Final Argument section is based on two great facts. One: God is found when we seek Him (Jeremiah 29:13). Two: God must be accepted by faith (Hebrews 11:6).

While preparing last night’s study I landed on an interesting survey about God.

Terri Jo Ryan staff writer for the Tribune-Herald writes, “We may be ‘one nation, under God’ but Americans actually worship at least four versions of the Lord, according to the Baylor Religion Survey released today.”

American Piety in the 21st Century: New Insights into the Depth and Complexity of Religion in the United States, conducted by the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion, leveled more than two dozen questions about God’s character and behavior at 1,721 Americans nationwide.

Americans perceived of God in one of four ways:

Authoritarian God (31.4%): Individuals who follow this model feel God is highly involved in their personal lives and world affairs, they give the Deity credit for their decision-making, and they feel God is angry and meting out punishment to the wicked.

Benevolent God (23%): These believers also think God is very active in their daily life, just not as wrathful. They believe benevolent God is mostly a force for positive influence in the world, and reluctant to condemn individuals.

Critical God (16%): The faithful of this subset believe God is not meddling in world affairs but is nonetheless looking on in disapproval. These people tend to believe that God’s displeasure will be felt in another life, and that divine justice is not of this world.

Distant God (24.4%): Individuals in this group think that Distant God is not active in humanities affairs, and is not especially angry, either. Believers consider the Deity more of a cosmic force who sets the laws of nature into motion.

“Which of the God models you follow is an accurate predictor of a number of factors, including race, political stances, even where you live,” said Paul Froese, a Baylor sociologist who worked on the BISR project headed by Rodney Stark and Byron Johnson.

What is your view of God?

I believe the Bible provides four fundamental truths about God.

1. He is a PERSONAL God: God is not an ideal or a philosophy of life or a metaphysical principle; He is a personal and spiritual Being who seeks a personal relationship with man.

But I trust in you, O LORD;
I say, "You are my God."
Psalm 34:14

2. He is a TRANSCENDANT God. When we worship we do not worship an equal; we worship our creator, the eternal, infinite God.

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another:

"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory."

At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."
Isaiah 6:1-5

3. He is an EMMANENT God: God is constantly present in the life of man. As Giver of life, He is also the Sustainer of life. In numerous ways God makes Himself known to man.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16

4. He is a TRUSTWORTHY God. Man is never disappointed when he lifts his voice to God in praise or in petition.

"Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

Hebrews 13:5b