Sermon Tone Analysis

THEOLOGY PROPER: DOCTRINE OF GOD

Definition of Theology Proper

The word theology comes from the Greek word theos, meaning “God,” and logos, meaning “word” or “discourse”; hence, theology is a discourse about God.

Theology is generally taken as a broad term covering the entire field of Christian belief (the study of Christ, the Holy Spirit, angels, etc.).

The designation given to the study of God the Father is theology proper.

Hence, the designation given to the study of God the Father is theology proper.

Existence of God

Cosmological Argument

Logically speaking the cosmological argument for the existence of God is inductive and a posteriori: the evidence is examined, and based on it a conclusion is drawn that God exists.

The term cosmological comes from the Greek word cosmos, meaning “world.”

This argument is based on the fact that a cosmos, or world, exists.

Because something cannot come from nothing, there must be an original cause that is the reason for the world’s exisence.

A man wears a Bulova wristwatch.

Although he has never seen a watchmaker, the fact of the existence of the wristwatch suggests there is a watchmaker who made the watch.

The cosmological argument says that every effect must have a cause.1

Teleological Argument

As in the previous case, the teleological argument is inductive and a posteriori.

Teleological comes from the Greek word telos, meaning “end.”

The teleological argument may be defined thus: “Order and useful arrangement in a system imply intelligence and purpose in the organizing cause.

The universe is characterized by order and useful arrangement; therefore, the universe has an intelligent and free cause.”2

The world everywhere evidences intelligence, purpose, and harmony; there must be a master architect behind all this evidence.

The psalmist sees the magnificence of God’s creation in the universe and recognizes that it testifies to His existence (; ).

God’s harmony is observed throughout the universe and world: the sun being ninety-three million miles distant is precisely right for an adequate climate on earth; the moon’s distance of two hundred forty thousand miles provides tides at a proper level; the earth’s tilt provides the seasons.

A conclusion is clear that God, the Master Designer, has created this magnificent universe.

The alternative, that the world happened “by chance,” is no more possible than a monkey’s being able to create a work of Shakespeare on a typewriter by haphazard play on the keys.

Anthropological Argument

The anthropological argument is based on the Greek word anthropos, meaning “man.”

Contrary to the secular humanist who sees man simply as a biological being, the biblicist sees man as created in the image of God ().

The image of God in man is spiritual, not physical (cf.

; ).

Man is not simply a physical being, but also a moral being with a conscience, intellect, emotion, and will.

Chafer states: “There are philosophical and moral features in man’s constitution which may be traced back to find their origin in God.…

A blind force … could never produce a man with intellect, sensibility, will, conscience, and inherent belief in a Creator.”3

Moral Argument

The moral argument is related to the anthropological argument (some combine the two) and can be seen as a further consideration of that argument.

The moral argument acknowledges that man has an awareness of right and wrong, a sense of morality.

Where did this sense of moral justice come from?

If man is only a biological creature, why does he have a sense of moral obligation?

Recognition of moral standards and concepts cannot be attributed to any evolutionary process.

The biblicist recognizes that God has placed a sense of moral justice within the human race in contradistinction to all other creation.

indicates that Gentiles who have had no revelation of the law have an inner, moral witness placed there by God.

Ontological Argument

The ontological argument, distinct from the preceding arguments, is deductive and a priori; it begins with an assumption and then attempts to prove that assumption.

It is less significant than the preceding arguments.

The term ontological comes from the Greek present participle ontos (from the verb eimi) and means “being” or “existence.”

The ontological argument is philosophical rather than inductive.

The argument reasons: if man could conceive of a perfect God who does not exist, then he could conceive of someone greater than God, which is impossible.

Therefore God exists.

The argument rests on the fact that all men have an awareness of God.

Because the concept of God is universal, God must have placed the idea within man.

Anselm (1033?–1109) was the first proponent of this view.

In the thinking of some, this argument has limited value, and few would affirm the usefulness of the ontological argument.

Anti-Theistic Theories

Atheistic View

The term atheist comes from the Greek word theos, meaning “God,” and the prefix a (Gk.

alpha), which in Greek negates the preceding statement.

Therefore, it means a nonbeliever in God.

uses the term (translated “without God”) to explain the status of unsaved Gentiles in their relationship toward God.

atheist who openly repudiates God; (3) the virtual atheist who rejects God by his terminology (e.g, Paul Tillich: God is the “Ground of all being”).

This classification would include those who deny a personal God.

Atheists can be classified into three categories: (1) the practical atheist who lives as if there is no God; (2) the dogmatic atheist who openly repudiates God; (3) the virtual atheist who rejects God by his terminology (e.g, Paul Tillich: God is the “Ground of all being”).

This classification would include those who deny a personal God.

(1) the practical atheist who lives as if there is no God; (2) the dogmatic atheist who openly repudiates God; (3) the virtual atheist who rejects God by his terminology (e.g, Paul Tillich: God is the “Ground of all being”).

This classification would include those who deny a personal God.

Agnostic View

The term agnostic comes from the Greek gnosis, meaning “knowledge,” accompanied by the a prefix.

Therefore, an agnostic means one who lacks knowledge of God.

Hence, an agnostic is one who says we cannot know that God even exists.

The term, first coined by Thomas Huxley, covers varying degrees of skepticism.

Agnostics are followers of pragmatism; their belief in something has to be scientifically verifiable, and because God is not scientifically verifiable, they leave Him out of their discussion.

Evolution

Evolution is an antisupernatural approach to life and its origin.

It begins with the premise that there is no God and then seeks to explain life apart from any involvement by God.

The implications are serious: if God created man, then man is a morally responsible being; if man is the product of evolution, then he is only biological and is not morally responsible to any god.

Polytheism

The term polytheism comes from the Greek word poly, meaning “many,” and theos, meaning “God”; hence, it involves a belief in many gods, or in a plurality of gods.

History has noted many nations and societies that were polytheistic: early Romans were animistic; the people of India were pantheistic as well as polytheistic; Egyptians worshiped a multiplicity of gods, including the sun, the Nile, frogs, and even gnats.

Pantheism

Pantheism means that everything is God and God is everything.

“God is all and all is God.”

Seneca said, “What is God?…

He is all that you see and all that you do not see.”6

There are a number of different forms of pantheism:7 materialistic pantheism, held by David Strauss, which believes in the eternity of matter and that matter is the cause of all life; hylozoism, the modern form held by Leibniz, which holds that all matter has a principle of life or psychical properties; neutralism, which says that life is neutral, neither mind nor matter; idealism, which suggests that ultimate reality is really mind, either individual mind or infinite mind; philosophical mysticism, which is absolute monism, teaching that all reality is a unit.

idealism, which suggests that ultimate reality is really mind, either individual mind or infinite mind; philosophical mysticism, which is absolute monism, teaching that all reality is a unit.

Deism

Deists believe there is no personal God to whom man can relate.

An impersonal God created the world and afterward divorced Himself from the human race and left man alone in his created world.

Deists acknowledge only the transcendence of God; they deny His immanence (see glossary).

Revelation of God

General Revelation

The revelation of God in which He conveys truth about Himself to mankind is necessary to make theology possible.

Revelation (Gk.

apokalupsis) means “unveiling” or “disclosure.”

Revelation is thus God’s disclosure to man, in which He reveals truth about Himself that man would not otherwise know.

General revelation, which is preliminary to salvation, reveals aspects about God and His nature to all mankind so that all humanity has an awareness of God’s existence.

is a primary passage emphasizing the general revelation of God in the universe and in nature.

The heavens speak of God’s glory, for no one apart from a majestic God could bring the vast heavens into being.

The earth, in all its beauty, harmony, and intricacy, reveals the handiwork of God.

further stresses the general revelation of God and the fact that man is accountable to God.

He has revealed “His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature” so that mankind is without excuse (1:20).

God has also revealed Himself to all humanity through His providential provision and control (; ) so that mankind should respond to the gracious God.