01 - Part 1 - Theology Proper: The Study of God
Part I Theology Proper: The Study of God
Introduction
A Confession of Faith
Definition of Theology
Theology is Universal
Chapter 1 The Method of Theology
The Speculative Method
The Mysticism Method
The Inductive Method
Chapter 2 The Source of Theology
Five Kinds of Theology
Natural Theology
Revealed (Biblical) Theology
Dogmatic Theology
Practical Theology
Theology Proper
Chapter 3 Can God Be Known?
The Biblical Declaration
The Argument of the Agnostics
A Response to Agnosticism
The Distinction between Apprehension and Comprehension
Can God Be Defined?
Chapter 4 Arguments for the Existence of God
The Ontological Argument
Evaluation of the Ontological Argument
The Cosmological Argument
Resistance to Reason
A Reasonable Response
The Teleological Argument
Objection to the Teleological Argument
The Moral Argument
The Historical Argument
Chapter 5 Anti-Theistic Theories
Atheism
Polytheism
Materialism
Objections To Materialism
Pantheism
The Pain Of Pantheism
The Promises Of God
Chapter 6 Anti-Christian Theories
Deism
History of Deism
Objections to Deism
Rationalism
A Challenge to Rationalism
Pessimism
The Doctrine of A Finite God
Your God Is Too Small
Chapter 7 The Nature Of God
The Oneness of God
The Personality of God
God Creates
God Eliminates
God Furnishes what is Needed to Sustain Life
God Exalts
God Loves
God Is Concerned
God Answers Prayers
God Hates
God Repents
Objections to the Personality of God
Knowing What Is Known
The Substance of God
The Attributes of God
Omnipresence
Infinitude
Eternality
Immutability
Sovereignty
Transcendence
Immanence
A Trinity of Persons
Proof of the Trinity4
Denial of The Trinity
Arianism
Sem-Arianism
Sabellianism
Unitarianism
Defenders Of The Faith
Justine Martyr
Iranaeus
Clement Of Alexandria
Tertullian
Hyppolytus
Origen
The Tri-Unity
The Relation between Father, Son, And Holy Spirit
The Value of the Doctrine of the Trinity
The Holy Spirit
The Spirit Is A Person
Chapter 8 The Decrees Of God
A Confession of Faith: God Has A Purpose
A Distinction In The Divine Decree
The Decree of God
God Has Decreed the General Course Of History
God Has Decreed Particular Events
God Has Decreed the Salvation Of Sinners
God Has Decreed the Evil That Men Do
God Has Decreed All Accidental Events
God Has Decreed the Means As Well As the End of All Things
The Order of The Decrees
Supralapsarian
Infralapsarian
God’s Decree Makes Foreknowledge Possible
The Decree In Reference To Free Agency
Additional Arguments
Chapter 9 The Works Of God
A Confession of Faith
Creation
Three Possible Explanations of Creation
Creation and Evolution
The Sad State of the Theistic Evolutionist
Remarks On Evolution In General
Providence
Is Creation Continual?
The Extent Of Divine Providence
God Governs the Physical Universe
God Governs the Animal Creation
God Governs the Events of Human History
God Governs the Lives of Individuals
God Governs the Smallest Details of Life
God Governs the Fortuitous Events
God Governs the Free Actions of Men
God Governs the Sinful Actions of Men
God Is Not the Author of Sin
Why Sin is Allowed in the Saints
The Purpose of Sin in the Unsaved
Definition of A Miracle
Classification of Miracles
Are Miracles Probable Or Improbable?
A World Without Miracles
Miracles Are Instructive
When and Where Do Miracles Occur?
Objections By Rationalism And Modernism
The Silence of the Skeptics
Special Arguments for Miracles
Part 1 THEOLOGY PROPER: THE STUDY OF GOD
"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15
Introduction A Confession of Faith
“The Lord our God is but one only living and true God; whose subsistence is in and of Himself, infinite in being and perfection, whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but Himself; a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions, who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; who is immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, every way infinite, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will for his own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, and withal most just and terrible in His judgments, hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty.” (The Baptist Confession Of Faith Of 1689, Chapter 2, Section 1; study 1 Corinthians 8:4, 1 Corinthians 8:6; Deuteronomy 6:4; Jeremiah 10:10; Isaiah 48:1; Exodus 3:14; John 4:24; 1 Timothy 1:17; Deuteronomy 4:15-16; Malachi 3:6; 1 Kings 8:27; Jeremiah 23:23; Psalms 90:2; Genesis 17:1; Isaiah 6:3; Psalms 115:3; Isaiah 16:10; Proverbs 16:4; Romans 11:36; Exodus 34:6-7; Hebrews 6:6; Nehemiah 9:23, Nehemiah 9:33; Psalms 5:5-6; Exodus 34:7; Nahum 1:2-3).
Definition of Theology The word theology is derived from two Greek words: theos, God; and logos, discourse.
Theology Proper is the study of the knowledge of God and His relation to mankind. The student of God’s Word, the Bible, has the privilege of constructing and presenting a comprehensive and consistent system of thought concerning the God of the universe who has revealed Himself in various ways to His creation. The quest to know the Lord (Jeremiah 29:13) must be made according to truth with faith in the promise of Jesus who said, “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32).
Theology is Universal Every thoughtful individual is a theologian to some extent for life and desting are affected by what an individual believes about God and His will. According to Proverbs 23:7, “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he.” “Nothing so affects the spirit and character of a person as his knowledge of God, or the lack of it.” (David Clark) Because this is true, theology becomes the most vital and fundamental of all studies. “To this consideration, individuals may well bring the liveliest interest, keenest apprehension, and loftiest powers of the mind. People may engage in the most diligent of spiritual labors while calling upon the soul and all that is within the soul to attend seriously and reverently to the great and solemn subjects that concern God.” (David Clark) The spiritual heart prays with the Psalmist (Psalms 119:18), “Lord, open thou mine eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law”. Such a prayer is needed because, “Nothing twists and deforms the soul more than a low or unworthy conception of God.” (A.W. Tozer).