TWELVE MAJOR DIVISIONS OF SYSTEMATIC CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY

Systematic theology is a discipline which discusses Bible-related subjects and doctrines, such as God, sin, salvation or humanity, on an individual basis, and plus it attempts to explain all the biblical facts about each particular subject. The single overriding goal of systematic theology is to present the major doctrines of the Christian faith in an organized, simplistic and understandable manner that remains in full agreement with exactly what the Bible teaches. Systematic theology integrates biblical, historical and philosophical facts into its methods of study and teaching in order to clearly describe what the Bible teaches about a particular subject or doctrine. Furthermore, systematic theology not only looks to biblically construct individual doctrines of the Christian faith, but remains aware of the cause-effect relationship of each doctrine. This means that all Bible doctrines are interconnected and help to explain each other, thus changing one doctrine will automatically effect other doctrines. For example, the doctrine of Jesus Christ (Christology) supports the doctrine of God, creation, salvation and others; therefore, changing one's view of Jesus Christ inevitably results in changes in those doctrines. Denying the immortality of the human soul inevitably results in a denial of the doctrine of Hell's eternal punishment in exchange for annihilationism. A Christian does not absolutely need systematic theology, but systematic theology can be a value tool for helping a Christian to acquire a more organized perspective of God's word and to defend Christian doctrine against anti-Christian heresies. The majority of cults and aberrant Christian groups do not have a organized systematic theology of their own, and this leaves them vulnerable to being blown about by every wind of doctrine, as well as fickle opinions, emotionalism and experientialism.

DIVISION OF THEOLOGY	THE STUDY OF
Bibliology	The Bible
Theology Proper	The Attributes of God
Christology	Jesus Christ
Pneumatology	The Holy Spirit
Angelology	Angels, both holy angels and fallen angels
Biblical Anthropology	Man from a biblical perspective
Hamartiology	Sin
Aretology	Virtue, Godliness and God's prescribed morals
Soteriology	Salvation
Israelology	The Nation of Israel and the Jews
Ecclesiology	The Church
Eschatology	End Times Prophecy and Eternity

BIBLIOLOGY: THE STUDY OF THE BIBLE

Bibliology is the branch of Christian systematic theology that focuses on the Bible. Bibliology seeks to answer the following questions:

What is the Bible?
Who wrote the Bible?
When was the Bible written?
What information is contained in the Bible?
Is the Bible really inspired by God, or is it merely another product of man?
Is the Bible really inerrant and infallible?
Is the Bible sufficient for mankind's getting to know God and attaining salvation?
How was the Bible cannon put together? Who were involved in cannonizing the Bible, and passing it down through the centuries?
Is the Bible missing certain books, and if so, which books are missing, are they important, and can they be found?
Can the Bible be trusted, and if so, how much can it be trusted?
Is the Bible really important, and if so, why is it important?

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The word BIBLE is not found anywhere in the scriptures, yet it is very accurate in describing the Holy Canon. The word BIBLE originated from the Koine Greek word biblia (βιβλία), meaning "books," so the Bible can rightly be called "The Book of Books;" therefore, the Holy Bible is God's "Holy Book of Books." Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God (Greek λόγος = logos), while the Bible is the inspired written Word of God that gives a written account of Jesus Christ and all else pertaining to God and His works. The Bible does not merely contain the Word of God as many liberals teach, instead, the Bible is the Word of God; 100% of the Bible, verse by verse, from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21, is God-breathed and divinely inspired for the benefit of everyone who reads and applies it (2 Timothy 3:16, 17). The Bible is the property of God, not humanity, just as American currency is property of the U.S. government, not the citizens. God entrusted humanity with stewardship over His Word the Bible. Sadly, the vast majority of humanity has displayed bad stewardship over God's Bible since they they to adequately read it, study it, apply its teachings to their own lives, and properly preach its message to others. God will judge most of humanity, and hold them accountable, for bad stewardship with His Bible. The Bible was written over a period of roughly 1,600 years (1513 B.C. to 98 A.D.) by more than 40 writers from all walks of life. Some were fishermen, some were shepherds, some were carpenters, stone masons and metalsmiths, some were tax collectors, some were priest and scribes, some were prophets, some were physicians, and some were kings and politicians. These writers were informed and directed by God's Holy Spirit into writing all the words that we read in the Holy Bible (2 Peter 1:20, 21). The oldest book in the Bible is believed to be the book of Job, while the last books to be written are believed to be Revelation and John's epistles. The Almighty God works to preserve His word for all generations to read and know; His word will not pass away (Psalm 12:6, 7; Matthew 24:35; 1 Peter 1:23-25). The books of the Bible originally did not exist as the bound leaved pages we see today, instead, they existed as lengthy scrolls made of papyrus, parchment or some other durable paper-like material. The ink used for writing was made of iron compounds or mercury compounds derived from plants or minerals. The Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. The Old Testament (Hebrew TANAKH) was originally written in Hebrew, with a few isolated passages written in Aramaic (known as the Targums). A Greek translation of the Old Testament called the Septuagint (LXX) was made around 250 B.C. to accommodate the Jewish Diaspora during that era. The entire New Testament was originally written in Greek, partly because Koine Greek was the commercial language of the eastern Mediterranean during the days of the Christian apostles. The books of the Bible were later translated into Latin and canonized as the Latin Vulgate. All the books of the Bible were eventually translated into the modern languages spoken today, including English via the King James Version and other translations. The individual books of the Bible cannon were originally not subdivided into chapters and verses. The ancient manuscripts did not have them. The typical modern chapter divisions were apparently devised in 1227 AD by Stephen Langton, who was an Archbishop of Canterbury in England. The Wycliffe English Bible of 1382 AD used Langton’s chapter format, and that same chapter format has been used by every modern Bible translation ever since. As for the verses, one Jewish teacher, named Mordecai Nathan, divided the Hebrew Old Testament into verses in 1448 AD. Robert Estienne, who was also known as Stephanus, was the first to divide the New Testament into standard numbered verses in 1555 AD. Since the time of the Geneva Bible version (an English version published in Paris, 1560 AD), which preceded the famous King James Version, nearly all Bible versions, including those used today, have been organized into this same numbering system for chapters and verses. This numbering system works very well for helping people to look up and memorize Bible citations in specific parts of the Bible. The Bible is currently the most widely published, and most widely distributed book on earth. The Bible is also the most commonly read book in the world, even in Third World countries, and it is possessed by more households and individual people than any other book in our modern civilization. Roughly 93% of the world’s population has access to the all or part of the Bible.

FACTS ABOUT THE KING JAMES VERSION

Contrary to popular belief, the King James Version was NOT the first ever English translation of the Bible, neither in whole nor in part. William Tyndale was a British scholar and theologian who was the first to translate the New Testament into the English language around 1526. Tyndale was executed as a heretic in 1536, partly because of his translating parts of the Bible into English. Three complete English translations that preceded the King James Version of 1611 were the Great Bible of Henry VIII, the Bishop's Bible, and the Calvinistic Geneva Bible. The King James Version of 1611 was actually the third (some say the fourth) complete English translation of the Holy Bible. Rheims New Testament was a primitive English translation of the New Testament. The King James Version and its English antecedents used Archaic English instead of Modern English. The main differences between the King James Version and its English antecedents include the better organizing of the chapters and verses, the use of italics (italicized words) to distinguish added supplementary words from the words of the original manuscripts, better organized sentence structure within each verse. After 1611, the King James Version was later revised in 1769 to modify the Bible text; and it was revised again in 1885 to remove 14 apocryphal books. Parts of the King James Version were plagiarized by Joseph Smith when he wrote the Book of Mormon for his congregation known as the Latter Day Saints. An interdenominational group of Christians called the King James Only Movement believe that the King James Version is the only English translation of the Bible that is truly approved by God, because it is presumed to be a fresh translation of the Bible's original Hebrew and Greek. However, other Christians disagree with this assertion and claim that other Bible translations are just as sufficient and reliable as the King James Version. As of today, the King James Version remains the one of the most popular and most widely used English translations of the Holy Bible. The Christian Booksellers Association in 2012 ranked the five most popular Bible translations in English as the New International Version (1978), the King James Version (1611), the New Living Translation (1996), the New King James Version (1982), and the English Standard Version (2001). In addition, the King James Version is the ONLY English translation that is NOT protected or regulated by copyright laws; it is currently of public domain for a wide variety of uses by both Christians and the secular society.

HOW THE BIBLE WAS CANONIZED

Determining the canon was a process conducted first by Jewish rabbis and scholars and later by early Christians. Ultimately, it was God who decided what books belonged in the biblical canon. A book of Scripture belonged in the canon from the moment God inspired its writing. It was simply a matter of God’s convincing His human followers which books should be included in the Bible. Compared to the New Testament, there was much less controversy over the canon of the Old Testament. Hebrew believers recognized God’s messengers and accepted their writings as inspired of God. The New Testament was the more difficult to compile together for the cannon because they were scattered around Judea and the Roman Empire during the era of the Church, plus the authenticity of certain books was questioned. The New Testament books receiving the most controversy were Hebrews, James, 2 Peter, 2 John, and 3 John, but they were eventually included in the cannon. Even after the Bible was fully canonized, the 16th Century Protestant Reformer, Martin Luther thought that the books of Hebrews, James, Jude, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, and Revelation should be omitted from the New Testament, but he did not have enough from his contemporaries.

Those who confirmed the authenticity of New Testament books included the apostles Paul and Peter, Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp (a disciple of the apostle John), Irenaeus, Hippolytus, and the Italian historian Ludovico Muratori. During the 4th Century and 16th Century A.D., four major councils of the Church put the finishing touches on the canonization of the Bible we use today, and those councils include the Council of Laodicea in 363 A.D., the Council of Hippo in 393 A.D., the Council of Carthage in 397 A.D. and the Council of Trent in 1546 A.D. These four councils followed something similar to the following principles to determine whether a New Testament book was truly inspired by the Holy Spirit: 1) The author of the book must be either an apostle or have a close connection with an apostle, 2) The book and its subject matter must be accepted by the body of Christ at large 3) All of the book's information must be consistent with orthodox doctrine and apostolic teaching 4) The book must place strong emphasis on the high moral standards and spiritual values that accompany the work of the Holy Spirit in the individual believer and the congregation of the Church. The books approved by the Councils include the 39 books of the Old Testament, at least 14 books of the Apocrypha, and the 27 books of the New Testament. Numerous other sacred books were written during the first 1,000 years of the Church, including the book of the Essenes and the gospel of Thomas, but none of them met 100% of the aforementioned criteria of the three councils, so they were not included in the biblical cannon. There were a total of twelve gospels about Jesus Christ up for consideration, but only four of them were included in the New Testament of the biblical canon, while the other eight gospels were rejected because they were based on the doctrines of Gnosticism. Other epistles and books were also rejected because of Gnostic doctrine. The original King James Version (KJV) of 1611 contained 80 books (66 + 14 apocryphal), but the Apocrypha was officially removed from the King James Version in 1885 leaving only 66 books for the Protestant King James Version, but the Catholics still use the Apocrypha in their Bible to this present day. The Almighty God, who inspired the Bible and promised to preserve His Word, was the ultimate architect behind the Bible's canonization. The human process of collecting and organizing the books of the Bible was flawed, but God, in His sovereignty, and despite human ignorance and stubbornness, brought the early church to the recognition of the books He had inspired.

BIBLE ORGANIZATION AND STATISTICS

The Hebrew translation of the Old Testament is called the Tanakh. The Greek translation of the Old Testament is called the Septuagint LXX

The Bible that Protestants use contains a total of 66 books, and those 66 books are grouped into 10 sections:

OLD TESTAMENT
5 BOOKS OF LAW (PENTATEUCH OR TORAH)
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

12 BOOKS OF HEBREW HISTORY
Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Ester

5 BOOKS OF POETRY (POETRY, SONGS AND WISDOM BOOKS)
Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon

5 BOOKS OF THE MAJOR PROPHETS
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel

12 BOOKS OF THE MINOR PROPHETS
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi

NEW TESTAMENT
4 GOSPELS ON THE LIFE AND MINISTRY OF JESUS CHRIST
Matthew, Mark, Luke, John

Matthew, Mark and Luke are referred to as the Synoptic Gospels because they include many of the same stories, often in a similar sequence and in similar wording. They stand in contrast to John, whose content is comparatively distinct.

1 BOOK OF CHURCH HISTORY - Acts of the Apostles

13 PAULINE EPISTLES (LETTERS FROM PAUL)
Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatins, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon

8 GENERAL EPISTLES (LETTERS FROM OTHER CHRISTIANS)
Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude

1 BOOK OF LATTER DAY PROPHECIES - Revelation (Apocalypse)

Total number of Books in the Bible: 66
Number of Books in the Old Testament: 39
Number of Books in the New Testament: 27
Shortest book in the Bible: 2 John
Longest book in the Bible: Psalms
Chapters in the Bible: 1189
Chapters in the Old Testament: 929
Chapters in the New Testament: 260
Middle chapter of the Bible: Psalm 117
Shortest chapter in the Bible: Psalm 117
Longest chapter in the Bible: Psalm 119
Verses in the Bible: 31,173
Verses in the Old Testament: 23,214
Verses in the New Testament: 7,959
Shortest verse in the Bible: John 11:35
Longest verse in the Bible: Esther 8:9
Words in the Bible: 773,692
Words in the Old Testament: 592,439
Words in the New Testament: 181,253

Luke is the longest book in the New Testament with 1151 verses and 19482 words. Matthew is the second longest with 1071 verses and 18345 words.

BIBLE INTERPRETATION: EISEGESIS, EXEGESIS AND HERMENEUTICS

EISEGESIS is the practice of imposing one's own theories, opinions, ideas, bias, etc, upon a specific Bible text rather than interpreting the actual meaning of the text itself. Eisegesis is a practice done by many false prophets and false teachers among professions of Christianity. It should be noted that the vast majority of symbolic, figurative or allegorical interpretations are eisegetical. EXEGESIS is the practice of extracting or drawing out the actual meaning in the Bible text itself; it is reading and studying the text to find out what it is trying to say, without imposing one's own ideas or bias on the text. In the majority of Bible passages, a literal interpretation goes hand in hand with proper exegesis. Eisegesis is a subjective view of scripture; exegesis is an objective view of scripture. A true person of God would read and study the Bible in accordance with the exegetical approach, with the help of God's Holy Spirit.

Despite using only the exegetical approach to interpreting the Bible, a Christian will inevitably interpret the Bible texts in light of some version of HERMENEUTICS, which is the field of study concerned with how a literary work is interpreted. "Biblical hermeneutics" is specifically concerned with the philosophy and study of interpreting the Biblical text. Keep in mind that thereis a difference between exegesis and hermeneutics. Exegesis deals with what a scriptural text meant to its author and intended reader in their sociocultural context. Whereas hermeneutics involves the interpretation of a scriptural text to provide meaning for the today's present world. All kinds of social, cultural, political, economic, historical, and educational factors can greatly influence the hermeneutical interpretation of a person or faith community; therefore, interpretations may differ somewhat.

Despite all of this, all Christians are advised to interpret the Bible as objectively as possible in accordance with the following five principles: (1) - 100% of the Bible text is the inspired Word of God, regardless of whom God used to write it, (2) - Every scripture must be understood according to its immediate context, (3) - Any interpretation of scripture must be understood in light of the overall message of the entire Bible (OT and NT) that God is conveying to humanity, (4) - God purposefully designed His own inspired Word, the Bible, to function as its own interpreter, its own dictionary, and its own defense against the lies of Satan and false teachers, and (5) - the Holy Spirit of God opens the spiritual understanding of anyone sincerely devoted to the God of the Bible and seeking to learn from Him.

GOD THOROUGHLY PRESERVES HIS WORD FOR ALL TIME

Jesus said "till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled." --- Matthew 5:18

Jesus has already fulfilled the Law to a very great extent at His first coming, but He will totally complete His fulfillment of the Law and Prophets at His second coming: the end of the world, the final judgment, and the creation of the New Heaven and New Earth. The phrases "one jot" and "one tittle" actually refer to the smallest letters of the alphabet of the Hebrew language in which the OT was written. The Law contained in God's Word will be preserved in detail, even down to the smallest letters. Jesus' statement at Matthew 5:18 provides us with one of the strongest affirmations that God's Word the Bible will remain with us for all time. It also affirms the inerrancy of scripture, along with its trustworthiness and authoritativeness, since God preserves His Word so perfectly across the centuries (Psalm 12:6, 7; 119:89; Matthew 24:35; 1 Peter 1:24, 25).

"Here's this idea that says that the Bible was in the original manuscripts but it has not been preserved up until now. And yet we're going to try to teach you that, if you get saved, God will preserve you for all eternity. But if God cannot protect and preserve His own Word across the centuries, how can He preserve you and keep you in your life. It doesn't make sense, does it?....But we can all rest assured that God does preserve and keep His Word, and that He will certainly do the same for our lives." --- Michael Hoggard, Pastor of Bethel Church in Festus, MO

THEOLOGY PROPER: THE DOCTRINE OF GOD, HIS ATTRIBUTES AND HIS PROVIDENCE

Theology Proper is the branch of Christian systematic theology that focuses on God. Theology Proper seeks to help people have a biblical view of God by answer the following questions:

Who or what is God?
What are the qualities and attributes of God?
What are the works of God?
Why did God create human beings?
Does God really care about us?
How does God reveal Himself?
If someone wants to learn about God, how do they do so?
What solutions does God have for our biggest problems?

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

God is an eternal entity who is real, spiritual, and infinite in every aspect of His being, and He is not impersonal but is personal, having personality and intelligence. It is difficult to define who and what God is, because God is, by nature, completely different from what we are, and infinitely transcends our comprehension of reality. Therefore, we can only describe God by analogy and identify His attributes as He has revealed to humanity in His inspired Word the Bible. Nevertheless, the God identified in the Bible is the only supreme, eternally self-sufficient being with absolute aseity, who had no beginning nor will He cease to exist (Psalm 90:2), who is incomprehensible, transcendent, and immutable. There is no one like God nor equal to God, nor is there any greater than Him (Exodus 15:11; Psalm 113:5; Isaiah 46:5, 9). God's other attributes include holiness (Psalm 99:9), omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, logic, righteousness, justice, love, mercy, grace, and so on. All of these attributes exist and function perfectly within God; no divine attribute overrides or cancels out another. That is why God cannot be a God of perfect love without also being a God of perfect justice. God cannot be loving at the expense of His perfect justice and righteousness, so both His love and His justice must be satisfied in order for God to forgive sins. Holiness is the only attribute of God that is emphasized to the third degree (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8). This three-fold "holy" not only reflects the triune nature of God, but also places great emphasis on the perfect and absolute holiness of God. Holiness is not just one particular attribute of God, rather, holiness describes the sum of all the attributes of God's entire being. The Bible says God alone is holy (Revelation 15:4). To be "holy" literally means to be set apart, thus since God alone is holy, it means He always will be totally set apart from all of Creation as the unique and immutable God.

Almighty God has both intrinsic glory and ascribed glory, which He will not give to anyone else (Isaiah 42:8; 48:11). God has a decretive will, a preceptive will, and a permissive will that must be accepted and respected by everyone. God can do all things (Jeremiah 32:17, 27; Luke 1:37; Ephesians 3:20) -- except those things that are contrary to His nature like lie, break His law, be unfaithful, etc). and He is everywhere all the time (Psalm 139:7-12). God cannot be limited or put in a box when it comes to His being, His authority, and His abilities (Deuteronomy 32:39; Psalm 135:6; Isaiah 55:8, 9; Romans 11:33). God is the creator of all things in heaven and in earth (Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 44:24; Revelation 4:11), and God created people for His glory and for the glory of His Son (Isaiah 43:7; Colossians 1:15-17). He alone is God and there is no true deity besides Him (Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 45:21, 22; 46:9; 47:8). There have never been any gods before God nor will there be any after Him (Isaiah 43:10; 44:6, 8). In Exodus 3:14, God revealed His name Yahweh to His people Israel, and it is a name derived from the four Hebrew consonants of the Tetragrammaton (יהוה = YHWH) that spell the name of God. God reveals Himself to humanity through the general revelations of the natural world (Romans 1:20) and through certain aspects of human nature (Romans 2:15; Genesis 1:26, 27; 1 John 4:20, 21). He also reveals Himself through special revelations such as the Bible, the Holy Spirit, theophanies, and supernatural signs, but God is ultimately revealed to us in the person of Jesus Christ as described in the New Testament. All of God's attributes are manifested in a Trinity of three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ is the Son within the Godhead or Trinity (Isaiah 48:12-16; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 John 5:7).

Theologians divide the attributes of God into two categories. The first category includes God's incommunicable attributes, which always have been and always will be exclusive to God alone, attributes such as God's omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, aseity, eternal existence and immutability. The second category includes God's communicable attributes, also called relational attributes or moral attributes. The communicable attributes are the behavioral attributes that are found in God and shared by God with born again Christians who are conformed to the mind of Christ, attributes such as love, patience, grace, mercy, humility, holiness and an inclination to righteousness.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD (with biblical proof texts)

This is a list of God’s divine attributes as mentioned in the Bible. The list identifies the intrinsic attributes of God, not God’s names and titles. This list is NOT intended to be exhaustive by any means.

1.) – There is only One true God, only one true deity (Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 43:10; 44:6; 46:9; John 17:3; 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; 1 Timothy 2:5; James 2:19), and that God is the Creator and Owner of all things in heaven and in earth (Genesis 1:1; Revelation 4:11).

2.) – God is spirit; He is invisible, and MUST be worshiped in spirit and in truth (John 4:24; 1 Timothy 1:17) and therefore God should NEVER be worshiped through visible things such as idols or images (Exodus 20:4-6; Romans 1:20-25).

3.) – God is Eternal (Psalm 90:2; 1 Timothy 1:17)

4.) – God is Absolute Sovereign (Psalm 47:8; Psalm 103:19; Daniel 4:34, 35; Romans 13:1; Ephesians 1:11),

5.) – God is Almighty and All-powerful (Deuteronomy 32:39; Job 42:1, 2; Psalm 115:3; Psalm 135:6; Isaiah 46:9-11; Revelation 1:8; 16:7)

6.) – God is Omnipresent, sees all things (Psalm 139:7-12; Jeremiah 23:23, 24; Hebrews 4:13),

7.) – God is Omniscient, knows all things (Psalm 147:5; 1 John 3:20),

8.) – God is Immutable or Unchanging (Malachi 3:6; Psalm 102:25-27; James 1:17),

9.) – God is Incomprehensible and Transcendent (Job 37:5; Isaiah 55:8, 9; Romans 11:33).

10.) – God never tires out or grows weary (Isaiah 40:29).

11.) – God is able; nothing is impossible for Him (Luke 1:37; Ephesians 3:20; Jude 1:24).

12.) – God is faithful (Deuteronomy 7:9; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Timothy 2:13).

13.) – God is perfectly righteous and without sin (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 92:15).

14.) – God cannot be tempted (James 1:13).

15.) – God is Holy (Psalm 99:9; Isaiah 6:3; 1 Philippians 1:16; Revelation 4:8).

16.) – God is Light and Truth (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 31:5; Psalm 104:2; 1 Timothy 6:15, 16; Titus 1:2; 1 John 1:5)

17.) – God is Justice (Psalm 9:7, 8; Psalm 89:14; Isaiah 61:8; Revelation 16:7).

18.) – God cannot be contained (1 Kings 8:27; Isaiah 66:1, 2).

19.) – God is complete and self-sufficient; He needs nothing from His creatures (Psalm 50:9-13; Act 17:25).

20.) – God owns all things, and God owes His creatures nothing (1 Chronicles 29:14; Job 41:11; Romans 11:35, 36).

21.) – God created everything out of nothing (Psalm 33:6; Psalm 148:5; John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 11:3).

22.) – God created everything all by Himself, with no help from any creature (Isaiah 44:24; Job 9:8).

23.) – God is, always has been, and always will be, the only God (Isaiah 43:10).

24.) – God is the only Savior (Isaiah 43:11; Jonah 2:9; 1 Timothy 2:3, 4).

25.) – God is the ultimate source of life (Psalm 36:9; Jeremiah 17:13; Acts 17:28).

26.) – God will not give His glory to another (Isaiah 42:8; Isaiah 48:11).

27.) – God loves righteousness and hates sin (Proverbs 3:32-35; Proverbs 15:9).

28.) – There is no one like God, nor equal to God (Exodus 15:11; Psalm 113:5; Isaiah 46:5, 9).

29.) – God Almighty manifests Himself as a Trinity of three distinct Persons (or Hypostases): Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 John 5:7), and that these three Persons are exactly equal to each other in both nature and essential attributes. The Father is God (Romans 1:7; Philippians 1:2; 2 Peter 1:17), the Son (Word) is God (John 1:1; Romans 9:5; Hebrews 1:8), and the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:4). Each of these three Persons possesses the complete essence and nature of God, including eternity, omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, perfect righteousness, perfect holiness, immutability, transcendence, infinity, etc. These three Persons of the Trinity (or Godhead) are distinct, yet each is Almighty God.

30.) – The God of the Bible is a God of unconditional love and goodness (Exodus 34:6, 7; Psalm 86:5; 1 John 4:8), but He is a God of wrath and righteous indignation toward those who do not repent and devote their lives to His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ (John 3:16, 36; Hebrews 10:26-31; 1 John 2:23-25).

THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE OF GOD

Divine providence is the means by and through which God governs all things in the universe. The doctrine of divine providence asserts that God is in complete control of all things. This includes the universe as a whole (Psalm 103:19), the physical world (Matthew 5:45), the affairs of nations (Psalm 66:7), human birth and destiny (Galatians 1:15), human successes and failures (Luke 1:52), and the protection of His people (Psalm 4:8). This doctrine stands in direct opposition to the idea that the universe is governed by chance or fate. The purpose, or goal, of divine providence is to accomplish the will of God. To ensure that His purposes are fulfilled, God governs the affairs of men and works through the natural order of things. The laws of nature are nothing more than a depiction of God at work in the universe. The laws of nature have no inherent power, nor do they work independently. The laws of nature are the rules and principles that God set in place to govern how things work. The same goes for human choice. In a very real sense we are not free to choose or act apart from God’s will. Everything we do and everything we choose is in full accordance to God’s will—even our sinful choices (Genesis 50:20). The bottom line is that God controls our choices and actions (Genesis 45:5; Deuteronomy 8:18; Proverbs 21:1), yet He does so in such a way that does not violate our responsibility as free moral agents, nor does it negate the reality of our choice.

The doctrine of divine providence can be succinctly summarized this way: “God in eternity past, in the counsel of His own will, ordained everything that will happen; yet in no sense is God the author of sin; nor is human responsibility removed.” God is totally unlimited in knowledge and power; His counsel will stand regardless of the choices and actions of angels or human beings (Psalm 33:10, 11; Proverbs 19:21; Isaiah 46:9-11). The primary means by which God accomplishes His will is through secondary causes, such as the laws of nature (2 Samuel 21:1), the angelic or demonic realm (1 Kings 22:19-23), and the choices or actions of human beings (2 Samuel 17:14; Jeremiah 22:25). In other words, God works indirectly through these secondary causes to accomplish His will. God also sometimes works directly to accomplish His will. These works are what we would call miracles; that is, supernatural events as opposed to natural events. A miracle is God’s circumventing, for a short period of time, the natural order of things to accomplish His will and purpose. Examples of miracles include the parting of the Red Sea in behalf of the Israelites (Exodus 14:21-23), the Holy Spirit's conceiving Christ in the virgin Mary (Luke 1:31-35), Jesus' healing sick people (Matthew 4:23, 24), Jesus' walking on water (Matthew 14:22-33), and the salvation of the believer from sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:50-55; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:4, 5).

LEARNING ABOUT GOD AND GETTING TO KNOW GOD

If anyone desires to learn about God, they must read the Bible, which contains virtually all the information God revealed about Himself to humanity. The power of the Holy Spirit is another way God reveals Himself, and no one can understand the deepest truths in the Bible without the Holy Spirit opening their understanding (1 Corinthians 2:14; John 16:13). As a person reads the Bible and take its words seriously, they will discover the vast difference between finite, sinful humanity and the infinite, holy God. They will come to the realization that God hates sin and disorder, and He will not tolerate such things in His presence without exacting punishment or correction (Proverbs 3:32-35; Proverbs 15:9; Romans 2:5-11; Ephesians 5:3-6). Although God hates sin, He has no pleasure in the suffering and death of sinners; instead, He desires that everyone repent and trust in Him with love, humility and godly fear (Ezekiel 18:32; 33:11; 2 Peter 3:9). As a solution to the sin problem, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, as Savior into the world to atone for humanity's sins on the Cross (John 3:16; Romans 5:6-8; 6:23; 1 John 4:9, 10). All who believe on Jesus Christ will be saved, sanctified and glorified so that they may shine forth God's image perfectly and live a life that glorifies Him. Having a correct and biblical view of God is absolutely essential because an incorrect view of God leads to an incorrect view of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, the nature humanity, salvation and other theological issues. If a person's view of God is wrong, then they will be wrong on all other Bible subjects. Heretical views about God include atheism, agnosticism, pantheism, panentheism, naturalism, arianism, modalism, tritheism, polytheism, and henotheism.

CHRISTOLOGY: THE DOCTRINE OF JESUS CHRIST

Christology is the branch of Christian systematic theology that focuses on the person and work of Jesus Christ. While focusing primarily on the person of Jesus Christ, Christology also considers the work of Christ to some extent because who Christ is will determine what He is able to do. Christology seeks to answer the following questions:

Who is Jesus Christ?
What does the Bible say about Jesus Christ?
What does history say about Jesus Christ?
What do other religions say about Jesus Christ?
Why is the Christian view of Jesus the correct view?
How important is Jesus Christ to the individual and to the world?

There are a number of 1st Century philosophers and historians who wrote about Jesus, including Flavius Josephus. However, most of the detailed information about Jesus is recorded in the New Testament of the Bible, especially in the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. According to the Bible, Jesus Christ is Almighty God incarnated into human flesh. Before the incarnation, Jesus Christ existed from eternity past in Heaven as the Word of God, possessing the full nature of God (John 1:1). The Word (Greek λόγος = logos) worked together with the other two Persons of the Holy Trinity to create all things in heaven and in earth (Genesis 1:26, 27; John 1:3; Colossians 1:15-17). He was the chief messenger of God during Old Testament times as He was called the Angel of the Lord (Genesis 22:11-18; Exodus 3:2; 23:20, 21; Judges 13:18), who spoke to Abraham, Jacob, Moses and others. Though He was of the nature of God, the Word emptied Himself of His divine prerogatives and took on a human nature, but He never ceased to be fully God as He dwelt among humanity (John 1:14; Philippians 2:5-9). Jesus was born of a virgin woman named Mary, after the Holy Spirit conceived Him inside the virgin's womb (Matthew 1:18-21; Luke 1:31-35). While on earth, Jesus was born in the Judean town of Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1) and was called by the Hebrew name Yeshua Ha'Mashiach (ישוע המשיח). He was also called Jesus the Nazarene or Jesus of Nazareth, because He was raised in the Galilean town of Nazareth (Matthew 2:23). From the time of His birth to the time of His death, Jesus was perfect, sinless and holy in all His ways and in every aspect of His being, and now Jesus remains perfect forever (John 8:29; Hebrews 4:15; 9:28; 1 Peter 1:18, 19; 2:22, 23; 1 John 3:5). Jesus was baptized and received the Holy Spirit at about thirty years old, and He began His great ministry at that time (Luke 3:21-23). Jesus began His ministry His ministry in Galilee, and He traveled throughout Palestine into Judea, Samaria, and even non-Jewish regions like Tyre and Sidon. He purposefully chose at least twelve apostles to help Him in the ministry. Many miracles and supernatural signs were performed by Jesus, including the expulsion of demons, healing various sickness like leprosy, restoring sight to the blind, restoring hearing to the deaf, raising dead people back to life, and multiplying a small amount of food to feed thousands of people. Even as Jesus performed miracles, He preached the Gospel of salvation to everyone around Him, without caving in to criticism from His enemies. Jesus' message of salvation and His parables were unpopular among His fellow Jews, plus He courageously exposed the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders. Though some accepted Jesus' message and believed on Him, the Jewish nation as a whole rejected Jesus as their Messiah and called for the Romans to crucify Him on a cross. This set the stage for the ultimate reason why Jesus came into the world, and that is to give His life as a ransom and a propitiation for the sins of humanity (Matthew 20:28; Romans 5:6-11, Galatians 3:13, 14; Colossians 2:13-15; 1 Peter 2:24, 25; 1 John 4:9, 10). Jesus was bodily resurrected from the dead with a glorified body three days after His crucifixion (1 Corinthians 15:3, 4). He ascended to Heaven forty days after His resurrection, an He now sits at God's right hand (Acts 1:9-11; Hebrews 1:3; 10:12). Jesus' twelve apostles picked up where He left off in His ministry, and, after they received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they spread Jesus' Gospel from Jerusalem to the surrounding regions, and then to Gentiles all over the world (Acts 1:8). Jesus promises to return to earth in the future to rapture the Church, and to deliver the Jews of the nation of Israel, and to render judgment on unrepentant sinners (Romans 11:25-27; 1 Thessalonians 1:7-10; 4:16-18). Jesus fulfilled more than 330 Bible prophecies during His 33 1/2 years of life on earth, and more prophecies will be fulfilled by Him in the future.

Christology is perhaps the most important theological focus of the Word of God, since Jesus Christ is the centerpiece and executor of God's plan of redemption from sin. Jesus is the only Mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). Everything that God has ever done for humanity, is currently doing for humanity, or will ever do for humanity is through Jesus Christ, by Jesus Christ, and for Jesus Christ. Paul gives the sweeping assertion of Christ being the Sum Total of humanity's redemption and the focus of all of God's dealings with humanity in Colossians 1:13-19. All of these facts place Jesus far above the miniature position which so much of modern false religion places Him, and sets Him forever apart and infinitely higher than the so-called religious leaders of the world. Jesus is not merely another religious leader or Ascended Master; He is not merely one of many ways to God and salvation; instead, Jesus is the ONLY WAY. Jesus is not merely another expounder of truth; instead, He is THE TRUTH. Jesus Himself gives full meaning to the worship of God the Father with the statement, "I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE. No man comes to the Father except through ME." (John 14:6). Jesus emphasizes the error and futility of all the other man-made approaches to God by man-made religions in trying to sneak up some other way as "Liars and Thieves;" (John 10:1-9).

Christology is not only among the most important areas of Christian theology, it is also one of the most debated. This is because Jesus the Son of God is the most attacked of all the three Persons of the Trinity. Jews and Muslims reject the deity of Jesus Christ, plus Pseudo-Christian cults like Mormons, Christadelphians, Jehovah's Witnesses, and the UPCI reject the full deity of Jesus Christ and the Trinity as well. Virtually everyone who reads the Bible would agree that the Father is God, but so many people question whether or not the Son, Jesus Christ, is God. Jesus foretold that many false prophets and antichrists would come pretending to be Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:5). The apostles also foretold that Satan would deceive people by using preachers that preach a false Jesus and deny the Christ as truly come in the flesh (2 Corinthians 11:3, 4; 1 John 4:1-3).

Among those who accept the deity of Jesus Christ, there are at least two views that dominate: Chalcedonian and Miaphysitism. The Chalcedonian view is the most commonly held view in the Christian churches, and it is derived from the Creed of Chalcedon. The Chalcedonian view holds that Jesus is a "hypostatic union" of two distinct natures: 100% God and 100% human, not half God and half human. Jesus' humanity and divinity are not mixed or dissolved into each other; instead, the two natures are united without loss of separate identity. Jesus sometimes operated within the limitations of His humanity, while at other times He operated in the unlimited powers of His deity. In both natures, Jesus' actions were from His one Person. Jesus had two natures, but only one personality that was in control of all His actions. However, miaphysitism holds that Jesus has only one nature that is a fusion of God and humanity. Miaphysitism holds that, in the one person of Jesus Christ, the nature of God and the human nature are united in one single nature, the divine and the human are united without separation, without confusion, and without alteration, like a solution of salt and water. The one nature is God incarnate. In this way, all the attributes of God and humanity are displayed in the one person of Jesus Christ.  It should be noted that miaphysitism is not the same as monophysitism, which teaches that Jesus had only one nature in which Jesus' humanity was completely overtaken by the divine nature. Miaphysitism is embraced by Oriental Orthodox Churches in parts of Asia and Africa. The Chalcedonian view is preferred by most Christians because it maintains that God remained infinite and completely unchanged at the incarnation, despite clothing Himself with a human nature. The Chalcedonians believe that miaphystism would render Jesus unable to act as Mediator and unable to truly atone for our sins.

Radically heretical views about the person of Jesus Christ include arianism and modalism. Arianism is a heresy teaching that Jesus is not of the same nature as God the Father, but is instead a created being exalted above all other creatures. Some arians teach that Jesus is Michael the Archangel, while other arians teach that Jesus was a human who was eventually adopted as the Son of God and granted a certain amount of deity. Modalism (Sabellianism) is a heresy teaching that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are just modes of the single person who is God; that is Jesus. In other words, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not coexistent and distinct Persons but consecutive modes of the one person Jesus Christ.

STRONG PROOF TEXTS FOR THE DEITY OF JESUS CHRIST

The deity of Jesus Christ within the Holy Trinity is perhaps the central doctrine of Christianity. Many false teachers use the scriptures John 17:3 and 1 Corinthians 8:6 to prove their idea that Jesus Christ is a created being instead of eternal God.

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." --- John 17:3

"Yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live." --- 1 Corinthians 8:6

The very juxtaposition of Jesus Christ with the Father, as shown in the verses of John 17:3 and 1 Corinthians 8:6, is actually a proof, by implication, of our Lord's Godhead. The knowledge of GOD and a mere CREATURE could NOT be eternal life. God alone is the source of life, both temporal life and eternal life. Also, GOD and a mere CREATURE just CANNOT be responsible for the existence of ALL things, since all creatures are things. God alone has the unique position of Creator, as an integral part of the glory that makes Him unique, and God said He will NOT give away His glory to someone else (Isaiah 42:8; 48:9-13). Therefore, such an association of eternal, Almighty God with a mere creature would be absolutely preposterous and inconceivable.

In Matthew 28:19, Jesus tells his disciples "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Why would the disciples be instructed to baptize people in the name of anything or anyone who is not God? Would it not be false worship, idolatry, and blasphemy to baptize people in the name of anything or anyone who is not God, the only true Lord, Savior, King, Life-Giver, and God? Remember, the Lord God Almighty said at Exodus 20:2-6 that He is a Jealous God who demands exclusive worship and divine service, that we should not follow any other gods.

In order to properly interpret the Bible, you must compare scripture with scripture, and compare spiritual things with spiritual with the help of God's Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:13; Isaiah 28:9, 10). This is a practice that many false teachers either fail or refuse to do, as they take verses (or fragments of verses) out of context to give an eisegetical interpretation instead of an exegetical interpretation. They also add to, or subtract from, the actual Bible text to make the Bible appear to agree with their theology.

Colossians 1:15-18, Jesus is the "firstborn" of all creation and that all things were created through Him and for Him. The word "firstborn" (Greek πρωτότοκος --- prototokos) is used instead of "first-created" (Greek πρωτοκτισις --- protoktisis) in Colossians 1:15-18. In some Bible passages, the word "firstborn" means the first to be born among a group of offspring, however, in Colossians 1:15-18, the word firstborn refers to PREEMINENCE, as it does in a number of other Bible passages (Exodus 4:22, 23; Jeremiah 31:9; Psalm 89:27; Hebrews 10:23). Colossians 1:18 actually explains the meaning of firstborn when it says "And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence." The mystery of the God-man is this: as a man, Jesus is the preeminent firstborn of all Creation, but as God the Son Almighty, Jesus is the sovereign Creator of all things. The word "firstborn" is used in plural form (Greek πρωτοτόκων --- prōtotokōn) at Hebrews 12:23 with reference to all born again Christians destined for heaven, since they are preeminent among the human race. John 1:3 totally distinguishes Jesus Christ the Word (Greek λόγος --- Logos) from all created things, thus setting Him apart. Revelation 21:6 uses the word "beginning" (Greek ἀρχή --- arche) to describe the preeminence and sovereignty of God the Father Almighty, likewise Revelation 3:14 uses exactly the same word to describe the preeminence and sovereignty of Jesus Christ the Son. God the Father Almighty did not have a literal beginning (Psalm 90:2), nor did Jesus Christ the Son have a literal beginning; they are both uncreated. Micah 5:2 describes Jesus, the promised Messiah, as having existed in the everlasting past, and Jesus identified Himself as the Great "I AM" before Abraham was born (John 8:58).

Plus, with reference to Colossians 1:16, one must ask the question "Would Almighty God really allow a mere creature to create an entire universal, diverse creation for himself?" Isaiah 43:7 says that Almighty God created people for His own glory, not for a creature's glory. The Lord God said at Isaiah 44:24 that He created the heavens and the earth all by Himself, which excludes the involvement of a junior creaturely partner in the designing of Creation. Jesus Christ, as the power and wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24), is sometimes portrayed as the Master Craftsman that worked with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit in creating all things (Proverbs 8:22-31). At Genesis 1:26, 27, God the Father said to the Trinitarian Council, "Let us make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness" then it goes on to say in the next verse, "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." The fact that the Lord God Almighty created everything all by Himself is also supported by the words of Psalm 102:25-27, which are quoted at Hebrews 1:10-12 with direct reference to Jesus Christ as Creator. If Jesus Christ were a created being, and He is the wisdom and power of God, then there would have been a time in eternity past when the immutable, unchanging God was without wisdom and power, which is ludicrous and nonsensical.

Hebrews 1:3 says Jesus sustains all things by the word of His power. Someone having less than ALL MIGHT cannot sustain ALL THINGS; only and ALMIGHTY being can sustain ALL THINGS. Furthermore, God said He will NOT give away His glory to someone else (Isaiah 42:8; 48:9-13), yet Jesus has divine glory, praise, and worship alongside God the Father (John 17:5; Philippians 2:10, 11; Revelation 5:11-14). Only God alone is to be worshiped (Exodus 20:2-6; Matthew 4:10). This further proves Jesus Christ is in fact God, possessing the same divine nature as God the Father.

Not only did Jesus create and sustain all things, but He also has the power to do the following operations, just like God the Father:

1.) - Jesus pronounces judgment (John 5:22; Romans 14:10-12; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11),
2.) - Jesus forgives sins (Luke 5:20-26), --- God alone forgives sins (Psalm 32:5; Psalm 86:5)
3.) - Jesus reads and examines hearts (John 2:24; Revelation 2:23), --- God alone reads and examines hearts (2 Chronicles 6:30; Acts 15:8)
4.) - Jesus inflicts divine chastening on believers (Revelation 3:19), --- God alone chastens believers (Proverbs 3:11, 12; Hebrews 12:5-11)
5.) - Jesus gives rest to one's soul (Matthew 11:28-30). --- God gives rest to one's soul (Exodus 33:14)
6.) - People can pray to Jesus (Acts 7:59, 60; 1 Corinthians 1:2), --- God is prayed to everywhere in scripture (Daniel 9:3-19)
7.) - Jesus has the power to answer one's prayers (John 14:13, 14). --- God answers prayers (Psalm 18:6; Jonah 2:2)

8.) - Jesus allowed Himself to be worshiped (Matthew 2:2, 11; Matthew 14:33; Matthew 28:9; John 9:35-38; Hebrews 1:6) without accusing His worshipers of idolatry or blasphemy, unlike Peter, Paul, and angels (Acts 10:25, 26; 14:8-18; Revelation 19:10; 22:8, 9)
9.) - Jesus is called Lord and God by Thomas and by God the Father (John 20:28, 29; Hebrews 1:8-12)
10.) - Jesus' name is above every name (Philippians 2:10; Ephesians 1:21; Revelation 19:11, 12, 16)
11.) - Jesus is Almighty (Revelation 1:8) --- God is Almighty (Exodus 6:3; Revelation11:17)
12.) - Jesus is Omnipresent (Matthew 18:20; 28:20; Ephesians 4:10) --- God is Omnipresent (Jeremiah 23:23, 24; Proverbs 15:3; Hebrews 4:13)
13.) - Jesus is Omnipotent (Matthew 28:18; Philippians 3:20, 21; Hebrews 1:3) --- God is Omnipotent (Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 46:10, 11)
14.) - Jesus is Omniscient (John 16:30; 21:17) --- God is Omniscient (Psalm 147:5; 1 John 3:20)
15.) - Jesus is Immutable (Hebrews 1:10-12; Hebrews 13:8) --- God is Immutable (Malachi 3:6; James 1:17)
16.) - Like God the Father, Jesus' voice is the sound of many waters, and the earth is illuminated with His glory (Ezekiel 43:2; Hebrews 1:3; Revelation 1:16; 18:1)
17.) - Jesus is the Source of Life (John 1:4) --- God is the Source of Life (Psalm 36:9)
18.) - Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6) --- God is the Truth (Psalm 31:5)

All inconsistencies are explained by the fact that Jesus Christ is a "God-man," a Hypostatic Union of 100% God and 100% human simultaneously (Colossians 2:9). Jesus temporarily emptied Himself of certain divine prerogatives at His incarnation and He remained a humble servant during His time on earth (Philippians 2:5-9; 2 Corinthians 8:9). Also keep in mind that, when it comes down to Jesus humbly serving the Father, it is because the Son submits Himself to the Father, and this signifies an assumed chain of command that exists within the Godhead, just as assumed chains of command exist within a human family (father & son), between husband and wife, between boss and employee, among government officials, among military personnel, etc. Jesus is repeatedly referred to as the "angel of the LORD" or the "Shekinah Glory" throughout the Old Testament. Although Jesus is not an angel by nature, He did take on the occupation of an angel as He worked as God's chief messenger that attended to God's chosen people, while simultaneously manifesting Himself as a "theophany" of Almighty God (Genesis 16:7-12; 21:17-18; 22:11-18; Exodus 3:2-15; 23:20, 21; Judges 2:1-4; 5:23; 6:11-24; 13:3-22; 2 Samuel 24:16; Isaiah 43:8, 9; Zechariah 1:12; 3:1; 12:8; Malachi 3:1; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4).

Philippians 2:5-7 says that our Lord Jesus Christ existed in "the form of God" before the incarnation. These verses mention two "forms," and only two forms, namely "the form of God" and the "form of a servant." The Almighty omnipotent God is servant of nothing, but all creatures (things) are servants of God in the functional sense (Deuteronomy 32:39). If Jesus were already a created being, such as an angel or a human, there would have been no need for Him to take on the "form of a servant" at the incarnation because He would have already been a servant as a created being, already inferior and subordinate to God. Instead, Jesus existed in "the form of God", with Almighty power and glory, prior to the incarnation, and was not a creaturely servant of anyone or anything.

In addition, God's law demands that everything reproduce after its own kind (read Genesis Ch. 1), and God's invisible qualities and attributes are visible in His Creation (Romans 1:20). The Jews understood very well the words of Jesus when He claimed to be the Son of God; they understood that He was declaring Himself to be equal with God and of one nature with the Heavenly Father, but, instead of accepting Jesus for who He revealed Himself to be, they saw Jesus as a blasphemer and sought to kill Him (John 5:18; John 10:30-39). Jesus CANNOT be the definitive "Son of God" without also possessing the same unique nature as God the Father. For example, you have a human nature because your parents, who begot you, had a human nature. Your parents reproduced you after their own kind, which is human. Olive trees reproduce more olive trees; grape vines reproduce more grape vines; horses reproduce more horses; and dogs reproduce more dogs. Likewise, Jesus has God's exact nature because He was begotten directly of God the Father. Jesus therefore MUST possess the same nature as His own Father who begot Him. Jesus, as God the Son, is eternal (without beginning and without end), omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, transcendent, incomprehensible, and immutable exactly like God the Father. The same attributes would also apply to the God the Holy Spirit, who proceeds forth from the God the Father and God the Son. Of course all of this is a divine mystery because it is impossible for the finite minds of humans to comprehend the full nature of the transcendent God and how He functions.

There are many more proofs in the Holy Bible that give irrefutable proof of the deity of Jesus Christ, but I will not discuss all of them in this one note because there are so many of them. One thing for certain is that Jesus NEVER ceased to be God after His taking on a human nature, because if Jesus were ONLY a created being (angel or human) at the time of His crucifixion on the Cross of Calvary, His ransom sacrifice would NOT have been sufficient enough to pay for the many sins of everyone seeking salvation. The ransom for sin had to be infinite because the eternal punishment for sin is infinite, and God is the only one qualified to pay an infinite price without being totally consumed and defeated in the process.

PNEUMATOLOGY: THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Pneumatology is the branch of Christian systematic theology that focuses on the Holy Spirit. Pneumatology seeks to answer the following questions:

What or Who is the Holy Spirit?
Is the Holy Spirit a real person or something impersonal?
What does the Holy Spirit do?
Does the Holy Spirit work with everyone, or only with certain people?
How does the Holy Spirit benefit people?
What are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and how are they categorized?
How can we determine if something is of the Holy Spirit or not?
What is the difference between Charismata and Charismania?
Can we see the Holy Spirit along side the Father and Son?

WHAT OR WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?

The Holy Spirit is the One who proceeds from God the Father and Christ the Son to accomplish their will and glorify them, and in turn glorifying Himself as the third Person of the Trinity. Like the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit is a real living spirit Person, not an impersonal force or power. In fact, the Holy Spirit is the first of the three Persons of the Godhead to be mentioned specifically in the Bible, at Genesis 1:2. When the title Holy Spirit is broken down, we see that the word "spirit" means "breath" or "living spirit," while the word "holy" signifies that the Spirit possesses the holy essence of God, since God is Holy above all things. The meaning "breath" for spirit alludes to the fact that the Holy Spirit is sometimes associated with wind or the sound of wind in the Bible (Job 38:1; Psalm 104:3, John 3:8; Acts 2:2).

THE PERSONHOOD AND DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Some people argue that the Holy Spirit cannot be a real person because the Bible shows people being filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:32), anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38), baptized with the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11), and receiving the Holy Spirit when in contact with someone who is already filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:17; 19:6). The Holy Spirit is said to be poured out in Acts 2:17-21. Elisha requested that a double portion of the Spirit that was upon Elijah be upon himself, as if the Holy Spirit can be rationed (2 Kings 2:9). The Holy Spirit fills 120 people at the same time at Pentecost 33 AD (Acts ch. 1, 2). The Holy Spirit's appearing to act like something impersonal instead of personal would be analogous to the properties of light. According to physics, light is composed of waves, yet sometimes light behaves as if it is composed of particles. In the same way, the person of the Holy Spirit is capable of using His power in ways that make Him appear to be force-like and impersonal, since the Holy Spirit, as Almighty God, is spiritual, omnipresent and has unlimited power and will for accomplishing things. If the Holy Spirit lacks personhood and is instead an impersonal force, then why does the Bible show the Holy Spirit as speaking directly and referring to himself as "I" and "me" in Acts 13:2? If the Holy Spirit is God's impersonal active force, how could the Holy Spirit be referred to as "He" and "Him" in John 16:7- 8 and John 16:13-14? How could an impersonal Spirit bear witness (John 15:26, Acts 20:23); be vexed or feel hurt (Isaiah 63:10); be blasphemed against (Matthew 12:31; Mark 3:29, Luke 12:10); say things to people (Ezekiel 3:24, Acts 8:29, 10:19, and Hebrews 10:15-17); forbid someone to say things (Acts 16:6); plead for Christians with groanings (Romans 8:26); be tested (Acts 5:9); send people (Acts 13:4); be a comforter or helper (John 14:16; 16:7); appoint overseers (Acts 20:28); be insulted or spited (Hebrews 10:29); have a desire (Galatians 5:17); search things out (1 Corinthians 2:10); comfort people (Acts 9:31); be grieved (Ephesians 4:30); or love people (Romans 15:30). Peter said the Holy Spirit was lied to, and that the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4). All of these things prove the personhood and personality of the Holy Spirit. He is God, and He is to be worshiped, feared and glorified together with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit left the divine revelation of Himself in the Bible. Therefore, it is imperative for Christians to know, believe, and practice the biblical teachings of the deity and personhood of the Holy Spirit.

As the Holy Spirit is Almighty God, He has the power to create things (Psalm 104:30), and to give life (John 6:63). The Holy Spirit also searches all things, and influences a person's heart in various ways. The Word of God is said to be the sword of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 6:17). The Holy Spirit enables a person to understand the deep truths of God's Word and He gives people spiritual discernment (1 Corinthians 2:9-16). He also guides people in all truth (John 16:13). Galatians 5:22, 23 show that the Holy Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The Holy Spirit enables believers to praise and worship God and Christ (Romans 8:15; 1 Corinthians 12:3; Galatians 4:6). The Father and Jesus Christ are prayed to in the Bible; however, there is no command saying people should pray directly to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit does have the sovereign ability and will to work with anyone He pleases; however, the Holy Spirit usually works only with people who humble themselves and faithfully submit to God for doing His will. Only people who are redeemed and born again are indwelt by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19) and sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). Anyone who does not have the Holy Spirit does not belong to Christ, and is not a child of God. The Holy Spirit bears witness to born again believers that they are children of God (Romans 8:9-17).

It is the Holy Spirit who draws a sinner to repentance, regenerates them, and washes them clean of spiritual corruption. Jesus said that no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are "born again". They must be born of the Spirit, because that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:3-7). A believer is transformed into a new creature in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Titus 3:5 describes the Holy Spirit's work as the "washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit."

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Holy Spirit not only regenerates, seals and anoints Christians, but also distributes a variety of spiritual gifts. There are two categories of spiritual gifts: apostolic gifts (also called charismata) and practical gifts.

The apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit include: healing, prophecy, tongues, tongue interpretation, and miraculous signs.

The practical gifts of the Holy Spirit include: mercy, teaching, administration, discernment, helps, serving, exhortation, giving, leadership, word of wisdom, word of knowledge, and faith.

A doctrine known as cessationism teaches that the apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit ceased once the biblical cannon was completed. However, cessationists still believe that the practical gifts of the Holy Spirit are still in operation today. They believe the apostolic gifts have ceased but the practical gifts continue to operate among Christians. Another doctrine known as continuationism teaches that the apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit continue to be in operation today, along with all the practical gifts of the Holy Spirit. In other words, continuationists believe ALL the spirituals, both apostolic and practical, continue to operate among Christians today. Cessationists often accuse continuationists of taking the risk of engaging in practices facilitated by demonic powers. On the other hand, continuationists accuse cessationists of trying to put God in a box, or even blaspheming the Holy Spirit. As far as attitudes about the Holy Spirit are concerned, there are two spiritual extremes among today churches: pneumatomania and pneumatophobia. The first extreme, pneumatomania, is an overemphasis upon supernatural experiences and phenomena to the point of neglecting common sense notions and sound doctrine. The opposite extreme, pneumatophobia, is a fear or rejection of supernatural phenomena, along with an excessive focus on the doctrinal and ethical aspects of the Christian faith. Biblical Christians should avoid both of these extremes. Charismata is another name for the apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit, it also alludes to the proper use of these spiritual gifts according to God's will. Charismania is an outright obsession with spiritual phenomena in the context of merely pretending to have spiritual gifts (chicanery), using demonic spiritual powers, or abusing genuine gifts of the Holy Spirit.

DISTINGUISHING THE HOLY SPIRIT FROM OTHER SPIRITS

There are a number of ways to determine whether something is of the Holy Spirit or of human or demonic origin. First, the Holy Spirit will never go against truth that is already written in the Bible; instead, He will affirm the principles of truth outlined in the scriptures. The Holy Spirit will seek to glorify God and the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:14, 15), not the world, not fallen humanity, nor Satan. The Holy Spirit would not be a partner in sinful or carnal practices of the flesh (Galatians 5:16-18; 1 Peter 2:11). The Holy Spirit guides people into truth, not falsehood (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit always accompanies the true Jesus and the true gospel; therefore, a false Jesus and a false gospel are accompanied by a different spirit (2 Corinthians 11:3, 4; 1 John 4:6). The Holy Spirit will convict a person of sin and expose their sin to them, not support them in their sin. The Holy Spirit moves people to do all things according to love and the other fruitage of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22, 23; 2 Timothy 1:7).

NAMES, TITLES AND SYMBOLS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Most people among the Church use the Dove as an imagery for the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit takes on a number of other symbols in the Bible. Sometimes the Holy Spirit displays Himself as fire, sometimes as wind, sometimes as anointing oil, sometimes as eyes, and so on.

Titles and descriptions of the Holy Spirit include: the finger of God (Luke 11:20), the breath of God (Job 4:9; 33:4), the Comforter or Helper (John 14:16), the Spirit of Truth (John 16:13), the Spirit of Grace (Hebrews 10:29), the Spirit of Jesus (Acts 14:6), the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9), the Seven Spirits of God (Revelation 4:5), the Spirit of Life (Romans 8:2), the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding (Isaiah 11:2), and a host of others.

When Jesus referred to "another Comforter" or "another Helper" at John 14:16, the Greek word allos (ἄλλος) is used, and that word means "another of the same kind." That means that the Holy Spirit is of the nature of God just like Jesus and the Father, and, although Jesus would no longer be present with Christians in His bodily form, the Holy Spirit will take Jesus' place in helping and leading Christians on earth.

APPEARANCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN REVELATION

One excuse non-Trinitarians make for denying the Trinity is that the Holy Spirit  is not easily identified whenever a scene in Heaven shows the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit is called "the seven spirits of God" in the heavenly scenes of Revelation chapters 4 and 5. In Revelation 5, Christ is portrayed as a Lamb with seven horns and seven eyes instead of a human-like form, despite the fact that Christ is a person. The Holy Spirit is present as the "seven spirits of God" in the heavenly scene of Revelation 5 while all creation worships God the Father and Christ the Lamb.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BLASPHEME THE HOLY SPIRIT?

What does it mean to blaspheme the Holy Spirit? Blasphemy or sin against the Holy Spirit is the unforgivable sin mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 12:31, 32 and  Mark 3:28-30. Mark specifically identifies the sin as regarding Jesus as having an unclean spirit (Mark 3:30). The sins of total and final apostasy mentioned at Hebrews 6:4-6; Hebrews 10:26-31, 2 Peter 2:20-22, 1 John 5:16, 17 and Revelation 14:9-11 are often seen as tantamount to blaspheming the Holy Spirit. No one can blaspheme the Holy Spirit without having first received full revelation of God's truth, which is reveal through the power of the Holy Spirit. The scribes and Pharisees had already received a substantial amount of divine revelation through God's spirit-inspired Word at the time they totally rejected Jesus Christ and His miraculous signs. Nicodemus made it clear that the Pharisees knew Jesus was from God (John 3:1, 2), but most of the Pharisees persecuted and rejected Jesus anyway, perhaps out of envy (Matthew 27:18). They loved the approval of men more than the approval of God (John 12:42, 43). God's love and grace leads people to repentance through the revelations and influences of the Holy Spirit, thus to totally reject the Savior Jesus Christ and the Gospel ultimately leads to a hardened heart and outright contempt for the Holy Spirit to the point of blasphemy. Furthermore, a person who is truly born again in Christ cannot and will not commit the unforgivable sin because their hearts have been permanently changed by the Holy Spirit, plus the Holy Spirit owns them as a child of God and sibling of Christ.

ANGELOLOGY: THE STUDY OF ANGELS

Angelology is the branch of Christian systematic theology that focuses on the angels, both the elect angels and the demons. Demonology is the subdivision of angelology that studies Satan and the demons. Angelology seeks to answer the following questions:

What are angels?
What is the difference between God, angels and humans?
What are the types of angels?
What do angels do?
Has anyone ever seen angels before?
Does the Devil really exists?
How did some angels become evil?
How do angels travel between heaven and earth?
How do humans benefit from angels?
Do "Guardian Angels" really exists?

Angels are living spirit beings, immaterial creatures that are superior to humans but vastly inferior to the triune God. Humans are described as being "a little lower than the angels" (Psalm 8:5; Hebrews 2:7). This means angels are a higher order of creatures that are intrinsically more powerful than humans. Angels are not the spirits or souls of dead humans. Angels are an entirely different order of creation from humans, because angels were designed to exist without a body, while humans were designed to be a dichotomy of body and soul; therefore humans are incomplete without a body. In addition, humans were created with more of the image of God than angels were. Furthermore, God has not provided a means of salvation for fallen angels, but God has indeed provided a means of salvation for fallen human beings through Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:16). Despite these differences, angels do have some things in common with human beings. Like humans, angels are able to communicate with each other, with God, and with humans. Angels also have a will, intellectual ability, skills, and apparently express a variety of emotions. Angels know the difference between good and evil, between holy and unholy, and between that which is of God and that which is not of God. Although there is much debate as to whether or not angels have free will, it is universally agreed that angels are not like robots or programmed computers that automatically function only according to specific commands or programming. The Devil is described as having a "will" at 2 Timothy 2:26.

In the Bible, the word "angel" in Hebrew (מַלְאָך = malak) and Greek (ἄγγελος = angelos) simply means "messenger." The original Hebrew and Greek words for "angel" may be used for created spirit beings, humans that deliver messages, or the second Person of the Trinity (Jesus). In fact, if Federal Express or USPS messengers had existed during Bible times, they would have been called Federal Express angels or USPS angels, because the word "angel" simply meant "messenger." The word "angel" in Hebrew and Greek is both generic and categorical. The generic angels are the spirit beings created by God in the spirit world. Human messengers and the second Person of the Trinity are considered angels only in the categorical sense, in terms of their service, office or occupation as "messengers." The context of the Bible passage determines exactly which category is being referenced by the Hebrew or Greek word for angel. In the Old Testament, the title "angel of Yahweh" or "angel of the LORD" usually refers to the Word or eternal Son of God (Jesus) in His preincarnate occupation as God's chief mouthpiece or chief messenger (Genesis 22:11-18; Exodus 3:2; 23:20, 21; Judges 13:18). Sometimes the "Shekinah Glory" and other theophanies of God were manifested to humanity through the preincarnate Jesus as the "angel of the LORD." This particular post about angelology (theological study of angels) will be limited only to generic angels, that order of spirit beings commonly associated with the word "angel."

In the Bible, angels are mentioned more than 250 times. The angels are mentioned in the book of Revelation more than any other book in the Bible. Since angels are invisible spirits, humans cannot see them unless the angels make themselves visible, as it was in the case of Balaam in Numbers 22:31-33, or Elisha's servant in 2 Kings 6:16, 17. Since angels do not have a physical body, they are not limited to any specific appearance. The Bible depicts some classes of angels, like cherubim and seraphim, as having wings, but not all angels are depicted with wings. Halos are never associated with angels in the Bible. The idea of halos originated from occultic mythology. God gave some of His angels the ability to materialize into fleshly bodies in order to accomplish certain tasks, and Hebrews 13:2 states that some people, through their hospitality, entertained angels without knowing it.

It appears as if God created the angels before He created anything else. The angels were present when God created the heavens and the earth, and they shouted for joy as God did His creation work (Job 38:7). God created all of His angels to faithfully serve Him as "ministering spirits" (Psalm 104:4; Hebrews 1:7, 14) that attend to a wide variety of tasks or duties. God organized His vast army of angels into ranks of power, chains of command, and specifically assigned duties. The Bible describes this organization among the angels (and also human governments) as "thrones, dominions, principalities, authorities, and powers" (Colossians 1:16; Romans 13:1). This same organized pattern is reflected in Satan's dark kingdom of demonic forces (Ephesians 6:12). Angels are not only assigned by God to deliver messages; they are also assigned to serve and protect any human beings who are faithful to the Lord in righteousness (Psalm 34:7; 91:11, 12; Acts 12:5-11). As God's ministering spirits, the holy angels assisted Jesus Christ during His ministry on earth (Matthew 4:11; Luke 22:43), plus they do various types of service for all those who will inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14). While God's angels do all kinds of helpful things for believers, angels work as God’s executioners of judgment on unbelievers, like the 185,000 of King Sennacharib's army (Isaiah 37:36), or King Herod's being struck by an angel and eaten by worms (Acts 12:23), or the judgments that will be inflicted by God's angels upon the wicked during the Great Tribulation. The term "Guardian Angel" never appears in the Bible, however, there are a few scriptures that seem to support the idea of specific angels being assigned to specific people or nations (Job 33:23-26; Daniel 10:13; 11:1; Matthew 18:10; Acts 12:12-15).

Although angels have great power, knowledge and ability, they have limitations just like all other creatures. Angels are more intelligent than humans but they are not omniscient like God. Angels do not have the ability to read hearts and inner thoughts like God can. Angels are not omnipresent; they are not all-powerful or omnipotent; they are not immutable. Also, angels do not have the power to create things out of nothing, nor do they have the power to create life or sustain life. Despite their great power, angels can only operate within the limitations imposed on them by God. Angels are forbidden to rebuke each other or judge each other, instead, they must allow God alone to do all the rebuking and judging (2 Peter 2:11; Jude 1:9).

All the angels were originally created perfect, holy and blameless, but one of them, named Lucifer, rebelled against God and lured other angels to rebel with him. The exact number of angels created by God is unknown (Hebrews 12:22 says they are innumerable), but there is evidence that at least one third of the angels joined Lucifer in rebelling against God (Revelation 12:4). The lead rebel came to called "the original serpent, Devil and Satan," (Revelation 12:9; 20:2) especially after he deceived Adam and Eve into sinning against God (Genesis 3:1-15). The angels that remained faithful to God are called "elect angels" (1 Timothy 5:21) or "holy angels" (Mark 8:38). The angels that sinned and rebelled along with Satan are called "demons" (Matthew 12:24), fallen angels (Jude 1:6), or the angels of the Devil (Matthew 25:41). No one knows exactly for sure when Satan and his demons fell. Some believe they fell before humans were created, and the Genesis Gap Theory is used to support such an idea. Others believe Satan fell in the Garden of Eden while deceiving Eve (Genesis 3:1-15) and that other angels joined him when they sought after the daughters of men in Genesis 6:1-4. Ever since their fall, Satan and his demonic forces have deceived and dominated unregenerate humanity, and they will continue to do so until the Lord demolishes Satan's dominion and cast Satan and his demons into Hell.

Perhaps one reason why God has not allowed the spirit world to be easily visible to human beings is because humans, as prone as they are to idolatry, would worship angels when observing their great glory. For example, the apostle John was rebuked on two occasions by angels when he bowed down to worship them (Revelation 19:10; 22:8, 9). Because of their sin nature, humans have always had a tendency to worship creatures instead of God the Creator (Romans 1:25). God alone should be worshiped, and anyone who worships angels (Colossians 2:18) is practicing idolatry as one of the most heinous sins before God, since it violates the First and Second of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3-5). In addition, angels are not to be prayed to, nor served in a sacred manner.

Were the "sons of God" mentioned in Genesis 6:1-4 and Job chapters 1, 2 and 38 angels? Most of those who hold to Catholicism and Reformed Theology believe that the "sons of God" in these Bible passages were redeemed humans who became sons of God. According to this view, God never referred to an angel as His son, therefore angels cannot be sons of God (Hebrews 1:5). This view also teaches that angels were not designed to be sexual beings capable of marriage and sexual relations (Luke 20:34-36). Dispensationalists and other Christian groups argue that angels did in fact materialize into fleshly bodies and procreated with human females before the Great Flood, producing hybrid giants or Nephelim as offspring. The existence of sex demons like succubus spirits and incubus spirits may provide evidence that angels can have sexual feelings. Plus normal human reproduction cannot explain why all of the offspring of those "sons of God" became giant Nephilim. Satan's strategy was to contaminate the human race with foreign genetic material so as to disrupt the arrival of God's promised seed mentioned at Genesis 3:15. God used the Great Flood to remove most of the giant Nephilim from among the human race. Some tribes of Nephilim continued to exist on earth after the Great Flood (Numbers 13:33).

Is there a difference between demons and fallen angels? Some believe there is a difference between demons and fallen angels. Christians among this group believe that all demons are fallen angels but not all fallen angels are demons. These people believe demons take possession of people's minds and bodies while the other types of fallen angels cannot do such a thing. Most Christians, however, do not believe there is a difference between fallen angels and demons.

How do angels travel back and forth between heaven and earth? Actually this is a mystery. One speculation would be that angels travel entirely by supernatural means, disappearing from Heaven and reappearing on earth and vice versa. Supernatural beings are able to bypass the ordinary laws of nature.