GOD THE FATHER

by Dustin Shramek


I. Introduction.

A. What comes to your mind when you hear, “God the Father?”

B. What distinguishes Him from the Son? The Spirit?

C. Why is it important to know how He is unique?


II. Restatement of the Trinity. There is one God who eternally exists as three different Persons.

A. How do we know there is only one God (Isaiah 44:6-8; 45:5-6, 21-22; Deuteronomy 6:4-5)?

B. How do we know that God exists in three different Persons (Matthew 28:19; Mark 1:10-11)?


III. How is the Father distinct from the Son?

A. God the Father has authority over the Son.

  1. John 8:28; 12:49-50; 14:10.
    1. On whose initiative does Christ speak? Who has authority over what Christ says? Who does Christ rely on for His words?
  2. John 17:4.
    1. Whose work was Jesus doing?
  3. John 3:16; Romans 8:32; Isaiah 9:6; Galatians 4:4.
    1. Who sent the Son?
  4. John 5:19.
    1. Is the Son independent of the Father?
    2. Who does the Son emulate?
  5. 1 Corinthians 15:27-28
    1. Who is the exception Paul is referring to in verse 27?
    2. What happens after all things are subjected to Christ?
  6. 1 Corinthians 3:23.
    1. To whom does Christ belong?
    2. Is this referring to the Godhead? Or to the Father in particular?
  7. 1 Corinthians 11:3.
    1. Who is the head of every man?
    2. Who is the head of the woman?
    3. Who is the head of Christ?
  8. From whom does Christ's authority come (Mt 28:18; Jn 5:22, 27; 17:2)?
  9. Whose will does Jesus carry out (Jn 4:34; 5:30; 17:4)?
  10. In the human institution of the family, the father has authority over the son. How then, does Ephesians 3:14-15 shed light on the topic of Christ's subordination?
  11. God the Father is the one who commands, directs, and sends. The Son obeys and goes. If the Son had the roles of commanding, directing, and sending, he would no longer be the Son.
  12. John 14:16 and John 16:7. Who sends the Spirit? In what way is the Father's authority shown here?
  13. These roles are this way because of necessity, for it is how the three members of the Trinity relate to each other. For instance, the Holy Spirit could not have sent the Father to die for our sins and then sent the Son to apply redemption. Nor could the Son have returned to heaven and then sent the Father to apply redemption.

B. Does this mean that the Son is not equal to the Father?

  1. No, because Jesus if fully God. In Christ, “the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9).
  2. The Father and the Son have the same essence. Jesus is God and therefore must be equal with the Father.
    1. Jesus is worthy of the same honor as God the Father (John 5:23; 17:5).

C. Each member of the Trinity are equal in being, but subordinate in role. This is referred to as “ontological equality but economic subordination.”

D. This equality and subordination is evidenced in many human relationships. My boss and I are equal in our being. She isn't better than me, but I am subordinate to her. When she tells me to do something I obey, not because I am inferior, but because she has authority over me.


III. A quick look at how this impacts the debate over male leadership within the church and the family.

A. “But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:3).

  1. Does Paul's insistence that the man is the head of the woman imply that women are inferior to men? Why or why not?
  2. How does the relationship between the members of the Trinity help us understand this problem?
  3. Is the male headship cultural or a result of the fall? How does the eternality of the Trinity answer this objection?
  4. “I think Paul added the headship of God over Christ right after asserting the headship of man over woman in order to teach that the authority of man over woman does not imply the inferiority of women or the superiority of men. Some Corinthians may have concluded that the headship of man over woman diminished woman's worth. Paul anticipates this objection and adds that God is the head over Christ. And even though God (i.e., the Father) is the head over Christ, He is not essentially greater than Christ. So too, even though women are under men's authority, they are not essentially inferior.” [1]

IV. Are the distinctions within the Trinity eternal? Or did they become distinct when Jesus was sent?

A. Ephesians 1:3-4.

  1. When did the Father choose us in Christ?

B. God is unchanging, if the Trinity is not an eternal relationship, then God does in fact change.

V. A brief study of the immutability of God.

A. A definition: God is unchanging in his being, perfections, purposes, and promises, yet God does act and feel emotions, and he acts and feels differently in response to different situations. [2]

B. Unchanging in His being, perfections: Psalm 102:25-27; Hebrews 1:10-13; 13:8; Malachi 3:6; James 1:17.

C. Unchanging in His purpose: Isaiah 46:9-11; Psalms 33:11; Mt 25:34; Eph 1:4, 11; 3:9-11; Rev 13:8.

D. Unchanging in His promises: Numbers 23:19; 1 Samuel 15:29.

E. However, it is appropriate for God to respond differently to different situations. For instance, when God changes His mind, He does so because the situation has changed (repentance and faith is evidenced).

F. How does God's immutability direct our view of the relationship within the Trinity?


VI. Specific acts of God the Father.

A. Election.

  1. How do we know that it is the Father who predestines us (Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:4-5)?
  2. God the Father has planned redemption. He chose who would be saved and it was the Father who then sent Jesus to save them. His plan of redemption is eternal (Ephesians 3:11).

B. Effectual Calling.

  1. Not only has God the Father planned redemption, but He is also intimately involved in its application.
  2. Roman 8:28-30. We've already seen that it is the Father who is acting in this verse, He is the one who foreknows and predestines and He is also the one who calls.
  3. 1 Corinthians 1:9; Galatians 1:15-16; Ephesians 1:17, 18; 2 Timothy 1:9. Is the Godhead in view here or God the Father?
  4. What kind of call does the Father give?
    1. It is effective (Romans 8:28-30; 11:29).
    2. It is purposeful, not arbitrary (Ephesians 1:11).
    3. It is eternal. “God's thought has been occupied with this event from times eternal.” [3]
    4. It is in Christ (2 Timothy 1:9).

C. Justification.

  1. After God the Father calls us, the Spirit gives us new birth (John 3:1-8) and we put our faith in Christ, the Father reckons us righteous (Romans 8:29-30; 3:26). We are “justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11), but by God the Father.

D. Adoption.

  1. Who adopts us? Is it God the Father or the Godhead?
  2. “Father” is the title of the first person of the trinity and it is He who Jesus prayed to and it is He who is the God and Father of Christ (Ro 15:6).
  3. In Jn 20:17, Jesus clearly refers to the first person of the trinity as “My Father” and it is his Father that he also calls “your Father.” Therefore, it is the first person of the trinity who is our Father.
  4. Jesus often said, “My Father who is in heaven,” clearly referring to the first person of the trinity. Is not the same person in view when we says, “Your Father who is in heaven.”?
  5. Paul often clearly distinguishes the first person of the trinity as “the Father”, “God”, or “God the Father” (Ro 15:6; 2 Co 1:3; 11:31; Ga 1:1; Ep 1:3; 6:23; Ph 2:11; Col 1:3; 1 Th 1:1; 2 Th 1:2; 1 Ti 1:2; 2 Ti 1:2; Tit 1:4; 1 Pe 1:2,3; 2 Pe 1:17; 2 Jn 3; Jude 1; Re 1:6). When God is called the Father of believers, the expression used is very similar (Ro 1:7; 1 Co 1:3; 2 Co 1:2; Ga 1:3; Ep 1:2; Ph 1:2; Phm 3; Ga 1:4 Ph 4:20; Co 1:2; 1 Th 1:3; 3:11, 13; 2 Th 1:1-2; 2 Th 2:16).
  6. Glorification.
    1. The Father prepared certain individuals (the elect) for glory (Romans 9:23).
    2. At the return of Christ, He glorifies the elect with His Son (1 Corinthians 15:23-24; Romans 8:17).
    3. Yet, in some sense, it is the Son who glorifies us (Philippians 3:20-21; John 17:22). But why does Jesus have this authority (John 17:2)?


VII. Fatherhood in human relationships are derived from God (Ephesians 3:14-15).

A. Fatherhood is not an attribute of man that is metaphorically applied to God.

  1. For fatherhood is not an essential attribute of man. There are many men who never become fathers.
  2. Fatherhood is and essential attribute of God for His has been Father from all of eternity.
    1. The generation of the Son is eternal, for if the Son wasn't eternal neither could the Father be. The Bible teaches clearly that both are eternal (Micah 5:2; John 8:58). The first person of the Trinity has always been the Father.
  3. Therefore human fathers must study the Fatherhood of God so that may fulfill the God given role of father in a way that is honoring to God.


VIII. Application.

A. Knowledge of God is necessary for greater devotion to God. These truths will increase our devotion.

B. We will have a greater appreciation for the glory of God as we have a greater understanding of the distinctions between the members of the Trinity.

C. We will rightfully honor the Father for the works that He does.

D. We will more understand the headship of men in the church and at home.

E. Fathers can properly model their role after the Father.

F. It also gives us a greater understanding of our adoptive relationship with God, thereby causing us to more fully feel the great love that the Father has for His children.

G. We stand in awe as we see that as children of God, we are “heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:16-17).

Footnotes

[1]1 Thomas Schreiner “Head Coverings, Prophecies and the Trinity: 1 Corinthians 11:2-16,” in Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, eds. John Piper and Wayne Grudem (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1991), p. 130.

[2]2 Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Zondervan Publishing and Inter Varsity Press, 1994), p. 163.

[3]3 John Murray, Redemption--Accomplished and Applied, (WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company: Grand Rapids, MI), p. 91.

 

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