We're going to study some more of the first part of the question number 25 that we have just gone over here. And what a wonderful study. We praise God for the great privilege of coming to this study once again. And I am getting my notes in order here. Okay. Yes. All right. All right. We are considering tonight the unity of God. This is a very important study of God in unity and God in trinity or tri-unity. But we are thinking particularly tonight of the unity of God. What is a unit? It is one whole thing, a unit, an individual. The quantity of one. Oneness. Unity is the state of being united. Of one accord. Joined in agreement. The Word of God makes it very clear. Deuteronomy chapter 6 and verse 4. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. We believe that God is one because the Bible says so. That is our first reason. We believe that God is one because the Bible says so. We believe in the unity of God. He said, I am the first and I am the last and beside me there is no God. Isaiah 44 verse six, there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man, Christ Jesus. First Timothy 2.5, the word of God is clear. We believe in one God because the Bible tells us that in both Testaments. Secondly, there can only be one supreme being. One supreme being that created, governs, and controls all things. Brother Yarborough loves this verse. I love it too. Revelation 411, thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power for thou has created all things and for thy pleasure they are, they are, they continue in the providence of God and were created. There can only be one supreme being. It cannot be another. The third reason we believe God is one, because God is perfect. God is perfect. Deuteronomy chapter 32 and verse 4 tells us His work is perfect. Psalm 18 verse 30 tells us His way is perfect. The one that is perfect cannot be overcome, cannot be replaced by one who is more perfect. No, because God is infinitely perfect. Jesus said in his wonderful Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew chapter five, the last verse of that first chapter of that sermon, Matthew five in verse 48, Your Father in heaven is perfect. The third reason, well, we can ask the question, since God is perfect, as the psalmist did in Psalm 89 verse eight, O Lord, who is like unto thee? And there is none like unto him. The fourth reason that we believe in one God is there can only be one who is all-powerful and omnipotent. For if there were more than one, they would oppose and hinder one another. Now let's pause. Herein is seen the foolishness and the error of dualism. and even dualism that has been expressed to us in our upbringing in dispensationalism, whether you were aware of it or not, that you had two awesomely powerful beings in the universe. The one is God, the other one's the devil. And in dualism, one is about as powerful as the other. That there is this power of evil and power of good, and they're in this struggle. And well, although it may sometimes seem to be the case, It is altogether not the case because Satan is a defeated foe. He knows that his time is short. Revelation chapter 12 and verse 12. He knows that his time is short. That's why he's so active in his deceptions. Even deceiving many who profess the name of the Lord. The fifth reason we believe there is only one God, there can be only one being who is so immense and so infinite that he is omnipresent. He fills not only all of space, he fills all of existence and he fills all of reality. Ephesians chapter 4 verse 10. He ascended far above the heavens that he might fill all things. Our great immense infinite God in his omnipresence he fills all things. We need to remember that. that no matter where we are, he's with us. And I thank God that he was with our brethren in that awful crash, especially those that were far enough forward in that plane that they could even know that something terrible was going on. It happened so fast. The sixth reason we believe in one God, the highest good can only be one. For if there were another, it would either be greater or less than the first or equal. Thank God for the great theologian Ersinus. I am becoming more and more impressed with this man of God that was persecuted for his faith. Since there is only one true living God, we must worship and serve him alone. He alone is worthy of our lives, our worship, our service, our obedience. But some people argue that there are more gods mentioned in the Bible. So we can't just believe in one God. And I want to note with you what I said at the beginning of our study tonight, even earlier on, First of all, let's notice that God is not his name. His name is Jehovah. Exodus 3, verse 14, I am that I am. Before Moses ever wrote God in Genesis, before Moses ever wrote the book of Genesis, before Moses ever wrote any other book, the Lord told Moses his name at the burning bush. because Moses had asked God, what is your name? At the beginning of the Ten Commandments, God said, first of all, as he was about to give the Ten Commandments, he said, I am the Lord. That is the four capital letters, L-O-R-D, meaning I am that I am, Jehovah. I am the Lord, the God that brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. So before he even gives the first commandment. He says his name. I am Lord. My God. God is a title. The Lord is his name. Jesus is his name. Jehovah is his name. The first commandment is, thou shalt have no other gods before me. Glad it's got the little g. Each of the following four commandments, the name of the Lord is there. Thou shalt not make into thee any graven image, for I am the Lord. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. But when you come to the fourth commandment, His name is in the fourth commandment three times. The name of the Lord appears in the fourth commandment. Of course it's the longest of the commandments. And again his name appears in the fifth commandment. I turn back to Exodus chapter 20 and okay. Exodus 20. Yes. All right. All right. He says, honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. So he puts his name in all those commandments of the first table of the law. God is a generic term. Let me be reverent and respectful because we do not abuse any of his titles, attributes, words, or works. God is a generic term for anyone or anything highly exalted or worshiped. Elohim, the plural name of God. God said, let us make man in our image. All right, when you see Elohim, Elohim is sometimes referenced to celestial creatures, celestial living creatures, the angels. Now, let's understand that the term gods, even in this context I'm gonna give you, refers not even to living things, just inanimate things. On the night that wicked Belshazzar was slain, he had prayed six, praised, he praised and he drank to the glory of the six man-made gods. Daniel 5.4. The gods of gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone. Idols. He had made them his idols. And he died that night. He was slain that night. Jeremiah chapter 10, verses 10 and 11. The Lord is the true God. He is the living God. The Lord and an everlasting King. The gods, little g, the gods that have not made the heaven and the earth, even they shall perish. In the New Testament, 1 Thessalonians 1.9, you turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God. 1 Corinthians 8.4, we know that an idol is nothing in the world. and that there is none other God but one. 2 Thessalonians 2, 4 tells us that an evil person will exalt himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped. So I tell you that these little g-o-d-s are man-made idols or vain imaginations. We are taught the unity of God, that there is only one true and living God. Angels are exalted beings, but they are not the true God. Satan is called the God of this world because He is destroyed and yet he is still worshipped and followed by a host of ruined demons and by a multitude of enslaved sinners. Enslaved by the deceiver. Many are called God, but there is only one eternal God. Deuteronomy 33 verse 27, the eternal God is thy refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms. Now, let's look at number 25 and let's get into it. I want you to do it with me as soon as I read number 25. Since there is but one only divine essence, why speakest thou of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost? Let's say it. Because God has so revealed himself in his word that these three distinct persons are the one only true and eternal God. Now, when considering the unity of God tonight, I want us to understand that we're gonna get to the Trinity, the triunity, because we're not gonna become, like so many of the heretics all around this area, There are those that do not believe in the Trinity, and they are monarch. Monarchian follows of, it's, oh yeah. Monarchianism is the second term. The old theological term leaves me for the moment. Monarchianism, It's only believing in the existence of one person in the Godhead, which is ridiculous. So we believe in both the unity and the trinity of God. God in unity, God in trinity. The term essence, now we've got to get this. Essence, so important. Essence literally means being. or existing, or existence. There's a beautiful little word that was used at the council. The first council called in, well, the first council called after the first council of Jerusalem in the early apostolic days, but in the post-apostolic era, in 325 AD, the Council of Nicaea was called to put down the falsehood of not believing in the Trinity or even the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God for... Okay. Our brother, you know, starts with an A. I didn't have it in my notes. Athanasius! Okay. Old age showing, okay. They're very good. All right, so the term usia is in our New Testament. The prodigal son wasted all of his usia, his substance. So when they speak about substance at the Council of Nicaea and in all of the things that come forth, the Nicene Creed, Using the term substance regarding God is what God used. And essence, the term essence is the Greek word, usia, meaning being. It comes from the verb to be, a me, I am. All right, so it's a being verb, perfect for being. God's being. We say that in our shorter catechism. Number four, what is God? God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchanging in his being. First of all, his being. God is eternally existing of himself. I am that I am, he said. He is the only eternally self-existing, self-existent being. God's being is incommunicable. He cannot give, he cannot share his being with anyone but himself. He cannot un-God himself by bringing into existence another equal, eternal God like himself. His being is not communicable. A communicable disease, you know, is one that can be shared, communicated, or given to others. Human nature or human being, our substance, our essence is communicable. God has made man and given to man, as I said this morning with the little baby, the privilege of having an eternal essence. We have an eternal being ourselves. That's so wonderful. that we are going to live forever. And what a blessing it is to know that we're going to live forever with the Lord. But God has given to man and woman this inexpressible, awesome privilege of bringing other little eternal beings, meaning eternal in going from time all the way into the future eternity. We are not eternal as God is eternal, but he has given us this wonderful privilege in our being of being from this point forward and even from the time of our birth, eternal. Wow. and eternal essence. Every human being is going to continue existing eternally. We have been given an eternal soul. This is why we should be so concerned, so exercised, so anxious and careful and cautious about our soul. The welfare of our soul for all eternity is the matter of ultimate importance to you and to me. Everything that we do or think about should be weighed in the light of this fact. How will it affect my soul? Everything that we come into contact with, we should weigh in the light of how it's going to affect our soul. Your soul is going to be somewhere forever, to exist forever. And God gives you the responsibility for your soul. God has communicated and God communicates some of his attributes to creatures, but not his being. or his essence. He communicates his eternity by giving us eternal being and amazingly gives us the awesome privilege of sharing our eternal being with our offspring. How astounding that a man and a woman are blessed by sharing their life, their essence, their eternal souls with a newly created eternal soul, a little baby, a brand new person. Another important term, person. A person is an existing or subsisting individual. Synonyms, existing, subsisting. A new independent being, which is not an accident, but a living intelligent soul with personality. Every little baby. I have to say that anger, I would like to think it was righteous indignation, but anger boils up in me when I think about those 47 low-down senators who are against a bill for an aborted baby that is aborted at the time near birth, lying there on the table, 47 of our US senators say, let him die. That makes me angry. I'm sorry. They are murderers. So you understand that if they would do that to that baby, they would do that to you. They want to pull the plug on all the old people too, of course. I'm sorry. Personality, every little child with personality. Precious little children. Every one of them are precious in sight. Subsisting means existing independently so as not to be sustained or kept in existence by another. As a baby grows and matures, they learn to take care of themselves. Gradually, children become less dependent on parents for everything. I love the way Arsenis uses the likeness of a human family with the Holy Trinity and the unity of God. Gradually, children become less and less dependent on parents for everything. Eventually, they prove to be somewhat self-sustaining, though really dependent on the sovereign decree and will of God to sustain them. Yet they become independent persons. The human nature of Christ did not form a person. Let's mark this down. The human nature of Christ did not form a person like ours does. Our human nature forms a real person. Christ was a real human. Theologians refer to the theanthropic person, God and man. Because his human nature was always sustained by his divine nature. The Logos, the word, always upholding his human nature. How could he bear the sins of all of his people on that cross? His divine nature was upholding him, his human nature. Christ's human nature is real, was real, continues to be real. His human nature is individual, intelligent, and incommunicable. Man as a whole person is body and soul. We come into the world body and soul. when we are created new in Christ Jesus. We who were spiritually dead, dead in sin, are quickened to life so that we are now spiritually alive with our spirit, soul, and body. Ephesians chapter 2, verses 1 and verse 5. Now we are alive who were dead in sin. Now we are to be sanctified. God means us to be sanctified holy. 1 Thessalonians 5, 23. God, the very God of peace, sanctify you wholly. That is W-H-O-L-L-Y, wholly, completely. I pray, God, your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless under the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 8.10, the spirit is life because of righteousness. 1 Peter 4.6, for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to the spirit. Now, thinking about the fact that we are created new in Christ Jesus, we have a body, that makes us world conscious. We have in our body our five senses. We are world conscious. We have a soul that makes us self conscious. But it is only when we are given the wonderful work of God's regenerating grace that we are made alive spiritually so that we become God conscious. Because until we are born again, we cannot begin to understand spiritual things in the kingdom of God. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him. Neither can he know them, for they are spiritually deserved." It's got to be by the Spirit. All right. God's essence is his very being. He is the only eternal deity. God the Father is only of himself. God the Son is the self-same being or essence, not of himself, but of the Father. The Holy Spirit is the self-same being or essence with God the Father and God the Son, but not of himself. but proceeding from the Father and from the Son, as we are told and we will see as we study the persons of the Holy Trinity. Essence is absolute, but person is relative. And I love the way Arsenis makes this clear for a country boy like me. It is one thing to be a man, but another thing to be a father, A father is a man absolutely according to his nature. A man is a man. But he is a father relatively, that is in relation to his son. So it is one thing to be God absolutely, but it is another thing to be the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit according to the relationship together as one God. In a human father and son, not only are the persons distinct, but the essence is also distinct. They have their own person and their own independent beings. But in God, the persons are distinct while their essence or their being is the same. So we don't have three distinct gods, but one God in three persons. Now listen to this. When a human father begets a son, the father does not give the son the father's whole being or essence. Then the father would cease to be. Only a part of the father goes into the son. The son begotten becomes a complete essence or being in himself. And the father retains his complete being or essence. Now compare this to God. When God the father begets his son, he communicates to his son his whole being or essence. He gives his whole being or essence to the Son. When the Father and the Son, maybe I'll make a term, but I think it was used in ancient times, spiration, when the Father and the Son breathe out or spirate the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit proceeds or makes his procession from the Father and from the Son, the whole essence of the Father and the whole essence of the Son are communicated to the Holy Spirit. And yet the Father and the Son retain their whole being, their whole deity themselves. These three persons continue subsisting as the persons, the three persons. in the one Godhead and yet they're one God and not three gods. Remember Jesus said, Jesus said in John 10 verse 30, I and my father are one. One essence. Why is there a difference in distinct human relationships and the relationship within the Godhead. The reason for that, man is a finite creature and cannot communicate his complete or whole finite self. Otherwise, he wouldn't be living anymore. Man is finite and divisible, but God is infinite and invisible. God is one. We see that the unity of the Godhead is so wonderful. But next, we must study and consider the triunity of the Godhead, better known as the Trinity of the Godhead. But do we not rejoice tonight in the Trinity of the Godhead? We rejoice in the unity of the Godhead. But we rejoice in the Holy Trinity because God the Father so loved. What does that mean? God the Father loved in this way that he gave his only begotten son, giving the divine gift of his son into this world that whosoever believeth on him in the gospel shall have everlasting life. The Father and the Son have given the person of the Holy Spirit to bring us to faith and to eternal life in Christ by the almighty power of God expressed in and through the third person of the Holy Trinity as he uses the word of God to bring us into life everlasting. Praise God for the wonderful Godhead. We praise God for the unity of the Godhead, that God is indeed one. Let us sing of him again. We're coming to the close tonight, and we want to sing of our great God, and I was very careful to guard this hymn. Number 26. Great God of wonders, all thy ways are matchless, godlike, and divine. We'll stand together as we sing number 26. There is no God like our God. He is God, infinite and eternal. Number 26, yeah. ♪ Great God of wonders, O God of wonders ♪ ♪ For that there is no like and divine ♪ ♪ But the bright glories of thy grace ♪ ♪ Above thine own through wonder shine ♪ Above thy doth her wonders shine. Who is a pardoning God like thee, or who has grace