Mister Richardson’s
Bible Doctrine Class

Chapter 5: The Communicable Attributes of God

The LORD passed before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving inquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the inquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.
- Exodus 34:6-7

A. Attributes Describing God's Being
  1. Spirituality - God’s spirituality means that God exists as a being that is not made of any matter, has no parts or dimensions, is unable to be perceived by our bodily senses, and is more excellent than any other kind of existence. 1 Corinthians 14:14; Philippians 3:3; 1 Corinthians 6:17; Rom 8:16.
    • God is a spirit - John 4:24.
    • You are forbidden to think of God as physical - Exodus 20:4.
  2. Invisibility - God’s invisibility means that God’s total essence, all of His spiritual being, will never be able to be seen by us, yet God still shows Himself to us through visible created things.
    • No one in the flesh has seen God - John 1:18; John 6:46; 1 Timothy 6:16.
    • There are various theophanies - Exodus 33:11, 20; Genesis 18:1-33; Isaiah 6:1.
    • Jesus is the express image of God - John 1:18, 14:9; Hebrews 1:3.
    • God’s total essence cannot be seen - Psalm 145:3, 1 Timothy 1:17, 6:16.
    • God will be seen in heaven - Matthew 5:8; 1 Corinthians 13:12; 1 John 3:2; Revelation 22:3-4.
B. Mental Attributes
  1. Knowledge (Omniscience) - God fully knows Himself and all things actual and possible in one simple and eternal act.
    • God knows everything - 1 John 3:20.
    • God knows Himself - 1 Corinthians 2:10-11.
    • God knows what will happen - Hebrews 4:13; 2 Chronicles 16:9; Matthew 10:29-30.
    • God knows what could happen - Matthew 11:21; 1 Samuel 23:11-13; 2 Kings 13:19.
    • God’s knowledge is eternal and never changes.
    • The heresy of Open Theism.
  2. Wisdom - God always chooses the best goals and the best means to those goals. Romans 16:27; Job 9:4; Psalm 104:24; Romans 8:28; James 1:5.
  3. Truthfulness - God is the true God and all His knowledge and words are both true and the final standard of truth. Jeremiah 10:10-11; John 17:3; Job 37:16; Numbers 23:19; Psalm 141:6; Colossians 3:9-10; Exodus 20:16.
C. Moral Attributes
  1. Goodness - God is the final standard of good, and all that God is and does is worthy of approval. God's mercy and grace are closely related to His goodness.- Luke 18:19; Psalm 100:5, 106:1; Genesis 1:31.
  2. Love - God eternally gives of Himself to others. 1 John 4:8, 5:3; John 3:16; Matthew 22:37-38.
  3. Holiness - God is separated from sin and devoted to seeking to His own honor. Exodus 19:4-6, 26:33; Psalm 71:22, 99:9; Leviticus 19:2; Hebrews 12:14.
  4. Righteousness (Justice) - God always acts inaccordance with what is right and is Himself the final standard of what is right. Deuteronomy 32:4; Isaiah 45:19; Romans 3:25-26.
  5. Jealousy - God continually seeks to protect His own honor. Exodus 20:5; Deuteronomy 4:24; Isaiah 48:11.
  6. Wrath - God intensely hates all sin. Exodus 32:9-10; Deuteronomy 9:7-8; Romans 1:18; Ephesians 2:3; Psalm 7:11.
D. Attributes of Purpose
  1. Will - God approves and determines to bring about every action necessary for the existence and activity of Himself and all creation.
    • God is the ultimate reason for everything - Ephesians 1:11; Revelation 4:11.
    • God’s secret will - the why things happen - Deuteronomy 29:29.
    • God’s revealed will - Matthew 6:10; Acts 2:23.
    • God’s freedom - that attribute whereby He does whatever He pleases - Psalm 115:3.
  2. Omnipotence (or Power, including Sovereignty) - God is able to do His holy will. - Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17; Matthew 19:26; Ephesians 3:20.
    Things God cannot do:
    • God cannot deny His own character - 2 Timothy 1:13.
    • God cannot lie - Titus 1:2.
    • God cannot be tempted by evil - James 1:13.
E. Summary Attributes
  1. Perfection - God completely possesses all excellent qualities and lacks no part of any qualities that would be desirable for Him. - Matthew 5:48; Psalm 18:30.
  2. Blessedness - God delights fully in Himself and in all that reflects His character. - 1 Tim 6:15.
  3. Beauty - God is the sum of all desirable qualities. - Psalm 27:4; 73:25.

TERMS
Attributes of being, attributes of purpose, beauty, blessedness, communicable attributes, faithfulness, freedom, goodness, grace, holiness, invisibility, jealousy, justice, knowledge, love, mental attributes, mercy, moral attributes, omnipotence, omniscience, perfection, power, revealed will, righteousness, secret will, sovereignty, spirituality, summary attributes, theophany, truthfulness, will, wisdom, wrath.

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Name and differentiate between the two attributes that describe God's being.
2. What does it mean that God knows all things "actual and possible"?
3. Differentiate between God's attributes of mercy, grace, and patience.
4. Why is it appropriate for God to be jealous for His own honor?
5. Is God’s wrath consistent with His love? Explain.
6. What is the difference between God's secret will and His revealed will?
7. Is there anything God cannot do? Explain.

ARTICLES
The Nature and Attributes of God - New Advent
Open Theism - CARM

RECOMMENDED READING
The Existence and Attributes of God - Stephen Charnock
The Attributes of God - A. W. Pink
Knowing God - J. I. Packer
The Pursuit of Holiness - Jerry Bridges

AUDIO
Communicable Attributes 1
Communicable Attributes 2
Communicable Attributes 3
Communicable Attributes 4
Communicable Attributes 5
Communicable Attributes 6
Communicable Attributes 7
Communicable Attributes 8
Communicable Attributes 9

WESTMINSTER SHORTER CATECHISM
Q5: Are there more Gods than one?
A5: There is but One only, the living and true God.

QUOTES
Not to be interested in the study of Holy Scripture, if the one living and true God has revealed himself therein, is the height of spiritual folly.
- Robert Reymond, A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith

The reason God can receive nothing from us is because we have nothing to give Him that He does not already possess. When God gives to His creatures, He does not give away—that is, He does not divest Himself of being and actuality when He gives good gifts to humans. Consequently, we have nothing to bestow on God that He does not already perfectly and infinitely possess in His fullness of being.
- James Dolezal, All That is in God

Without moral absolutes, the business of making moral judgments becomes impossible.
- David Wells, Above All Earthly Pow'rs: Christ in a Postmodern World

If God is totally or wholly dissimilar to us, how can he communicate anything to us about himself through any means? Unless there is some point of similarity, I cannot see how any intelligible communication is possible.
- R. C. Sproul, Not a Chance: God, Science, and the Revolt against Reason

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