One God

Those fingers are moving faster than I've ever seen them move before. Well done. Thank you for sharing your talents and honoring God and also inspiring us with the special music.

Furthering over the past few months now, we've begun the Youth Instruction Program here in the Southern Minnesota congregation. The decision was pretty much to focus on some of the basic, fundamental doctrines of the church as we began to teach the children in the program.

We've spent quite a bit of time with the first one, which has to do with God. The focus was on trying to make God real to the children as we've been working with the children here. I've been wanting to actually give this message before now, but it just seemed like there was always something else that was going in the way because I am getting in the way because I wanted to be able to tie into what the children were learning. What I'm going to talk a little bit about today is we're going to talk about God. We're going to talk about God the Father. We're also going to be talking about Jesus Christ the Son. And we're also going to be talking about a little bit, not much, the angelic beings, the angelic realm, and we'll be touching on you and I also as human beings. You know, whenever I find myself seriously thinking about God, I always find myself really in a sense in awe. I'm astonished by the creation and the massiveness of the creation that you see when we look out there and we see the stars and we see the planets and yet we're only seeing things within our own galaxy. There's so much more out there. And I'm also in awe, and this sometimes comes in the middle of the night, and I'm thinking about the fact that of God even before the creation because you have to think about Him. We have to realize that there was a before. There was a time when there wasn't anything out there that we can see that we see now. There was nothing in a sense that was there, and yet there was God.

He is from everlasting to everlasting. He has no beginning. He has no end. And He has always been, and He always will be. And from time to time, maybe you're like me when you try to think about the eternity looking back, how could He have no beginning? And you try to wrap your mind around that. It often short-circuits. Now, I can imagine a little bit more eternity going forward, but I have a lot harder of a time trying to wrap my mind around an eternity that goes backwards.

And yet we see this. It is true. And when I meditate on God, I've been in awe of this simple fact that He has always been no beginning and a power so strong that He can create the sun, that He can create the galaxy that we're in. And you talk about going at the speed of light, you know, for most of our lives, if not all of it, you can't even get out of our galaxy.

And yet there's multiple galaxies out there in a universe that is just huge in size and the power that it had to take in order to bring that into being. And a planet, the earth, and life, you and me, animal, plant life, and human life.

You know, all this leaves me and maybe you too when you think about it, when you've been meditating upon it, it kind of leaves you in awe. Just how great, how powerful is this being that we know of as God. And yet, it seems to me that when people try to argue about trying to decide who He is or how He is, you know, whether He's a trinity, whether He's a family, whether He's a single, unitary God, or whether His name should be pronounced in a certain way, or whether He's omnipresent, which means He can be everywhere at the same time, or whether He's not, and whether He sees all or whether He chooses sometimes not to see things, you know, it all seems to me that men, when they think about this, when they argue about it, really we're minimizing God.

And I suppose it's inevitable when we start to think about it, start to talk about it, start to argue about it. We begin to see Him in a sense in our own conception. We see Him sometimes and we have our own conceptual ideas about Him. We kind of create Him in our own minds, where we try to visualize Him in our own minds. And the question then may arise then, in a sense, well then, how can we really know anything about God?

How can we know how He really is? You know, if I could ask you, what are some of the infallible witnesses that come to mind that would tell us who God is and what He's like? What would come to your mind? What are infallible, true, infallible witnesses that could testify to who He is? What type of being that He is? Maybe you can think about that just for a moment. It seems to me that there are at least, if not more, there's at least two infallible witnesses that come to my mind of what God is really like.

And we can count on that are true. And one of them is His Word, the Bible that you have there on your lap. One of them is His Word. We understand that this is a revelation, that this came from God Himself, that every word in Scripture was God-inspired and it was God-breathed. And of course, it moved men to write it down.

God moved men through His Spirit to write down His words, His thoughts, His ideas. And so we have His Word, so we can understand that is Him revealing Himself, His revelation to us. A second one that comes to mind, a second infallible witness of God is the creation. His creation. These are two infallible witnesses of God. Now, I think it's very true to say that many people do not understand or they fail to understand the things about God, but in the creation and in the Word of God, we have absolute infallibility, infallible testimony about God, who He is, what He's like, and what He's doing.

Let's begin with our first Scripture in Romans chapter 1 and verse number 18. Let's go over there in Romans chapter 1 and verse 18. God is talking about these, in a sense, part one of these two infallible witnesses, but I think what God is trying to tell us is that you can know Me by My creation and you can know Me through My Word. You can know Me by My Word. Let's pick it up in Romans chapter 1 and verse 18.

Paul is writing to the church in Rome and this is what he shares with us here. He says, For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is made manifest to them. That's been made clear to them. It's been revealed to them, for God has shown it to them.

So these are people that knew, but they didn't necessarily want to follow the God that was revealing these things to them. They wanted to live their own life and so they suppressed the truth as it says in verse 18. They suppressed the truth in a sense by the way that they lived.

They suppressed the truth as it says in unrighteousness. So they were suppressing the truth because what may be known of God is clearly manifest to them. Why? Because God had shown it to them. But how did He do that? Well, verse 20 answers. It says, For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen. The invisible things are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made. So we can understand from His eternal power and Godhead so that they are without excuse. You may have heard of some of the stories of people that have scientists that have been unbelievers of God, atheists, open atheists, and they're saying, you know what? We started to look at creation either through a telescope, through the stars, and the planets, or through a microscope and looking at things under a microscope in the cell. And there have been scientists that in looking under the microscope and looking at the cell, they expected to find simpler and simpler things. And what they found was more complexity. They found systems. They found things that were very, very tiny but composed of very, very tiny little parts that they all had to work together or it wouldn't work at all. It's like a watch, you know, you've got all these parts, but if you don't put one of them in, nothing works. It all has to be put in at the same time together so that it can work.

I'm going to quote a little bit from an article, Creation Proves the Bible as the living word of God, says by the Berean Publishers. I'm going to quote a little bit from here. It says, God is provided to humble observers of the universe ample evidence for his existence, evidence available in every culture and time in history. There is no excuse for rejecting the witness of creation. It goes on to say, with each discovery that science makes, the evidence for God becomes more irresistible. Every door that science opens reveals ten as yet unopened doors. While knowledge of the universe is expanding exponentially, the unknown expands even faster, like receding images in a hall of mirrors. Scientific discoveries overwhelmingly necessitate a power and wisdom, without beginning or end, and infinitely beyond human comprehension. Even such a predetermined proponent of evolution, such as Richard Dawkins, and maybe you've heard his name over the years, he is a proponent and a very determined proponent of evolution. It says, even a determined proponent of evolution, as Richard Dawkins confesses that living things, quote, give the appearance of having been designed for a purpose, unquote. Dawkins even admits that the nucleus of every cell, which, by the way, is the smallest unit of which there are trillions of them in your body, contains, quote, a digitally coded database, larger in information content than all 30 volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica put together, unquote. That's from Richard Dawkins. For life, something even more amazing is involved than chance aligning billions of chemical molecules in the right order. Dawkins refers to a digitally coded database. This is recent terminology never imagined by Darwin. Not only must DNA molecules be put together correctly, but they must, like letters, express information in a language, instructions to be followed. Each person at the moment of conception begins as a single cell. That's where we all started as a single cell, in that sense. How does that cell know what to do to construct a body composed of trillions of individual cells, of different kinds and different functions? Most school children know the answer. Imprinted in that original cell are instructions for construction and operation of the human body, instructions which must be followed unerringly. DNA replicates this blueprint into every cell produced and every cell amazingly will know which part of the directions that it is to follow.

Today's school children knows that DNA has an incredible capacity for storing information. This is, I don't know if you've heard of the name of a man by the name of Antony Flue. I think I've mentioned him before. Antony Flue. Antony was an English philosopher and for most of his working career he was an atheist and was a champion of atheists. They would quote his books, they would quote his articles, they would say, hey look here's a man that knows about evolution. But at the age of 81, Antony Flue said, you know what? I've been looking under the microscope, I have been looking at the cell, I've been looking at DNA and I am astounded at what I'm seeing. He said, I see intelligence, I see design, I see language. At the age of 81, he began to believe in God. Now he's dead now. He died at the age of 87. But at the age of 81, he began to believe in God and wrote a book on that topic. Might be something to Google sometime. Antony Flue. F-L-E-W.

Well, today's school children know that DNA that have been taught has an incredible capacity for storing information. How incredible. I don't know if you can see what I have here in my hand. It's a pin. Can you see it? It's got, it's got a, the pin head's pretty big. It's red. I don't know if you can see that from where you're sitting. It's probably a larger pin head than most pinheads, but it's a pinhead nonetheless. That's red. You know, probably the right size of the pinhead would be if you looked at your own writing instrument that you have in your hand right now and looked at that little ballpoint. That's probably about the size of a pinhead. The information contained in DNA on the size of a pinhead would fill a stack of books 500 times as high as the distance from the Earth to the Moon. In DNA, the size of a pinhead would fill a stack of books 500 times as high as the Earth to the Moon. Have you heard about the world's fastest supercomputer that's being worked on? It's called the blue gene. Gene is G-E-N-E. Let's put this up here for now. I'll probably forget it, but I'll put it up there so you can see it. This is a supercomputer. It's just being completed. It's going to be performing one quadrillion calculations per second. That's one with 15 zeros behind it. It is being built to map three billion chemical letters that are in the human genome. All put together by chance.

Blue gene's first task is going to be this. It's going to try to figure out how the body makes just one protein molecule. Just one. It's going to have this task. To solve this problem, it's going to have to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for a full year.

At all those calculations per second. 24-7 for a year. And yet the human body, following the instructions imprinted in DNA, creates a protein molecule in a fraction of a second. That's how fast DNA, which is programmed, the information that's in it, can do that in a fraction of a second. Where the instructions, which this computer will take a year to understand, arrived at random process, on all of this for just one protein molecule. You know, years ago, the conundrum was which came first, the chicken or the egg? And now it's which came first, protein protein or DNA? Why? Because it takes protein to construct DNA, but it takes DNA to make protein.

And so they had to be done at exactly the same time, interdependent upon one another.

So, brethren, when we look, when we go back to Romans chapter 1 and verse 20, and we see what Paul is sharing with us there, he's saying in verse 20, for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen and understood by the things that are made.

Now, what Paul is revealing to us here is that the creation is also a witness to God, just as God's own word that we have on our laps and are in front of us is also an infallible testimony to God. You know, when it comes to the word, men may misunderstand, men may misrepresent, and men may lie, but the word of God is always true. You know, it says in John chapter 17 verse 17, thy word is truth. And so it will not lead, it will not mislead us. I mean, it will not lead us, but it won't mislead us. It has the truth. And when it comes to creation, men may misinterpret, men may even lie about creation, but creation is always true. It is what it is. It's out there. It is the truth. Some people who like to argue about what God is like all too often deny either one side or the other of these two witnesses. So I conclude from what Paul is telling us here that the creation itself is an infallible and just like the word also is an infallible witness, neither one of these two witnesses will lie or deceive or mislead, but they are always true. They're always true. Now, I don't mean to suggest that from these two witnesses alone that we can know all there is to know about God. Frankly, I don't think we can know everything at this time about God, but he reveals enough for us to know and understand. He reveals enough. Let's go over to Deuteronomy chapter 29 and verse 29. Let's go over there.

Neither of these two witnesses, again, will lie or mislead us. We can always rely on them, and that's important for us to understand. We're going to begin to take a look at one of the witnesses, which is God's word, what it has to say. Deuteronomy chapter 29 verse 29. Let's take a look at that. Deuteronomy chapter 29 and verse 29. It has this to say, The secret things belong to our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us, and they belong to our children forever. So we see that they were not going to necessarily know everything. There are certain things that God reserves us. For now, there are secret things that belong to God, and they don't belong to anybody else. But He also says, but those things that are revealed belong to us and belong to our children. So let's take a look at God's word today and see what He reveals to us. What is it that He shares with us? You know a way we can relax. We don't have to know everything about God and all the different aspects about God that sometimes people like to talk about. You don't have to know all that. All you have to know or deal with is what He actually shares with us in the Scripture, what He shares with us. And these things we can easily come to know because they're here. So we have these two witnesses about God, who He is, what He's doing, what He's like, and they will always be true. So with this in hand, let's consider what God reveals in His word that's important for us to know. The first thing that God points out—this may seem very familiar, but I think it's important—the first thing that God points out is that man is made in His image. Man is made in the image of God. Let's notice that in Genesis chapter 1, verse number 26. Again, a pretty familiar section of Scripture here, but I think it ties in as very important in the topic that we have this afternoon. Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. And God said, let us make man. That's a plural pronoun there. God said, let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let's let them, referring to mankind, have dominion. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds, or the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created him, both male and female. He created them. So in the beginning, it says God created man in His image, and both male and female are in His image, and they're after His likeness. So do you think then that God would understand if we begin to think of Him that He, in a sense, looks a lot like us? Or we, maybe more correctly, look a lot like Him, because we were made in His image, as we look around. We were made in the image of God.

You know, maybe we'd be wrong. Maybe if we actually had a chance to go into the throne room and look at God, He might be different than what we think. But do you suppose, based on what God has revealed to us, that we would look around, based on His word, that we might think that, since we're in His image, that we kind of look like Him? Or, again, more perfectly, that He looks like us? Let's go to Acts 17, verse 29. Acts 17 and verse 29. We're going to see that God has shape. He has form. Acts 17, verse 29.

The context here is Paul is in Athens. He's looking around, and he has seen a lot of different religious beliefs and persuasions. There are false idols. There are false statutes. There are false gods. There are altars. There are images that are frozen, made out of stone or wood or what have you. And he sees all of this. And Paul is moved to say what he's about to say here. Acts 17, verse 29. It says, For as much then as we are the offspring of God, in other words, we've already read we are created in His image, offspring, if you look at the dictionary, if you look it up in Webster's or even dictionary.com, it talks about what's offspring mean? The definition is children, children of a parent. And so he goes on to say, For as much then as we are the offspring of God, we shouldn't not think that the Godhead looks like gold, or the Godhead looks like silver, or the Godhead looks like stone, or some graven image that's been graven by the work of men's hands, whether it be a fish, or whether it be a serpent, or whether it be a bird, or whether it be a bull, or a snake, or cattle, or so forth, which implies that we should think that God is a lot like us, or again, we're a lot like Him. Let's look over at John chapter 5, verse 36. John chapter 5 and verse number 36. Jesus tells us something here in John chapter 5 and verse 36. He's going to tell us that we have never seen the Father. John chapter 5 and verse 36.

We'll pick it up here.

He says, But I have a greater witness than John's, referring to John the Baptist, for the works which the Father has given me to finish, the very works that I do bear witness of me. He says, you're looking for proof, you're looking for witness. He says, the works that the Father is doing through me are a witness that I am who I say that I am.

Verse 36, for I have a greater witness than John's, for the works which the Father has given me to finish, the very works that I do bear witness of me, that the Father has sent me. And the Father Himself who has sent me has testified of me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape. You can just reference John chapter 1 verse 18 that says that no one has seen God at any time as well as He's saying here in this context in John chapter 5 that no one has seen His shape or His form. Well, let's look, let's go back to Exodus chapter 33, verse number 17. Because we're going to see here that Moses was talking with the Lord and he said, show me yourself, show me your form, show me your shape. Well, we know this wasn't the Father because of Scripture. We understand, and it couldn't have been the Father, that this was the Word, the Word. We'll read about that a little bit later in John chapter 1. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The Word was with God in the beginning. He was with God and He was also God. And we understand that the God being that was talking to Moses here was the Word. It was not the Father. Exodus chapter 33, verse 17. It says, and the Lord said to Moses, I will do this thing also that you have spoken. Moses said, I want to see you. Show yourself to me. And God says, okay, I will do this thing that you have spoken or you've requested. For you have found grace in my sight and I know you by name. Verse 18. And he said, this is Moses speaking, I beseech you. I'm asking you, show me your glory. And you can know why he'd want to see, you know, you could, that's a good question to ask. Show me your glory.

Verse 19. And God said, I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But then he says this to Moses, but you can't see my face.

Now this would be irrelevant if he didn't have a face.

Now let's understand. This is God and His word revealing something here. You cannot behold my face, for there shall no man see me and live. And the Lord said, behold, okay, I'm going to show you something. There's a place by me, verse 21, and you shall stand upon a rock. It's going to come to pass that while my glory passes by, that I'm going to put you in this little cleft of the rock. There's going to be this close quarters of a cleft of the rock. You'll be on one side, I'll be on the other side. You're not going to have this wide view, you know, but it's going to be a narrow view, but I'm going to show you something. He says, I'm going to, verse 22, while my glory passes by, I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and I'm going to cover you with my hand while I pass by. And then, verse 23, I'm going to take away my hand, and you will see my backside, my back parts, but you, my face, you will not see. This is quite a revelation, in a way, you know, for humans to wrap our minds around. I mean, this is a revelation from God to Moses. It's one of those off-the-cuff things, in a sense, that he just, just show me yourself. But one thing, it really ties into this topic very well. It says many things here. One, that God has a face. God has a face. Second, that God has a hand. He's going to cover him with his hand, and then he's going to remove his hand, and then you'll see his backside. You're not going to see his front side. You're not going to see his face, but he was going to show him the backside. That's all interesting. You know, why would God write it this way or inspire it this way, if this is not the way that he's revealing himself? That he has form. That he has shape. That he has a face. That he has hands. That he has a backside. If he's got a backside, he must have a front side.

You know, we can go through the Scriptures and reference all times of references to God. We don't have the time to go through all those, but you could research some of those yourself. But there are all kinds of references about the finger of God, and the eye of God, and the ear of God. You know, that he's got hands, that he's got eyes, that he has ears, that he can hear, that he can see. All of these things that we read about in the Bible, we just think of God that way, because that's how he reveals himself. And he will never mislead us. Never deceive. Never lie. God cannot lie. So he's inviting us to see him this way, because this is the way he is. He's revealing himself to us. So we shouldn't be surprised to learn that God doesn't look like a bull, or a bird, or a serpent, or any other type of animal. And there are those that believe that God looks like nothing, that he has no shape at all. But that's not how he reveals himself. Here again, in God's Word, he says he has shape. He has form. He's revealing himself that way. Now, I suppose we can explain away what he is saying to us, but why? Why would we do that? Why not just accept his revelation of what he tells us in the Scriptures? Why not take it as it is? Because this does seem to be the way in which he's revealing himself to us. Some people ask the question, well, how can God be everywhere? How can he be everywhere? How can he be in one place and yet be everywhere? And the fancy theological term for that is omnipresent, meaning he is present everywhere, in a sense. Well, God can do that through his Holy Spirit. That's how. God is in a place, but he also has the ability at the speed of thought. He has the ability to be wherever he chooses to be, whenever he chooses to be. He is not restricted by time and space like you and I. So that's how he does it, is through his Spirit. God is a being. He has form, he has shape, and he can be where he wants to be anytime he wants to be. Let's know 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 4. There's another thing that the Bible reveals to us, and this is important too. We've already covered the fact that we are made in the image of God. We are the offspring, the children, in a sense, of God. Let's notice 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 4, because we're going to see that Jesus Christ is the express image of God. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse number 4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse number 4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4. This is, in a sense, initially talking about the God of this world, Satan the devil. It says, In whom the God of this world, small gee God of this world, has blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. Christ is in the image of God. Well, look at another scripture here in Hebrews a little while from now that talks about the express image of God. Should shine unto them.

You know, let's look at Matthew chapter 11 and verse number 25 here just for a moment. Matthew chapter 11 and verse 25. The scriptures say that Jesus Christ is in the image of God. Now there's words when you see Him in a sense you almost see the Father. In fact, you do see the Father. Let's take a look. We'll look at a few scriptures here. Matthew chapter 11 and verse number 25.

Matthew chapter 11 and verse number 25.

It says at that time Jesus answered, said, I thank you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and the prudent and you revealed them to babes. So Jesus was beginning to understand that God was revealing certain things to people, but God was choosing not the wise and the prudent, but babes. And Jesus was understanding the wisdom of this as time was going on. Verse 26. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in your sight. All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. So Jesus Christ was going to be in the process of revealing God, the Father, to people. The one that the Son chooses to reveal Him, the Father, in a sense. In a sense, Jesus Christ was already beginning to do that because He was in the image of His Father. And so when they see Him, He was in the image of His Father. When they heard the things that He said, these were the Father's words because they're scriptures that say, I don't speak my own words, I'm speaking what the Father told me to say. And He says, so when you see what I do, and when you see what I say or hear what I say, you're seeing the Father. You're seeing the Father. Let's notice John 14 and verse 9. John 14, verse 9. Jesus Christ came to reveal the Father so we could understand Him, what He's doing, what He thinks about things, what His purpose is. John 14, we'll pick it up here in verse 6. John 14, verse 6.

We'll pick it up in verse number 7. John 14, verse 7. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.

And from now on, you know Him, and you've seen Him. And Philip said, well, Lord, show us the Father, and it's sufficient for us. And Jesus said, have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father. So how can you say, show us the Father? So you see, Jesus was the image of God the Father. We could begin to understand what God the Father is like by looking at Jesus Christ, by listening to what He has to say. And so Jesus Christ came to reveal the Father, not only His image in a sense of maybe what He looked like, and He had form and shape, but also His character and His nature. He's beginning to show us what God the Father is like. And Jesus wasn't a frozen image. He wasn't a statue. He wasn't an idol. He was a living image. But He's more than an image of God. He is God. Now, that gets confusing to a lot of people. That issue gets very troublesome to so many people, because there are some that believe there's only one God, and that's it. You know, and they tried to explain that, well, Jesus Christ wasn't really a separate being, but that there was just one God being, and they the Trinity kind of gets involved with that. There's one God who manifests Himself as a Father and as a Son and as the Holy Spirit. But it's just one entity. It's one being, if you will.

Now, the church, we've been taught that there are two God beings. Does that mean we're mono? That we're not monotheists. Mono meaning one. Theists mean God. Does that mean we don't believe in one God?

You know, we've been possibly accused of being guilty of polytheism. Poly meaning more than one.

Thinking of two gods. So that question troubles a lot of people. Well, it's entirely a matter of semantics and the meaning of words. Of course, there is only one God in the sense that there is only one supreme being. One head of a spiritual family. And we're going to address that here just in a moment because this is somewhat confusing. There can be. Let's go over to 1 Corinthians, chapter 8 and verse 4. Let's go to 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 4 because Paul addresses this issue a little bit. He's on another subject, but in the process he tells us something that regards our topic today, our subject today. Something that would be helpful to know. 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 4. 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 4. He's talking about sacrificing to idols, but he shares some things with us here that's helpful to know. He says, concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered and sacrificed to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world. We know that they don't mean anything. They're lifeless. They're not really gods at all. We know that an idol is nothing in the world and there is none other god but one.

For though there be that are called gods, again, small g gods, meaning false gods, verse 5. For though there are those in the, you know what Athens, Paul, saw a lot of them. As there are gods many and lords many. But to us, verse 6, there is but one god, the Father, of whom are all things. So he's the originator. He is the author of all things. And we and him. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we be in him. So we understand the Father utilized Jesus Christ in the creation. Now let's look at what Paul says here. How many gods are there according to what Paul has written? There's one. There's one. And you notice how Paul distinguishes this one true god, this one god? He says, he uses the phrase, God the Father. God the Father. And in fact, when we think about God, or we talk to each other about God, or we take shorthand about God, or make notes about God, I would say most of the time when we use that word God, that we're talking about the Father.

When we use that word God in our conversation with one another.

And so consequently, when we speak of it, there is but one God the Father, then there can't be more than one. He is the supreme being. And by nature, being a supreme being means you can't have more than one. Or there wouldn't be supreme. There's only one head, in a sense, or a father of a family. Only one head author who has the ultimate. We just need to wrap our mind around the way that God reveals it in His word. There's one God the Father, and we have Jesus Christ the Son. And they're not the same being. Yet how can there be one God the Father? And yet, in some places, Jesus is called God. How can that be? How can we have one? We know there's one God the Father, and yet, in some places, in Scripture, it refers to Jesus as God.

Let's look at John chapter 20, verse 28. John chapter 20, verse 28. When we read this, this may be a familiar story.

John chapter 20, and verse number 28. We may pick it up a little bit earlier in the context here. But there's a time when Jesus comes into the disciples after His death and resurrection. They're housed in a house, and there's 11 of them there. Thomas isn't there. And suddenly Jesus appears. And of course, they're all happy to see Him, and then they tell Thomas, you know, the Lord's alive. And you remember what He said? Unless I put my finger in the imprint of the nails or put my hand in his side, He said, I will not believe. Let's pick it up here, John chapter 20. So now this happens again. But this time, Thomas is in the room with the rest of the disciples. And suddenly, the door doesn't open. Suddenly, Jesus just manifests Himself in the room. John chapter 20.

It says, verse 24, now Thomas called the twin. One of the 12 was not with them when Jesus came. That was the first time. The other disciples said to him, we've seen the Lord. So he said, unless I see His hands in His hands, the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails and put my hand into His side, I will not believe. And then eight days later, now Jesus manifests Himself again. At the end of verse 26, He says, peace to you. And you can imagine the 11 disciples are now looking at Thomas. You know, we told you we saw him.

So the attention now is on Jesus and Thomas.

And verse 27, Jesus said to Thomas, okay, reach your finger here and look at my, look at my hands and reach your hand here and put it in my side. Don't be unbelieving, but believing. And Thomas answered and he said to him, my Lord and my God. He called Jesus His God. And Jesus did not correct him. He didn't say, oh no, that's not true. So, brethren, what's happening? How can there be one, only one true God, God the Father? And yet, Jesus Christ is also called God. Well, if you're confused, you're not alone because this has been baffling to a lot of theologians for a long, long time. Let's look at a passage that I hope is going to make this clear. Let's go over to Hebrews chapter one and verse one. There's a lot of information in the book of Hebrews that may help us here. Hebrews chapter one and verse one. There's other places, by the way, where Jesus Christ is called God. This was just one of the references here. There's one in Revelation. We're going to read one here in Hebrews as well. Hebrews chapter one and verse number one. It says, God, who at sundry times in a diverse manner spoke in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken unto us by his son, who he has appointed heir of all things. Now an heir is somebody that is the son of a father, and so he's going to have an inheritance. And so we see that in the last days God decided to speak through his son, whom he has appointed heir of all things. That's quite a bit. And by whom also he made the worlds. Who made the worlds? The father or the son? Which was it? It was both. The father made the worlds by his son, Jesus Christ. In other words, Jesus Christ was the active maker. The father is the instigator, like the architect or the designer. He thought this through, put the blueprints together, and engaged his son to implement the design, build it, carry it through to the finish. Now this is a side note, but important. If the son made the worlds by his son, then did he not therefore have to exist before the worlds existed?

If the son made the worlds, did he not have to exist before the world existed?

Verse number three. Again, the father is speaking about his son, who being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person. So that was the scripture I talked about before. We talked about Jesus as the image of God, and now the express image of his person. Not only form, necessarily shape, you see the father, you see the son. You know, they look alike. That happens even humanly, but also in character. The express image of the father's person. And he upholds all things by the word of his power when he had by himself purged our sins. So we know we're talking about the son. He purged our sins through dying. He then sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. And so he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high, referring to the father. Father sitting on his throne. Jesus Christ sits down at his right hand. Keep your finger here, but let's go over to... we're in Hebrews. Let's go to chapter eight and verse one. We'll see that. Hebrews chapter eight and verse one.

Talking about Jesus being a high priest. Now, this is the main point of the things we are saying. We have such a high priest who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens. So Jesus sits at the right hand of God, the father's throne. That's Hebrews chapter eight, verse one. Let's just go a few pages over to Hebrews chapter 12 and verse number two. Hebrews chapter 12 and verse two.

Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despised the shame, and he has now sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. And so we see Jesus now purged our sins and sat down at the right hand of the father. Now, if we were able to see this scenario, how many people would you see? Or how many beings would you see?

Well, one or two. Some would say one. Some would say two. It says here that Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the father. If that's how God reveals it, I think it pretty well is going to have to be that there are two beings that are there, not one. When it's presented in this way and it's revealed in God's word in this way, the father sitting on his throne, Jesus Christ, as his right hand, you know, when we come into his presence, we see it's not somebody who's sitting next to themselves. But there are two beings, Jesus, sitting at the right hand of the father.

Why should there be so much difficulty when this is the way that God reveals it?

His word, which will not mislead us, not confuse us.

Why would we imagine it any other way than the way that he reveals it? Let's go on to verse 4, Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 4. Being made so much better than the angels, as he has by an inheritance, obtained a more excellent name than they. So now God is establishing something here. There's almost like a hierarchy of beings here. There's different kinds of beings. We have angelic beings. We've already talked about human beings that have been made in God's image, and we see that there's an angelic beings here, and it says that Jesus has been made so much better than the angels of the angelic beings here. He's not an angel. He is not like the angels. He is in a totally separate category of the angels. So what category is Jesus in? He's not an angelic being, but he's higher than that. He's better than that in that sense. But we'll come to that. Let's go on to verse number 5. But unto which of the angels said he at any time, you are my son, this day I have begotten you, and again I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. God's word said that has never been said to an angelic being that you are my son, and I've begotten you. We'll see in a moment that God created the angels to be servants, to serve him, to serve his son, and ultimately to serve you and me. Verse number 6. And again, when he brings in the first begotten of the world, and that was Jesus Christ, he was the first begotten son of God, also the first born son of God. When he brings in the first begotten of the world, he says, and let all the angels of God worship him. Of course, now we're talking about worshiping Jesus Christ. We know we're not supposed to worship the angels in all of the scriptures there. You know, when John was being given the revelation, and an angel was revealing to this, he wanted to fall down and worship the angel. The angel said, no, do that. You worship God. Don't worship me. You worship God. And now it says the angels are going to worship Christ. They're going to worship him. Let all the angels of God, referring to the Father, worship him, referring to the Son. Verse number seven. And of the angels, he said, who makes his angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire? Servants, ministers, the angels are God's servants. They're not heirs. They're not inheritors like Christ is. Christ is an heir of God. He is God's Son. So there's an important distinction between Jesus Christ and between the angelic beings. And then we get to what I really want to focus on here in verse number eight. He says this in verse eight, and who's speaking, by the way, it's who's talking. It's God the Father that's speaking here in verse number eight. But unto the Son, he says, your throne, O God, is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom. Who's speaking? It's the Father. God the Father is speaking. And who does he say it to? He says it to the Son. And how does he address the Son? He says, your throne, O God.

So we have God addressing God, calling him God. God is addressing the Son, and he says, your throne, O God. How is this possible? Let's see if I can try to explain it.

We've got Todd Schreiber. He's a man. It should be pretty fairly evident he is a man. And we've got Randy Turnblad. And he is a man. And one man could say to the other, well, turn to Hebrews chapter 1 and verse number 8. And so we have a man speaking to a man. That's not a problem. A man addressing a man, another human being addressing another human being. That's not a problem. So then why is it a problem we have a God addressing a God? A God being addressing a God being, if you will. Well, I suppose it has something to do with people's ideas about polytheism, multiple gods and that type of thing. The many gods that surrounded the children of Israel, the Israelites, whether it be Athens, whether it be some of the nations of Babylon or Egypt. But the reason it's not a problem with Todd and Bill is because they are the same kind. They're humankind. They're mankind. They're of the same kind. So the issue is confused in our language because in our language, in English language, the Bible uses the word God. And the word God can have more than one meaning, depending upon the context. The word God can be talking about the one supreme being, the Father. And yet that same word, in a sense, can also refer to a kind of being in which there are more than one. So it depends on the context. The reason why this is not a polytheistic idea is that you still believe in one God, the Father, who is singularly the supreme being, and everyone else, including Jesus Christ, is subordinate to Him.

But nevertheless, you still have two that are God. Let's continue on in verse number nine, Hebrews chapter one, verse nine. It says, you have loved righteousness, again, referring to the Son. You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Therefore, God, even your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows. So God, Jesus Christ, has a God, God the Father. God, a God being, Jesus Christ, has a God, God the Father. Let's keep your finger here, but let's go over to John chapter 20 in verse number 17. John chapter 20 in verse number 17.

Jesus Christ has been three days and three nights in the grave. He's been resurrected. He has not yet fulfilled the wave sheaf offering by ascending to the Father. And He's telling one of the women there that's talking to Him, don't touch me yet, because I have not yet ascended. Let's take a look at that. John chapter 20 in verse number 17. Jesus said here, don't touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren and say to them, I ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God. So Jesus tells us again, God, Jesus Christ, has a God the Father. He said, I have not yet ascended to my God and your God.

Now, the only problem with some of the arguments that people get into sometimes when they think about, they could just think about God in the terms of a kind of being, then it resolves some of the difficulties that we have. Let's go back to Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 10. Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 10. We left off in verse number 9, and we'll pick it up here in verse number 10.

And you, Lord, in the beginning have laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They shall perish, but you shall remain. They shall all wax old like a garment, and as a vesture shall you fold them up, and they shall be changed. But you're the same, and your years shall not fail. But to which of the angels did he say at any time, Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool? So again, talks about the angelic realm, not quite on the same level. He's never said this of the angels to sit at his right hand, like he said to Jesus Christ, until I make your enemies your footstool. And then he talks about the angels in verse 14. He says, Are they not all ministering spirits, ministering mean to serve others? They're servants. Sent forth to minister for them. Now we're talking about plural. Not just to serve Jesus Christ, but to serve others as well. Sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation. So what's written here now is extending the concept of Christ as an heir or inheritor of God, the Father, therefore being God, the Son of God, to other heirs of God, other sons, as God says, I'm going to bring many sons to glory. So there are other heirs of God which are yet to come, and that's you and me. Let's look at a prayer that Jesus gave shortly before his death, John chapter 17. Read some things here which touch on the subject.

John chapter 17 verse 1. We may not have thought about this prayer touching on this topic, but I think that we'll find some things that are relevant here. John chapter 17 and verse number 1. John 17 verse number 1.

These words spoke Jesus. He lifted up his eyes to heaven. He said, Father, the hour has come. So he knew this was something they'd planned together for a long time. Now it's getting close. He says, the hour has come. Glorify your son and your son that your son may also glorify you. Now where was Jesus when he was saying this? Well, he was in Jerusalem. He was on the ground. He was on the earth, and he's talking to God, the Father, who's in heaven. That's where the Father was. So you have one person talking to another here, one on the earth and one up in heaven. And there are Jesus and the Father. Are they two distinct beings? Yes. I think that's how God reveals it. And verse number 2.

Wow, here we go again. How many gods are there, really, when it comes to the one supreme gain? There's one, only one heavenly Father of this spiritual family. He is the one and true God over everything and everyone. Even Jesus said, the Father is greater than I, and He is my God, just like He is your God, is what Christ says. Verse 3, and this is life eternal, that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. Now Jesus isn't denying that He's part of the God family here. He's not denying that. He's not an angelic being. He is a Son of God. Pharisees knew when He said He was the Son of God, they wanted to pick up stones. They said, this is blasphemy. They understood what that meant. You were part of God. You were His Son. They realized that He was talking about being divine, a divinity. We'll cover that Scripture here if we've got some time. But Jesus is not denying He's a member of the God family and therefore a God kind of being. He's identifying God as the one and only true Supreme Being and that that Supreme Being is the Father. And when it comes to the one Supreme Being, Jesus is saying there is only one true God and that's God the Father. But He doesn't exclude Himself of being the same kind of being. Just like in our human fathers, we have human families, we have only one Father, don't we, with the ultimate responsibility and authority to take care of the family. It's the same in the spiritual family. It's only one true God of the spiritual family of God. It's the Father. Verse number four here, John chapter 17 verse four, I have glorified you on the earth. I have finished the work which you gave me to do. He's deferring to the Father, isn't He? And now, O Father, glorify me with your own self, with the glory which I had with you before the world was. So Jesus therefore had glory with the Father before the world was. So this is a hard Scripture for some, because there are some that believe Jesus did not come into existence at His human birth, until His human birth.

But we see from Scripture, the way God reveals it, that He existed before His human birth. He existed before Adam. Because God the Father says, I created all things through Jesus Christ. He had to create the planets before Adam. He's the one that probably formed Adam out of the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life. He existed before the angels because they were created beings. God says, the Father says, He created all things through Jesus Christ. So He existed before the angels. He existed before anything was created because He was the Creator thereof that the Father was using. Verse number six. I have manifested your name to the men which you gave Me out of this world. Their yours they were and you gave them to Me and they have kept your word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever you have given Me are of you. For I have given to them the words which you gave to Me. So we have givers and receivers here. Now Jesus said, I didn't speak my own words when I came. You know, I received them from somebody else. I received them from the Father. I don't speak my own words. These aren't my... this isn't my doctrine. I got it from the Father.

So verse eight. For I have given unto them the words which you gave Me.

So there's givers of the word, receivers of this word. And Jesus says, you, Father, have given to Me the words which I in turn have given to them. So we have a progression of something between two different beings here. And they have received them and have known surely that I came out from you and they have believed that you sent Me. Who sent who? The Father sent the Son from heaven to the earth. Now you may be somewhat familiar with the doctrine of the Trinity. It's not an easy thing to understand. You know, the concept came about because there's only one God. And so we had this problem with God the Father and God the Son. Wait a minute. How can we... we've got two gods now. That's polytheistic. So the Trinity doctrine came about because of the fact that, well, there is but one God, one and anybody manifests himself as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But it's just one being. It's one Spirit being. So I'm not sure if I fully understand the doctrine of the Trinity, but one thing God seems to reveal here in Scripture is that Jesus and the Father are two distinct beings. That's how God reveals it in the Scripture. They talk to each other. One sends the other. One prays to the other. They communicate back and forth. One receives the words from another and then speaks the other person's words. You wouldn't have to speak the other person's words if it was your words. And so there's a relationship. A father and a son. There's sometimes been a misunderstanding about what's been going on and discussing about whether God is a family or God has a family. Is God a family or does he have a family? But the fact of the matter is God is a father that has a family that's composed of God's, God-kind beings. And that's the way it is. He has a son, and he is in the process of bringing many sons to glory. That's in Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10. Let's just take a look at that. Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10. Should keep your finger here if it's not too late, come back to John 17. Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10.

For it was fitting for him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons through sufferings. So God's plan for mankind, those that are his offspring, those that have been created in his image, that have form and shape just like he does, only it's in the flesh rather than in spirit. God's Father is bringing many sons to the same glorious state that he is in, spirit. Not only composed of spirit, but also having the divine nature.

Let's go back to John chapter 17 verse 9. There were one, and that's true. That's true. And in a sense, even two human beings can be one. We know the scripture talk about a man shall leave his father and mother, and woman shall leave her family. The two shall become one flesh. Well, we still have two distinct human beings, but there can be a oneness that comes when you still have two distinct beings here. It's the same spiritually. They can be united in attitude. They can be united in spirit. They can be united in purpose, even though there are more than one. And we need to know that, in a sense, that's what Jesus and the Father are, that they are one. And yet, they're two distinct human beings, just like a husband and wife are two distinct beings. They're two distinct beings, the Father and the Son. Let's take a look at John chapter 17 verse 9. Jesus says, I pray for them, referring to the disciples, I don't pray for the world, but for them, which you have given to me, for they're yours, and all mine are yours, and all yours are mine. There's this oneness, there's this accord that's going on here, and I'm glorified in them, and I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to you. So there's some movement going back and forth between the world and between heaven. Holy Father, keep through your own name those whom you have given to me that they may be one. They, plural, that they may be one as we, plural, are one, more than one, we. That's how God reveals it. Now there's an interesting point again, the Trinity, I think, they think there's this oneness in three, and that's all that's ever going to be.

Well, I don't think that's the oneness that God is talking about is going to be limited to three. I think it's going to expand after, particularly, the first resurrection.

God's desire is that as the Father and the Son are one, and He's going to bring many sons to glory, that they are to be as one with them. You know, this oneness in the Godhead is going to expand. We're going to see that that's going to expand. Now, are we to be one with God in a different way than Jesus is one with God? No. It seems clear that Jesus is saying that they be one as we are one. Jesus says this in verse number 21. He says that they all may be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be one in us. They're one, but one in us with you and me. So oneness here, that we have to try to wrap our minds around, but it doesn't mean that there's just one being. There's several beings that are distinct from one another. There's Father, their son, and there's future sons that are coming into this family. Verse 22, in the glory which you gave me, I have given to them that they may be one, even as we are one. Let's go to John chapter one, verse one. John chapter one, verse one. This is a important chapter here on this topic. We see there's only one true God. It's the Father. And everyone else is subordinate to Him, including Jesus Christ. But we know there's an angelic being, and we know that there are God beings. Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And we also potentially the same. John chapter one and verse one. It says, in the beginning was the Word. And we know that is the one that became flesh. It was the one that became known as Jesus. But He was there in the beginning. In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God, referring to the Father. And the Word was God, referring to a kind of being. The same was in the beginning with God, the one and only true God, the Father. Now, this is a very hard statement for some to understand, a staggering statement in a lot of ways, because it flies in the face of our normal way of using words and terms. That's why it's confusing to us. He said the Word was God, and the Word was with God. Now, I am me, and I can't be with me at the same time. But I can be a man and be with a man at the same time. That's not a problem, and so can you. You can be a human being and be with another human being at the same time.

He said the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was of the God kind. He was a God being. The Word was a God being. It's a staggering statement, but make no misunderstanding. It will help you to understand why those who deny the divinity and the pre-existence of Christ have a hard time with John chapter 1, because the Word was made flesh. But it says, in the beginning, the Word was with God. And so they have a hard time with John chapter 1. But this is how God reveals it. The Scriptures are the true testimony. They're an infallible witness to the truth about God, the Father, to the truth about Jesus Christ, our Lord. They help us to understand what's going on.

Let's go to verse number three. All things were made by him. So that is said over and over again throughout the Scripture, referring to the Word, all things, I think that's pretty inclusive, were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made. Without who? Of course, without the Word.

Because in the Scripture it says, God spoke and it was. He said, let there be light, and there was light, where there had been no light before. And I suppose you can come up with reasons why that may be meaning the Father, but why? The grammar points to the fact that it's the Word that did the creating, that did these things. Verse number four, speaking of the Word, in him was life, and the life was the light of men, and the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness didn't comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. Whose name was John. This is John the Baptist. He came for a witness, to bear witness of the light, that all men through him might believe. So God's Word is His testimony to us. And we shouldn't take His Word lightly. The way He reveals it, it's an infallible testimony of the truth about God, who He is, what He's doing. Verse number eight, referring to John the Baptist, he was not that light, but he was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light, which lights every man that comes into the world. He was in the world. This is referring to the Word. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and they didn't know Him. You know, back at that time, He was walking amongst them. Here He was. He was in the world. He was in the flesh. He was walking among His creation, and here He'd made the world and created everything in it, and they didn't know who He was. They were rubbing shoulders with Him, and they didn't even know who He was. Verse 11, He came unto His own, but His own didn't receive Him. At least most of them didn't. Verse 12 says, But as many as received Him, to them He gave power to become sons of God. Now we're talking about the same thing that He is, a son of God. To many as received this firstborn son of God, He's given them the opportunity or the power to become sons of God, even to them that believe on His name. Keep your finger here, but let's go over to John. We're in the book of John. Let's go to John chapter 8. Just bounce up here a few chapters, about seven chapters. To John chapter 8, we'll pick it up in verse number 54. John chapter 8 and verse number 54.

Remember when Jesus spoke to the Pharisees and He talked to them about the fact that He was the son of God, and they said, that's blasphemy. Let's take a look at the scripture here. Oops, I got the wrong scripture. Let's go to John chapter 10. Sorry about that in verse number 31. John chapter 10 and verse number 33. But the word that you read and the scriptures that you study, God writes, when He's talking to the children of Israel, that you are gods. And you're going to stone me because I'm saying that I'm the son of God. Let's finish reading here. Verse 34. Jesus answered, Is it not written in your law? I said, you are gods. If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, you are blaspheming because I said, I am the son of God? So Jesus took it right back to them. They were ready to stone Him because He said He was the son of God. Well, God is saying that you are gods, too. You're His offspring. You're His sons. You're His daughters. John 8, verse 54. John 8 and verse 54. Now we're not God the way God the Father is. He is the one true God over everyone. God the Father is the one and only true God. But that doesn't preclude or exclude us from being a part of His family to being a son or a daughter of His in His family. John 8, verse 54. Or let's pick it up here in verse, oh, pick it up here in verse number 52. And the Jews said to Him, Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham is dead and the prophets, and you say, If anyone keeps my word, he shall never taste death. Well, he was talking about a different death, wasn't he? Talking about eternal life or an eternal death. Verse 53. Are you greater than our Father Abraham, who is dead and the prophets who are dead? Who do you make yourself out to be? And Jesus said, Well, if I honor myself, my honor is nothing. It is my Father who honors me, of whom you say that He is your God. Yet you've not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say I don't know Him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know Him, and I keep His word. And your Father, Abraham, rejoiced to see my day, and He saw it and was glad. And then the Jews said to Him, You're not fifty years old. How can you say that you've seen Abraham? And Jesus said, I'm telling you the truth.

Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am. Now, that's the same thing when Moses asked, when I go to the children of Israel and tell them who you are, what should I tell them your name is? And the God being that spoke to Moses out of that burning bush said, I am that I am. And they knew, the Pharisees knew what Jesus was telling them in verse number 58. And they took up stones to throw at Him. And of course, He went through the midst of them and passed by, so He disappeared. So we see, brethren, we go back to John chapter 1, verse 12. John chapter 1 and verse 12.

Referring to the Word, as many as received Him to them, He gave power to become sons of God, even to them that believe on His name. Verse 13, who were born, not born of blood. That's what you and I have been born of so far. Not born of blood, not born of the will of the flesh, not born of the will of man, but born of God.

And the Word, verse 14, was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father. He was the only one up to that time till the Holy Spirit was given, full of grace and truth. And verse 15, John the Baptist bore witness of Him and said, This was He of whom I have spoken. He that comes after Me is preferred before Me, for He was before Me. Now, Jesus Christ and John the Baptist were relatives, and Jesus was born six months after John the Baptist. And John the Baptist says that He that comes after Me is preferred before Me because He was before Me. So he's talking about the pre-existence of Jesus Christ. John chapter 1, verse 18. Let's jump to verse number 18. No man has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. Nobody has seen the Father at any time. That's what Jesus says. So the one that Moses saw on the cleft of the rock wasn't the Father. It was the Word. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father has declared the Father. Brethren, this is how we can know what God is like. Your best living image of God, your best understanding of God and mind, of knowing who He is, what He's doing, what His purpose is, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. You can tell what God the Father is like by the things that He said, the things that Christ said. You can tell what God the Father is like by the things that Jesus Christ did. You know, remember the transfiguration. I'll just reference this for time. Mark 9, verse 7. Jesus took a few of His disciples up to the mountain, and Jesus was transfigured before them. He says His hair was like wool, His eyes like flames of fire, and again form, shape, hair, eyes, that type of thing. And at the end there was a voice that said, this is my beloved Son. Hear Him. Listen to what He has to say. He is speaking my words. He's not speaking His own. He is speaking what I have told Him to tell you. Listen to my Son. Imitate my Son. Follow my Son. If we want to know what God the Father is like, as Jesus said to Philip, if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. If you've watched what I've done, this is what the Father would do. If you listen to what I'm saying, this is what the Father's words are to you and to you and to me. Brethren, we've got a pretty big responsibility because God has revealed Himself to you and to me. He hasn't revealed Himself to everyone. Jesus Christ hasn't revealed the Father to everyone. But if He has revealed the Father to you and to me, then we have a pretty big responsibility because God has spoken to you and to me through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You know, these technical, trivial things that people like to argue about, this relationship between Jesus and the Father, you know, they can really be solved pretty simply. If we can understand this one concept, family.

Family. You know, you can see why our enemy wants to destroy the family because it pictures God. This is God's design.

Family, Father and Son, something God created from the beginning, which we, He intends for us to understand how He's working. He's the Father of a family.

Helps us to understand how He works, what He does.

It's how He reveals Himself and what He's doing. You know, man is in the image of God, male and female, told to reproduce, told to multiply, to replenish the earth. I think that gives us a hint that God is in the process of doing the same thing spiritually. There's a connection there. That's what family is all about. I think God is in the process of doing the same thing Himself on a spiritual level, spiritual family. Let's go to John chapter 12 verse 50. We'll wrap up here with the scripture. John chapter 12 and verse 50. What's God's desire?

Talks about in many places. It's His desire to give you a kingdom that has been prepared before the foundation of the earth. This is His plan, His thoughts, His desire. Something also here we'll pick it up in verse number 49. John chapter 12 and verse 49. It says, For I have not spoken on my own authority. Jesus is speaking here. Red letter Bible, if you've got one. I haven't spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me gave me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. Wow! That's God the Father's command. This is His whole purpose for you and for me. That His command is everlasting life. Therefore, what I speak just as the Father has told me, so I speak.

Brother and family is one of the strongest concepts in the Bible. It's one of the best ways to understand who God the Father is and who Jesus Christ the Son is. What the Father is, who He is, what He's doing, what His purpose, and the relationships thereof.

Brother, it's really pretty simple. And at the same time, it is extremely profound.

Let's be about our Father's business. We've got a job to do. We have a responsibility because He has revealed Himself to us.