God the Father Introduction God the Father is identified in theology as the 1st Person of the Trinity. The word "Trinity" describes God as being one in essence but three coequal, coinfinite, and coeternal Persons. Who are these three Persons? They are God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Each member of the Trinity is in union with each other and all have the same divine nature with specific attributes or characteristics, which can be described. Each member of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is a separate person who possesses these divine attributes individually. There is no member of the Trinity who is lower in rank to another member. Each member of the Trinity has a specific purpose related to the plan of God. The Bible teaches us that each member of the Trinity has their own specific role that is not shared by the others. God the Father's role in the Trinity is as the source and planner of all things. God the Son's role in the Trinity is to carry out the plan of God. God the Holy Spirit reveals the Father's plan and provides the power to carry it out. Why is it important to understand the doctrine of the Trinity? We must understand the doctrine of the Trinity in order to have a mature relationship with God. Our understanding of the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ will be determined by our view of the Trinity. We will be inaccurate in our view as to how to live the Christian life if we do not have an accurate understanding of God the Holy Spirit's role in the plan of God. We will be inaccurate when praying if we don't understand the role of each member of the Trinity. We are not able to worship God accurately and are not able to be spiritual if we don't understand the doctrine of the Trinity. God's plan demands accuracy in our doctrine. For example: There is only one-way to be saved, namely, faith alone in Christ alone. There is only one person of the Trinity who we are to believe on in order to be saved, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is only one person of the Trinity who provides us with the power to live the Christian life, that being, the power of God the Holy Spirit. There is only one person of the Trinity we are to pray to, God the Father. Therefore, it is very important that we are accurate in our understanding of the Trinity. Now, that we know that God is made up of three co-equal, co-eternal and co-infinite Persons, what are they like? What are their characteristics or attributes? If someone went up and asked you, "what is God like?" What would you say? This leads us to the point that God has an essence, which each member of the Trinity equally possesses. What does essence mean? Essence is the nature of a person, what that person is like. God's essence is made up of attributes. Each member of the Trinity has the same attributes as the other. Therefore, God has one essence. God is three Persons who have the same essence. This brings out the "oneness" of God. We can only understand God's essence through His attributes. What are those attributes? Sovereignty: God is the supreme ruler of the universe, He is the King. The sovereignty of God the Father is revealed in Matthew 6:10 when the Lord Jesus Christ instructed His disciples to pray, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." The sovereignty of God the Son is found in Matthew 28:18, "'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." God the Holy Spirit's sovereignty is taught in 1 Corinthians 12:11, "But one and the same spirit works all these things, distributing to each one (church age believer) individually just as He (God the Holy Spirit) wills." 2002 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1 Righteousness: God is perfect holiness, He is sinless. The Lord Jesus Christ declares the Father's righteousness in John 17:25, "O Righteous Father." The apostle John writes of the Lord Jesus Christ's righteousness in 1 John 2:1, "Jesus Christ the righteous." The name "Holy" itself describes the perfect righteousness of the Spirit. Justice: God is always perfectly fair. His decisions are perfect. The apostle Paul writes about the Lord Jesus Christ satisfying the justice of God the Father when He died for the sins of the world on the cross. Romans 3:24-26, "being justified as a gift by His (God the Father) grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom (the Lord Jesus Christ) God (God the Father) displayed publicly as a propitiation ("mercy seat") in His (the Lord Jesus Christ) blood through faith. This (the cross) was to demonstrate His (God the Father's) righteousness, because in the forbearance of God (God the Father) He (God the Father) passed over the sins previously committed (OT dispensations); for the demonstration, I say, of His (God the Father) righteousness at the present time, that He (God the Father) might be JUST and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." Paul writes to Timothy concerning the Son's justice in 2 Timothy 4:8. God the Holy Spirit's justice is spoken about in John 16:8-11. Love: God's love for us never changes, there are no strings attached. Both the Father and the Son loved us so much that Christ died on the cross for us. Romans 5:8, "But God (the Father) demonstrates His own LOVE toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:5b speaks of the love of the Spirit, "and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the HOLY SPIRIT who was given to us." Eternal life: He is self existing, He has no beginning and no end. The eternal life of both the Father and the Son is written about in John 1:1, "In the beginning was the Word (the Lord Jesus Christ), and the Word was with God (God the Father), and the Word was God." The writer of Hebrews 9:14 describes God the Holy Spirit as "eternal." Omniscience: God is all knowing, He has perfect knowledge of everything. The Father knows everything even before you ask Him. Matthew 6:8, "Therefore do not be like them (the unbelievers); for your Father knows what you need, before you ask Him." The omniscience of the Lord Jesus Christ is written about in John 18:4 and 2:25. God the Holy Spirit is described in Isaiah 11:2 as a Spirit of "knowledge." Omnipresence: God is everywhere present. God the Father's omnipresence is written about in Ephesians 4:6, "One God and Father of all who (God the Father) is over all and through all and in all." The Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples before His ascension into heaven that He would be with them "always" even to the end of the age. David writes in Psalm 139:7, "Where can I go from Thy Spirit? Of where can I flee from Thy presence?" Omnipotence: God is all-powerful, nothing is impossible with God. The Lord Jesus Christ speaks of the Father's omnipotence in Mark 14:36a, "Abba. Father. All things are possible for Thee." Colossians 1:16-17 talks about the omnipotence of the Son, "For by Him (the Lord Jesus Christ) all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created by Him (the Lord Jesus Christ) and for Him. And He (the Lord Jesus Christ) is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." The apostle Paul writes to the Romans concerning the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit in Romans 15:13, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT." 2002 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2 Immutability: God never changes, you can't improve on perfection. God's faithfulness comes from His immutability. James writes concerning the Father that there is "no variation, or shifting shadow" (Jam. 1:17). Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever." God the Holy Spirit's faithfulness is found in John 14:16, "And I (the Lord Jesus Christ) will ask the Father, and He (God the Father) will give you another Helper, that He (God the Holy Spirit) may be with you forever." Veracity: God is absolute truth, He cannot lie. The Lord Jesus Christ declares the veracity of the Father in John 7:28, "He (God the Father) who sent Me is TRUE." The Lord Jesus Christ says of Himself in John 14:6, "I am the way, and the TRUTH, and the life." 1 John 5:7 says, "And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is the TRUTH." The attributes of God never operate independently of each other, but act in total harmony with each other. The Trinity is three Persons who are separate and distinct from each other, and who act in total harmony to each other.