Judaism, Christianity and Islam all believe in one God who created the universe within six normal-length days according to their respective texts.
William Lane Craig believes that before time was created, God existed eternally and only became temporality when creating our universe.
Table of Contents
Creation
As we learn more about how our world was created, we see that every being has been given a purpose by its Creator. This applies both to natural creatures such as minerals and plants as well as humans alike; each fulfills their role by contributing nutrients such as food and oxygen for growth; subatomic particles fulfill this role by creating atoms and molecules; stamens and pistils perform cross-pollination to produce seeds; finally humans stand out among all other forms of life as being distinct as they have both soul and body simultaneously and fulfill this role by glorifying their Creator while providing for His creatures – making humans unique among creation due to having both a soul and body with responsibility towards worshipping and providing care for His creatures – while humans possess both parts allowing them to glorify Him while providing care for His creatures – as they worship their creator and provide for His creatures through provisioning His creatures through worshipping and providing care of all His creatures!
The Bible proclaims that there is only one true God and nothing else besides Him is deserving of worship. Anything other than Him is considered false worship and forbidden. Yet people continue to create gods of their own either through carving idols or worshiping false idols; one such man was Ephraimite Micah from Ephraim who stole money from his mother to craft idols!
Important to realize is that God is an intimate force who knows each individual he creates intimately, providing guidance in fulfilling their purpose while avoiding evil, punishing when necessary, and blessing when appropriate.
There is no space in the universe for another god to exist. Scripture asserts that only one true God exists and He has no limits or boundaries of space or time. Additionally, Genesis 1:1 provides proof that He created our world with a distinct beginning – contrary to evolution or Big Bang theories which claim otherwise.
Continuous creation (which some may refer to as God) can pose a danger: occasionalism. Occasionalism refers to the belief that all events and circumstances have a cause, yet God should not be seen as its primary or sole source. An analogy might be that fire under a pot of water causes it to boil – not necessarily being its source.
Free Will
Free will has long been a central issue in religious thought across cultures and time periods, often linked with matters such as moral responsibility and God’s sovereignty. However, it’s important to keep these two issues separate: disagreement over free will does not automatically lead to disagreement over moral responsibility or divine sovereignty.
Example: Just because a God could create evil beings without directly causing them does not imply that this deity should be held responsible for their actions. Instead, He uses secondary causes–such as humans–to further His purposes of creation. While God himself may not be accountable, but instead his secondary causes (including when people choose their conscience or arrogance as guides for action).
Free will and moral responsibility are inextricably linked. Some philosophers, such as Hobbes (1654 [1999]), argue that free will is incompatible with determinism because no one could be held morally responsible for their actions if free will existed; this logic overlooks the fact that many of us find justification in criticizing others’ bad choices because doing so either deters others from following suit or contributes to reformation (Lewis 1979; van Inwagen 1983).
Free will is intimately related to God’s foreknowledge. Some Christians, influenced by Jacobus Arminius in particular, hold that He knows all our choices before we make them while still giving us free will; this allows Him to remain just while still holding people responsible for their decisions.
Others, like Eastern Orthodox Christians, believe in free will as an essential principle of the Bible. According to scripture, we must choose between following our conscience or arrogance. Following one will bring more positive results while following arrogance will only bring bad ones.
Philosophers have grappled with the notion of free will for centuries. This debate became particularly heated during the 17th century with many major figures (Descartes 1641 [19999]; Hobbes 1654 [1999]) taking part. Later it reappeared as an important issue among early 20th century philosophers.
Revelation
Since creation and human nature were made visible in history, God has revealed Himself in different ways to various groups of people throughout time. From general revelation through creation and humanity to special revelation through events, inspired human words recorded as Scripture, and ultimately Jesus Christ himself who represents the ultimate representation of Him (Genesis 3:4-5), God made himself known through nature itself; through reason and an inherent desire for truth but ultimately sin suppresses their knowledge (Genesis 3:4-5); also to Abraham and his chosen people the Hebrews through whom He gave them specific instructions to follow (Genesis 6:13-17; Genesis 12:1-7).
In Revelation, Christ depicts himself as the Lamb that was sacrificed and has returned as Lord and King over Satan and his demons for our salvation. He appears 26 times throughout Revelation as one glorified, worshipped, magnified vindicated resurrected Lamb of God who reigns supreme over all evil forces – Lord of all lords and King of kings!
Some Christians might avoid reading Revelation because they find it too complex and controversial, but this book of scripture remains essential as an understanding of how God will bring justice and peace to this world in the end times. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 states: “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness – so that God may equip the man of God fully for every good work”. Without the book of Revelation our understanding of all of Scripture would remain incomplete.
Over time, Revelation has inspired various interpretations. But at its core lies one key message: Jesus as the Lamb stands as an ultimate symbol of God’s love and forgiveness for humanity. While dragons and beasts from the sea represent evil in the world, Jesus will ultimately prevail against these forces to win out and gather his followers together like a mother hen gathering her chicks beneath her wings.
The Trinity
The Trinity doctrine asserts that there is one God eternally existing as three distinct Persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It explains how God created and sustains creation as evidenced through Jesus Christ’s life on Earth and sending of Holy Spirit. The Trinity doctrine forms the core of Christian belief and its doctrines are widely acknowledged among all major Christian denominations.
Early Christians speculated in various ways about the nature of God as revealed through His Trinity; however, no clear and consistent formulation emerged until after the Arian Controversy around 318-21 (see supplementary document on unitarianism). General speaking, pro-Nicene consensus holds that He is one in essence but three in personage; this idea can be found both biblically and through church teachings.
Understanding the doctrine of the Trinity is vitally important, for its application is not solely about God relating to himself but also how He interacts with his creation and believers. Scripture shows this relationship through words and events such as Jesus’ incarnation and Pentecost’s outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Justin Martyr (AD 100-165) used water as an illustration to show how one substance can exist in multiple states – solid, liquid and steam. This was helpful because it illustrated how God is one undivided being and that God’s three persons do not represent an addition or subtraction from Him.
Tertullian (ca. 155-240) developed this analogy further to illustrate how God the Father and Jesus the Son are alike in essence but distinct as persons. Later authors, like Gregory of Nysa (ca. 335-385), developed more formal language, using “hypostases” or “prosopon” for what constitutes the Trinity while “ousia or phusis” represent what makes up God himself.
Cappadocian Fathers were credited with further refining the doctrine of Trinity through their writings, especially Gregory of Nazianzus (329-89), Basil of Caesarea (ca. 329-79) and their older brother Gregory of Nysa (335-395). Their teaching on Trinity can be found today among early church fathers such as Gregory of Nysa. Furthermore, this group established standard terminology regarding Trinity; which still remains widely used today and helps define it as being an article of faith which cannot be fully comprehended without God having revealed Himself through Jesus and sending of Holy Spirit into Israel’s faith system.
