The Greatest Thing You’ll Ever Learn – Part I

The Greatest Thing You’ll Ever Learn

Of all the things you could ever learn in life none is greater than this. There is but one God and we call Him the Father. His name is YHWH and His only begotten Son Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Here’s what the Bible says about the God of Israel and His Christ.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. He did it alone and the angels shouted for joy when they saw the universe unfolding right before their eyes (Job 38). God made it clear that creation was His work and said, “There is no God beside me.”

God Formed Adam From Dust

When earth was perfected God formed Adam from dust and breathed life into him. God saw it wasn’t good for Adam to be alone so He made Eve for him and they lived together in holy innocence until the day they rebelled against God. Foolish Eve was deceived by Satan and foolish Adam was willing to follow her lead. Together they willfully disobeyed one of God’s clear commands and as a result were banished from the Garden of Eden. We’ve all suffered ever since. They were driven out of the garden and a flaming sword was placed at the entrance to block them from the Tree of Life. They lost their chance at immortality… then death stepped on the scene.

The Messiah Who Was to Come

As the years went on Adam’s descendants filled the earth with violence. Eventually God was so sorry He had made man that He decided to wipe out humanity with a flood. Only Noah’s family survived. In course of time God spoke to one of Noah’s descendants named Abraham. Because of Abraham’s faith God pledged to give him a beautiful land and promised that someday one of Abraham’s descendants would be the world’s Savior. The Messiah who was to come would set the world right again and somehow God would bring us to our high destiny of eternal life. God’s chosen people would truly become a nation of kings and priests and God Himself would lead us back to the Tree of Life!

The Rebellion That Started in Eden

Abraham’s descendants eventually became the nation of Israel… and like all the people who ever lived before them they also messed things up. The Israelites knew all about God’s promises to Abraham and were quite proud of their unique spiritual inheritance. They carefully observed and enforced their religious traditions but their hearts were far from God. They became hardened by pride and although they thought they were holy and right with God they weren’t. The rebellion that started in Eden had taken root and was alive and well in Israel.

The Promised Messiah Was Born

And then the Promised Messiah was born! God had made a promise to Abraham and never forgot it. At long last the promised Messiah stepped on the scene! By His sacrifice He would put down Eden’s ancient rebellion and lead His people back to the Tree of Life. The curse of death would be lifted and immortality would become possible!

Continued in Part II

The Garden of Eden

Eden’s Door Was Locked

Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden a long long time ago. Their disobedience came at a high cost and we’ve all suffered ever since. They had companionship with God and they had paradise… and they lost it all! Foolish Eve listened to the serpent and foolish Adam listened to his wife. As a result the LORD God drove both of them from His garden. Eve was sentenced to pain and sorrow and Adam was sentenced to toil and sweat. Then the LORD placed a flaming sword to block the entrance and guard the tree of life (Genesis 3). They would soon find out what they had lost but there was no way back in! Eden’s door was locked. We can only imagine their shock when they found themselves banished from their garden paradise with no possibility of ever going back.

God Shut the Door

Men have been looking for paradise throughout history. Our hearts yearn for it. We dream about it, write songs and books about it and even make movies about the quest, but it has never been found because God shut the door and blocked the way. We have no idea what the entrance to Eden looks like so we could be staring it in the face and not even recognize it! Mankind can never return to Paradise unless God Himself opens the door. “These things says He that is holy… He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens.”(Rev 3:7)

God’s Plan For a Bloody Door

A lot happened after Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden and eventually some of their descendants became slaves in Egypt. And then, after four hundred years of slavery God provided a door for them, a way out. Liberation would come but it would only come in God’s way and on God’s terms. Hebrew households were told to sacrifice a lamb without spot or blemish and to spread its blood on the doors of their homes. It was a gory and strange thing that God required but freedom and deliverance were granted to all who obeyed. Those who embraced God’s plan for a bloody door were set free!

Jesus Christ is Our Bloody Door

More centuries passed and then a man stepped on the scene who was unlike any other man who ever lived. He was born of a virgin and he raised the dead, cured the blind and healed the sick. Jesus walked on water, stilled a storm with His words and fed multitudes with a few loaves of bread. He said, “I am the door” (John 10:9) and “no man comes to the Father but by me” (John 14:6). Jesus claimed to be the Christ, the Anointed One and the only begotten Son of God. Jesus Christ is our bloody door! In Him God has provided us with a way back to the tree of life. He alone is the way to immortality and the way to peace with God. He is the only way.

The Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven

When Jesus questioned His disciples about His identity it was Peter who answered rightly and declared “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!” (Matthew 16:16) Based on this revelation Jesus proclaimed that He would give the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven to Peter. The knowledge that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God is the key to heaven’s door! The bloody door that leads into the garden of God and immortality is none other than our crucified Savior Himself, and the key that unlocks this door was given to Peter. When the Apostle Peter preached his very first sermon he plainly declared that men should repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ to receive the promise of eternal life (Acts 2:38). We think that was a wonderful offer then and it’s still a wonderful offer today.

PS: What are you waiting for? Who knows how much time God will give you to make up your mind? Go ahead… act now while the door is still open!

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Who Knows God?

Who knows God? and who understands the mystery of God? Scripture teaches that God has a lot to say about who will know Him and who will not. Knowing God takes divine revelation and no one understands the mystery of God without God’s help. Jesus said, “No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” (Luke 10:22) When Jesus asked “Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man am?” Peter answered “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” Jesus commended him and said “…flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 16:13-17). Scripture declares only the Son reveals the Father and only the Father reveals the Son.

The Eyes of Your Understanding

Preachers love to preach and writers love to write about the mystery of God and Christ but only God can give true understanding. Jesus taught, “No one can come to me unless the Father draws him…” (John 6:44) and again “No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). These few verses make it clear that coming to a knowledge of God and Christ takes divine help. We publish this website in hopes that “The eyes of your understanding may be opened…” (Ephesians 1:18) but realize that no one can open your eyes but God Himself. This whole business of knowing God and Christ depends on divine intervention.

It is a Great Gift to Know God

The scales that blinded the Apostle Paul’s eyes were put in place by God and then God Himself removed those scales. This faith of ours and our ability to hear it, understand it and believe it is not of ourselves it is a gift from God. “For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8). It is a great gift to know the true identity of the man Christ Jesus and it is a great gift to know God. Think of it as a pearl of great price because it truly is.

Blessed Are Your Eyes

Jesus had a lot to say about people who hear but don’t hear and see but don’t see. “But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears for they hear” (Matthew 13:13-16). He still cries out in the marketplace today, “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear”. Jesus invites us to hear Him but His words have somehow gotten lost in the speculations of our learned philosophers and theologians. Nevertheless, the message of the Father and His only begotten Son still blazes on the pages of the holy book. If you want to truly understand the mystery of God and Christ just ask. God wants you to understand. “Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7) We think those are some pretty wonderful promises.

What is God?

Is God One What and Three Who’s?

We ask the question “What is God?“ because trinitarian scholars tell us that God is “One What and Three Who’s”. To us, describing the God of Israel as “One What“ seems like a strange and coldly impersonal way to talk about Him. Now we can’t help but wonder about the meaning of “One What“. Does this odd language reveal anything Biblical or true about God? If God is a divine “What” should we speak of divinity as “It” rather than Him? When we say “What is God“ are we asking a question or making a statement? I hope all this is clear, but if not, just watch the classic Abbott and Costello routine called “Who’s on First” and you will see that the logic of the Trinity is comedy of the highest order.

The Holy What of Israel?

Trinitarian thinking is like being in a house of mirrors at a carnival sideshow where nothing appears normal. Mirrors and words can both distort reality and make things look other than they really are. Should we get rid of the idea that God is The Holy One of Israel and say instead that God is The Holy What of Israel? If God really is a Holy What should we even use the word “what” in normal conversation anymore since it no longer means what it used to mean? Trinitarian theology can sure get confusing. Thank goodness we have theologians, scholars and comedians to help us find our way!

One What and Three Who’s Made Clear

(A dialogue between a scholarly theologian and a new disciple.)

Theologian: Do you have any questions?

Disciple: Just one. Can you tell me about God?

Theologian: Of course. God is one What and three Who’s.

Disciple: One What?

Theologian: Yes! That’s right. God is one What.

Disciple: Hey! Wait a minute! What are you talking about?

Theologian: That’s right. I’m talking about God. That’s Who.

Disciple: What do you mean?

Theologian: That’s right! Now you’ve got It!

Disciple: Got What?

Theologian: Yes! You’ve got the One What that is three Who’s.

Disciple: So if I just want to know Who God is What is the most important thing?

Theologian: I couldn’t have said it any better! Now you know What’s What. Just remember God is one What and three Who’s.

Disciple: I don’t think this is helping. You’re talking nonsense and giving me a headache!

Theologian: Yes, this might sound like nonsense but Who knows?

Disciple: I don’t think you actually know anything about God.

Theologian: Well, it all makes sense to me but Who knows?

THE END

The Revelation of God

Is God Trying to Reveal Himself to You?

We pray that God will bless our feeble efforts and reveal Himself to you. We confess though, that giving you a revelation of God and Christ is beyond our ability. It requires nothing less than a sovereign act of God. “No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” (John 3:35) In another place Jesus said, “No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) And again, “No one can come to me except the Father who sent me draws him.” (John 6:44) Our joy and hope is that you will discover for yourself what Christ has shown us and now wants to reveal to you.

The Revelation of God and Christ is Eternal Life

Does a revelation of the Father and the Son really matter? Well… Jesus gave the very keys to the kingdom of heaven to Peter just for declaring simply and plainly that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God! (Matthew 16:13-20) This simple truth was so important to Jesus that He later went on to say, “This is eternal life, that they may know thee (the Father) the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3) The Apostle John even wrote that this was the very purpose of his Gospel! “And truly, Jesus did many things in the presence of His disciples which are not written in this book; but these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you might have life in His name.” (John 20:30-31)

Does God Believe in the Trinity?

Let’s be careful not to add anything, or take anything away from the revelation of the Father and His Son. If God wanted to endorse Trinitarian creeds and make them binding on believers He certainly would have told us! We proclaim a message that is indeed “foolishness to the Greeks and a stumbling block to the Jews”! The message of God and His Son Jesus Christ lacks the heady intellectualism of Greek philosophy and may seem foolish to some. History reveals that the proclamation of Jesus as the long awaited Jewish Messiah has (so far anyway) been a stumbling block to Israel. We say, “The Biblical revelation of God and Christ pleases God… and it pleases us too!”

The Mystery of God is a Pearl of Great Price!

We realize that some are delighted to hear these things while others are offended. Some have ears to hear but don’t hear… while others hear clearly. Some have eyes to see but don’t see… while others see clearly and rejoice. The revelation of God and Christ is indeed a “pearl of great price” and a “treasure hid in a field” and now you have found it! Quickly now! Sell everything you have to buy this truth… and never let it go! May God bless you with “all the riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father and of Christ.” (Colossians 2:2) That would please us and we’re pretty sure it will please God too.

PS: If these things make good sense to you they’ll probably make good sense to your friends too. Why not send them a link to wonderfultheology.com and find out? Thanks and God Bless.