Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20041010.htm

APPLYING OUR CHURCH'S STATEMENT OF BIBLICAL FAITH
Article III, Part III Of The Nepaug Bible Church Bylaws: God The Father
(1 John 4:10; Matthew 6:9; 6:32; Galatians 3:26)
  1. Introduction
    1. Central to our Christian faith is the belief that Christ satisfied the righteous demands of a holy God by taking upon Himself the likeness of sinful flesh under the Mosaic Law, under God, so as to receive upon Himself the wrath of God against sin as man's Mediator with God, Galatians 4:4-5; 1 John 2:2; 1 Tim. 2:5.
    2. However, this whole Biblical program of redemption breaks down if -- as Sebellius taught in the Third century A. D. and as others like Liberal Theologians Schleiermacher and Horace Bushnell have since asserted -- God is actually only One Person Who appeared in different modes as the Father in creation, the Son in the incarnation and the Holy Spirit in the Church era, cf. A. H. Strong, Systematic Theology, 1970, p. 327! If Sabellius, Schleiermacher and Bushnell were right on the subject, there is no way Jesus could mediate between God and man as 1 Timothy 2:5 claims He did! Then the Bible would err doctrinally, meaning we would have no assurance of a divine redemption for man from sin as the Bible teaches!
    3. Contrary to such beliefs, Art. III, Part III of our Church's Statement of Faith reads: "We believe in God the Father, the infinite personal Spirit, perfect in all His attributes. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that it is He who hears and answers prayer, and that he saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ."
    4. Accordingly, it is important that we see if Scripture teaches that God the Father is eternally the Father Who SENT a distinctly different Person of the Trinity -- the Son -- to earth to REDEEM us as follows:
  2. God The Father, 1 John 4:10; Matthew 6:9; 6:32; Galatians 3:26.
    1. God the Father is eternally the Father, distinct in Person from God the Son and the Holy Spirit as follows:
      1. Hebrews 10:5 reveals God the Son spoke to God the Father just before Christ's Incarnation, indicating the Father was the Father as distinct from God the Son at the time.
      2. 1 John 4:10 reveals God sent His Son to earth to be the satisfaction of His wrath, or the propitiation for our sins. Thus, when Christ was born in Bethlehem, the Father was the Father, distinct from the Son.
      3. The Father was still distinct from the Son at Christ's baptism: the voice from heaven announced at Jesus' baptism that Jesus was the Beloved Son of the One in heaven at the time, Matthew 3:16-17.
      4. The Father was still distinct from the Son at Christ's transfiguration on the Mount; Matthew 17:5 records His voice calling Jesus His Beloved Son at that event.
      5. The Father was still distinct from the Son just before Jesus' crucifixion: after the Triumphal Entry just days before His crucifixion (John 12:12-19), when Jesus Christ had publicly asked God the Father to glorify His name in John 12:28, a voice came from heaven in response, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again." God the Father was still distinct from God the Son.
      6. Paul reports God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, raised Him from the dead in Ephesians 1:17-20, so He was still distinctly God the Father at Christ's resurrection and also in the Church era the time Paul had written the Epistle circa. 61 A. D., cf. Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., p. 1672.
      7. 1 Corinthians 15:24 reveals Jesus will deliver the kingdom to God the Father after the final resurrection, meaning the Father will be distinct from God the Son in eternity to come!
    2. As such, the Father hears the prayers of believers (Matt. 6:9), providentially meets the livelihood needs of mankind (Matt. 6:32) and functions as heavenly Father to all who trust Christ as Savior, Gal. 3:26.
    3. Accordingly, God the Father eternally functions as the First Person of the Triune Godhead so that Christ as the Second Person of the Godhead could function as Mediator, Redeemer, Propitiation and thus Savior for all who put their trust in Him for salvation from sin and hell!
Lesson: God the Father is ETERNALLY the First Person of the Triune Godhead to Whom we come through Christ, our Savior and UNTO Whom we are SAVED through Christ; hence, opposite the teachings of Sabellius and Liberal Theologians, our salvation is REAL and our redemption is TRUE.

Application: May we appreciate the ETERNAL function of God the Father in providing His Son as Savior, Mediator, Propitiation and Help; may we thus uphold His ETERNALITY in that ROLE as the Father versus adopting Modalism or Sabellianism beliefs!