The King of Time and Space

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The King of Time and Space

Kingdom Perspective

May 7, 2024 • Don Willeman

Transcript:

Hello this is Pastor Don Willeman of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.

The Bible tells us that God is a king. But not just any king. A king who is totally sovereign!

Now, what do we mean by “sovereign”? All rulers have varying degrees of sovereignty. The greater the sovereignty the more freely that ruler can do as they please. Well, God is a sovereign ruler like no other. Why? The opening line of Genesis, the very first book of the Bible, tells us that God created the heavens and the earth…out of nothing. He spoke everything into existence! From bats to butterflies, stars to galaxies, even time and space itself is all an act of unimaginable sovereignty. There have been a lot of powerful kings in the history of the world, but none that had the power to call entire universes into existence. But this is exactly what God, the Creator, has done! He is a ruler like no other.

Now, this fact has some incredible implications. For example, this means that whatever God decrees or wills—whatever He chooses to accomplish—will happen. He doesn’t need to get permission from some higher authority. He doesn’t even need to work around the laws of nature. He made the laws of the nature!!! And He certainly doesn’t need to get your permission. He made you!

This means that every act of creation (calling into existence that which does not exist) and every act of God guiding and providing for His creation (what the theologians call “providence”) will work to accomplish exactly what He wills. It is for this reason that we can be assured that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

Psalm 33 (ESV)

1 Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!

Praise befits the upright.

2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;

make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3 Sing to him a new song;

play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

4 For the word of the Lord is upright,

and all his work is done in faithfulness.

5 He loves righteousness and justice;

the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.

6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,

and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;

he puts the deeps in storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;

let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9 For he spoke, and it came to be;

he commanded, and it stood firm.

10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;

he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever,

the plans of his heart to all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,

the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

*Below, we are appending some basic catechism questions that go along with this Kingdom Perspective. A catechism is a classical Christian teaching device, helping both children and adults better understand the unique claims of the Bible. Below, you will find questions taken from both a children’s catechism and a more advanced catechism. For the full catechisms, you may go to our website by clicking here.

An Advanced Catechism

3. What are the decrees of God?

The decrees of God are His eternal purpose according to the counsel of His own will, in which for His own glory He has foreordained whatever comes to pass. (Eph 1:11,12)

4. How does God execute His decrees?

God executes His decrees in the works of creation, (Re 4:11) and providence (Da 4:35) to teach His creatures the good news of Jesus Christ.

God’s Rule and Care for His Creation

May 23, 2024 • Don Willeman

Transcript: Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective. One of the main critiques I hear about the biblical idea of God’s sovereignty is that it makes God into a “micromanager”. No one likes someone obsessed with controlling everything and everyone! Well, good news! God has no need of being controlling. He is not threatened by you having power. He doesn’t need any power; He already has it all! As a matter of fact, when God made the world, He did not “horde” power for Himself. Rather, He gave “dominion” to humankind (i.e., Gen. 1:26-28), welcoming us to participate in His power. Genesis 2 tells us that He delegated to us the responsibility of guarding and cultivating the earth. We are not mere “puppets”, but responsible agents, sharing in His dominion over creation. But this in no way threatens God’s sovereign power or authority. God is the ground of all being; you can never completely remove Him from the equation. As the Apostle Paul puts it, God “works all things according to the counsel of His will” (Ephesians 1:11, emphasis added). “In Him we live move and have our being” (Acts 17). So, how does God have all power, and yet, we are responsible agents? No doubt, this is a deep mystery that goes beyond finite comprehension. All earthly illustrations ultimately break down, but maybe this one might help. Consider the difference between the will of an author and the will of the characters created by that author. The characters all have their own being and free choice within the story, but that doesn’t preclude the author superintending the story. As a matter of fact, it’s premised upon it! Each character within the story is acting freely, and yet, no character acts without the will of the author. Shakespeare is not threatened by the free actions of Hamlet; he controls them. We are characters in God’s story. Our freedom is confined by the time and space, but God, the author and sustainer of time and space, is not so confined. Something to think about—and ponder for quite a while—from The Kingdom Perspective. Job 38 (ESV) 1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? 3 Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? 6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, 7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, 9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, 10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, 11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’? 12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, 13 that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it? 14 It is changed like clay under the seal, and its features stand out like a garment. 15 From the wicked their light is withheld, and their uplifted arm is broken. 16 “Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep? 17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? 18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this. 19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light, and where is the place of darkness, 20 that you may take it to its territory and that you may discern the paths to its home? 21 You know, for you were born then, and the number of your days is great!” *Below, we are appending some basic catechism questions that go along with this Kingdom Perspective. A catechism is a classical Christian teaching device, helping both children and adults better understand the unique claims of the Bible. Below, you will find questions taken from both a children’s catechism and a more advanced catechism. For the full catechisms, you may go to our website by clicking https://storage2.snappages.site/mv392j/assets/files/familydevotionalguide.pdf. Questions for Kids: A Basic Catechism for Children 17. What does God do for His creation? He rules and cares for it. An Advanced Catechism 12. What is the work of creation? The work of creation is a picture of redemption through Christ Jesus, with God making all things (Genesis 1:1) of nothing, by the Word of His power, (Hebrews 11:3) in the space of six days, (Exodus 20:11) and all very good. (Genesis 1:31) 13. What is God’s providence? God’s providence is His wise and absolute rule over all of His creation, including all of man’s actions, in order to reveal the glorious Gospel of His Son for His eternal glory. (Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:34-35; Ephesians 1:3-14)

Billiards and the Being of God

May 21, 2024 • Don Willeman

Transcript: Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective. What is God like? What kind of being is He? Well, we must begin with this. The most fundamental distinction in being is that between the Creator and creation. God is a being unlike anything in all the created realm, precisely because He is the Creator of the created realm. God is not a being competing for space in the world. God is not a being competing for causality in the world. The question is not whether you caused something, or God caused something. Or this or that causing something versus God causing something. God’s relationship with matter and causality are quite different than any other being in the world. For example, consider a billiard table. The cue ball competes with the space where the eight ball exists. When the cue ball strikes the space and material existence of the eight ball, it causes the eight ball to move. The two cannot occupy the same space because their existence is contingent upon space and matter. But God does not exist in this way. God’s being is utterly unique from all other being. God’s being is not contingent; it is not dependent upon or caused by anything outside Himself. God is not merely one being existing alongside another, but rather the very ground of being. So, in this sense, God is beyond our common understanding of being. Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective. “Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” ~Exodus 3:13-14 (ESV) *Below, we are appending some basic catechism questions that go along with this Kingdom Perspective. A catechism is a classical Christian teaching device, helping both children and adults better understand the unique claims of the Bible. Below, you will find questions taken from both a children’s catechism and a more advanced catechism. For the full catechisms, you may go to our website by clicking https://storage2.snappages.site/mv392j/assets/files/familydevotionalguide.pdf. Questions for Kids: A Basic Catechism for Children 16. What does God do for His creation? He rules and cares for it. An Advanced Catechism 10. What is the work of creation? The work of creation is a picture of redemption through Christ Jesus, with God making all things (Genesis 1:1) of nothing, by the Word of His power, (Hebrews 11:3) in the space of six days, (Exodus 20:11) and all very good. (Genesis 1:31) 11. What is God’s providence? God’s providence is His wise and absolute rule over all of His creation, including all of man’s actions, in order to reveal the glorious Gospel of His Son for His eternal glory. (Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:34-35; Ephesians 1:3-14)

The Triune God

May 16, 2024 • Don Willeman

Transcript: Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective. God is a being like no other. Since the Creator is the one who gives being to everything—something no other being can do—it follows that He must be categorically unlike anything else. Thus, we should not expect to totally comprehend God. However, just because we cannot know God fully, doesn’t mean we can’t know him Truly. Although we are unable to “climb up” and discover God, this is no hindrance for God to, so to speak, “come down” and reveal Himself to us. And this is exactly what God has done for us in the Bible. Now, one truth God has revealed about Himself is that from all eternity He has existed as a love relationship of three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is what we call the Trinity. The theologians summarize this in three basic propositions: · First, each person of the Trinity is equally God—the Father is God; the Son is God; the Holy Spirit is God. · Second, the three persons of the Trinity are all eternally distinct persons—the Father is not the Son; the Son is not the Father; the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son. · And yet, thirdly, there is only one God—One God in three persons, and three persons in one God. Although we can know this for certain, yet the triune nature of God remains a great mystery—something we will ponder, worship, and delight in all our days. Although we may not get our minds around it, yet this truth drives us to praise God, for by it we know that love is real because we now know that God IS eternal love relationship. And that’s something, not only to think about, but to adore in worship, from the Kingdom Perspective. “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete." ~1 John 1:1-4 (ESV) “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” ~John 17:20-26 (ESV) *Below, we are appending some basic catechism questions that go along with this Kingdom Perspective. A catechism is a classical Christian teaching device, helping both children and adults better understand the unique claims of the Bible. Below, you will find questions taken from both a children’s catechism and a more advanced catechism. For the full catechisms, you may go to our website by clicking https://storage2.snappages.site/mv392j/assets/files/familydevotionalguide.pdf. Questions for Kids: A Basic Catechism for Children 14. How many Gods are there? There is only one true God. 15. How many persons is this one true God? Three. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. An Advanced Catechism 8. Are there more Gods than one? There is but one only, (Deuteronomy 6:4) the living and true God. (Jeremiah 10:10) 9. How many persons are there in the Godhead? There are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory. (1 John 5:7; Matthew 28:19)