“The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good” (Psalm 14:1).
Stephen Charnock: The existence of God is the foundation of all religion. The whole building totters if the foundation be out of course: if we have not deliberate and right notions of it, we shall perform no worship, no service, yield no affection to him. If there be not a God, it is impossible there can be one, for eternity is essential to the notion of a God; so all religion would be vain, and unreasonable to pay homage to that which is not in being, nor can ever be. We must first believe that he is, and that he is what he declares himself to be, before we can seek him, adore him, and devote our affections to him…
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
…We cannot pay God a due and regular homage, unless we understand him in his perfections, what he is; and we can pay him no homage at all, unless we believe that he is.”
Clay Miller: I guess it is safe to say we live in a tottering culture. Most of much of what is taught today is built on athiestical foundations and man has replaced God as the center. When the true and only foundation is replaced with anything else, it is like building a house on a sandy beach. It won’t stand the scrutiny of rational thought. Most such arguments (foundations) are self-refuting.
I am glad Charnock mentioned the essential nature of God’s eternality. God defines God. This is where many religious groups build on a wrong foundation. There are teachings within so-called Christianity that teaches that we are little gods, and of course Mormonism teaches that God was once as we are now and they will become gods themselves. This is impossible on two accounts: One, God is eternal:
Deuteronomy 32:27
The eternal God is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, And will say, 'Destroy!'
1 Timothy 1:17
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 9:14
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
1 Chronicles 16:36
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, "Amen!" and praised the Lord.
Psalm 41:13
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! Amen and Amen
Psalm 90:2
Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
Habakkuk 1:12
Are You not from everlasting, O Lord my God, my Holy One? We shall not die. O Lord, You have appointed them for judgment; O Rock, You have marked them for correction.
Hebrews 7:3
without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.
Two, no one is not from everlasting can suddenly be from everlasting. There is one God. “I am the first and I am the last, apart from me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6). No one can become God.
“We must first believe that he is, and that he is what he declares himself to be, before we can seek him, adore him, and devote our affections to him”—If you are seeking a god who is not the God that has revealed Himself in the Bible, and not seeking Him as He is, you are seeking another god…which does not exist. This is why understanding the attributes of God goes very far in how we interpret the rest of Scripture. Hopefully this will become more and more clear as we continue this study of the Existence and Attributes of God.
