SIGN’S
“ONE WAY”
by Pastor Donny Granberry
Today we begin our summer series entitled “Sign’s”.
Everywhere we go we see signs, “Open, closed, speed limit, school crossing, dangerous curve, roadway construction, stop, yield, slow down uneven road, names of places”.
Sign’s are for safety, permission, caution, and information, yet their main focus are to give us direction.
We will take a look at many different signs and make application to how they affect our life generally, spiritually, and doctrinally.
I grew up in this fellowship, but I really didn’t know what the Assemblies of God believed, and more importantly, I did not know why our doctrine was what it is.
Through this series, I want to give you a biblical perspective of who we are, what we believe, and why we believe it.
1 Peter 3:15 KJV
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
NLT
And if you are asked about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it.
People will ask you questions about your faith and why, and they are looking to you for an answer, so we need to be prepared.
Today we will look at two of our fundamental truths, “The One True God, and The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We will title our message today, “ONE WAY”.
THE ONE TRUE GOD
I spoke with someone recently and they told me this, “It dies not matter what you call God, some call creation God, some call man God, others call animals and trees God’s, some call images God.”
• The Muslims call him “Allah”
• Witches call it “nature”
• New Agers call “themselves” God’s.
• I can’t name the Hindu gods because there are over 8 million of them
• And the Bible names at least 18 false gods that are worshipped
There are three kinds of people in the world:
1. Atheists – those who believe in no God
Psalm 14:1, The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God...”
2. Agnostics – those who believe that there might be a God, but He has no interested in them or their lives…
3. Theists – Those who believe in a God
Deuteronomy 4:35 & 39
“To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him. Know therefore today, and take it to your heart, that the LORD, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.”
Many people today will tell you that there are many Gods, and there are many paths to heaven.
Some will even say that all paths lead to heaven. That is absurd.
My wife and I live on a cul-de-sac, and that is like saying that all roads in Pasadena lead to our home.
There is only one way, one path that leads to our home, and likewise there is only one true God and one way to heaven.
All of these other things they call God, are created things!
• The very root word of creation is “create.”
• Nature was created
• Waters were created
• Man was created
• Animals were created
• Images were created
• Buddha was created
• Mohammed was created
For there to be a creation, there must be a Creator!
Genesis 1:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
• And God the creator said, "Let there be light," and there was light
• And God the creator said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water."
• And God the creator said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear."
• Then God the creator said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds."
• And God the creator said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth."
• And God the creator said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky."
• Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over all creation. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Man was made as an object of creation, an object for relation, but not for adoration.
There is but one God, the creator of all things.
Revelation 4:11 NIV
"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."
Not only is God the CREATOR, but He has revealed himself as the eternally self-existent “I AM,” the Creator of heaven and earth and the redeemer of mankind.
He has further revealed himself as embodying the principles of relationship as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Deuteronomy 6:4 NIV
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is ONE.
Isaiah 43:10-11 NIV
"You are MY witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe ME
and understand that I am he. Before ME no god was formed,
nor will there be one after ME. I, even I, am the LORD,
and apart from me there is no savior.
Now, there are some who teach that the belief in the Trinity, or the Triune God Head, is a teaching that says that there are three God’s.
(Father, Son, & Holy Spirit)
Not so, the scriptures clearly state so often, I am, Me, My, etc.
Illustration
An egg has a shell, a yoke, and the white, yet it is still an egg and is not complete with all three.
You cannot have fire without fuel, oxygen, and an ignition source.
Water, Ice, Steam = water
The term “Trinity” and “Persons” as related to the Godhead, while not found in scriptures, are words in harmony with scriptures.
The term trinity is defined in scripture.
Matt 28:19-20 NIV
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Luke 3:21-22 NIV
When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
John 14:16-18 NIV
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever- 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
These scriptures clearly demonstrate to us the Triune Godhead, one God in three persons, not three God’s.
There is that in the Father, that constitutes Him as the Father and not the Son, and there is that in the Son that constitutes Him and the Son and not the Father, and there is that in the Holy Spirit that constitutes Him the Holy Spirit and neither the Father or the Son.
• The Father is the begetter
• The Son is the begotten
• The Holy Spirit is the one proceeding from the Father and the Son
Therefore, because these three persons in the Godhead are in a state of unity, there is but one Lord God Almighty and His name is one. (Let US make man in OUR image)
The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are never identical as to person; nor confused as to relation; nor divided in respect to the Godhead; nor opposed as to cooperation.
You might ask, then how does this work.
“If you try to understand the doctrine of the trinity, you may lose your mind, and if you deny it you will lose your soul.”
It is very simple, yet very confound.
• The Son is in the Father, and the Father is in the Son as to relationship.
• The Son is with the Father and the Father is with the Son as to fellowship.
• The Father is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father as to authority.
• The Holy Spirit is from the Father and the Son proceeding, as to nature, relationship, cooperation, and authority.
God the Father governs the world. God the Son redeems the world
(on the cross). And the Holy Spirit gives us the power and grace to change the world.
Three very different roles, but all for the one purpose, manifesting God’s glory in the world.
Now, the title, “Lord Jesus Christ,” is a proper name.
It is never applied in the N.T., either to the Father or the Holy Spirit, but belongs exclusively to the Son of God.
2 John 1: 3 NIV
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the only begotten of the Father, and yet is the proper Son of Man.
Therefore He was given the name Jesus, “Immanuel,” meaning God with us placing Deity and humanity together.
To deny the distinction that the Father is a real father and eternal father, and that the Son is a real and an eternal Son would be to displace the truth that Jesus Christ came to us in the flesh dwelt among us, became sin for us, atoned for our sickness, purged our sins, arose from the grave, is seated at the right hand of God, and sent the Holy Spirit to us.
