ONE GOD - 1

THERE IS IN EXISTENCE BUT ONE GOD

One fact stands out prominently in the Scriptures, namely, that GOD IS ONE. This oneness, however, is regarded by some theologians as a mode of existence rather than as a description of His nature. But this conclusion de­pends entirely upon the point of view of the theologian. On the other hand, there are theologians who view unity as a distinct quality of being, and treat His one­ness as such. That is the principle that will be followed in this article, though further elaboration will be given in the treatment of the Trinity.

I. An essential affirmation of the Bible is the existence of God, and that that GOD IS ONE. This thought moves with undeniable clarity from the open­ing words of Genesis to the closing words of the Revelation. No one could pos­sibly read Gen. 1:1, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," without concluding that the Bible teaches that there is just one God. And in similar fashion, a reading of Rev. 22:19, "And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life," leads to the same conclusion.

This affirmation, which is self-evident to the average reader of the Bible, is stated in concrete terms elsewhere in the Biblical record. God pro­mised the people of Israel that they would know that He was the Lord their God by His deliverance of them from Egypt (Exod. 6:7). His wonders wrought in their behalf would enable them to identify Him as Lord (Exod. 10:2). When at last they were on the far side of the Red Sea from Egypt, they sang, "Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?" (Exod. 15:11). Upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians God performed wonders that they might know that He was the Lord (Exod. 7:5, 17), that there was none like unto the Lord our God (Exod. 8:10, 22), that there was none like the Lord in all the earth (Exod. 9:14).

When Solomon ascended the throne in Israel, it was his earnest supplication "that all the people of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none else" (1 Kings 8:60). In the midst of the dreadful apostasy under Ahab, Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal to prove that there was just one God and He was the Lord. He built an altar to the Lord, arranged the wood, and placed the pieces of the bullock on the wood. Then, after drenching every­thing with water, he cried out to the Lord, "Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel." The fire fell and consumed the sacrifice, and the people "fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God" (1 Kings 18:36, 39).

In the declining days of Judah, Isaiah saw the deterioration in the faith of his people. In the midst of ministry pointing to coming judgment and final triumph, he cries out in words that are freighted with meaning, "Thus said the Lord the King of Israel, and His Redeemer the Lord of Hosts: I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God" (Isa. 44:6). More than seven centuries later Christ reemphasized the words of Moses to the people on the plains of Moab, "The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord" (Mark 12:29).