Overview
According to the apostle Paul, even if we didn’t have scripture we would be able to know about God, for just as a painter can be known by his paintings so too can the creator be known by his creation:
[God’s] invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. (Rom 1:20)
The task of combing what we can know from scripture and nature into a system of thought is called “systematic theology”, which is what this module is all about.
Some theologians think that we should limit systematic theology to only what the Bible says, so that it’s about summarizing everything scripture says on various topics. But here at Faith Seeking Understanding we think that it’s important for us to use everything God has given us to know him. And since scripture itself testifies that there is knowledge available through nature, we think it’s best to develop the tools to read the “book of nature” alongside the “book of scripture”. Done properly, we wouldn’t pit these against one another, but allow the former to supplement the latter without undermining its authority.
The obvious starting place for all of this is God himself. In this module, after an introductory lesson on the how and why, we see how both scripture and nature lead us first to think of God as the creator. Then, over the remaining three lessons we unpack some key implications for what this means about God: that he is in control, that unlike us he is absolutely indivisible, and that he is outside of time. All of this can sound very abstract, so at the end of every lesson we make sure to reflect on what this fact about God means for us and our lives in his world.
In each of the lessons we see how theology and philosophy can work together in different ways. In the lesson God The Creator we see how both scripture and philosophy teach us that God is the supreme and powerful creator over everything, but do so in different ways. In the lessons God is in Control and God is Eternal we see how scripture teaches us important facts about God and ourselves without telling us how all of those facts are supposed to work out, and how philosophy can help fill in the details. And in the lesson God is Simple we see how philosophy teaches us something important about God that is only hinted at in scripture, but which is definitely there when you know what look for.
Lessons
Introduction to Systematic Theology
Systematic theology is about taking everything God has revealed about himself and his creation, and combining this into one coherent system of thought. God has revealed himself in two fundamentally different ways, and the challenge of systematic theology is combining them properly. On the one hand he has given us the scripture (called “special” revelation) and on the other hand he has revealed himself through nature itself (called “general” revelation). In this first lesson, we discuss these two kinds of revelation, what it means to combine them, and which tools we need to do so.
God the Creator
On the first page of the Bible we are introduced to God as the supreme and good creator over everything. In this lesson we unpack what this means, and see how important characteristics of God follow from this. Then, turning to philosophy, we see that this is also the first thing we learn about God when reflecting on nature. Using the philosophical tools we introduced in the previous lesson, we unpack what it means for God to be the “unactualized actualizer,” and the characteristics that flow from this. Finally, we end by reflecting on the importance of fearing this God over all.
God is in Control
When we reflect on the world around us, it seems that the different parts of nature are operating more-or-less on their own, and when we reflect on ourselves, it seems that we are the originators of our choices and are responsible for the decisions we make. Scripture confirms both of these in the way that it talks about nature and us, and yet it is equally clear that God is in control of everything. In this lesson, we unpack a philosophical model for how to think about God’s control and our freedom, and we reflect on what that does and doesn’t mean for how we think about good and evil.
God is Simple
When we say God is absolutely simple, we don’t mean that he is really easy to understand but rather that he isn’t made up of any parts, that he’s absolutely indivisible. God’s simplicity has been emphasized throughout the history of the church, but you won’t find it stated explicitly anywhere in scripture. How, then, should we approach the topic, and what’s so important about it, and what implications could it possibly have for our daily lives? These are the questions we tackle in this lesson.
God is Eternal
As God’s creatures we live our lives within time, but God the creator is eternal and lives outside of time. Time is a difficult thing to think about, and eternity is no easier. In this lesson we consider how the biblical authors discuss God’s eternity, and unpack a philosophical model for thinking about it that does justice to what scripture has to say. Finally, we close by reflecting on what this all means for our life with God.