A Systematic Consideration of the Essential Features of the Christian Doctrine of God and How They Relate to the Christian Doctrine of Creation

The original source of the Christian doctrine of creation is The Holy Bible, which was written by the author, our Heavenly Maker, Father, and friend, God, the author of Heaven and Earth Himself, through his servant, presumably through the prophet, Moses.  “The triune God alone is God, nothing else, not even inert matter, can be considered eternal, since it would then in some sense rival or condition God – an affront to monotheism.”¹ 

What Platinga and Lundberg teach us in An Introduction to Christian Theology is that, according to Langdon Gilkey’s classic work, Maker of Heaven and Earth, the creation doctrine universally dictates what the God-world relationship ought to be viewed as.  Gilkey uses the pedagogical structure of laying this out in three propositions.  They are that: first of all, “God is the source of all that there is.”  Second, “Creatures are dependent, yet real and good,” and lastly, “God creates with freedom and with purpose.”¹   In explaining it in such a fashion, we are able to re-discover that God is the Creator of all things.  He made the Universe and can be seen as a type of artist.  One can even infer from this and The Holy Bible combined that God sees the beauty in all of His creation, loves everything and everyone that He has made, and as such, God is able to see the beauty even in the tragedy of the presence of evil, tragic events, and utter failures of all types.

In fact, in the book of Genesis, chapter one, we see that God looks around.  He had just created the land and the seas, “And God saw that it was good.”  He then made, “plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.”  Fourth of all, God created light and darkness and separated the two.  “And God saw that it was good.”²  In the words of a famous comedian, “Good, good, good.  Everything was good until he made man.  God regretted making man!”³

That being said, allow me to return to the previous discussion regarding the three propositions, or essential features, of the Christian doctrine of God and how they relate to the Christian doctrine of creation.  First and foremost, “God is the source of all that there is.”

Essentially, first we learn that everything that God made, He created “ex nihilo,” which means “out of nothing.”¹   Platinga and Lundberg assert that many scholars believe contrary to this fact, however.  I, for one, cannot bare to imagine how preposterously ludicrous it would be for scholars, who claim to be Bible scholars, to openly disregard the Word of God, which states clearly in Genesis 1:2 that the Earth was without form and void until God began its creation.  Moreover, in 2 Corinthians 4:6, it states, “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” And in Psalm 33:9,” For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.”  Lastly, “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.^”2  This means that truly, God created everything that was made out of what once was nothing.  Nothing existed, nor exists today, that was not initially created by something that God Himself has made, and in spite of claiming that most scholars would disagree, Platinga and Lundberg do, in fact, still uphold this fact.  They write, “In the NT, creatio ex nihilo is perhaps implied in Romans 4:17, which speaks about God “who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist,” and Hebrews 11:3: “By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.” But while explicit biblical reference to ex nihilo is slim, the teaching is a necessary theological implication of the overall biblical witness to the nature of God and the God–world relation. What ex nihilo most explicitly rules out is that God creates out of something – namely, preexistent matter. In Christian thought, whatever is eternal must also be divine.”¹

This brings us to their second borrowed proposition: “Each and every creature possesses an intrinsic goodness and worth, a discrete existence that glorifies the Creator.”  This Christian belief is contrary to what some past and present religions hold to, which is that humans are part of God and/ or that the material existence of matter in this world is all a mere illusion.¹  Christian doctrine discredits such absurdities.  We are all part of the body of Christ, the same body that has believed since the beginning of time.  We were first conceived in the very mind and soul of the Creator, given birth to systematically in the very way that The Holy Bible tells it, and God has confirmed this through various channels throughout history, including by signs, wonders, Spiritual gifts and more.  God is merciful.  We are indeed part of Him, but we are also from Him, created by Him and for Him.  It is all quite innocent and simple yet magnificent, wonderful, and perhaps a bit complicated, according to some simple minds’ interpretations.

Third, “God creates in freedom and with purpose.”  What this means is that no one forced God to create us nor did He create with absolutely no intent, meaning, nor purpose.  He created us freely out of His own will and for His own good pleasure.¹   His purpose is to bring Himself glory and to share His goodness and mercy with His chosen elect.  Now, even though the Bible does mention the elect, God also began by saying that He only called the Israelites, only to later say (which is told in the New Testament finally) that He also came to save the Gentiles.  Scripture dictates, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. ¹⁷ For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith,” (Romans 1:16-17).²

In addition, even though God seems to imply that only an elect few might be saved when Scripture makes bold statements, such as: “Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory,” (2 Timothy 2:10).  The Word of God also states in Philippians 2:10, Romans 14:11 and in Isaiah 45:23 that one day, “Every knee shall bow” and “Every tongue shall confess,” that Jesus Christ is LORD and King.²

Furthermore, it is written: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance,” (2 Peter 3:9).²   Therefore, it can be argued that there is at least a chance that one day, all souls that God has created will be saved.  In fact, one might ponder the notion that since Christ stated that, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only,” (Matthew 24:36)² regarding the time of His return and the beginning of the end of life as we know it here on Earth, perhaps God has not even decided with certainty Himself.  Who knows?  Maybe He’s winging it!  This idea collaborates with the idea of His freedom of expression, His free will, and His purposes, which are bigger than life!

Included in the story of creation is the story of the fall as well.  In it, Eve was deceived by Satan, who came speaking to her in the form of a serpent, causing her to disobey God.  “As sinners, we have broken God’s laws, and the good news of the gospel declares that we have been justified through Christ’s atoning work on the cross. Christ paid the penalty for us so that when we stand at the bar of God’s judgment seat, we who deserve his condemnation are declared “not guilty.”⁴

To conclude, God created the Universe, and all that is in it, ex nihilo, meaning, out of nothing.  The Christian doctrine of creation refers to the story that is told in the book of Genesis, chapters 1-2 in The Holy Bible, followed by the fall in chapter 3.  It is here in the good book that Christians everywhere have discovered that God created the earth out of nothing in seven phases, which are referred to as 7 days, (with every day being about the same as a thousand years of God’s time as He tells us in 2 Peter 3:8 because for someone who lives forever, we can infer that time now holds little to no meaning to Him).  Therefore, God is the source of all of creation.  Everything and everyone is wholly reliant on Him and lives to serve God and to bring Him glory.  He created us out of His own free will for His good purposes.  “That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9).²

Works Cited:

1. Platinga, Thompson, and Lundberg. “6” Essay. In An Introduction to Christian Theology. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
2. The Holy Bible. Baker Book House, 1976.
3. A Famous Comedian Whose Name and Face Currently Slip My Mind
4. Tennent, T.C. “4.” Essay. In Theology in the Context of World Christianity. Harper Collins Christian, 2009.