Lesson 1.

1: In the Beginning God…

Today’s
Inspiration
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

Looking Forward
At the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
 Identify the Godhead as eternal and self-existent, and recognize that it includes God the Father, God the
Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
 Appreciate that God created an orderly, perfect universe operating upon His law of love.
 Understand that God wants the voluntary love and willing service of each of His creatures.

The WHO IS GOD FOR YOU?

Instruction: Give 3 things you can describe about God, and explain each why.
Example: For me, God is a superhero – because He is always there when I am in trouble.

For me,
1. z____________________
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2. ____________________
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3. ___________________
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Guide Questions:

a. What have you observed in your description of God?

b. Does your view or knowledge of God affect your life? Why?

We have tons of good stuffs to describe about God. For He is indeed good. You see,
how we look at God will determine how we live our Christian lives. If we look at God as a
Shepherd, then we have the confidence wherever we go because God will always be there.
In this lesson, we are going to know more about God; His work, His personality, and His
love toward us. Are you ready to know God? Let’s go!

Adapted From: Mountain View College page 1|5

 The Journey

One day, Maria, a seventh-grader, finished her

seatwork in class early. She decided to helped
one of the teachers. She assisted the teacher of
the grade three class. While the teacher was
busy in checking the papers, Maria, gave the
pupils some art materials and asked them to
draw something real.
After several minutes of silence, one of
the girls peeked on the work of her friend. Then
she asked, “What are you drawing?” The friend
replied, “A picture of God.” “You can’t draw the
picture of God,” the first girl insisted. “Nobody
knows what God looks like!” With confidence
the friend replied,
“They will, when I’m done.” Maria, who was listening to them covered her mouth so she could not
laugh out loud. Even the greatest artists in the world couldn’t draw how exactly God look like. They
draw God like a human being instead.

WHO IS GOD?

When Moses wanted to see God, God said to Moses, “I will cause all my goodness to pass
in front of you…But…you cannot see My face, for no one may see me and live” (Exodus 33:18-20).
But even though Moses did not see God’s face, he’s meeting with God made him to write, “the
Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,
maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin” (Exodus 34:6, 7).
Moses did not describe God’s looks, but he described God’s characteristics. So, God is simply love
(1 John 4:8).
God is also omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), omnipresent (ever present)
and immortal. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God…,” this means that God existed even
before the beginning. Without a beginning and without an end, God will always exist. The Hebrew
word for God is, “YHWH” or “Yahweh.” “YHWH” means no past, no future, always existing in the
present. This only means that God is beyond humanity. He is GOD.

WHAT GOD IS LIKE?

There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three Persons who have always
existed. Most Christians refer to God as the Trinity. The Trinity or Godhead, is one in nature,
character, and purpose, although functioning in different roles.
God revealed Himself to us through the Bible and nature. But you want to know how many
God that really existed. Is it God one, two, or more? The Bible reveals the answer that there is only
one God (read Deuteronomy 6:4) and they are God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy
Spirit (read Matthew 28:19 and 1 Peter 1:2), a unity of three different persons who have always
existed. In other words, there is one God but three different persons. You might start to think
deeply about God but you are confused in the concept of one God but three persons. Let us try to
look at nature for us to understand the concept of one God but three Persons.

Adapted From: Mountain View College page 2|5

v
Egg Shell 1
1 2
Egg White 2

Egg Yolk 3

3
Triangle Egg

You see, both the triangle and the egg, represents three different characteristics but they are
one. The triangle has three sides but it all takes three to become one. Let’s take the egg for example,
the shell serves as the protection from the outside, the egg white provides protection and nutrition for
the egg yolk, and the egg yolk is the sustenance for the egg. God is one but they are exactly three
individuals, equal in power, in love, and in motive. They are united that you cannot see any conflicts
between them. That makes them one in a sense.
Using our human understanding, we cannot understand God in all sense. That only shows
how finite we are and God is infinite. We all accept that by faith since the Bible presents three distinct
persons and it is God.

FUNCTIONS OF THE GODHEAD

The Bible explains the functions of the Godhead in this way:

1. God the Father. God the Creator and Ruler of the universe.
2. God the Son. Took on humanity in order to reveal the divine character of God to us and to die for
our sins that we may be reconciled with God. He is our Savior and our great example.
3. God the Holy Spirit. Seeks to enlighten our minds and to lead us to salvation. He is God’s
representative here on Earth who guides His children to Jesus, God the Son.

GOD ANDBefore
HIS FIRST CREATURES
God created our world, the
Bible spoke, “In the beginning God created
the heavens…” (Genesis 1:1) The heavens
were made first. When God made the
universe, He just spoke and it was made.
The psalmist said, “By the word of the Lord
were heavens made; and all the host of them
by the breath of His mouth” (Psalm 33:6, 9).
The first creatures that God made were the
angels. Perhaps God just spoke, “Let there
be angels,” and angels were made. Or just
like humans, God formed them by His hands.
But there was no exact story of how angels
were made. Yet, we know that before our
world was created, angels already existed.
Angels are more intelligent, more gifted, and
more glorious than people. Also, angels do
not reproduce. There were no “baby” angels.

Adapted From: Mountain View College page 3|5

GOD AND HIS LAW OF LOVE

God’s law of love is twofold---love to God and love to others. This law serves as the foundation of
His management. All creatures were doing willful service for the good of others and for the glory of God.
Angels played a very important role in God’s government. They have this chain in command
for order and they were group in companies. But even if they have ranks no one is jealous of the
other for they are all happy in the service of the King. The word angel means, “messenger.” God let
angels to travel between worlds to communicate God’s love to everyone.
Thousands upon thousands of creatures worked in harmony and happiness, each content with
himself, with others, and with God. No one was afraid. No one was jealous. No one was lazy. No one
get angry. No one lied. No one even wished for anything to be different. This is God’s government
where all rejoice and are satisfied of what each one has.

SUMMARY

God is everlasting and beyond human imagination. He is one but they are three co- eternal
Persons. God first created angels to serve Him and to communicate His love to all His creations.
Under God’s government, only love is cherished and not self. That is why, even when sin entered our
world, if we let God lead our decisions in life, we express love instead of our selfish ambitions. This is
God’s original plan for His creations.

Apply the concepts by doing Activity 1.

Deeper Look

ACTIVITY #1: THE GRANDEUR OF GOD

Instruction: Answer what is asked.

1. People all around the world in every age have tried to understand what God is like. The Bible teaches us
many important qualities about the Godhead. Use a dictionary and the texts listed to define the following
attributes of God:
a). Infinite (Psalm 90:2)
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b). Omnipotent (Matthew 19:26)

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c). Omnipresent (Psalm 139:7,8)

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d). Omniscient (Romans 11:33-36)

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2. If we could use only one word to describe God, what would be the best word to use? I John 4:8.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Adapted From: Mountain View College page 4|5

 3. People cannot see God. At times God hid His glory so He could come close to His people.

a). Use the following texts and the quotation to find four different ways God hid Himself in Bible times.

 Exodus 3:1-5;
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 Exodus 40:34-38; 1
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 Kings 8:10-12.
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b). If God wants us to know Him, why is it necessary for Him to "hide" Himself from us?
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c). When will God no longer need to hide His glory from human beings? Revelation 22:14.
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4. There is something very important to God in the way He deals with all His creatures.
a). Read Deuteronomy 32:4 to find out what it is.
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b). Use a dictionary to find a synonym for just that fits this scripture.
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c). Why do you think it is important for God to act in this way?
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5. Heaven was a place of happiness and peace. What did the angels do that made heaven like this? Refer to
the narrative.
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A GOD OF LOVE

“God is love” (1 John 4:8). We are so familiar with this

text, yet few have understood it deeply. Love can only
be shown when there is another person for love of
self is selfishness. The care for another person is
what we call love. If God is only one person, then why
is He love? The Trinity perfectly portrays the reason
why God is love. Because they care, work, and united
in their caused. This made them “God is love.” List 5
things of love you can express to others:

Adapted From: Mountain View College page 5|5