Lesson video

Hi, my name's Miss Minton, and welcome to this lesson on the God of classical theism.

And by the end of this lesson, you will be able to describe the nature of God within classical theism with specific reference to Christian beliefs and teachings.

Now, lots of our learning today will probably be new to you, but please don't worry because I'm here to guide you through each step of our lesson.

And I'm confident that by the end, you will achieve this outcome.

So let's get started by taking a look at our keywords for today.

We have omnibenevolent, omnipotent, omniscient and theism.

Now, the word omnibenevolent refers to the belief that God is all loving and infinitely good.

Omnipotent refers to the belief that God is all powerful and omniscient refers to the belief that God is all knowing.

Finally, theism refers to the belief of the existence of at least one God who is personal and active in the world and distinct from the universe.

Now, our lesson today will have three parts.

We'll start by looking at God as omnibenevolent.

We'll then move on to look at God as omnipotent.

And finally we'll look at God as omniscient.

So let's get started and take a look at God as omnibenevolent.

Now, before we take a look at what it means to say that God is omnibenevolent, it's really important that we understand this word, theism.

So let's take a look.

The start of the word theism comes from the Greek word "Theos," which means God.

And the end of this word, ism is a suffix that's used to form nouns which often indicate a doctrine, theory, system, practise, or belief.

Now, theism is the belief in at least one God who is personal and active in the world, but also distinct from the universe.

And classical theism which we are looking at today, refers to the belief that there is one God who possesses particular characteristics, such as being loving, powerful, and all knowing.

Now the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are religions of classical theism.

So this means that these are religions that believe in one God who possesses particular characteristics.

Tia is a Methodist Christian and she describes her belief.

Tia says, "As a Christian, my beliefs align with classical theism.

I believe that God is all loving, all powerful and all knowing." So now we've taken a look at what the word theism means and what classical theism is, let's start to take a look at what it means to say that God is omnibenevolent, starting by having a look at the word itself.

Now the start of this word is a Latin prefix, which means "all." And the second part of the word "benevolent" comes from two Latin words: "bene," meaning "well" and "velle," meaning "to wish." Now, the term "benevolent" can actually be used by itself to mean "well wishing" or more commonly, to mean "good" or "loving." But when we use the word "omnibenevolent," this means "all loving and infinitely good." So let's check your understanding.

Which keyword refers to God as all loving and infinitely good? A: omnipotent? B: omnibenevolent? C: omnipresent? Or D: omniscient? Fantastic, the correct answer is B.

Omnibenevolent is the keyword that means that God is all loving and infinitely good.

Well done.

Now, for many Christians, the belief that God is omnibenevolent, so all loving, comes from the Bible.

And an example of this is found in the gospel of John 3:16, which says this: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." Now, I'd like you to pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself.

How might Christians interpret this passage to show that God is omnibenevolent? So God is all loving and infinitely good.

Off you go.

So many Christians interpret this passage to show that God is omnibenevolent because God was willing to sacrifice his one and only Son who is Jesus.

And Jesus' life was sacrificed in order to allow humanity the possibility of eternal life in heaven.

Now, another example of God's omnibenevolence in the Bible comes from Psalm 86:15, which says this: "But you, Lord are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." So again, I'd like you to pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me or have a think to yourself.

How does this passage show God as omnibenevolent? Off you go.

So this passage very clearly refers to God's love in a direct way and it actually uses the word "love," but it also describes God as having qualities that we would associate with love, like compassion and grace and faithfulness.

So let's check your understanding.

Which of the following is an example of God's omnibenevolence? A: God sacrificed his only son? B: God will judge at the end of time? Or C: God sent the ten plagues? Well done.

The correct answer is A.

God sacrificing his only son is an example of God's omnibenevolence.

Well done.

It's now time for you to have a go at a task.

I would like you to write four sentences about the Christian belief that God is omnibenevolent, and in each sentence you must follow a specific instruction.

Sentence one must include the word "theism." Sentence two must include the words "good" and "loving." Sentence three must include the phrase "one and only son." And sentence four must include the word "compassionate." So pause the video and have a go.

Well done for working on that task.

So you were asked to write four sentences about the Christian belief that God is omnibenevolent.

So let's take a look at what your sentences might look like.

For sentence one, you may have said that theism is the belief in the existence of at least one God who's personal, active in the world and distinct from the universe.

For sentence two, you may have said that most Christians are theists who believe that God is omnibenevolent, which means all good and all loving.

For sentence three, you may have said that the Bible teaches Christians that God is omnibenevolent because he sacrificed his one and only son.

And for sentence four, you might have said that the Bible also teaches that God is slow to anger, faithful and compassionate.

So a huge well done for your work on that task.

We're now moving on to the second part of our lesson, which is to look at God as omnipotent.

So let's start by taking a look at the word "omnipotent." Now, you'll remember from the first part of our lesson that "omni" is a Latin prefix meaning "all." Now, the second part of this word is also Latin and it means "powerful" or "able." So to describe God as omnipotent means that God is all powerful.

Now, for many Christians, this means that God can do anything and everything, even things that humans might not think are logically or scientifically possible, and also things that defy the laws of nature.

Now, for most Christians, the belief that God is omnipotent also comes from the Bible.

And I'd like you to see if you can think of any examples from the Bible where God is seen to be omnipotent.

So where God is seen as all powerful.

So pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself.

Off you go.

So as part of your thinking time or your discussion, you may have considered examples such as Genesis 1 where God is seen to create the world in six days and rest on the seventh.

You may have also considered in Exodus when God sent the 10 plagues to free the Israelites from slavery, or perhaps you considered in the New Testament when the Virgin Mary becomes pregnant with Jesus.

And this is a result of God's power.

So let's check your understanding.

Which keyword describes God as all powerful? Is it A: omnipotent? B: omnibenevolent? C: omnipresent? Or D: omniscient? Fantastic.

The correct answer is A.

Omnipotent is the word that describes God as being all powerful.

Well done.

Now, as well as the examples that we've already looked at, another way that God is shown as omnipotent in the Bible is through Jesus's miracles, and this is because Jesus is God in human form.

So Jesus is the incarnation of God, and Jesus' miracles are acts that defy the laws of logic and nature.

So this is God's omnipotence.

Now, just one example of this is in the gospel of Luke 5:1-11 where Jesus' disciples had been out fishing but they'd not caught any fish, until Jesus got into the boat and commanded them to cast their nets again.

And Luke chapter 5:6 says that this happened: "When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break." Now I'd like you to pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself.

How does this event show that God is omnipotent? Off you go.

So this passage shows God's power through the person of Jesus because Jesus enabled the disciples to catch so many fish that their nets nearly broke, despite them being unable to catch any fish beforehand.

Now, this shows that God/Jesus has the power to control nature.

So let's check your understanding.

Is this statement true or false? Jesus' miracles are an example of God's omnipotence.

Fantastic.

This statement is true.

But why is the statement true? Well, it's because Jesus is God in human form.

So this means that Jesus's miracles are an example of God's power.

So, well done for identifying that the statement is true and for identifying the reason why.

So it's now time to have a go at a task.

Like you, Aisha and Lucas have been learning about God's omnipotence and they're attempting to explain what it means to Christians to say that God is omnipotent.

Aisha says, "Most Christians agree that God is omnipotent because he can do everything, except things that defy the laws of nature." And Lucas says, "Most Christians agree that God is omnipotent.

God can do anything and everything, including things that defy the laws of nature." I would like you to explain who is correct and why, and you should also make reference to a teaching from the Bible to support your explanation.

So pause the video and have a go.

Well done for working on that task.

So just to recap, Aisha and Lucas have been discussing Christian beliefs about God as omnipotent, and you were asked to explain who is correct and why, and also make a reference to a teaching from the Bible to support your explanation.

Now, your response might be similar to this: Lucas is correct because he recognises that to describe God as omnipotent means that God can do everything, including break the laws of nature.

This is supported by Jesus's miracles in the Bible.

For example, the miracle on the fishing boat in Luke 5:1-11.

So what you can see from my response is that I have identified that Lucas gave the correct explanation, and I've also supported this with an example of one of Jesus' miracles from the Bible, which is found in the gospel of Luke 5.

Now, you should have also identified that Lucas gave the correct explanation, but it is possible that you might have used a different teaching from the Bible to support your explanation.

And if you have, this is absolutely fine.

So well done again for working on that task.

We're now moving on to the third and final part of our lesson, which is to look at God as omniscient.

So with the word "omniscient," you might notice that this also begins with the Latin prefix "omni," which means "all." And the second part of this word comes from the Latin word "sire" meaning "to know." Now to describe God as omniscient means that God is all knowing.

And most Christians believe that this means that God knows everything, which includes the past, the present, and the future.

Now, for many Christians, the belief that God is omniscient applies to God's knowledge of humanity as a whole and also God's knowledge of each individual personally.

And we see this in Psalm 139:2, which says this: "You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar." Now, I'd like you to pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself.

How might this passage be interpreted to show that God is omniscient? Off you go.

So many Christians interpret this passage as suggesting that God knows everything about humans, even the small everyday actions like sitting down and standing up.

So let's check your understanding.

Which statement best describes God as omniscient? A: God knows everything happening in the present? B: God knows all things past and present? Or C: God knows all things past, present, and future? Fantastic.

The correct answer is C.

God knows all things, past, present, and future is the statement that best describes God as omniscient.

Well done.

Now, like you, Jacob is learning about God as omniscient, but he has a question.

Jacob says, "If God knows everything, does this mean that humans don't have free choice over their actions?" Now, many Christians believe that God's omniscience is foreknowledge.

So this means that God knows what humans will do and the choices that they will make.

God's knowledge of the choices that people will make doesn't mean that God is controlling or limiting human choice and action.

It just means that God already knows the choices that humans will freely make.

Now the belief that God is omniscient can also influence other Christian beliefs about God.

Grace is a Roman Catholic Christian and she explains how her belief that God is omniscient also impacts other beliefs that she has.

Grace says, "My belief that God is omniscient also influences other beliefs that I have about God.

For example, I believe that because God knows me personally, he will be able to judge me fairly and decide my afterlife accordingly." So what we can see here is that the belief in God's omniscience also has a knock on effect as to other beliefs that Christians have about God.

So let's check your understanding.

Is this statement true or false? The belief that God is omniscient can influence other beliefs about God.

Fantastic.

That statement is true.

But how do we know that this statement is true? Well, it's because the belief that God is omniscient can also influence Christian beliefs about God as a judge and about God being fair.

So well done for identifying that the statement is true and for identifying why.

It's now time for your final task of the lesson.

Alex asked you to explain Christian beliefs about the God of classical theism with reference to God as omniscient.

How will you explain this to Alex? You must refer to at least one teaching from the Bible.

Here's some guidance to help you.

You might start by saying that many Christians believe that the God of classical theism can be described as.

and that these beliefs are supported by the Bible.

For example, you will then go on to say that this supports the belief that.

So pause the video and have a go.

Well done for your work during that task.

So Alex had asked you to explain Christian beliefs about the God of classical theism with reference to God as omniscient.

You were asked to explain this to Alex and refer to at least one teaching from the Bible.

So let's take a look at what your answer might be similar to.

You may have said that many Christians believe that the God of classical theism can be described as all loving: omnibenevolent, all powerful: omnipotent and all knowing: omniscient.

These beliefs are supported by the Bible, for example, Psalm 192, which suggests that God knows everything including everyday decisions and actions.

This supports the belief that God knows all and God's knowledge is unlimited.

So well done for explaining this to Alex and making reference to a teaching from the Bible.

We've now reached the end of our lesson, but before we finish, let's take a look at some of the key things that we've learned today.

So we've learned that theism is the belief in the existence of at least one God who is personal, active in the world and distinct from the universe.

And that classical theism refers to the belief that there is one God who possesses particular characteristics of being loving, powerful, and all knowing.

We've seen that most Christians believe that God is omnibenevolent, which means all loving and that God is seen as all loving when he sacrifices his one and only son, which we see in the gospel of John 3:16.

We've also seen that most Christians believe that God is omnipotent, which means God is all powerful and that God's power can be seen through creation and Jesus's miracles.

And finally we looked at most Christians believing that God is omniscient, which means God is all knowing.

And that for many Christians, God having this knowledge does not impact free choice.

So a huge well done for all of your work this lesson.

It's been wonderful learning with you today.