Are there more Gods than one?
There is but one only, the living and true God.
If we survey the history of mankind it is quite apparent from our history that mankind thinks there are many more than one god. Many, many more; hundreds if not thousands would be on the list. The only exception would be this one God who says there is only One God. He can’t be on that list for He is unlike any other. He is on a list by Himself. The list that we can derive from human history has one to many gods on it for it must only have one.
“To the darkness of ignorance have been added presumption and wantonness, and hence there is scarcely an individual to be found without some idol or phantom as a substitute for Deity. Like water gushing forth from a large and copious spring, immense crowds of gods have issued from the human mind, every man giving himself full license, and devising some peculiar form of divinity, to meet his own views.”
John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, chapter 5
Mankind doesn’t create this I AM, God. He IS the I AM. It does make it confusing because mankind does make all manner of other gods but this ONE is different. This One, I AM, will show Himself to be different.
This one I AM will come one day to live and die for His creation. Israel, a people of God’s own choosing was instructed in Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!” This I AM has chosen Israel, a select group of humanity, in His One Seed who is Christ. There is an exclusivity in this relationship. There is an image of marriage in this relationship. There is an expectation of monogamy and fidelity woven into these words.
It would prove to be the case, this I AM God, He will be jealous for His bride. He will even die for her to redeem her from her rebellion. This I AM God insists on being their God and for them to be His people. They should forsake all others for Him. But they don’t.
This marriage struggled until the Son of God came to claim His bride. The struggle was on account of Israel’s unfaithfulness to remain monogamous to their One I AM God. They had partaken of the idolatry in a myriad of ways but that was about to stop.
We see this transition from struggle to inaugurated fulfillment referenced in 1 Corinthians 8:4,6,
“4 Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one. 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.”
Jesus came, the Only True God, to provide for and replace the idols of man with Himself.
So in this we conclude. There is but one living and true God. There is no overcoming Him. It truly is a frightful thing to be delivered into the hands of the Living God unless this One is at peace with you and in Christ Jesus we are at peace with Him who has created us.
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