The Living God

The Living God by Richard W. Dehaan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Richard W. DeHann and his family have been a blessing to Christians for many, many years. His father, M.R. DeHaan started the ministry, Radio Bible Class, his son, the author of this book took over in 1965. Both were excellent Bible teachers. The started a little booklet called "Our Daily Bread", that helps Christians begin having a daily time with the Lord.

This book is a teaching book on the Word of God. You will see by reading the quotes below. I side note is this book was written in 1967 and the cost of the book printed on the inside of the jacket cover of this hard back book that is 192 pages is $2.50. I trust you will learn much from the quotes below:

The Bible does not merely contain God’s Word to us. It is God’s word, and if you will not listen to God as he speaks through the Bible you will never really know him.

Our Christian faith is not built upon fables or myths, nor is our knowledge of God gained through the philosophical speculation of finite men. Speaking of the Old Testament Scriptures, the Apostle Peter positively asserts:

For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God speak as they were moved by the Holy Ghost (2 Peter 1:21)

The very universe testifies to the Trinity in its arrangement. It is made up of space, matter in time. Space is composed of length, breadth and height. Matter is energy, motion and phenomena. Time consist of past, present, and future. There are those who strongly insist that all of this is a reflection of the triune God who created and sustains all things. Although this may be true and does give corroborative testimony to what the Bible teaches, always remember that we basically believe in the triune God because that’s the way the Bible presents Him.

In these declarations [Mark 1:11 and Matt. 17:5] the unique Father and Son relationship is acknowledged, and is positive evidence for our Lord’s deity. There is an absurd idea in some circles that Jesus is the Son of God in a unique sense, but that he is still not eternal God. If those who make assertions like this would only acquaint themselves with the Jewish usage of the term “Son of God” they would save themselves from their hopeless confusion. In Acts 4:36 Barnabas is called the “son of consolation.” This does not mean that his father’s name was “consolation,” but that he (Barnabas) was a consoler. James and John were called “sons of thunder” by Jesus. (Mark 3:17). This does not mean their father’s name was “thunder.” His name was Zebedee. These men were called “sons of thunder” because they were men who acted in a thunderous manner. When Lucifer is called the “son of the morning” in Isaiah 14:12 it is not a description of his origin, but of his nature and glory as he was created by God. When God declared that Jesus Christ was His beloved Son, and when Jesus spoke of Himself as the Son of God, they were identifying themselves with one another, equal in every respect and identical in nature. The people of Jesus’ day well knew what He meant. They knew that our Lord was claiming absolute deity when He spoke of God as His Father. For that reason we are told in John 5:18,

… the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:5-8).

Notice, first of all, verse 6 which tells us that Christ Jesus “being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” The keywords in this verse are “being” and “form.” The Greek word translated “being” is one which indicates continuing existence from an indefinite past. A good rendering of the opening portion of verse 6 would be that Christ Jesus “having existed and continuing to exist in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” The Greek word translated "form” refers to the inner essence of a person, and has nothing to do with physical shape. These two words, “being” and “form,” tell us that Jesus Christ has existed and continues to exist in the image of God in being and essence. Even in becoming a baby, Jesus Christ retained this form, this essential deity. The baby in swaddling clothes lying in a manger was God. He had not surrendered the “form of God.” He retained His divine nature.

Continuing on in verse 6 we are told that Christ “thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” This translation is somewhat of a departure from the literal, but does express the thought quite well. The word rendered “robbery” means “a prize to be grasped or retained.” A good translation of these words would be that He “did not reckon His being equal with God a prize to be eagerly retained.” Jesus Christ, existing in the essential being of God, did not count His equality with God so precious that He would hold onto it at all costs. A few translators have expressed the idea here as suggesting that Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be reached for. This is a completely impossible translation in view of the previous declaration that Jesus Christ had been and was continuing to exist in the exact image of God in Being and Essence. His love for fallen man induced Him to let go the outward expression of his equality. Remember, however, that He retained the inner essence of God, and that His absolute deity is here declared because only God can be equal with God.

Jesus Christ is God. Jesus Christ is man. He died, but He rose from the grave bodily, ascended into Heaven in a real body, and today is seated at God’s right hand in this glorified human body.

I recommend this book for anyone that would like to learn from God's Word!

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