Is Your God Too Small?
How’s Your Theology?
I’m persuaded that much of our fear, anxiety, discouragement, and hopelessness is the result of bad theology. At its core, what is the Bible all about? The existence, character, and plan of God. Every other aspect of Scripture flows out of the reality of who God is. A bad or weak theology of God will lead to weakness in other areas of theology, and spiritual weaknesses in daily living. I had this experience again and again in counseling. I would be working with someone who was struggling to trust God, but, as I listened to him describe who he thought God was, I immediately understood why he had trouble trusting him. I would often think, “If I thought that this was who God is, I would have trouble trusting him too.”
One common mistake in our functional theology of God is thinking he is too small. The God in our minds lacks the awesome, glorious, and incalculable power and authority that the true God of the Bible has. The God of the Bible created the world out of nothing. The God of the Bible holds his creation together by his power. The God of the Bible commands the forces of nature to do his will. The God of the Bible is sovereign over everything and everyone. The God of the Bible rules the nations, and his will will be done. The God of the Bible reigns in majestic splendor so great that nothing compares to him.
Everyday Gospel
Paul David Tripp
In the Everyday Gospel devotional, Paul David Tripp leads readers through the entire Bible in a year, helping you connect the transforming power of Scripture to your everyday life.
The awesome power and authority of God is on display in the latter part of the book of Jeremiah, as God announces his judgment on the nations that surround his people. This is the Lord, and the nations are answerable to him. No one can question his power or the authority he has to judge whom he will judge. The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah (Jer. 46:1), and God told him to announce his judgment on Egypt, the Philistines, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Kedar and Hazor, Elam, and Babylon. This announcement of his judgment is an awesome testament to God’s power.
He is the ultimate King over every one of these nations. He has the power to do for them, with them, and against them whatsoever he wills, whenever he wills to do it. They have no power to challenge or resist his sovereign will. These announcements are in the Bible so we can know that this is who God is. He not only rules over these nations; he commands the entire universe. God sits on his throne in infinite power and glory. All the things that scare you or give you anxiety exist under his almighty rule. Because God has this kind of power and authority, nothing that you need is beyond his power to deliver.
May the God of your thoughts not be too small. May the infinite glory of his power and authority overwhelm anything in creation that might paralyze you with fear.
This article is adapted from Everyday Gospel: A Daily Devotional Connecting Scripture to All of Life by Paul David Tripp.
Related Articles
What Is the Difference between Systematic Theology and Biblical Theology?
The Bible doesn’t come to us as an academic textbook, with carefully delineated topical headings organized according to theological themes. What is different about these two ways of organizing theology?
Podcast: What Your Marriage Needs Most (Paul David Tripp)
Paul Tripp discusses how the gospel comes to bear on the day-to-day realities of marriage and why that’s more than just a platitude.
4 Arguments from Scripture in Favor of Biblical Theology
The core conviction of those who practice the discipline of biblical theology is that the Bible is a unified work inspired by God and given to humans to help them understand his broad saving plan.
Podcast: Why Have So Many People Stopped Going to Church? (Paul Tripp)
Paul Tripp reflects on the importance of not just the universal church but the local gathered church, and he responds to many of the reasons that people stop going to church.
