omnipresence (ibid:340). It needs to be re-emphasized that God is present in his universe without division of his substance (essence). God is present with His whole being at every moment at every point of infinite space (Hodge 1972:140). He is a God who is near and far off at the same time (Jer. 23:23) (Hodge 1975:1:384). God is both immanent and transcendent. Jesus promised to be with us in all the world to the end of the age. This emphasizes his infinity and omnipresence (Matt. 28:19-20). Ephesians 1:22 applies the attribute of infinity to Christ.
Dods (1950:401) in his book The City of God : Saint Augustine affirms the certainty of infinity based on revealed truth. The psalmist writing under the inspiration of the Spirit of God tells us in Psalm 147:5 that the Lord’s understanding is infinite (Chafer 1971:7:199). Common sense and the Holy Spirit should be our guides. Descartes argued that from the name of God alone that he understood God to be infinite substance, independent, omniscient, omnipotent, the creator of all things (Mackie 1982:34). However, God’s infinity must be confirmed by revelation not intuition or reason. Mackie’s reference to Descartes perception is in all likelihood perceived from the witness of God in creation. Perception and reason through reflection on the testimony of creation would affirm these invisible attributes, his deity and Godhead. Rationalism’s reason alone would be insufficient. Jenkins argues that John Gresham Machen in his books The Origin of Paul’s Religion (1923) and The Virgin Birth of Christ (1930) dealt with Christ’s miraculous entry into the world and his miraculous exit (1997:176). In his essay, My Idea of God, Dr. Machen argued that what mattered was what God had revealed in the Bible (ibid:177). Machen claimed that in the Bible the veil could be lifted from man’s eyes. Yet, Jenkins was amazed that in the next instance that Machen was quoting Rudolf Otto, the German theologian, a mystical description of God. Jenkins notes that Machen was tenacious in his clinging to God’s attributes of infinity, omnipotence, and God as the creator (ibid:177). The subject of being is addressed by Aristotle. The doctrine of God is a subject covered by Aquinas in his theology (Hankey 1987:63). It is even more astonishing that Nietzsche could consider the death of God (Bulhof and Kate 2000:1). The fact that philosophy is dead and bankrupt is seen in its failure to be able to adequately explain the infinity of God. Aristotelian philosophy and Scholasticism to Descartes in the 17th century failed in this matter when they based their findings only on rationalism’s finite reason (ibid:10). Philosophical theology, by way of contrast, argued that infinity and perfection were concepts that were compatible. Infinity implies perfection and goodness (ibid:117). Cochrane (1956:40) relates infinity to eternity. Infinity is without limits and in addition origin. Kierkegaard is considered the founder of existential philosophy. It could be argued that Schelling was an existentialist long before Kierkegaard (ibid:40). The infinity of God in Jaspers is the transcendent. It is being in Heidegger. It is nothing in Sartre (ibid:40). Barth starts his theology with the doctrine of God. He defines God’s nature in terms of God’s act of the giving of revelation. He defends the doctrine of the Trinity. He argued that all of God’s divine attributes and his perfections are to be argued in relationship to God’s existence in three persons, the Father, the eternal Son, and the Holy Spirit (ibid:41). Barth maintained that theology should not be based on philosophical speculations but rather the biblical witness to Jesus Christ. The living God to Paul Tillich was merely the ground of being. Tillich argued that being had to be related to nonbeing. The two must not be separated from one another (ibid:86). Heidegger and Tillich held the same view that God should be defined as being (ibid:87). However, Barth made the love of God as the focal point of his doctrine of God (ibid:120).
The infinity of God means that God is without any limitations. The attributes of immensity, omnipresence, omnipotence are related to infinity. The doctrines of God as creator, the Sovereignty of God, His immanence, transcendence, and spirituality are helpful doctrines in a discussion on infinity. The infinity of God must be based on revelation. Philosophical theology is at best speculative. Intuition and reason are inadequate epistemologies. Barth argues that revelation is the only suitable epistemological basis for the attributes of God. The attributes of God must be understood in terms of God’s existence in three persons the Father, the Eternal Son, and the Holy Spirit.
3.4.1.2 The Eternity of God
God is free from the succession of time (Gen. 21:33, Ps. 90:2). Is time a reality to God? Yes, the Lord God recognizes the successiveness of events, but all time, the past, the present, and future events are equally vivid to Him. He has no beginning nor does He have an end in relationship to time. God is the author of time. He is not conditioned by time. He is free to act in and out of time. The Bible reveals an appointed time as the time in which His will is fulfilled in the ordained events of life (Gen. 18:14). It was in the fullness of time that God the Father sent the eternal son of God, Jesus Christ, into the world (Gal. 4:4). The present creation is temporal. It will eventually be cleansed by fire (2 Pet. 3:10). The Lord God has promised a new heavens and earth characterized by righteousness. God remains eternal (Ps. 102:25-27). The Lord God is the Alpha and Omega who was before time was created. He will be the Alpha and Omega when all of time is ended (Is. 45:6, 57, Rev. 1:8). Revelation 1:8 is reference to God the Father. The past, present, and the future are always before Him as one unity. He is God from eternity to eternity (Ps. 90:2) (Hodge 1975:1:385-386). A. A. Hodge (1972:142-43) clarifies and advances our discussion. The eternity of God means that he is one and indivisible. Eternity is without any limitation in relationship to time. Time itself is limited. It is measured by succession. Human perception of time is the past, the present, and the future. God has not had any beginning nor will he ever have an end. God is free from the succession of time. His purpose and his acts are without succession but are accomplished within time. God is free from time but has access to time by his omnipresence. God is immutable. The schoolmen considered time to God as the abiding present. Hodge (1975:1:386) clarifies adding that the past and the future are always present to God. Chafer (1971:1:216) explains that eternity to God is one conception. The Word of God teaches that He is the Eternal God (Is. 40:28). Jesus Christ is the eternal Son (Heb. 1:8-12). Eternity contrasted to time marks God’s relationship to it. He is the author of time by the relationship of time to sending the Eternal Son of God, Jesus Christ, into the world. Time is divided into two halves before Christ and after Christ. Shedd (1979:1:342) is concise when he defines the eternity of God to time. God’s eternity is without any beginning, succession, or end. He documents his statements from the scriptures (Is. 41:4, 57:15, 1 Tim. 1:17, 6:16).
Boethius argues that God is eternal. He adds that this is the common judgment of all who are rational (Helm 1997:23). God’s eternality means that he is not limited in any way by time. This is a more accurate analysis and explanation than to say that He is not in time. This view omits the incommunicable attributes of infinity and omnipresence. God has access to time. The doctrine of creation testifies that God is separate from creation and created beings as the Creator. He is not in everything. This is the non-biblical doctrine of Panentheism nor is God everything. This is the non-biblical doctrine of Pantheism. Calvin’s exposition of Exodus 34:6 explains the Bible as a mirror to man of the image of God (Van Der Kooi & Mader 2005:119). The consensus of Western Theists is that God is eternal (Ganssle & Woodruff 2002:21). Philosophical discussions without revelation on God’s eternality are unproductive. We have confirmation of the eternal purpose of God in the scriptures (Romans 9-11). All events in God’s life are present. This confirms what has been discussed earlier that the past, present, and future are all before God. God had the past, present, and future before him in eternity. Sinnott-Armstrong argues on the theme of the eternity of God that God is timeless (Craig & Sinnott-Armstrong 2004:110). If God is timeless then it is argued that he is not active in the temporal world. Sinnott-Armstrong concludes that this means that traditional theism is not consistent nor is it true (ibid:110). However, he fails to take into consideration the infinity of God and his omnipresence. Philosophers base their thought on either the perception of knowledge through their senses or through the reason of rationalism. The Bible teaches that God is separate from time. He has access to time. He moves in and out of time because of the attributes of infinity and omnipresence. The nature of divine eternity must be entertained not as Craig argues from a philosophical viewpoint but biblically and theologically (ibid:110). The eternity of God must be based on an exegesis of the Old and New Testament books that teach this truth. W. L. Craig summarizes our argument
