Pastor Terrie Beede's "Studies in Theology" series, grounded in the anchor text of 1 Timothy 4:16, continued its exploration on May 6, 2009, with The Doctrine of the Father. This session, the twelfth in the series, followed earlier studies on the nature of Christian doctrine, the existence of God, the Trinity, the inspiration and authority of Scripture, and a four-part examination of God's attributes, concluding the prior week with God's holiness. Beede consistently reiterated Paul's charge to Timothy: "Take heed unto thyself and unto the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee". This emphasizes that faithful conduct and accurate teaching of doctrine ensure both the minister's own salvation and that of their hearers by preaching "the pure word of God" and "not the ideas and the doctrine of men".
Before delving into the individual persons of the Trinity, it was stressed that each attribute of God applies "in full measure without bound entirely to each member of the Godhead completely". This means no attribute, such as omnipotence or omniscience, applies more to one person of the Trinity than another.
The session then moved to the Calvary Chapel Milwaukee's statement of faith concerning the Father: "We believe in the person of God the Father, an infinite personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. We believe that he concerns himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that he hears and answers prayer, and that he saves all those who come to him through Jesus Christ from sin and death".
A notable observation was that God the Father is the "least mentioned" person in studies of doctrine and theology, often receiving only a summary paragraph in systematic theological works that typically move directly from the Trinity to Christ and the Holy Spirit. This very scarcity, Beede suggested, is intended to teach us something.
The various roles of God the Father, with respect to the other members of the Trinity and to creation, were a key focus. It was emphasized that the roles or functions of the members of the Trinity are what distinguish them from one another, not their shared attributes. The session was intended to discuss the Father's roles, the senses in which God is called Father, His relationships, characteristics, and humanity's response to Him.
The study reiterated that doctrine is not a "cold dead dry thing" but is "vibrant and living" and "hits us where we live," profoundly relating to how believers live their Christian lives. The discussion concluded with the intent to continue exploring the doctrine of the Father the following week, before transitioning to the doctrine of the Son.