What is in common in the 4 verses of scripture: Exodus 3:6a, 13-15?
Three of the verses have a phrase similar to “God of your fathers.” Two of the verses declare God to be the God of the Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Verse 14 has the famous “I AM THAT I AM.”
Among other interesting qualities, these verses reveal the aseity or self-existence of God. Floyd H. Barackman in his book Practical Christian Theology, explains that the statement “I AM” from verse 14 reveals that God is timeless. He describes God’s existence as “one indivisible present.” There is no concept of time as we know it within the Trinity itself. Therefore if there is no “succession of events” inside the Trinity then God must have always existed as there could have been no event that created Him. This is interesting to consider when one thinks of the Father eternally begetting the Son and the Father and Son eternally spirating the Holy Spirit. If the begetting or spirating process (if one would even call this a process) ever ceased then the timeless nature of the Trinity would be changed and the aseity of God could be questioned.
The phrase “God of your fathers” implies that no matter the human father (going all the way back to Adam) God is the God of that father. Which means God must have existed before the creation of man. Because if a man could have created God it would be safe to say that man would make himself the ruler of God as is shown by the many religious priesthoods that have existed throughout history. Therefore, if God existed before the creation of man who was there to create God? If something did create God that something has never revealed himself and God has never told us about him. In fact, God is rather insistent that there are no other Gods besides him (Isaiah 44:6). If nothing created God then it must be assumed that God exists in and of Himself.
Sources
Barackman, Floyd H. Practical Christian Theology.
Ryrie, Charles C. Basic Theology.
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