Presuppositions for Studying Theology

Presuppositions for Studying Theology (Originally posted on Pastoral Musings.)

Many today approach the Bible in an academic fashion. Sadly, that is all the study of the Bible is for some: and academic pursuit. This is not sufficient, however. One needs to have salvation and then grow in grace. Theological studies should serve no other purpose than to give glory to God by Christ Jesus.

For one who studies theology there must be certain presuppositions. A presupposition is something that we assume beforehand. That is, a presupposition is a belief that we hold before we begin to give serious consideration to something. For theology, there should be certain presuppositions. They are as follows:

1.The inspiration and authority of Scripture:

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. ” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, KJV)

“For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. ” (2 Peter 1:16–21, KJV)

Scripture is of Divine, supernatural origin. It is authoritative. Scripture alone is our guide for serving God. Though we may learn from many sources, only Scripture gives to us the revelation of God that we need to trust and honor Him.

2.The infallibility of Scripture

“For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth. They continue this day according to thine ordinances: for all are thy servants. ” (Psalm 119:89–91, KJV)

“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth. ” (Psalm 119:142, KJV)

“Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for ever. ” (Psalm 119:152, KJV)

“Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever. ” (Psalm 119:160, KJV)

“..the scripture cannot be broken; ” (John 10:35, KJV)

Scripture never fails. It is perfect and eternal in nature. The Word of God always accomplishes the purpose for which He gives it.

3.The sufficiency of Scripture

“Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. ” (Proverbs 30:5–6, KJV)

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. ” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, KJV)

“For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. ” (Revelation 22:18–19, KJV)

The Holy Scriptures are sufficient for our spiritual growth. This does not discount the role of pastors, teachers, church, etc. The sufficiency of Scripture simply means that it contains all that we need to direct us in the paths of salvation, holiness, and godliness.

4.Faith in the One Who gave us Scripture

“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. ” (1 Corinthians 2:14, KJV)

“If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. ” (John 7:17, KJV)

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. ” (John 8:31–32, KJV)

Only by trusting Christ and yielding to Him in faithful obedience may we truly learn of Him. Those who are born again have the Spirit of God dwelling in them and can truly understand that things of the Spirit of God. When we by faith obey God we learn the truthfulness of God’s Word and will and are made more and more free (gradual sanctification).

Fundamentalist Confusion over Fighting Sin

Within fundamentalism, as in other areas of Christianity no doubt, there is quite a bit of confusion over fighting sin. The thinking goes like this: if we erect a big enough fence, or hedge people in with enough rules, we will prevent them from falling into sin. Sadly, this tactic most often fails, to one degree or another.

The Former Fundys Blog recently posted some thoughts in this regard. In a post entitled What’s Wrong with Fundamentalist Pastors?, the problem of pastors running headlong into adultery is brought up. I thought the main point of the post, however, applied to more than just the fall of big name pastors. Here is an excerpt from that post that may be a help to some of my readers.

Fundamentalism has claimed to have the answers to stopping sin, by their superior standards that will keep one from sinning. Don’t go to the theater, and you won’t struggle with impure thoughts or with using foul language. Women have to dress a certain way, in order to protect men from lusting after them. Men and women can’t touch unless they are married(to one another), so they won’t fall into sexual sin. If one is a faithful soulwinner who reads/studies the Bible on a regular basis, they won’t fall into sin. I have heard “remedy” after “remedy” for stopping the presence of sin in one’s life, for keeping one away from sin by placing barriers in place to protect one from sin.

But these remedies do little to protect the very pastors who put these rules in place from sinning….

Fundamentalism misses the essence of what the Christian life is about. One is not moral because they follow rules. One is not moral because they go to church every Sunday. One is not a good Christian because they follow those rules. One is not a Christian because they follow those rules. Rule-keeping does not make a good Christian. And it does not make a good person. It is pure moralism, instead of Gospel.

The answer is in teaching the Gospel, instead of rule-keeping. Too many Fundamentalists fail to teach repentance from sins as part of the salvation process, thus watering down the Gospel to something that is more palatable to sinners. They make their Christianity easy for those who love their sin, but want fire insurance. The answer is also in desiring Christ, and desiring to live for the glory of God. So much of Fundamentalism is about keeping rules, and following a list of do’s and don’ts. But that’s not what the Christian life is about. Sure there are things that a Christian can’t do, like have sex outside the confines of marriage, or get drunk or high, or lie to others. And sure there are things that Christians need to do, like read the Bible, pray, go to church. But that is not the essence of the Christian life. Following Christ is more than not doing or doing those things. I would strongly recommend that Fundamentalists look to books written by non-Fundy authors that deal with things like sin, or living for God, because Fundamentalists don’t have the answer. Books like “Overcoming Sin and Temptation” by John Owen(the Puritan), or “Desiring God” by John Piper.

In short, such men are able to sin so gravely because they don’t understand the nature of sin, the Gospel, or the essence of the Christian life…

My response to all of this is first to point out that the post is primarily addressing the IFBx wing of fundamentalism. Not all fundamentalists that I’ve known are this bad. However, in seed form, this idea concerning sanctification is prevalent throughout fundamentalism.

The problem, as I see it, amounts to a widespread confusion over the nature of sin. It doesn’t attract us externally, the desire for sin comes from within us. We need the internal change of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Too often, Christians fail to remember that the Gospel is for them — for believers. And sadly, preaching is too often about moralism rather than the gospel.

A few of my previous posts may be of interest to those looking to dig more deeply into this topic:

• The Gospel’s Work in Believers
• Stomping Toes and Stomping Souls: The Moralistic Bent to Fundamentalist Preaching
• Moralism and Christ-less Sermons
• Powerful Preaching? — A Case Study

Cross posted from my main blog, Fundamentally Reformed.

Why Study Theology?

Why Study Theology?

“But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. ” (2 Timothy 3:14–17, KJV)

Why should the average Joe in the pew study theology? Isn’t that something for ivory tower professors who have nothing better to do? Don’t we pay professionals to do that, so that we can profit from their thinking? Isn’t theology dry, dull, and boring? Theology; what is that?

All of these responses are theological responses, because theology is both the study of God, and one’s view of God and His truth. In other words, anyone who thinks has a theology. That theology may be an atheistic theology, an agnostic theology, a theistic theology, a Christian theology, or many other kinds of theology. In short, we live our lives thinking about God, or ignoring Him. In either way, we have formed an idea of whether it is profitable to think of God or not.

As one who is reading this article, it is especially significant to you that you understand why it is necessary to study theology. You see, you have expressed an interest of some sort in the subject simply by taking the time to read this article. There is something about the subject that has drawn you here. Considering the fact that this is a Christian’s blog, we’ll assume that you are a Christian and approach the matter from that standpoint.

Your reading this also presupposes the fact that you have a theology of Scripture. You are probably reading this because you have at least a slight understanding of the authority of Scripture, which is what our text is teaching us. In fact, this text will be our focus for the next several articles.

What does our text say about theology? Well, it actually does not use the word, but it does give us a basis for theology. It lets us know that Scripture should be the foundation of our theology. That is, we should always subject our thoughts about God to His revelation of Himself in His Word. Scripture, our text tells us, if profitable for the purpose of bringing us to salvation by faith in Christ as well as making us into the well-rounded, well-formed, mature Christians that God would have us to be.

Thus it is that Christians should study theology to know God in Christ as well as for the purpose of growing to be the person that God would have us to be.

Far from being dead, dull, dry, boring, and tedious; theology is vital to our spiritual health and growth. Sadly, many (if not most) professing Christians are very unhealthy due to a neglect of this vital discipline. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee.. ” (Hosea 4:6, KJV)  What is even sadder to me is the fact that so many “fundamentalists” refuse to give much thought to a coherent theology.  There may be Bible schools and seminaries, yet IFBX simply tends toward an anti-intellectual incoherence it seems.  The average Joe and Jane simply swallow what they’re given and regurgitate it at will.  The problem truly comes when those who have drunk the kool-aid find that there is no nourishment in it.  Too often the void is filled with the wrong things, truth is forsaken, and they not only leave their church, they abandon the faith altogether.  We can cry and scream about the worldly, ungodly state of the church today, but the only remedy is for all of us to grow in the knowledge of God.  We MUST study theology.

This article is to encourage us to not be among those who willfully lack knowledge. Let us rather be among those who heed Paul’s words to Timothy: “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. 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. ” (1 Timothy 4:13–16, KJV)

OP on Pastoral Musings

Average Christian and Impossible Goals

“It is impossible. Your a truck driver.” – Average Christian. Do you detect some John Bunyan in me today?

This morning, for the first time, I was reading Bible Study Magazine as a supplement to my devotions, which is a publication of Logos Bible Software. It is, however, a print magazine, even though I believe Logos is planning on issuing an electronic resources at some point.

I was reading the cover article for the bi-monthly magazine which features the United States Senate Chaplin Dr. Barry C. Black, who is also a retired United States Navy Rear Admiral and retired Chief of Naval Chaplains.

I cannot tell you how encouraging this article is to me. The article is appropriately named “Impossible goals.” In this article, Dr. Black’s history as a youth from the “ghetto” of Baltimore, Maryland is expounded upon and his resiliently persistent, honorable and prayerful mother is remembered as the key to his eventual turn to Christ. As children, if they wanted money, they memorized Scripture. Their whole lives, as children, revolved around the Lord and she was responsible for this emphasis.

More importantly to me he spoke about “Impossible Goals.”

Book Review: Raised With Christ

Raised With Christ

Adrian Warnock, author of Raised With Christ, is a popular evangelical blogger, physician, and preacher. He lives in London, and declares that he is a couple of years less than forty

Having enjoyed Warnock’s blog, I felt sure that I would enjoy his book. Little did I know that treat that I was in for. Not only does he quote from Piper, MacArthur, and J.I. Packer, but the ghosts of the apostles, Puritans, Jonathan Edwards, and especially that of Lloyd-Jones walk through the pages of Raised With Christ. So, too, does the Spirit of the risen Savior, Jesus Christ.

Warnock has not only been faithful to the Scriptures, but he has passionately presented his case for the need to recover a sound doctrine of the resurrection.

Warnock contends that we have neglected the resurrection in our preaching, teaching, and daily living, and I fear that he is correct. This is one thing that fundamentalists would do well to seriously think about. If we are going to contend for the resurrection of Christ as a fundamental of the Christian faith, we must not neglect to teach and preach the resurrection.

Adrian takes the first seven chapters to essentially build a case for the need to recover a doctrine of the resurrection by presenting the Biblical data relevant to the issue. Chapter eight seems to mark a turning point by moving on from the doctrinal and historical aspect of the resurrection to deal with the doctrinal and practical side of the matter.

What I truly appreciate is the fact that the book lives up to its subtitle, “How the Resurrection Changes Everything.” Warnock proves his point well. No only does he relate the resurrection to our justification, our sanctification, and our future glorification, but Warnock devotes much time to showing how this is relevant to our prayer life. Not only so, but in the footsteps of his hero Martin Lloyd-Jones, Adrian shows the connection between resurrection and revival.

Honestly, I have only positive things to say about this book. While Adrian and I might quibble about minor points, we are united in the essential message of the book. The resurrection does indeed change everything!

Thanks to Angie Cheatham of Crossway for providing me with a galley copy of Raised With Christ, and thanks to Adrian Warnock for writing an excellent book that is destined to become a classic.

Here is the website for Raised With Christ.

Technorati

This post is for the purpose of establishing Fundamentally Changed on Technorati.

You may ignore us as usual

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A Liberal Fundamentalist by Birth

A Liberal Fundamental by Birth

I was born at a very early age. No, seriously, it is true and neither of my parents were in attendance. It was sad and a travesty.

Now, what I mean by that was I was saved at the age of 16 in an Independent Baptist Church named Unity Baptist Church located in Mount Olive, NC. Pastor Ray Warren was the pastor at the time and it was his first summer and first revival at his new church. Pastor Warren attended Hyles Anderson College in Crown Point, IN. My parents raised me United Methodist and they had no idea on the planet exactly what I had stepped into at UBC. I was baptized three days later, which infuriated my mother and scared my father completely silent.

All they new was their baby boy had “got religion” (you have no idea how many times I heard that stupid phrase). While mother was angry, she was really angry at my Uncle (her brother) who had invited me to church that night. He stole something from her. I should have been at a U.M.C revival and “got that religion” right there at that alter. What she didn’t plug into her calculation was the fact that R.C.U.M.C hadn’t had a revival in almost 15 years and the last person to get saved there was in the late 1970’s. The chances for me to “get some religion” at this venue was slight to nothing. I will admit that in my childhood, the Sunday School teachers there did a fantastic job of teaching me the Bible in a general sense. I knew almost all “Bible Stories” that almost no children of this post-modern generation know anything about. From Adam and Eve, Noah, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Sampson, David, Daniel right on up the list, they made sure we were aware of things. And without that foundation, I probably wouldn’t have been “ripe for the picking” when I was 16 years old. So, if they ever run across this in a Google Search, or whatever – “Thanks ladies. Really, thanks a whole lot!”

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all the readers of Fundamentally Changed.

I shall probably be spending more time updating the blog this year, and hope our other contributors have something to say as well.  We all have families, jobs, ministries, etc.  Blogging is a past time for us all.  We do hope, however, to uphold the fundamentals of the faith, encourage those hurt by extreme fundamentalism, and be a blessing.

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Revelation pt 3 (Jesus Revealed God to Us)

Special Revelation- Jesus

Lk 2:32

“A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. ” (Luke 2:32, KJV)

“a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” ” (Luke 2:32, ESV)

“A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.” ” (Luke 2:32, NKJV)

“A Light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.” ” (Luke 2:32, NASB95)

As the aged Simeon took the babe, Jesus, into his arms, his heart must have indeed been swollen with emotion. Simeon had been told by the Holy Spirit that this child was the Christ. Thus it is that Simeon applied to Him these prophecies of Isaiah: “I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; ” (Isaiah 42:6, KJV) “And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. ” (Isaiah 49:6, KJV) Simeon understood that the holy child which he held in his arms was sent by God as His anointed one, the Messiah, also known as the Christ.

It is interesting to note that Simeon stated that Jesus was given for the purpose of bringing revelation. Not only is He the glory of Israel, but Jesus is also the one who brought revelation to those outside of Israel. The word and commands of God were given to Israel (See Romans 3:1-3), and Jesus Himself stated that salvation is of the Jews (See John 4:22). Now, however, in fulfillment of God’s promise, Jesus brings revelation and salvation to those outside of Israel (See Acts 13:47). No longer will a person have to become a Jewish proselyte/convert to be counted as a member of the covenant community. Jesus has brought revelation to the heathen.

Speaking of Jesus’ revelation of God to us, John said, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men…And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. ” (John 1:1-4,14–18, KJV) In a nutshell, John is stating that God became en-fleshed and revealed the Father to us. Jesus, the Son of God, the only begotten God, came into this world as a man and showed the Father to us. Though none of us have ever seen the Father (See also Exodus 33:20), Jesus has revealed the Father to us in a manner that man can endure. Man could not see God in the fulness of His glory. Jesus has manifested the glory of God to us in a manner that sinful man can endure so that sinful man could experience His salvation (See also 2Timothy 1:10). John again stated, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. ” (1 John 1:1–3, KJV) John was convinced by his experience with Jesus that He was indeed revelation for us.

As we continue reading the writings of John, we find that Jesus Himself told us that He was revealing God to us. “And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. ” (John 12:45, KJV) “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? ” (John 14:9, KJV) In these two passages Jesus states that the Father was manifest in Him. John’s recording of the life and ministry of Jesus is filled with similar statements. In addition, Jesus’ intercessory prayer also mentions His revelation of God’s glory to us. “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. ” (John 17:1–5, KJV) Jesus not only lived and died giving glory to God, but He also enabled us to know God. Jesus has indeed revealed the Father to us.

We now turn from the witness of John to the writings of Paul to learn more about the revelation of God in Christ. “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: ” (Colossians 1:15, KJV) In other words, Jesus exactly represented God to us. Not only so, but Paul also said “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. ” (Colossians 2:9, KJV) While Jesus was certainly a man in every way that we are human, so He is also God in every way that God is God. Thus it is that we can read in the letter to the Hebrews “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; ” (Hebrews 1:1–3, KJV) In other words, though God had revealed Himself to man in many differing ways over the years, God revealed Himself to us in His Son. The Son was in every way God. The character of the Son was the character of the Father. Those who saw Jesus may not have realized it, but God was revealing Himself to them in Him. Many were ignorant of that fact, but they realized that Jesus was unlike any other man that had ever lived. It is because He was also God, and the life that He lived always manifested the glory of God.

Even in His death Jesus manifested God to us. “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. ” (Romans 5:8, KJV) The cross of Christ was a revelation of God and His love for sinful man. The resurrection from the dead revealed God, too, because Jesus was “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: ” (Romans 1:4, KJV) And in the end when Jesus returns, the Bible tells us that He shall be revealed in the fulness of His glory: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. ” (1 John 3:2, KJV)

Having stated all of this, it is imperative that we recognize the duty that is impressed upon us by the revelation of God in Jesus the Christ. That duty is that we trust Him as our Savior and yield to Him as our Lord and Master (See Hebrews 2:1-4) After all, His words and His commands are the words and commands of God.

Revelation pt 2 (The Bible As Special Revelation)

Special Revelation: The Bible

What Is Special Revelation?

What is special revelation? We know that general revelation is the revelation of God in nature that is available to all. “By special revelation we mean those acts of God whereby He makes Himself and His truth known at special times and to specific peoples.”¹ In special revelation God is not manifesting Himself to all, but is revealing Himself in a more in depth way to specific people.

Instances of Special Revelation

Special revelation has occurred in a variety of times and manners. The writer of the book of Hebrews acknowledged this saying, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; ” (Hebrews 1:1–2, KJV) Among the ways in which God revealed Himself to man in times past are: dreams (Jacob in Genesis 28), a vision in a trance/dream (Peter in Acts 10), visible, face-to-face (Moses Numbers 12:8), and a visible and verbal revelation (Peter, James, and John in Matthew 17:1-6). It is crucial that we notice that revelation is God’s prerogative and not man’s. Man has never dictated to God how He will reveal Himself. Special revelation is special not only in the sense of it being a special occasion when God reveals Himself to someone, but also because it is the special work of God in His sovereign wisdom.

The Bible: Special Revelation

“..nobody would know the truth about God, or be able to relate to him in a personal way, had not God first acted to make himself known. But God has so acted, and the sixty-six books of the Bible, thirty-nine written before Christ came and twenty-seven after, are together the record, interpretation, expression, and embodiment of his self-disclosure. God and godliness are the Bible’s uniting themes.”²

Note that Packer holds that the Bible is special revelation from God. God has revealed Himself to us in His Word. He continues saying, “The Bible should, however, not be regarded as a revelation that is co-ordinate with the ones we have already mentioned, but rather as an embodiment of them. It records, for instance, the knowledge of God and His dealings with the creature which men of old gathered from nature, history, and conscience, as also from miracles, prophesy, the Lord Jesus Christ, and inner experience, and Divine instruction.”³

It is interesting to note that the first recorded revelation of God is a verbal revelation. That is seen when “God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. ” (Genesis 1:28, KJV) Since that time, God has continued to reveal Himself verbally to man. In fact, I can think of no instance in which God has revealed Himself that He has not verbally revealed Himself. In fact, God being a personal God, and seeking to bring us into a personal relationship with Him; it is only logical that He reveal Himself to us verbally. Not only so, but a written record of that revelation is helpful, too. Louis Berkhof explains why: “..God provided for its inscripturation, so that His revelation now comes to us, not in the form of deeds and events, but as a description of these. In order to guard against volatilization, corruption, and falsification, He gave it permanent form in writing.” ⁴ How true it is that the interpretation and transmission of deeds and event can, and indeed will, be corrupted in transmission. Oral transmission is very susceptible to change and corruption. One only need think of one experience with gossip to recognize this as the truth. If something is written down, copied, and widely spread, it is difficult to falsify as there are too many witnesses to the truth, and those witnesses would be practically impossible to recover, change, or destroy. Thus it is that we can affirm that “Revelation..is God’s continuing act of self-disclosure through the medium of the Bible.”⁵

As we read our Bibles we find that the New Testament church, including Jesus, counted the Old Testament writings to be to revelation of God.

Jesus counted the writings of Moses to be God speaking to us: “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. ” (Matthew 22:29–32, KJV) Though God revealed Himself to Moses, Moses wrote it down. Jesus declares that the words which were written by Moses is nothing less than God speaking to us!

The apostolic writers believed the Scriptures to be the revelation of God. The whole of Hebrews chapter one shows to us that the writer believed that God was speaking through the Scriptures. Not only so, but Peter explicitly states that the Old Testament Scriptures were Divine Revelation: “Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into. ” (1 Peter 1:10–12, KJV)

We can also have confidence that the New Testament that we have today is God’s revelation of Himself. Jesus promised that there would be more revelation to come: “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. ” (John 14:26, KJV) “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. ” (John 16:12–14, KJV) Later, Paul stated that what he taught and wrote were revelation: “..we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. ” (1 Corinthians 2:13, KJV) John also was cognizant of the fact that he was giving to us revelation from God: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. ” (1 John 1:1–4, KJV) Notice that John states what he had seen and heard: God manifest Himself to us in human flesh (See John 1:1-14) and now John writes it down. John understood that he was giving to us written revelation. In fact, he is plain about this when he says, “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. ” (John 20:30–31, KJV) Special revelation was given that we might have the knowledge of God, and John’s statement demonstrates that he was aware that he was giving the knowledge of God and His salvation in Christ Jesus.

Finally, we have great confidence in this revelation of God because it has proven itself to be a book of unity, coherence, and trustworthiness. The clarity of thought, the coherence of the Christian system of thought, and the track record of fulfilled prophecy all give us confidence that God has indeed revealed Himself to us in His Word.

It is now up to us how we respond.

1Thiessen, H.C. Introductory Lectures in Systematic Theology pg 35. Grand Rapids, MI; Eerdmans

2 Packer, J. I. (1995). Concise theology : A guide to historic Christian beliefs. Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House.

3Ibid. pg 41

4Berkhof, Louis Systematic Theology pg 141; Grand Rapids, MI; Eerdmans

5McGlasson, Paul C. Invitation to Dogmatic Theology. Pg 41. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press