Origin
To say that the Bible is a unique book would not be in any way overstating the facts. There is no other literary work, whether ancient or modern in the world that can be compared to it. The Bible itself makes specific claims concerning its character and uniqueness. There are about thirty-eight hundred instances in which the Bible states, “God said,” or “Thus says the Lord” (i.e. Ex. 14:1; Lev. 4:1; Isa.
Consider the unusual composition of the Bible,
what an incredible testimony. The Bible, under the superintendence of the Holy
Spirit, was written by over forty authors, their vocations were as diverse and
varied as you can get, from kings to fisherman. It was written under many
different circumstances and from many different locations spanning three
continents, Africa, Asia, and Europe . The time
span between the writing of the first book and the writing of the last book was
over fifteen hundred years. Many of the writers knew nothing of the others and
were unfamiliar with their writings. Yet despite all those unusual facts, the
Bible has unparalleled continuity and is a unified whole. Despite its unusual
composition, we find within it no contradictions or inconsistencies. Its
continuity, unity, and harmony are an amazing testimony to the fact that God is
its author because without a doubt, no humans could have possibly orchestrated
such harmony within the teachings of the Bible.
Revelation
Apokalupsis, which means “unveiling” or
“disclosure,” is the Greek word from which we derive the word revelation.
Therefore, when we speak of divine revelation, we are talking about God
unveiling or disclosing Himself to man. The epitome of His revelation is Jesus
Christ (cf. Rom. 16:25 ).
Revelation
refers to the truths and realities that God has disclosed or unveiled that
would otherwise be unknown to us because of our inability to discover them on
our own. Alan Cairns defines revelation as, “The
knowledge God gives to His creatures, especially His self-disclosure by
whatever means He chooses, but definitely in the Bible as His inspired Word.”[1] Carl F.H. Henry defines it as, “…the disclosure of what was previously
unknown. In Judeo-Christian theology the term is used primarily of God’s
communication to man of divine truth, that is, his manifestation of himself or
of his will. The essentials of the biblical view are that the Logos is the
divine agent in all revelation, this revelation being further discriminated as
general or universal…and special or particular…”[2] J
Vernon McGee provides what may be perhaps the most basic and straightforward
definition of revelation when he says that revelation “means ‘God has spoken,’ and that is all it means.”[3]
Revelation
is therefore both “general”—Him revealing Himself in nature, and “special”—Him
revealing Himself in both the written and living Word. These two, form the
unity of God’s complete revelation.
General Revelation
Although
man cannot procure salvation through general revelation, it is imperative to
understand that general revelation is an extremely important antecedent to
salvation. This form of revelation is the one that unveils or discloses the
existence of God and much about His nature. It is through general revelation
that God communicates to all humans the reality of His being, His power, His
goodness, His sovereignty, and so on. This form of revelation is both necessary
and preliminary to God’s special revelation.
The
manifestation of general revelation can be found in nature (Ps. 19:1-6; Rom.
1:8-21), in providence (Matt. 5:45; Acts 14:15-17; Dan. 2:21), and in
conscience (Rom. 2:14-15).As stated previously, general revelation doesn’t
provide enough information for a person to be saved but it does render man
without excuse for rejecting God. General revelation makes many things about
God, to all people everywhere, discoverable apart from the Scriptures or Jesus
Christ the living Word.
Special Revelation
Special
revelation, unlike general revelation, finds its manifestation in the Bible and
in the Person of Jesus Christ who is the most complete revelation of all. Paul Enns
writes, “Special revelation as reflected
in the Scriptures is given in propositional statements…; in other words, it
comes from outside of man, not from within man.”[4]
This is a revelation that is given to particular people in specific places.
Because
of the fall of man, special revelation was necessary to provide man with the
way of salvation and reconciliation. Special revelation expands and completes
general revelation. It finds as its essence the message of salvation and at the
core of that message, the Person of Jesus Christ. The Bible is clear in
teaching that Christ is the One who explains the Father (John 1:18 ) through His words (John 6:63)
and His works (John 5:36 ).
The
Word of God can be trusted precisely because it was God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16 ) and because the authors of
both the Old and New Testament books were carried along by the Spirit of God (2
Pet. 1:21 ). The living
written Word (the Bible) and the living incarnate Word (Christ) together are
God’s special revelation to mankind.
[1] Alan Cairns, Dictionary of Theological Terms,
expanded third edition (Greenville: Ambassador Emerald International, 2002), p.
383.
[2] C. F. H. Henry,
in Walter A. Elwell, ed., Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984), 946.
[3] J. Vernon McGee,
Doctrine for Difficult Days (Nashville:
Nelson, 1996), p. 11.
[4] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Chicago:
Moody, 1989), p. 158.
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