Living life thru the lens of Gods revelation(part 1) Revelation of God The term revelation deals with how God has revealed himself to humanity, or in other words, how he has made himself known. Theologians generally distinguish Gods revelation in two ways: General, and Special revelation. General revelation Also known as Universal revelation, general revelation deals with how God can be understood through his creation. More specifically, this can be manifest in physical nature, human nature, and history. General revelation does not impart truths that are necessary for salvation (e.g. sinfulness of humanity, the atonement, etc...), however, it is argued that Gods existence, transcendence, immanence, self-sufficiency, eternality, power, goodness, and hate for evil can be comprehended and seen through his creation (Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, p. 1,019; cf. Romans 1). Physical nature The book of Psalms says that, The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork (Psalm 19:1). Paul quotes Psalm 19:4 in reference to hearing the gospel, But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world (Rom. 10:18). Later on in Psalm 97:6 it says that, The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory. Paul told men that God had given testimony of Himself in that he has shown kindness by giving them rain from heaven, crops in their seasons and even provides them with their food (Acts 14:15-17). A clearer passage states that, What may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world Gods invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse (Rom. 1:19-20). Human nature Because humans are made in Gods image (Genesis 1:27), something about God can be learned from the study of human nature. Most evident is the moral and spiritual qualities found within humankind that reflect the character of God. Paul says that even the law is written on the hearts of people who do not have the specially revealed law (Romans 2:11-16).
Posted on: Fri, 25 Jul 2014 23:18:59 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015