Light of Divine Revelation: I realize I’ve been returning to this thought quite a bit lately. It came to mind again while I was writing my recent post on Doctrine and Christ, and here I am back at it once more: God has spoken. That revelation comes to us through the gospel of Christ, and the Scriptures bear witness to Him. The wonder of it all continues to fill my thoughts – that God has chosen to reveal Himself in such a beautiful manner. The more I think about it, the more remarkable it seems. Scripture comes to mind from many places when considering this subject, but none captures the thought more clearly, at least to me, than the opening words of 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.” Hebrews 1:1-2.
It is worth stopping for a moment to consider what things would be like if God had never spoken. What if He had simply left mankind to itself, never revealing anything of Himself? We would be left entirely to our own imaginations, trying to piece together some concept of God from our own thoughts and speculations. Every man would form a god according to his own mind, and the result would be nothing less than the height of idolatry. Genesis 11:4-9. In the end, it would amount to little more than mankind worshiping its own reflections. II Thessalonians 2:4. The fact that God has spoken, therefore, is no small thing. Our entire understanding of Him rests upon that revelation, and apart from it we would remain lost in our own darkness. Matthew 11:27.
At times I find myself thinking about how remarkable this really is. The world moves from one concern to another, yet the greatest reality of all is often overlooked: God has spoken. What could possibly be more glorious or more important than that? The living God has revealed Himself. May the Lord deepen our affection for this one great truth. We have a divine revelation – one light, one hope, and one salvation. John 14:6. And I pray that our hearts may be enlarged to take in more of Christ, more of the Scriptures that testify of Him, and more of the grace that shines forth in the gospel. Psalm 119:32.
This is why divine revelation is so essential. The knowledge of God does not begin with our search for Him, but with His decision to make Himself known. II Corinthians 4:6. Everything we truly know of Him comes exclusively from that revelation, and the only expression of that revelation is found in the gospel of Christ. As I’ve emphasized so often, the Scriptures are all that we have. Through them the message of Christ has been declared and preserved for us. Matthew 5:18.
It is no wonder, then, that those who believe cherish this revelation so deeply. In a world enveloped in darkness, it is the only light we have. John 8:12. If we have ever truly heard the voice of God, it has come to us through this Word. And those who have heard it know something of the persuasion that accompanies it, and the inward assurance that cannot easily be explained. John 7:17. There is such a deep and settled certainty that the Lord Himself has spoken. Christ is God. The Scriptures are true. And salvation is found in no other name. I John 5:20.
It seems to be the connection Peter draws in his first epistle: “But the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” I Peter 1:25. Notice how closely he joins these two things together. The Word of the Lord that abides forever is identified with the gospel that is preached. The message concerning Christ is not something separate from the Word of God, but the very way by which that WORD is declared and made known. John 1:1,14. Consider that final line from Peter’s verse and notice how the “word of the Lord” that endures forever is not presented as something separate from the gospel message. Peter identifies it directly with the gospel that is preached. I Thessalonians 2:13.
In other words, the Word of God is not merely a collection of sacred writings that may be handled however we please. The Scriptures themselves point us to something very specific: the gospel of Jesus Christ. They exist to bear witness to Christ and the salvation accomplished through Him, and they reach their true purpose only when they are declared in the light of that gospel. Acts 10:43. When that message is set aside, the Scriptures can easily be reduced to something they were never meant to be, treated as little more than a religious book to examine, analyze, or debate. II Corinthians 3:14-15.
The written Scriptures are indeed the Word of God, but they reach their true purpose only as they bear witness to Christ and His gospel. Apart from that testimony, the Bible can easily be handled the same way men handle any other religious book. But when Christ is revealed in the Scriptures, they become what they were always meant to be: the living testimony of the WORD made flesh. “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth.” John 1:45. MPJ