Revealed: How God Makes Himself Known

Chapter 3 God Bends Low: Special Revelation (The Bible)

So far in our bustling coffee–shop chat, we’ve covered a good deal of ground. We’re probably on Latte #4 by now! But we have further to go, and happily so.

Whether our understanding of Christianity all clicks into place immediately, or whether we must mull these things over for some time, these are the kind of conversations that most engage our heart, mind, and soul in the fullest sense. This quest for truth is what makes us different from all other created beings, after all. The squirrels scramble, the robins chirp, and the lions hunt their prey, but none of them discuss the greater purpose and meaning of the cosmos. (Though admittedly, squirrels—so apt to break out in wild chases of one another—would likely excel at intellectual give–and–take if given the chance.)

When it comes to the Bible, we’ve really arrived at the center of what Christianity claims about revelation. The major truth–claim of the Scripture, the fullest special revelation of God, is that it gives us true and trustworthy knowledge of the divine. We don’t just learn general revelation about God, valuable as that is; we meet the fullest revelation of God, Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, in the Bible.

But this assertion only prompts more questions. In what follows, we will explore several matters together. Among the many questions readers commonly ask about the text, we can isolate four that are of the greatest importance to every person, and address them accordingly.

First, where does the Bible come from?

Second, is the Bible trustworthy—can I lean upon the biblical text?

Third, is the Bible authoritative—does it provide me with the foundation I need to understand reality, and live well?

Fourth, who does the Bible reveal—is there a center that makes sense of the whole text?

1. Where Does the Bible Come from? Understanding Inspiration

Contrary to what we might have heard or assumed, the Bible did not descend from heaven fully written, with little wings guiding it safely into the hands of sunny–faced believers. The Scripture is the full disclosure of God and does present us with all we need to know about him and his works, but God chose in his wisdom to write the Bible through flawed people just like you and me. This is one of the most fascinating realities about this book: God did not skirt around real flesh–and–blood folks to produce a text too hot to touch. He chose to use such individuals in his plan.

His purpose in doing so was to unveil himself. The primary verb related to revelation in the Old Testament, the first part of the Bible, is the Hebrew word galah. It is used twenty–two times and generally means “nakedness,” or the removal of obstacles to perception. The Lord uses many means to remove obstacles to perception of himself in the Old Testament. For example, he speaks directly to Adam (Genesis 2). To Moses, he reveals himself as a burning bush, and later, he presents himself as a pillar of cloud and fire. The point here is evident: God makes himself known, and this knowledge is reliable and trustworthy. Nonetheless, there is always some mystery to God. We learn what he wishes us to know, even as he himself remains enshrouded, above us, unlike us.

This is important to note, because we might think that the Bible is a kind of religious instruction manual, or spiritual encyclopedia. You open it, seek out the question you want answered, and—poof!—the response emerges, shimmering as you stare at it. But this doesn’t quite work. It’s like reading Shakespeare, or James Joyce, or even J. K. Rowling. You have to immerse yourself in the “world” of the Bible to really begin grasping it.

God speaks in the Old Testament through poets, prophets, and kings, among others. Of all his interactions with his people in the Old Testament, the law given to Moses is the central declaration of God. The law, which we find in both Exodus and Deuteronomy, shapes and directs the life and worship of the nation of Israel, the people of God. But though God has much to say to his people in the Old Testament, his voice goes quiet as Israel wanders far from him. The people enter captivity, first through Babylon, later through Persia. And then, for hundreds of years, no new revelation comes.

Suddenly, in the first century A. D., God begins speaking anew. He sends John the Baptist, who tells the Jewish people that they are not left without hope. Their Messiah is coming. The focus of this renewed revelation is squarely on one person: the God–man, Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, born of the virgin Mary Following Jesus’ ascension to heaven, Jesus’ followers preach the gospel, plant churches, and write their God–inspired letters and accounts. These documents form the bedrock of the New Testament, the second and last major section of the Bible. The Bible, the finished and final revelation of God, is composed of two Testaments and sixty–six documents that we call “books”—thirty–nine in the Old Testament and twenty–seven in the New Testament, written by numerous authors.

As with the writings of the New Testament, the biblical authors see the writings of the Old Testament as produced by God himself, in partnership with human authors. In 2 Peter 1:20–21, for example, Peter speaks to the nature of prophetic writings:

[20] knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. [21] For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Peter’s words help us see that God did something unusual in speaking through the biblical authors. The Greek verb for “carried along” refers to how a ship is carried by the wind across the sea (see Acts 27:15, 17). In a similar fashion, the Spirit enabled and empowered the biblical authors to say just what God wanted them to say. He “inspired” them, using their talents, personalities, and backgrounds to communicate exactly the truth he wanted to convey. This was true not only for the Old Testament writings, but those of the New Testament, which the apostles also recognized as given by God (see 2 Peter 3:16, for example).

This truth makes a big difference when it comes to trusting the Bible. We hear, after all, that human authors wrote the Bible. But the Bible shows us that in using human authors, the Spirit inspired every word the authors wrote. Behind the Bible stands the God who “inspired” the Bible. Trusting the Bible means trusting God; trusting God means trusting the Bible.

2. Is the Bible Trustworthy? Understanding Inerrancy

It can be easy to take basic things for granted. We’re trained to be skeptical today, and to a point, skepticism can help us avoid fuzzy thinking. But if we’re skeptical about everything, we can end up confused. As one example, not long ago, a campus speaker was touring a brand–new building at a major university. This building was touted as a “postmodern” building, and so had no clear design, followed no existing scheme, and had features that served no direct function. But the speaker asked one question at the end of the tour: “Does this structure have a foundation?” Yes, it turned out, the building had a foundation. Even buildings constructed with an anti–traditional style, after all, must rest upon a firm base.

Just like your local architectural masterpiece, we all need a foundation. In the New Testament, the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, a young man who needed strengthening. In a season of difficulty, Paul reminded Timothy of the foundation of his ministry, the Word of God. What Timothy was preaching did not stem from the wisdom of mere people, but from the very mind of God:

[16] All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

These words mean that every believer who trusts the Bible in an act of faith is standing on a sure foundation. We gain a greater sense for the sturdiness of this spiritual concrete by looking closely at this unusual phrase “breathed out by God.” In the Greek manuscript, it is one word: theopneustos, a combination of theos, God, and pneu, breathe. As theologian B. B. Warfield pointed out, this statement refers to the Bible’s origin, and thus it shows us the nature of the text. The Bible in totality came from God. The Bible is so closely connected to the Lord that it is said here to be his breath.

If the Bible had a lesser status, it would not be effective. It could not teach us, rebuke us, correct us, and train us in righteousness. Merely human words, after all, cannot create new realities, but the word of God can. We think, for example, of the very beginning of Genesis, where the word of God creates the heavens and the earth. The act of creation–by–word shows us that the Bible bears divine power, strength, and agency. His word is not like ours; unlike sinful humanity, God does not lie, and he does not make mistakes or errors (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2).

We’ll address some objections to inerrancy in a little bit. Though many doubt the Bible, though, we need not. God is a God of miracles. If he can create the world, he can produce and preserve his holy revelation. This is very good news for confused, skeptical, adrift people like us. It means we have a text we can trust, learn from, and stand upon. This foundation is sturdy; it will hold.

3. Is the Bible Authoritative? Understanding Authority

“Say madhouse!”

It was the opening night of my high school’s theater production. I cannot recall the name of the play, but at some point while performing the play on stage, my fellow cast members and I lost our part in the scene. We wandered around the stage, unsure of what to do, the awkwardness and tension building by the minute. Onstage, I sidled up to my fellow actor and whispered, “Say madhouse! Say madhouse!” With gusto, he then called out, “This is simply a madhouse!” and the curtain finally closed. We all nearly passed out from stress.

I reference this moment from my none–too–glorious acting career because it was a situation when no one had authority. No one knew what to do. We find ourselves in similar straits today, in a culture that critiques the very ideas of leadership and authority. Little wonder that various philosophers of the twentieth century encouraged human beings to simply embrace the nothingness of human existence. There is no ought in the cosmos, some argued; there is only is.

This is disheartening stuff. Just as we’re ready to head into the nearest cave and silently gaze at the wall, we remember a bright and shining truth: we do have an authority. God is real. He has created us, and given mankind a mission of imaging him and glorifying him (Genesis 1:26–27). We are not adrift on an endless sea, alone and without hope. We have an authority: God, who draws near to us in the Bible. As Paul says of his apostolic teaching in 1 Thessalonians 2:13, we receive it as a divine book: And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. We all lost the script in Adam’s fall. But how thankful we can be that do not have to bumble around like actors who have forgotten their lines. As Paul wrote, we have something more than the “word of men.” We have “the word of God.”

As we take in the Word, it will change us. We will want to live out the will of God. We will seek its wisdom in every facet of our existence: our daily priorities, our marriage, our parenting. We will seek out time to pray and commune with God; we will strive to be a godly husband or wife, and to build up our spouse; we will seek to train our children to know the Lord. Being under God’s authority will affect the way we talk (as our speech is purified instead of being filled with complaining and coarseness), the way we work (as we now work unto God and not men), and the way we think about other people (as those we can serve rather than those we can use). We won’t merely attend a church, but rejoice to join one, and thus place ourselves under the authority of the preached Word in a community of those who together make God known in a fallen world.

Trusting God, as we can see, is far more than merely feeling positive toward our Maker, or coming to him so that our problems will slip away. Trusting God means coming under God’s own rulership, and living for his glory. No Christian does this perfectly; but we all strive for it perpetually. What once seemed so cruel and restricting—to follow God—turns out to be the gateway to happiness and eternal joy (Psalm 16:11)

4. Who Does the Bible Reveal? Understanding Jesus Christ

I once had a fascinating conversation with my next–door neighbor, a university professor. He had many questions about the Christian faith, questions that I struggled—as a college student—to answer. We both enjoyed the conversation, the young Christian and the skeptical intellectual. At one point, not knowing how exactly to handle his responses, I (the Christian) posed a simple question: “What do you think of the resurrection—fact or fiction?” At that, he stopped talking and went quiet for several seconds. Then he said, without any further elaboration, “That is a good question.” Conversation over.

But the conversation continues for many of us. Many people have big questions about Jesus, and understandably so. In the Bible, we read of Jesus the Son of God, the divine in human flesh, the very essence of deity amongst us (John 1:1–18). Once you start studying up on Jesus for yourself, you witness him claiming that he was Israel’s true hope and long–expected prophet. He felt free to turn tables in the temple, refute the authoritative religious leaders of his day, and teach his divine oneness with the Father (Matthew 21:12–23; Luke 11:37–54; John 10:30).

Jesus did not come suggesting minor life changes; he came preaching repentance and calling his hearers to follow the will of God (Matthew 1:21). Jesus is the one whose testimony we can rely on for eternal life; more than that, Jesus is “the way” to God, meaning that trusting in him means knowing God and experiencing salvation (John 14:6). Not only this: Jesus is the “Word” made flesh, the one who reveals God to us, the one who fulfills the line of prophets by his revelatory words, deeds, and ministry (John 1:1–18). Because Jesus speaks and acts as recorded in the Gospels, we need not wonder what it would be like to hear from Jesus and watch Jesus work. The living Word has come close, and left us with his truth, wisdom, and grace.

The Bible presents Jesus not only as a prophet but as a king. This king, however, does not rule from a magisterial residency high up in the hills. He comes to earth to rescue sinners (1 John 3:8). He comes to undo the reign of sin and death wielded by the devil (Colossians 2:13–15; Hebrews 2:14–18). His earthly ministry reaches its apex when he dies for sinners on the cross, taking the role of the great high priest (Hebrews 7:23–28). Yet this priest does not only preside over sacrifices, as in the Old Testament; this priest is the substitute sacrifice for us, the one who satisfies the wrath of God on our behalf. As priest, Christ brings perfect reconciliation between God and sinners, offering us nothing less than complete divine forgiveness and adopting love (2 Corinthians 5:18–21; Ephesians 2:11–22).

God is a loving God, we learn here—a greatly loving God. The love of God, in fact, is not limited love, love that rises and falls, love that ebbs and flows. The love of God is dependent on God, not on man. God delights to offer this redeeming love to a people forsaken by sin, estranged and without hope in the world. What a gift this is. What privileges it carries. It reminds me of a brief stint I had in the U. S. Department of State. As a lowly intern, my job centered in the heady diplomatic tasks of printing off documents and—I am not making this up—securing a new water cooler for the office. I was not troubleshooting global diplomacy, let’s put it that way. I did have some basic security clearance as an intern (and that was cool), but there were so many places in the State Department I simply could not go. My access was so limited.

Thinking back to those days of water coolers and name–badges, I am reminded of just how freely we may study the Bible, and come right up to the feet of the king, Jesus Christ. God does not require us to have a PhD in theology before we study his ways and his will. He wants us to draw near (James 4:8). He wants to bring us into his family as adopted children (Ephesians 2:16–22). All this glorious truth flows from knowing Jesus. There are many things to study in Scripture, but if you know that the Bible reveals Jesus as the signpost of God’s love, you know a great deal already (Luke 24:27). You have discovered the center of Scripture, the peak of its driving and dramatic narrative, and the only sure hope of our fallen world.

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