Approaching the Bible

Revelation

Biblical theology forms an organic whole. This means not only that one can approach any part of the subject by beginning at any other point of the subject (though some vantage points are certainly more helpful than others), but that to treat some element of biblical theology as if it existed in splendid isolation seriously distorts the whole picture.

On few subjects is this more obviously true than with regard to one's doctrine of Scripture. In this skeptical age it is doubtful if an articulate and coherent understanding of the nature of Scripture and how to interpret it can long be sustained where there is not at the same time a grasp of the biblical view of God, of human beings, of sin, of redemption, and of the rush of history toward its ultimate goal.

For instance, if it is true that the Bible tells us about God, not least what kind of God he is, it is no less true that unless God really is that sort of God, it is impossible to appreciate the Bible for what it is. To approach the Bible correctly it is important to know something of the God who stands behind it.

God is both transcendent (i.e., he is "above" space and time) and personal. He is the sovereign and all-powerful Creator to whom the entire universe owes its existence, yet he is the God who graciously condescends to interact with us human beings whom he has himself formed in his own image. Because we are locked in time and space, God meets us here; he is the personal God who interacts with other persons, persons he has made to glorify him and to enjoy him forever.

In short, God has chosen to reveal himself to us, for otherwise we would know very little about him. True, his existence and power are disclosed in the created order, even though that order has been deeply scarred by human rebellion and its consequences (Gen. 3:18; Rom. 8:19–22; see Ps. 19:1–2; Rom. 1:19–20). It is also true that rather a dim image of God's moral attributes is reflected in the human conscience (Rom. 2:14–16). But this knowledge is not sufficient to lead to salvation. Moreover, human sinfulness is so ingenious that not a little energy is devoted to explaining away even such revelation as this. But in his unmeasured grace God has actively intervened in the world he made in order to reveal himself to men and women in still more powerful ways.

This was true even before the fall. God assigned certain responsibilities to the creatures whom he made in his image (itself an act of revelation), and then met with them in the garden he had made for them. When God chose Abraham, he established a covenant with him, revealing himself as his God (Genesis 15; 17). When he redeemed Israel from slavery, God not only conversed with Moses but displayed himself in terrifying plagues and in the thunder and lightning of Sinai. Though the whole earth is his, he chose Israel as his covenant people and made them a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Ex. 19:5–6). To them he disclosed himself not only in spectacular displays of power but in his Torah (lit. "instruction"), which included not only detailed prescriptions for daily life but entire structures of mandated religious observance (tabernacle/temple, sacrifices, priesthood).

Throughout the period covered by the Old Testament, God revealed himself in providence (e.g., the arrangements that brought Joseph to Egypt, Genesis 37–50; 50:19–20; sleeplessness on a certain night in the life of Xerxes, Est. 6:1ff.; the decrees of Cyrus and Darius that effected the return of some Hebrews to Jerusalem after the exile), in miraculous events (e.g., the burning bush, Exodus 3; the fire at Mount Carmel, 1 Kings 18), in prophetic words (the "word of the LORD" repeatedly "comes" to the prophets), in poetry and songs (e.g., Psalms). But even while Old Testament believers knew that God had disclosed himself to his covenant people, they were aware that he had promised more definitive revelation in the future. God promised a time when a new shoot would emerge from David's line (Isa. 11), a man who would sit on David's throne but who would, nevertheless, be called the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9). God himself would come down and usher in a new heaven and a new earth (Isaiah 65). He would pour out his Spirit (Joel 2), introduce a new covenant (Jeremiah 31; Ezekiel 36), raise the dead (Ezekiel 37), and much more.

The New Testament writers are convinced that the long-awaited self-disclosure of God and his salvation have been brought near in Jesus Christ, God's Son. In the past God had revealed himself primarily through the prophets, but now in these last days he has revealed himself supremely and climactically in the Son (Heb. 1:2). The Son is the perfect image of the Father (2 Cor. 4:4; Col. 1:15; Heb. 1:3); all God's fullness dwells in him (Col. 1:19; 2:9). He is the incarnation of God's self-expression; he is God's Word made flesh (John 1:1, 14, 18).

This Son-centered revelation is found not only in the person of Jesus but also in his deeds. Not only in his teaching, preaching, and healing, but supremely in the cross and resurrection Jesus reveals God and accomplishes the divine plan of redemption. By the Spirit whom the exalted Christ has bequeathed (John 14–16) God convicts the world (John 16:7–11), assists believers in their witness (John 15:27), and above all, manifests God to them, taking up residence in them (John 14:19–26). Thus God reveals himself by the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee and down payment of the promised inheritance (Eph. 1:13–14). One day the ultimate self-disclosure will occur, and every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:11; cf. Rev. 19–22).

The point to emphasize is that a genuinely Christian understanding of the Bible presupposes the God of the Bible, a God who makes himself known in a wide diversity of ways so that human beings may know the purpose for which they were made — to know and love and worship God, and so delight in that relationship that God is glorified while they receive the matchless benefit of becoming all that God wants them to be. Any genuine knowledge human beings have of God depends on God's first disclosing himself.

The Word of God

What must not be overlooked is that this God is a talking God. Doubtless he reveals himself to us in many ways, but word is not the least of them.

In English "revelation" can be...