By Randall L. Broad
Liberty Corpus is a collection of the discussion boards, research papers,
and other writings compiled while studying systematic theology at Liberty
University Online. The posts published here have been further researched,
edited, and redacted from their original assignments.
Discussion
Board Question: In
Walton’s Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament, he
writes, “With no revelation . . . there was no way to know what pleased and
what angered . . . This is the plight of those who live in a world without
revelation. In the end, for all of their conscientious ritual, they did not
know what deity wanted” (p. 145).
Discuss the importance of revelation to God and the biblical writers.
Seek to answer questions like “Was it important for God to reveal himself to
mankind? If so, in what ways has God revealed himself? How important was
revelation to the prophets who often used the phrase 'Thus says the Lord?'”
Revelation is essential to the awareness and understanding of God
This is the plight of
those who live in a world without revelation. In the end for all their
conscientious ritual, they did not know what deity wanted–they could only
adhere to tradition …[1]
In Genesis 1:26 God says, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; …” Even
the most secular person understands the concept of image and likeness–both
natural and social scientists label objects, matter, and people based on common
shared characteristics. Children bear the image
of their parents and there is a recognition of the spiritual bond or likeness that manifests in their offspring.
The Bible teaches the creator and the created share this same bond. Interestingly,
the plural pronouns ‘Us’ and ‘Our’ in this passage allude to another
important concept of a shared bond–the unity of God. Before the fall, Adam and
Eve lived with a true awareness of God–that is with perfect understanding of the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit. The fall in the garden replaced this awareness and understanding
with the knowledge of “good and evil” making revelation essential to healing the separation between
God and humanity. What changed when Adam and Eve received the knowledge of good
and evil (Genesis 3:1-6) was not their character or human nature, which because
of free will is essentially undetermined, but rather their understanding and
awareness of God.
Thus
free will which was created so that mankind might live freely in unity with God
became a weapon in the service of good and evil. The divine liberty Christians call ‘free will’
allowed Adam and Eve to commit the first human act of disobedience and sin
entered the world. Their ability to freely choose combined with their flawed
understanding of good and evil distorted their view of creation, themselves,
and God. Genesis 3:7 tells us … the eyes
of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked. Realization
is the key word here. In their moment of realization they became aware of their
own flesh and began
to understand God through the veil of their own pride and arrogance. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote:
In the knowledge of good and evil man does not
understand himself in the reality of the destiny appointed in his origin, but
rather in his own possibilities, his possibility of being good or evil. He knows
himself now as something apart from God, outside God, and this means that he
now knows only himself and no longer knows God at all; for he can know God only
if he knows only God. The knowledge of good and evil is therefore separation
from God. Only against God can man know good and evil.[2]
Sin
and evil hid the truth and knowledge of mankind’s divine potential while humanity
retained a consciousness of God which led to the corresponding experience of
shame and guilt. From that moment on … the awareness and understanding of God became
impossible without divine revelation.
Throughout the Old Testament, God’s truth was revealed through the
prophets, understood through the law, and preserved through Abraham’s
descendants. The core truth of the Old Testament is that Yahweh’s
distinctiveness from all the pagan gods and idols created in the imaginations
of people was what alone made Him worthy of worship and obedience. This
monotheistic tradition became the spiritual identity of the Israelite's revealed
in their sacred covenants, laws, and the books of the prophets. The Prophets
were messengers from Yahweh empowered by the Spirit of God to reveal to the Israelite's His presence and power.
“… because they were willing servants or because of
certain qualifications they had or perhaps for reasons known only to God,
reasons of His sovereign will, God chose to give them a message and a
commission to communicate that message to others. God’s Holy Spirit then guided
them and enabled them to accomplish God’s purpose.”[3]
These Old Testament prophets were individuals
selected by God to reveal the special covenant relationship between Him and the
descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Their revelation was revealed in God’s
time and the reasons for selecting these particular people are known only to
Him. But, their message and commission was essential to the Jewish awareness and
understanding of their history and law.
In
the New Testament Age the awareness and
understanding of God took on a more personal revelation. A New Covenant
was revealed first through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ
and then with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Where God’s Will was revealed only through a
small number of prophets in Old Testament times, in Christ came the
revelation of an ancient union between Man and God. Pentecost allowed this union to be experienced and revealed through the
person, the presence, and the power of the Holy Spirit. However, like
the revelation of Christ, the coming of the Holy Spirit needed to be
experienced not just intellectually but also temporally and personally by all believers.
New Testament revelation and particularly Pauline theology reflects this
distinctiveness between the resurrection and Pentecost, between Christ and the
Holy Spirit. Christ and the Holy Spirit are two distinct
manifestations that restore the believer to the awareness and understanding of
God lost in the garden.
To those rooted in the traditions of Mosaic
Law, the exhortation delivered by Stephen in the Book of Acts (Ch. 7) was nothing
short of blasphemy. It became unbearable to the leaders of the Temple and the
High Priest when Stephen declared their hearts uncircumcised, resistant to the
Holy Spirit, and filled with disobedience. (Acts
7:51-53). They ordered his death and he was taken to the gates of the city
and stoned:
“The
gospel was offered now, not by angels, but from the Holy Ghost; yet they did
not embrace it for they had resolved not to comply with God, either in his law
or in his gospel. Their guilt stung them to the heart, and they sought relief
in murdering their reprover, instead of sorrow and supplication for mercy.”[4]
Stephen was ultimately talking about something
significant–a new revelation of God–which would manifest itself personally to
every believer through the Word of God and the activities of the Holy Spirit.
Perhaps the most important person present that day was Saul of Tarsus.
Saul would ultimately receive his own calling through a personalized revelation
of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit; write half of the New Testament; and spread
the truth of the gospel to the Gentiles. The core truth of the New Testament is
that Jesus’ incarnation, death, and resurrection is what alone
makes Him worthy of worship and obedience.
Walk with the Lord
Ephesians
1:17
(RLB241230)
©
Copyright 2017: Randall L. Broad
Disclaimer: This commentary is written by Randall L. Broad. It is in no way affiliated with or represents any denomination, university, church, or pastor. Any errors or omissions are purely my responsibility.
[1] Walton, John H. Ancient Near Eastern
Thought and the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006: 145.
[2] Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Ethics. New
York: Touchstone, 1955: 21-22.
[3] Bush, L. Russ.
"Understanding Biblical Inerrancy." Southwestern Journal of Theology
50, no. 1 (Fall 2007): 29.
[4]
Henry, Matthew. Matthew Henry's Concise
Commentary on the Whole Bible. Nashville: Thomas Nelson , 1997: 1030-31.
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