By Pastor Dave Farmer
In our day the Bible has been downgraded to just a religious book, but it is not. It is unlike any book ever written. What makes it so special? The Bible is a revelation from God. God spoke, and men wrote.
What is revelation?
Revelation means to uncover, to reveal, or to bring something to light that is hidden. It is the activity of God whereby He communicates truth to man about His Person or His Purpose. The invisible, hidden, and transcendent God has not just revealed Himself to us, like “Hello, I’m here, let’s get acquainted.” In the case of divine revelation, God imparts true knowledge to man which he cannot discover on his own.
The primary word for revelation in the Old Testament is galah. In revelation, there is the transfer of truth from the mind of God to the minds of men. For example, Daniel says:
Daniel 2:22
It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, And the light dwells with Him.
This is Daniel’s testimony about His God before Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. The king was having a reoccurring nightmare sent by God. Here is the most powerful man in the world and he is impotent in the hands of God. So he called in the Department of Wizardry to have them interpret the dream. This is the brightest and the best, and they don’t have the answer to Neb’s question, “What does this mean?” Sohe decides since they cannot interpret this terrifying dream, to murder the entire Department of Wizardry.
Department of Wizardry
After He gives the order for their execution, it just happens [Is this an accident?] that Daniel is employed at the Department of Wizardry and will be put to death too. Daniel says to the king, “Hold up, I can find out for you the meaning of this dream.” You will notice in this context Daniel never promotes himself. He never says, “I know the answer.” He is in the same position as everyone else; he doesn’t have a clue. But Daniel’s God knows the answer. He has this knowledge, and He will reveal the truth to Daniel. In this example, the revealed truth about God’s purpose for the future is given to Daniel.
In the New Testament
The same idea is found in the word most used by the writers of the New Testament; apokalupto the verb and the noun apokalupsis. In the passages where it is used some truth is being imparted; such as, how the works of Christ reveal that He is the Messiah, the one prophesied in the Old Testament, [See Matthew 11:25, Luke 10:21]. In some passages, the revealed truth is about the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ; such as:
Matthew 16:15-17
15) He [Jesus speaking] said to them [the disciples], “But who do you say that I am?”
16) Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17) And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Some thought our Lord Jesus Christ was a fraud, some a fool, and others madman, but the revealed truth is, “He is the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In Romans 16:25 the purpose and plan of God to form the Church, the Body of Christ is given:
Romans 16:25
Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past,
The fact that one day God would work through a new agency--the Church. This was a brand new disclosure that was hidden from the Old Testament prophets of Israel. The revelation of this fact was necessary. Why was it necessary for God to reveal Himself to man?
The Demand For Revelation
Our God is infinite; that is, His divine nature is so great and so superior to ours that this marked disparity requires revelation. David said, "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable" Psalm 145:3. When God gave David truth about Himself, David recognized his own finiteness. All David could say was, "His greatness is unsearchable." Not unknowable, but inexhaustible! David was limited. Other passages:
Isaiah 55:9
[God speaking] For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Romans 11:33
O the depth of the riches both the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out?
The response of all those who have spoken with God is one of utter amazement and profound awe as they come to recognize His infinite glory. It is necessary for God to communicate with finite man because a tremendous gap exists between the Creator and His creatures. Even Adam in his sinless state needed the benefit of God walking with him daily in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:8). God must take the initiative to meet man on man's level and speak to him in human language and human concepts.
Paul illustrates this perfectly in 1 Corinthians 2:
1 Corinthians 2:8
the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;
Paul says there exists knowledge that cannot be discovered by reason or science, “Things which the eye has not seen, and ear has not heard [the scientific method], and which have not entered the heart of man [reasoning faculty], all that God has prepared for those who love Him” [1 Corinthians 2:9].
Why is revelation necessary? Our Lord Jesus Christ came to earth and said to the rulers of this world, “I am the Son of God sent from heaven.” They rejected Him. They crucified their Creator and Savior. They listened to the gospel and said, “ridiculous.” We say the Bible is a very special book. God spoke, and men wrote. The wise say, “ridiculous.”
When compared to God man is finite, only God is infinite. We have power, but God is all powerful. We have knowledge, but God has all-knowledge. We exist in space and time, but God is everywhere present and eternal. Only man in his arrogance believes himself to be more than he is. We need God to speak, for our human natures are finite, but also they are fallen natures.
The Word of God tells us that when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they hid. Their relationship with their Creator was drastically changed. Now they were separated from God and from Genesis chapter 3 on the natural inclination of man is to hide from God. So let's look at the Scripture and document the number of ways this fallen nature expresses itself. I have already noted one, Adam and Eve after their sin HID from God, Genesis 3:8.
Isaiah says, “Man RUNS from God.”
Isaiah 53:6
All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way;
The Word of God says we go in every direction but toward God. “Man goes “his own way” not God’s way. The Apostle Paul writes:
Romans 3:11
There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God;
Finally, Jesus says:
John 3:19
“This is the judgment [condemnation], that the light [Jesus is the Light of the World] has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light, for their deeds were evil.
The darkness represents a sphere which possesses no light and God is not there. Man would rather live in this darkness, autonomous and free from any thought of God. But not only has he HID from God, and he RUNS from God, now we learn man has a BAD HEART.
Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is more deceitful than all else; And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?
If we can't know our hearts, how can we expect to know the true and living God? When you think things can’t get worst, we find out man SUPPRESSES the truth.
Romans 1:18
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
The Bible says that even when the truth of God is made known to his heart and mind, he sometimes suppresses it. He says, "There is no God!" Psalm 14: 1. What a tremendous contrast! On the one hand there is God, whose great love and grace pursue us and it is His divine initiative that reaches out to us; and on the other hand, there is man, who is totally fallen and lost and characterized by these things:
He hides from God.
He runs from God.
He goes in every direction but toward God.
He does not seek God.
He loves the darkness.
And when the truth is known, he suppresses it.
What have we learned? Finite man is limited, and fallen man is lost. The need for revelation is imperative! It is the work of God giving the truth to man about His Person, Presence, and Purpose.
ENDNOTES
1 All quotations from the Bible come from the New American Standard Bible (NASB). Bracketed portions of the verses are added to explain and amplify the sacred