Revelation or Education- How God reveals Truth

Yesterday was discussed the concept that we do in fact still receive revelation from God today. We see it through the active teaching done by the Holy Spirit which is indwelling us, through the word being in our hearts and in our minds. The second question that was not answered yesterday was HOW or in what ways do we receive revelation from God. It is important, however, to stress once again before we move on the fact that God's revelation to us today NEVER supersedes what we know to be Biblical truth, and will NOT contradict what is revealed in His word already.

We MUST understand that the primary means of revelation from God has been and always will be His spoken and inspired word. The Bible with all of its “stories” and accounts of all that occurred is continually referred to and mentioned as God’s inspired word. Therefore as we seek God’s revelation of truth in our lives we must continue to start where He would have us to start and that is daily in the Scriptures, reading His word, seeking it and thirsting for it. As the Psalmist states, “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” This should be the way that we seek God’s revelation to us in the Scriptures. He has spoken and He has revealed all that we need to know in order to serve and follow Him. All that we need for Him to speak to us and through us is originated and contained in the Scriptures. This continues to validate and encourage our study of Christ and His words as well, since He is the Word, all that He did and sought after was according to God’s revelation. We cannot claim to pursue the mind and thoughts of God without actually reading what He has given us already. God is seeking to build upon the foundation of truth that we have, but if we are not working and understanding the foundation how can we continue to claim that we desire to have more revelation of God’s word? What this means is that those seeking and thirsting for God will continue to seek and read the Bible…it is a necessity if we desire God the way we ought.

Another means by which God continues to reveal Himself is through the faithful teaching and preaching of Gods word. This does not mean that every individual will have the gift or opportunity to teach. But the faithful teaching and preaching of God’s word is to be done by those whom God has gifted in that manner, whether by firm Bible teachers or by Pastors on Sunday mornings. We seek to hear what God is speaking to us through them. God has gifted them to teach for the benefit of the church, for the building up of the body of Christ in love, and for the maturing of the saints. They do not teach purely for their own benefit, God is using them for the encouraging and revealing of His truth to the people of God. This is why Paul gives the exhortation to Timothy to “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” The teaching is for the benefit of those who hear

A third way in which the revelation of God is made known is by the words of those faithfully serving God. In Psalms 101 the writer asks for those who are blameless to minister to him. Do we have the same desire? Do we have the desire to hear what God has spoken or is speaking to those who are faithfully serving Him? God reveals truth to us in many ways and one way that we see continually occurring is through other people, other saints who are faithful in the first two instances as well! A good example of this is Apollos, “He [Apollos] began to speak bolding in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately.” We see the speaking of truth and revelation of God’s word to others by those who were serving faithfully. Apollos later goes on to refute the Jews in public and to continue to show through the scriptures that the Christ was Jesus. We see the revelation of God’s word having the same impact that it had in the lives of Peter, John, and Stephen mentioned yesterday. This powerful truth which cannot be denied, the type of knowledge and understanding that only God can give is now actively working in another.

The question that each of us must continue to wrestle with is, am I seeking and willing to serve and understand the truth of God’s word. Those who seek after the truth will find it and will continue in it, for they hear God’s calling and direction and they follow it. They will walk in the way of God, they will ponder the way of blamelessness, they will not search after worthless things, and they will be open to the guidance of God by the work of the Holy Spirit. Are we thirsting and panting for the word of God and His revelation of truth in our lives? Are we continuing to sacrifice cherished sin in order to walk more closely with God, in order to seek Him more purely? Can we say as the Psalmist does in Psalm 69:3, “I am weary with my crying out, my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.” Seek to have a heart that is open to the direction and guidance of God.

By no means is this the only way that God reveals truth to us. He can use any of His creation to make known His character, truth, and the work done through Christ, even if He must speak to us through a donkey as He did with Balaam. These three however are the key ways we see God having chosen to reveal truth to us.