General vs. Special Revelation

General vs. Special Revelation

 There are two distinct types of revelation given by God to humanity, in order for us to be able to make sense out of the cosmos. The two types are broken down into general and special revelation.

General revelation focuses on aspects of God's creative nature. It entails all of the details of the creation of the universe and the fine tuning aspects required for life to exist. In essense, this general revelation presents a world-view that is unmatched in defining and describing how something can be created out of nothing existing beforehand. God is the creator and sustainer of the Universe and all that is contained within it.

Special revelation is different in that it deals with the communication that God has extended to humanity to make himself known to us. Paticularly the writings of the Bible. This type of revelation can also take place through supernatural prophetic words or the insights of a person who is gifted in prophesy. It is important for these prophetic words to align with the scriptures. If they do not, then the prophet is in error.

 Most of this blog contains information that is of general revelation in nature. The reason I have been focusing on several aspects of general revelation is to help you be assured that our faith in Christ is legitimate and rational in scope. Our faith is not a great leap into the speculation of the unknown. It is a step that is based on common sense, and brings a greater depth of understanding of how and why the universe came into existence. However, it does require a belief in the supernatural aspects of the nature and character of Jesus Christ.

 Most skeptics cling to a worldview that only allows for “natural” occurrences.  Any reference to things of supernatural origin is automatically viewed as irrational. Those who hold this viewpoint may be very aggressive in trying to tell a Christian how antiquated our viewpoint is. However, the Bible is very clear to declare that the fool says in his heart that there is no God. A naturalistic person may be smart, however they are not wise to keep God out of the equation.

The reality of the universe coming into existence from nothing and also being so incredibly fine-tuned for life to exist actually requires an intelligent designer in order to make any sense at all.

Links:

See how finely tuned our Universe is in order for life to exist.

Stephen Meyer: Fine-Tuning and the Origin of the Universe