ON THE NECESSITY OF A DIVINE REVELATION
IT would be improper, I conceive, to rest the being of God on Scripture testimony; seeing the whole weight of that testimony must depend upon the supposition that he is, and that the sacred Scriptures were written by holy men inspired by him. Hence the Scriptures, at their outset, take this principle for granted; yet in the way that the works of nature imply a Divine First Cause, so does the work of revelation. Men were as morally unable to write such a book as they were naturally unable to create the heavens and the earth. In this way the sacred Scriptures prove the being of a God.
I wish to offer a few remarks on the necessity of a Divine revelation – on the evidence of the Bible being written by inspiration of God, so as to answer this necessity – and on its uniform bearing on the doctrine of salvation through the cross of Christ; but as this is more than can be comprehended in a single letter, I must divide it into two or three.
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First, I shall offer a few remarks on the necessity of a revelation from God. In establishing this principle, let it be observed, we are not required to depreciate the light of nature. The word of God is not to be exalted at the expense of his works. The evidence which is afforded of the being and perfections of God by the creation which surrounds us, and of which we ourselves are a part, is no more superseded by revelation than the law is rendered void by faith. All things which proceed from God are in harmony with each other. If all the evidence which the heathen have of the being and perfections of God consist of traditional accounts, derived originally from revelation, there must be great uncertainty in it, as in every thing else that comes through such an uncertain medium; and if so, though they should disbelieve it, how are they without excuse? and how are we to understand the reasonings of the apostle on the subject? He appears to represent the wrath of God as revealed from heaven against all ungodliness, "because that which may be known is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of him, that is, his eternal power and Godhead, are clearly seen from the creation of the world, being understood by the things that are made; so that they are without excuse." This is equal to saying, God is invisible, but his works are visible: his eternal power and Godhead are manifest from the things which he has created. All things which have a beginning must originate in a cause without beginning; so that they are without excuse. Whether the heathen in any instance have, or have not, actually perceived the eternal power and Godhead of the Creator, merely from the works of his hands, is a question that I shall not undertake to answer. If such a case never occurred, it is sufficient for my argument that it has not been for want of objective light, but of a state of mind to receive it. In pleading for the necessity of Divine revelation, as the means of enlightening and saving sinners, we should beware of imitating those who, in arguing for the necessity of Divine grace to renew and sanctify them, represent them as physically unable to do good without it, and so excuse them in their sins. "Every mouth will be stopped, and all the world," whatever advantages or disadvantages they may have possessed in these respects, "will be found guilty before God." It is true that the guilt of those who have lived in sin without the light of revelation will be much less than theirs who have continued in their sins under it; but all are without excuse before God. Divine revelation is necessary to a competent knowledge of God, and of his will concerning us. This principle will be evident by a review of two others; namely, the insufficiency of human reason for these important purposes, and the connexion between revelation and faith.
1. Let us review the insufficiency of human reason to obtain from the mere light of nature a competent knowledge of God, and of his will concerning us. The light of nature furnishes us with little or no knowledge of the moral character and government of God. While man was in a state of innocence, indeed, he might, by reflecting on his own mind, understand something of the character of that Divine original after whose image he was created; but, having sinned, this image is effaced. It is also true that the judgments of God against sinners are manifest in all the earth; and every man's conscience bears witness that what is wrong in another towards him must be wrong in him towards another; and that, having felt and acted contrary to this equitable principle, in innumerable instances, he is a sinner; but as to the evil nature of sin as committed against God, and his own lost condition, conscience itself can yield him little or no information. And as to an hereafter, whether there be any, and, if there be, what it will prove; whether we shall have to give account of the deeds done in the body; whether there will be any hope of forgiveness; and what we must do to be saved – all is darkness.
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The light of nature, though sufficient to bear witness for God, and so to leave sinners without excuse, was never designed in any state to furnish man with all he needed. Even in innocence man was governed by a revealed law. It does not appear that he was left to find out the character or will of his Creator by his reason, though reason, being under the influence of rectitude, would lead him, as he understood the mind of God, to love and obey it. But if revelation was necessary in innocence, much more now man's foolish heart is darkened by sin.
The state of the heathen, who are without Divine revelation, furnishes awful proof of its necessity. The grossness of their thoughts of God, and of an hereafter, is such, that those who have received the light of revelation can scarcely think it possible for rational beings to entertain them. To say nothing of the uncivilized heathen, even the polished sons of Greece and Rome, though prodigies in science, yet, in relation to these things, were the subjects of the most sottish stupidity. Well is it said, "The world by wisdom knew not God." That small portion of real light which on these subjects appears in the writings of our modern deists, is borrowed from those very writings which they mean to depreciate. They live in the neighbourhood of revelation, and, whether they will own it or not, are enlightened by it. The speculations of those who have had only the light of nature to guide them are, in respect of God and religion, absurd in the extreme.
Man is said to be wiser than the beasts of the field; but it is principally by means of instruction. We are born, it is true, with an immortal mind; but, uninformed, what is it? Knowledge chiefly enters in at the door of the senses. To what do we owe the gift of speech? It seems to be natural to us; but if we look at one who is born deaf, we shall find him dumb also; and if to this be added blindness, there will be but little difference between him and the beasts of the field. But if we need human instruction for the attainment of knowledge in things of this life, is it surprising that we should need a Divine instructor for things heavenly and Divine? It is true that God instructs us, as has been said, by his works; but they contain only a few of the rudiments of Divine knowledge; like the parables of our Saviour, they were not designed to furnish perfect information on the subject, but merely a general intimation, tending to excite humble inquiry for further instruction; which, when asked, was readily granted, but, when set at nought, it was "seeing and not perceiving, hearing and not understanding; lest they should be converted and healed." The apostle, in his address to the Athenians, represents it as the design of God, in his works of creation and providence, to lead men to seek him; but though he was not far from every one, seeing all live, and move, and have their being in him, yet the light of nature could only enable them "to feel after him, if haply they might find him." Though "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork;" though "day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge," and though their voice is heard in every language and in every clime, even to the end of the world; yet it is not by them, but by the word of Jehovah, that souls are converted, and the simple made wise. Some of the wisest among the old heathens felt and acknowledged the need there was of a revelation from heaven; and heathens of the present day acknowledge the same thing. A Hindoo fakeer, who was a brahmin goroo, being lately asked by one of his disciples, who had heard a missionary at Balasore, whether he could make known to him the living and only God, answered, "We know there is one living God, besides Kreshnoo, Seeb, and Ram; but we do not know his way." The disciple replied, "Come to the Sahib, Fakeer; he will tell you of the God of heaven, whose way he knows."
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2. The necessity of Divine revelation will further appear, if we consider its relation to faith.
Supposing mankind to be in a guilty and perishing condition, and that "God so loved the world as to give his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life," a revelation from heaven was necessary as the ground of faith. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God:" without revelation, therefore, there would be no faith, and so no salvation.
Both revelation and faith may, however, exist in widely different degrees. Revelation was first given in obscure intimations, afterwards in types and shadows, in promises and in prophecies; and under each it was the office of faith to keep pace with it. The faith of Abel and that of Paul, though as to their nature and object the same, yet, as to degree, must have been widely different, on account of the difference of the degrees of Divine revelation which each possessed. Revelation, like the shining light, shone "more and more unto the perfect day," and such was the "path of the just," which corresponded with it.
From these remarks, we may see the force of such passages as the following: "He showeth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel. He hath not dealt so with any nation; and as to his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the Lord." – "What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there in circumcision? Much every way; chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God." – "At that time ye were without Christ, (being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise,) having no hope, and without God in the world; but now, in Christ Jesus, ye who some time ago were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ."
We may also learn, from these remarks, to make allowance for the small degrees of faith where the light of revelation has been but little known. It is not for us to say how small a portion of Divine truth may irradiate the mind, nor by what means the Holy Spirit may impart it. According to the ordinary way of the Divine proceeding under the gospel, it may be asked, "How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent!" But this has not been the uniform method of the Divine proceeding from the beginning. Previously to the time of Moses, there was no written revelation, and till the coming of Christ no ordinance for preaching the word. No missionaries till then were sent among the heathen. Good men under the Old Testament stood on much lower ground than those under the New Testament. Cornelius, the Roman centurion, being stationed in Judea, learned enough of the God of Israel to be just and devout, giving much. alms to the people, and praying to God alway; and, before he had heard of Jesus being the Messiah, his prayers and his alms were approved of God. Yet the words spoken to him by Peter were those by which he was saved: a proof this, not of there being another way of acceptance with God than that which the gospel reveals, nor of its being possible without faith to please God; but that faith may exist while as yet there is no explicit revelation of the Saviour. Finally, It is not for us to say what maybe effected in an extraordinary way upon the minds of men. A ray of Divine revelation shot athwart the darkness of paganism into the minds of the Eastern magi, and led them to worship the new-born Saviour. ==================== [From Joseph Belcher, The Complete Works of the Rev. Andrew Fuller, Volume I, 1845; rpt. 1988. Document provided by David Oldfield, Post Falls, ID. -- jrd]
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