Do you not know?
When
knowing God is phrased as a question like, “Do you know God?” The answer is often left alone without
further scrutiny. This is appropriate
for even the most religious of individuals and it almost always carries the
ring of familiarity to it which furthers comforts us. Sometimes we will encounter an unfamiliar and
therefore uncomfortable answer to the question of knowing God. Many are comfortable with knowing God through
the Gospel of Jesus Christ or even the simplistic answer of the Bible. This in contrast to the understanding of
knowing God through general revelation as one can peer into the vastness of
space and simply know that there is a God.
The
first misunderstanding in knowing God through general revelation is in that
there is a blurred distinction between knowing God and salvation. These two concepts get meshed together and
for good reason because if one is to be saved he or she is in need of a
savior. The two seem to walk hand in
hand and thus many argue that to know God is to be saved by Him. The flaw in this logic is that it appears to
be inconsistent with Scripture, our ultimate authority. “The wrath of God is being revealed from
heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the
truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them,
because God has made it plain to them” (Romans 1:18-19).
It
appear that one can indeed know God as He is made plain to us and yet still
have the wrath of God waiting. “It
appears here that the wrath of God is revealed not to those who are ignorant of
the truth, but to those who already know the truth, however imperfectly” (Oden,
1998, p. 58). So even for the Gnostic
who claims there is a God this appears to insufficient for salvation. While general revelation has value in showing
God to the world in such a way as to leave man without an excuse this same
knowledge is not the means to salvation.
This is a distinction that must be made clear in order for general
revelation to have its proper role in the world let alone within theology.
The old song lyric, to know him is to love him, makes for
a good song and an even more popular saying but simply poor theology. This is primarily due to our view on knowing
someone or something as we have becomes a scientific based society. When our curiosity is peaked we take our
curiosity and place it under a microscope and begin examination and research
until we are intimate in our understanding of the new phenomena. “God is subject not object also means that there
is a great difference knowing God and possessing propositional knowledge about
God” (Grenz, 2000, p. 49). We cannot
place God under a microscope and therefore our knowledge of Him does not come
by human means.
We see even a distinction in the
definition of knowledge. This is vital
in our ability to gain proper perspective in revelation versus
relationship. To know God does in fact
represent an intimate knowledge and relationship and yet propositional
knowledge is so prevalent that mob mentality usually dictates what people know
or do not know.
“By way of analogy, one can marvel at the Pietà in the
Vatican, be impressed with the exquisite execution of the sculpting and its
lifelike qualities, and conclude that the artist was a true master. However, even
with the trained eye of an art historian, careful scrutiny of this masterpiece
does not by itself inform the viewer of the identity of the artist” (Hoffmeier,
2000, pp. 20-21).
Although the world around
us screams that there is a Creator and He is God that does not mean He is your
God and this is the line drawn in the sand.
So when is knowing not really
knowing? This is one of the primary
reasons we have labeled these revelations general. Through Scripture we see the difference time
and time again as we realize that God is a relational being and knowing Him is
only the beginning to loving Him much like a first date with a future spouse. Should general revelation be given more than
its intended parameter then we could see the making of several gods as everyone
could claim to have learned of God by different revelation. This is why it becomes imperative to not only
know God but to be known by God as He reveals Himself as He is not as we
perceive. This in contrast to the
understanding of knowing God through general revelation as one can peer into
the vastness of space and simply know that there is a God and yet never be
known by God.
References:
NIV Study Bible. (2011). Rapid Falls, MI: Zondervan.
Grenz, S.
J. (2000). Theology for the Community of God. Grand Rapids, Michigan:
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
Hoffmeier,
J. K. (2000). "The Heavens Declare The Glory of God": The Limitis of
General Revelation. Trinity Journal ns 21 no 1, 17-24.
Oden, T. C.
(1998). Without Excuse: Classic Christian Exegesis of General Revelation. Journal
of the Evangelical Theological Society 41 no 1, 55-68.
