Dialogue with Dyerlogic part 3

I said I'd talk about 'revelation' last time I wrote [Sorry it's not a daily effort and I lost WIFI power too for a while today]. I wonder if there is a logic to 'revelation'? I do not mean the book in the New Testament called Revelation [Apocalypse] but that is part of the revelation of the whole Bible. The inclusion of it at the end of the Bible [order of books is another subject], implies that there is a reason the early church fathers reckoned it important to include, if a little [?] strange to our understanding! It meant they understood that God revealed something of importance.

That God intervenes in our lives during the processes of what we call the past, history, is taken for granted in the bible. If he created he can communicate. Since he created he does communicate with his creation. There's some logic there. If I had created something I'd want to talk to 'it'. In fact, a parental relationship is aligned here to the discussion; since I have a son and a daughter I like to talk to them. I like to see what they're doing and if I can help in any way- no not interfere! Love creates the family. Who created the family and why? Well the source of love.... and yes, the definitions of that term are needed. IF we dare consider that God created the world there must be a reason, a purpose for it. I'm not going to go into the how of that creation; the bible is not a scientific text book. Nor is it a straight history. It is an account of various times with various people for specific purposes in particular contexts of how God related himself to people, to this world. It is enough to 'reveal' to us that he does communicate.

So how? Hebrews 1:1-2 lets us know. 'Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.' There is a load of theology in that! John's gospel started similarly: John 1:1-2 ' In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.'

So the belief there is that God started things off by a 'word'; no ordinary word'. That word 'logos' in Greek = speech; what is behind 'speech'? Communication; that needs ideas formulated and 'sent out'. The logos therefore created the world as a result. A ton more theology there. Theology is therefore the 'study of God' or the speech of God- and ways we interpret and understand it.

Isn't it a good job we don't need to be in-depth theologians to get the idea that the Creator talks to us! Verification is the next issue! Verify- make sure it is true. The Latin word veritas is what we translate as 'Truth'. Back to Truth! If God epitomises communication then surely he has to give truth. We verify it? actually I think He does. That is 'revelation'. We begin to take it on board if we are willing to be open to it. Yes I realise that people open themselves up to all sorts of avenues that are dangerous often without realising. So verification has to be more than individualised. Hence we get to tradition. The Hebrew Bible, its various histories [stories], poems [Psalms and often prophetic texts use poetry], wisdom sayings [Proverbs etc] and prophecies - give us a picture of WHO God is. Sometimes it is not what we want to read. So we skip to the New Testament for 'nice stories' of Jesus; but he had a horrific death -yes and brilliant resurrection - revealed and verified by the early church in the very beginnings of it (read 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; the gospels' endings and early Acts accounts). What for? That is for a future blog. So when read all together we begin to get a picture of God as far more than a Sunday school image or an icon in a Cathedral. The Creator is revealing himself all the way through till the fullest picture seen in Jesus Christ -(who is also within the Old Testament if we look for the imagery.)

Are we willing to look beyond the cultural imagery to the reality of the one who came from the Father to reveal him: John 1:18 'No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.'

Next we have to consider how that relates to us nearly 2000 years later.