Revelation

There is a desire inherent to the human condition. This desire drives humanity to ever greater knowledge of how and why. Once the basic needs are met, a person's thoughts and desires naturally turn to questions about the nature of our reality. Why are we here? How are we here? Is there a purpose for my life other than survival? Culture, societies, religions, philosophies are all based on the answers to these kinds of questions. Revelation is the process by which many believe these questions have been answered. What is revelation and how does the process of revelation work?

The idea of revelation varies from belief system to belief system. The text book definitions are:

1. Something revealed.

2. An act of revealing, especially a dramatic disclosure of something not previously know or realized.

3. Theological . A manifestation of divine will or truth.[1]

The first two definitions can be almost anything. Perhaps, the revelation of the guilty party at the end of a murder mystery, or the discovery of feathered dinosaurs could be examples. The theological definition is much more in line with what humanity yearns to have knowledge of, especially-divine truth. However, not all world views believe that truth is revealed from a divine source.

The world's belief systems do vary in how truth is obtained. Buddhist believe in a process of humanistic enlightenment that divinity has nothing to do with.[2] The theistic belief systems vary in their views of revelation. While most of the monotheistic religions agree on the source of truth, they differ on how the revelation of the truth was manifested. Islam believes that Muhammad was the final and greatest prophet. Divine truth was revealed to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel.[3] Christianity teaches that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that all truth can be known through Him.[4] The Bahá'í, relative newcomers to the theological scene, believe that all religions are revelations of truth and that revelation is progressive. According to the Bahá'í, every thousand years or so there is a manifestation of God who adds to the truth that is revealed.[5] With all these varying claims in the world, how is one to determine what revelation is and how it works?

For an individual to truly understand revelation, one must first believe in something greater than oneself. One must first believe that there is absolute truth which can be revealed. Without absolute truth and a higher authority, what is the point of learning anything more than how to survive the few decades of life. True revelation comes from God. However, as history shows, God doesn't reveal absolute truth to just anyone. He also has not revealed it all to us. After all, God only gives us what we can handle.

The Bahá'í are correct in that revelation is progressive. God, over the centuries, has used men to inject truth into the world. He is still doing this. A lot of our technical advances have been inspired by God. Our increasing knowledge of the cosmos is directed by the hand of God. If one believes what main stream Christianity teaches, God is no longer revealing anything new about spirituality, morality or why he created us in the first place. According to many Christian leaders, absolute truth is contained in the Bible and there is no need to learn anything more than what the Bible teaches concerning the great truths of creation. While the Bible is a great source of truth, it is not complete or completely accurate. The Bible is truth filtered through a relationship with fallible men.

The process of revelation starts with relationship. One must have a relationship with God in order for God to teach or reveal truth. Fortunately, God made this possible for everyone. A relationship with God is now personal and can easily be chosen. Simply by choosing to acknowledge who God is and what he has done, anyone can approach him. This is true because of the actions God took through Christ. Once the relationship is established, revelation begins. At first, the revelations are simple. As one gets to know God, the lessons become more advanced and complex. The greatest and deepest truths are revealed only to those who are mature enough to handle them.

The process of revelation is hampered only by two things. An individuals ability to understand the revelation and their motive. Ability is determined by two things. First, is one's willingness to accept the revelation. Some writings attributed to Paul reveal an inability to accept women as equals. Second, is the mental capacity for an individual to grasp the revelation. God did not reveal to Moses the Astrophysics involved in creating the universe because Moses could not have understood. Today, there are individuals who can handle such truth. While God, himself, has not changed, our ability to understand him and his ways has increased slowly over the centuries. However, motive has always interfered with mankind's ability to receive divine truth. God does not reveal things to individuals whose motives are selfish. Knowledge is a powerful thing and too many people have the wrong motivation for God to use them to convey a new truth or clarify a partially revealed truth. Motives of personal gain, control or even sexual lust can stop anyone from learning anything new from God. This is the primary problem with mainstream religion. God won't reveal new truth to people whose livelihoods, relationships, and personal identity are tied up in religion. Fear of economic insecurity or being ostracized creeps in and closes the religious mind to anything new. Essentially, for revelation to continue one must maintain an open mind and heart towards God.

The most important thing to remember about revelation is that God is motivated by love. God has not dictated truth to anyone since Moses received the ten commandments. Instead God works through a process of influence. Suggestions and experiences that mold into concrete truths. Free will is too important for God to dictate truth to us. This is why it has taken many thousands of years for mankind to progress. Mankind probably has many more thousands of years to progress before we are ready for God's return.

If you have a personal relationship with God, you do not have to take any individual's word at face value. It may sound good, but, before you make the "truth" that someone is presenting a part of who you are, talk to God about it. If you know him, you will not be led astray.

[1]The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition. Houghton Mifflin. 1985

[2]http://www.vgweb.org/bsq/revelation.htm

[3] http://www.islam.com/introislam.htm

[4]John 14:6. http://net.bible.org/bible.php?book=Joh&chapter=14#n6

[5]http://www.ufbahai.org/bahai/questions.html