God reveals Himself to us in three primary ways: Creation, Scripture, and Jesus. General revelation is Creation. Special revelation is Scripture. Incarnational revelation is Jesus. However, when we look to Christ, we see the best representation of what God wants us to know about Him, His purpose, and His character. After all, He is the express image of God (Hebrews 1:3).
But before we get into examining those three main categories, I want to mention that because God indwells us (John 14:23; Gal. 4:6), we have fellowship with Him and each member of the Trinity (2 Cor. 13:14). So, there is a sense of His revelation to us internally. However, we do not want to raise our subjective experiences to the same level of Scripture. Scripture is the final authority, not what we feel God is saying to us. Nevertheless, God does communicate to us internally through conviction of sin (John 16:8), His leading (Romans 8:14), and His love (1 John 4:8, 16).
So, let’s take a look at what the Bible says are the three main ways God reveals himself to us.
God reveals Himself to us in Creation (General Revelation)
Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power, and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”
We are made in God’s image, and because of it, we can appreciate and see the handiwork of God all around us. We can look at the creation see the vastness of space, the beauty of sunsets, the perfection in the harmony and design of our ecosystem, the wondrous diversity of plant and animal life. He is a God of order, great power, and incredible intelligence. All of this is evident through the created order.
In fact, we could say that we see the fingerprints of God in creation. Think of this. Space is height, width, and depth. Time is past, present, and future. Matter is solid, liquid, and gas. So, in a sense, we live in a trinity of trinities. Creation is incredible!
God reveals Himself to us in Scripture (Special Revelation)
2 Timothy 3:16–17, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”
Scripture is a better revelation of God than is creation. In it, God reveals specific truths. We learn that there’s only one God (Isaiah 43:10; 44:6, 8), that God is holy (1 Pet. 1:16), a spirit (John 4:24), all-powerful (Jeremiah 32:17, 27), compassionate (2 Chron. 30:9), eternal (Psalm 90:2), and more.
Also, we learn about God’s moral character. Jesus said that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34). God spoke and created (Genesis 1:1-3). He also gave us the moral law in such things as the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). So, Scripture reveals to us more about God, His character, will, and purpose for us (Isaiah 43:7) than does creation.
God reveals Himself to us in Jesus (Incarnational Revelation)
Hebrews 1:3, “And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”
In Jesus, we have the complete revelation of God spoken to us in the Old Testament that is recorded in the New Testament. We learn that Jesus is the express image of God (Hebrews 1:3), who walked on earth and who died for our sins (1 Pet. 2:24). Jesus is called God (John 1:1, 14; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:8), and since He is the perfect one, He is a greater revelation of God’s character and nature (Heb. 1:3) than is Scripture. After all, the scriptures bear witness of Jesus (John 5:39).
So, the ultimate and best way that God reveals Himself to us is in the person and work of Jesus. He is God in the flesh, the one who lived, loved, and died for us. In Him we see the fulfillment in the perfect manifestation and revelation of God to us.
Praise Jesus.
