When People Speak for God. Henry E. Neufeld
This is hard for some of us to understand, because we think we want to know and do precisely what God commands. But if God made himself too obvious, we might feel pressured just by his obvious presence, sort of like having the boss breathing down our neck.
4 Those who actually listen to God are rare. It’s possible that God is speaking a great deal more than we are hearing, and that the prophets are the ones who listen more. If this one sounds good to you, make sure to consider the idea of the prophetic call Ezekiel 1 or Isaiah 6, for example, in this connection. Is it possible God calls many, and only a few hear and report the situation?
The Word was in the beginning; the Word was with God and the Word was God. Right at the beginning He was with God. All things came into existence through Him. – John 1:1-3a (HN)
The Word of God
At some point, however, we are assuming that someone listens. For Abraham the word of God was something that God had spoken to him. We don't know how he discerned when God was speaking. Perhaps God graciously made it more clear to him, since he knew that Abraham had nothing to which he could compare what he heard.
In modern times, the most common use of the phrase “word of God” is to refer to the written word, and specifically to that collection of books that we call the Bible. This is one case in which a change of terminology can be dangerous.
God's word includes whatever God says, and since his word is also action, whatever God does. The phrase word of God, as used in scripture, is very broad in meaning. The primary function of the word is creation. Genesis 1 emphasizes this and reemphasizes it by showing God speaking, and whatever God speaks, becomes so. Psalm 33:6-9 makes this explicit.
Psalm 104 first emphasizes the power of God's spoken Word (Psalm 104:7), and then the continuing nature of God's creative activity. Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1-3; 14), the ultimate form of God's message to humanity (Hebrews 1:1-3).
Even salvation is an example of God's creative power in action, this time through the Word made flesh. "Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new." - 2 Corinthians 5:17.
God created everything, and so we can learn about God from the natural world and the events that take place in it (general revelation). While we cannot get the same information from studying nature that we can through God's revealed Word in scripture (special revelation) and through the gift of prophecy, we can get truth which comes from studying the word of God in action.
When we engage in scientific study truthfully and honestly, we are studying the word of God. We can approach it with prayer, reverence, and an openness to what God wants us to learn. We should certainly approach it with honesty.
There are some who suggest that we should study the natural world specifically to support certain theological presuppositions. But the best way to learn accurately about God in his creation is by observing it as objectively as possible. We need to allow nature to speak to us just as we allow the scriptures to speak with us, and allow both to correct our own understanding. Together they will bring us a more complete picture of our creator.
But while creation is the primary function of the word, the physical things that are created are not the sole way in which we can receive the word. In the past God has spoken to us in many ways. He has sent angels (Genesis 18), He has spoken directly (Genesis 22, Exodus 19:16-25). He has given visions (Ezekiel 1, Isaiah 6, Acts 10) and dreams (Matthew 2:19-20), and communicated through through direct prophetic utterances.
Many of these are recorded in the Bible and throughout Christian history. The chart below presents a general process by which the word of God is received:
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