General and Special Revelation

Many people say they will only believe in God when God reveals itself (himself) to them. They say there is no evidence that God exists.

Although there are thousands of people who claim to have ‘met’ God in some way – they are not believed by non-believers who find many reasons to say that their account is untrue.

Think about this though – if you met God, could you prove it?

Hepworth 2007Hepworth 2007

Special Revelation

Special revelation is when God reveals Himself directly to a person or group in a dream, vision or a miracle.”

NB / God has chosen those people ‘especially’ to communicate to them.

Examples of Special Revelation: St Paul

Saul had a vision of a bright light on his way to Damascus. A voice asked why Saul why he was hunting down Christians. Saul was convinced that the light and voice were God.

He changed his name to Paul and travelled the world telling people about Christianity. He wrote most of the books in the New Testament.

Example of Special Revelation: Moses

Moses had a vision of a burning bush and a voice that told him to return to Egypt to free the Hebrew slaves.

General Revelation

“General revelation is how people generally come to know about God and believe in God.

They don’t have any special experience, but they gradually come to faith through a variety of experiences.

Examples of General Revelation

People learn about God through reading the Bible. It teaches them how God has acted in human history, the laws that God expects humans to follow and gives people comfort in times of trouble. Knowing God

through holy books

Examples of General Revelation

People learn about God through their response and appreciation of the wonders and beauty of the world around them.

Nature is beautiful, clever and complicated. They feel that it is so awesome and wonderful that God must have created it.

Knowing God through nature

Examples of General Revelation

People learn about God through the lives and example of religious people they admire.

Martin Luther King was a Christian Baptist Minister (vicar) who stood up for black rights in America.

Knowing God through the lives of Inspirational people

Examples of General Revelation

People learn about God through the lives and advice of religious leaders like the Pope who study the Bible and tell their followers how they feel God would want them to live today.

Knowing God through religious leaders

Examples of General Revelation

People learn about God through going to church and worship services. They listen to someone reading from the Bible and giving a sermon (talk) that tells them about God. The experience of worshipping together can be very powerful for some people.

Knowing God through worship

The impact of revelation

It is important to remember that however people say they have experienced God – it has a massive impact on the life of that person.

Often, the experience will completely change them.

Proof?There is no scientific evidence of a person’s experience being true – we cannot prove it happened by scientific means.

All we can do is listen to someone’s testimony (account of the experience) and judge the impact it had on them.

Exam questions: have a go!

o What is the definition of revelation?

o What is the difference between special and general revelation?

o Give an example of general revelation and explain how it reveals something about God.