Creator, Father, King #82

The LORD has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.

BEFORE MOSES CLIMBED UP Mount Sinai for an extended stay, the Israelites got a dazzling display of God’s awesome power.

Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and a thick cloud descended upon the mountain. The sky filled with black smoke, and the mountain trembled violently, causing the people to shake with fear. The Lord had manifested his presence.

But of all the remarkable events that transpired over the next forty days on Mount Sinai, that shocking display might have been the least amazing thing that happened. When God gave Moses the Mosaic law, it signaled to Israel that he is a God of self-revelation.

Today, God has revealed himself to us sufficiently in his Word, the sixty-six books of the Bible. For the next five days, we’re going to discuss the blessing that God has given to us in Scripture.

What’s It Mean?

God has revealed himself in many different ways throughout history:

• through his creation
• through mighty signs and wonders
• directly to individuals in the Bible through a divine visit, vision, or audible interaction
• to a person or people group through a prophet or other mediator in Scripture
• through holy men who wrote down his words under the Holy Spirit’s guidance

The last point, in particular, was how the Bible was written. As 2 Peter 1:20-21 says, “No prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (ESV).

The Bible doesn’t tell us everything about God—not even the universe can contain his greatness, let alone one book—but it does sufficiently reveal everything we need to know about him for life, truth, and salvation.

Praise the Lord that he’s a God of revelation! He certainly didn’t owe this to rebels like us. Without God’s initiative, we’d be hopelessly lost in sin. But God mercifully revealed his nature, laws, and salvation to us. He loves us dearly and wants us to know him, love him, and worship him forever.

Now What?

Whenever you read any of the following phrases in the Bible . . .

• The word of the Lord came to . . .
• Then the Lord told . . .
• Thus says the Lord . . .
• Tell my people Israel . . .

. . . remember that God was graciously revealing himself to people!

Did You Know?

Most incredibly, God has revealed himself to us by becoming one of us. See the March 26 and December 14–17 devotions for more details!