General RevelationRemember
that general and special revelation
are presuppositions
of Christian theism. This worksheet will help you
learn about general revelation. Later on, you'll learn about
special revelation and the problems with worldviews which hold that no
revelation exists. General RevelationGod
has given everyone some knowledge of who He is. God's act of
giving this knowledge to us is called general revelation.
This means that everyone is held responsible to God because
of the knowledge He has given us. We have no excuse for
rejecting God. All of us have gone far beyond just rejecting
God, though. We've tried to bury the truth about Him and lift
up other things that we can worship as gods. For this
assignment, we'll discuss Romans 1:18-32 together and fill out the
discussion questions.Discussion Questions- Read
Romans 1:18-32. Because of general revelation, even
non-Christians know certain things about God. Make a list of
the
things that everyone knows. (Pay special attention to verses
18-20 and 28-32.)
- How do
they know these things about God? How has He revealed this
knowledge to them? (Pay special attention to verses 18-21.
You may also want to read Romans 2:12-16.)
- What
have non-believers done
with their knowledge of God? (Pay special attention to the
way
the word "suppress" is used in verse 18 and the word "retain" in verse
28.)
- Why do you think
non-believers suppress the truth
about God? Are you ever tempted to do the same thing when
you've
done something wrong?
- What
have non-believers become because they
suppressed the truth? Give evidence from Romans 1:18-32 to
support your answer.
- What
are some of the substitute "gods" that the unbelievers in Romans
1:18-32 worship? List some of them.
- List
some of the false gods our culture has lifted up today to replace the
true God.
- How would you
respond to someone who says, "I'm not guilty of any sins because God
never told me how to live His way"? Explain part of Romans
1:28-32 to him as part of your answer.
- If
everyone has some knowledge of God, why do most of them say that they
don't know God - or say things about God that contradict Romans
1:18-20? Hint: This has something to do with "suppressing"
(v. 18)
the truth and choosing not to "retain the knowledge of God" (v. 28)
- Find
a passage in the Bible other than Romans 1 that teaches about general
revelation. Copy down at least one verse and
reference from the passage. Explain the original
meaning of the passage.
- Now
that you know more about general revelation, explain how this knowledge
affects they way that you live. Do you still try to suppress
some
of the knowledge of God? How do you think God wants to change
you?
- Explain
how your knowledge of general revelation should affect the way you see
non-believers. Will all non-believers be receptive to the
gospel?
How can this knowledge help you share the gospel?
Do
some Web or library research to find a religion or philosophy
that
says that no general revelation exists. (If you need help
getting started, you may want to look at agnostics, who say that they
don't really know whether or not God exists.) Explain the
areas
where you think that religion agrees with the Christian worldview.
Then explain the areas where you think that
religion disagrees with the Christian worldview.
References"Theology."
Lightbearers: A Biblical
Christian Worldview Curriculum. Ed. David
Noebel, Pat Maloy, and Kevin J. Bywater. Manitou Springs: Summit
Ministries, 2004. "General Revelation: God's Reality
Is Known to All." Concise
Theology:A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs. Packer,
J.I.
Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. 1993. 9-10.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 06 February 2006 )
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