Since God has written “two books” (i.e., the book of nature and the book of scripture—as I mentioned in last Sunday’s sermon on Psalm 19), how are we to understand the relationship between them? Is it sufficient only to have access to one or the other?
Romans 1:18-21 asserts that all people have an awareness of God’s existence—and more, of his eternal power and deity—through the witness of nature. Creation gives evidence of a Creator. This is true for everyone (Psalm 19:3-4). So asking if we need to have access to God’s “book of nature” isn’t necessary: we do have that access.
The crucial question is whether or not we need to hear what God says in his “book of scripture.” Do we have reason to believe that people can know the Lord in a saving way simply through his general revelation in nature? I believe the answer is “No.” Consider:
- For all his religious devotion (Acts 10:2), respectable Cornelius was not saved until he heard the message of Christ (11:14).
- Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). Paul makes this point in a string of questions (10:14-17) implying that people must hear the gospel to believe and be saved.
- Many Bible passages link salvation with believing—and believing isn’t mere recognition that God exists but conscious trust in Jesus Christ (e.g., John 3:16, 36; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9; 1 John 5:13).
- The Apostle Paul didn’t spend his life planting churches all over the Roman Empire and endure horrendous suffering (2 Corinthians 11:23-29) because he believed people did not need to hear about Jesus. Quite the opposite: he took Jesus’ mission charge seriously—to make disciples among all peoples (Matt. 28:18-20).
So, we have no good reason to think that people will be saved merely by having access to God’s “book of nature”: they need to learn the gospel truth about themselves and Jesus as revealed in Scripture.
In light of this, let us: pray, love, serve, speak, and go—including to loved ones, friends, and neighbors right here in our community!
