Anything we know to be true about God can only be known through Scripture. Our ability to discover God on our own is limited, bound as we are by our own finitude. We could not know God if He had not revealed Himself to us. Though we are unable to discover Him, He has disclosed Himself to us through His written revelation, the Bible. He has met our limitation with His benevolent self-revelation. Though this gift, we are able to know the truth, know God, know ourselves, and know the gospel.
Necessary to Know the Truth
Scripture is necessary to know the truth. We’ll move into specific truths here in a bit, but before we get there, we need to remember that we cannot properly understand God’s world without His revelation. God’s written word alone gives us the framework for correctly understanding His creation. I am not implying that we cannot know facts outside of Scripture. Scientists and mathematicians, even without Scripture, have properly deduced many things that are true. But the worldview that frames the right interpretation of those facts is one that only Scripture provides. Though the order and logic of the world may be rightly understood, those alone do not lead us to a full-orbed understanding of God’s world. Order and logic may be discovered outside of revelation, and they may even lead to the conclusion that the world was framed by a Master Builder, but that Builder remains yet unknown without His revelation.
If we cannot properly interpret the physical world without the divine perspective, It is even more true that we cannot understand spiritual truths without Scripture. Since “no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God,” these things must be “revealed to us through His Spirit,” (1 Cor. 2:10-11). God has spoken through His apostles and prophets, instructing us in the truth. Without this divinely initiated move, we would not be able to know the things of God. Anything true—whether of God or of us—must be given to us by God through Scripture.
If we want to know the truth, then, we must come to the Word of Truth. As Jesus said in John 17:17, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” By this He means more than just that everything in Scripture is true. It is truth itself, meaning it is both the pinnacle of truth (truth in its greatest, purest form) and it is the essence of truth (truth defined). All things that are true are only true as they agree with Scripture. We must notice that Jesus does not say that God’s word is true, but that it is truth. It is not true because it conforms to some greater standard. Rather, it is itself the standard. Without it, we have no gauge for the truthfulness of anything else.
Similarly, the psalmist says in Psalm 119:130, “The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” We understand from this that unless God speaks, we are in spiritual darkness. Without light, we cannot see things as they truly are. We are subject to delusions and deception, unable to detect whether or not a claim aligns with reality. Without light, there is only confusion. We don’t know who we are or where to go. But when the light of God’s word breaks into our minds, we are finally able to see God in His glory, ourselves in our sin, and the gospel in its full redemptive power. When God’s word comes, we can finally know the truth. We are blind until God releases the light of truth, revealed through Scripture.
Necessary to Know God
God desires relationship with His creatures. With us. We understand this perhaps most powerfully in the fact that He has chosen to make Himself known to us. He has not left us guessing who He is or what He is like. Scripture is a layer-upon-layer explication of God. From the record of His power and goodness in creation to His comprehensive manifestation in the New Testament writings, God is eager to teach us about Himself. So He has given us the Bible. Beyond knowing truth in a general sense, Scripture is necessary for us to know God’s character, works, and will.
God revealed a number of things about His character in the opening book of the Bible. Genesis teaches us of God’s omnipotence, His creativity, His goodness, His holiness, His wrath, His faithfulness, His mercy, His desire to redeem us, and His providence (to name a few). But the fuzzy details come into focus in Exodus 3 when God reveals His name. Moses fled Egypt and was hiding in the wilderness of Midian when God crossed His path. God called Him from the burning bush, eternally altering his course. He called Moses as His prophet, called to rescue Israel from Egypt. But Moses wondered, “When I come to Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exo. 3:14). God answered, “I AM WHO I AM.”
This self-designation serves to reveal three things about God that are fundamental to who He is: (1) He is self-existent, (2) He is eternal, and (3) He does not change. He says, “I AM WHO I AM,” first of all revealing that His being depends on no one else. The phrase can also be translated as “I exist as the One who exists.” Who is God? The One who exists. We are who we are “by the grace of God” (1 Cor. 15:10), but God is who He is by His own power. He needs no one; He needs nothing; He is who He is. He is the fountain that needs no spring. All that has life and breath flows from Him.
Secondly, He is eternal. “I AM WHO I AM” speaks not only of His self-sufficiency, but also of His eternality. He is the pre-existent one, eternal from before time began until endless time in eternity future. Time itself rests on His decree, and He is not bound by it. Eternity stands before Him, before the Author of all years. He always has been; He always will be.
Third, He does not change. He is immutable. “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Num. 23:19). God’s character is unchanging. He does not lie; He does not fail to keep His word. The effect of His unchanging character is an immutable commitment to His promises. Since He does not change, neither do His promises. It is precisely because God does not change that His promises are so trustworthy. “The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Rom. 11:29). This must have been a great comfort to Moses. His trepidation was met by God’s faithful promises, upheld by His unchanging character.
Nothing can alter or void God’s word. It is as sure as the rhythm of the seasons. “If My covenant is not with the day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, then I will cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant” (Jer. 33:25-26). Did the sun come up today? Then God does not change. Did the planets continue their dance around the sun? Then God is faithful. God does what He says, without wavering, without turning. Not a hint of change, not a shadow of turning. God keeps His word; God accomplishes His will.
Knowing all of this is outside our reach without God’s revelation. His gracious word brings us to Him. God’s character can only be known through Scripture. So also, His works are known through Scripture alone. God is at work in this world. He is not, as the deists think, a negligent watchmaker. The Bible reads as a catalog of God’s mighty works. He created; He blessed; He judged; He rescued; He called; He redeemed. And He promised to send a great Deliverer. The Old Testament leans forward in an ever-building anticipation toward Christ’s incarnation. God not only worked in sovereign providence, but He entered in humble condescension. He walked with us, taught us, healed us, died for us, and rose from the dead for us.
God is not silent, and He is not distant. God is working in this world for good. If we are His, we experience that goodness even now in tangible ways. Yet how great is the glory of His works throughout history! These are ours to enjoy as they are preserved for us in Scripture. It is God’s inspired word that teaches us about His providential (at times miraculous) care for His people. Great is our comfort knowing that He works for us too. Great would be our lack without God’s word. We need Scripture to know God’s works.