What Can We Know Without the Bible

Introduction

We are building our doctrine of the bible piece by piece and tonight we are preparing to lay the foundation for why we need the bible or the necessity of scripture. But we are going to start with the reverse and ask what do we not need the bible to know?

Think with me for a moment about someone in the middle of NE Bhutan, they are one of 3,700 language groups that do not have a bible in their language. There is no bible verse they can read in the only language they speak and think in as of yet. Can this person know anything about God?

Or what about the tribesman in South America who hasn’t even made contact with the outside world. They have never had a missionary, they do not speak the trade language of the country and they never leave their jungle. Can they know anything about God?

The bible describes two different broad ways that mankind can know about God: general revelation and special revelation. General revelation is what God has made known to everyone while special revelation has been given to a specific people at a specific time and place. The struggle with special revelation is that not every has it. The bible is one form of special revelation. When God appeared on Mount Sinai, he was in a specific place talking to a specific person: Moses. That communication was then given to the Jewish people. But not all the world had access to it.

The crux of the matter is accountability. If not everyone has a bible, how can God be just to punish them for something they didn’t know? It would be like coming home one day and expecting your kids to have washed the car. Problem is you never told them to wash the car. So you get home and get all angry and start yelling at them for not washing the car. That would be unjust. So if not everyone has a bible, how can God be just? The answer is that God has given us all enough information or light to make us guilty before God and if we had responded to that light, He would give us more light. There are things all mankind can know about God through general revelation.

General revelation includes:

Creation Psalm 19:1–4 “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, And night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, Where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,”

Conscience Romans 2:15 “Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)”

Providence Psalm 66:7 “He ruleth by his power for ever; His eyes behold the nations: Let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah.” Psalm 111:2–3 “The works of the Lord are great, Sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. His work is honourable and glorious: And his righteousness endureth for ever.”

General revelation shows God’s common grace to all mankind. God because of His love and grace has not left mankind with no information about Him. He has embedded information about Him into the world around us so anyone can look at it and know some things about Him. So what kind of things can we know about God without a bible?

We do not need the bible to know God exists

Romans 1:19–21 “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”

Romans 1 is going to be our main passage tonight because Paul develops this idea that all men are equally guilty. The gentile and the Jew, the sinner and the religious. He concludes in Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” But chapter one shows us that God’s wrath is just because mankind does know that God exists.

God is seen in creation of the world- The world around us displays intelligent design. The classical illustration is used that if I show you a watch with all its intricate design. You might ask who made it? These days I could say Citizen, Fossil, Timex, Rolex, Omega; but what if I then told you this watch just appeared one day out of the blue. No one made it. You would think I was crazy. This argument is called the teleological argument for God’s existence. Atheists will argue that this argument is logically flawed because sharing similar characteristics doesn’t necessarily lead to the conclusion of a designer. The problem with this rebuttal is that they mistake the connection between design and designer. Complex design inherently implies a designer and cannot be separated. My goal is not to show the apologetic argument for God tonight, but point to the fact that creation reveals the existence of God.

Mankind knows God exists- because of this mankind does know God exists. There is probably no greater proof that mankind knows God exists than the universal existence of God like beings in all the world religions. Mankind has universally understood that something bigger exists outside of our created world.

Mankind chose to not glorify God- Mankind has rejected that knowledge. Evidence of their rejection is the replacement with idols in vs 23-25.

The light they had became darkness- when light is rejected, it becomes darkness and hearts become hardened and the mind becomes cain.

They exchanged God for idols vs 23-25

We do not need the bible to know some aspects of God’s character

Romans 1:20 “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”

Acts 14:15–17 “And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein: Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.”

Romans 2:4 “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?”

We do not need the bible to know some aspects of God’s moral law

Romans 2:14–15 “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)”

Romans 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;”

Romans 1:32 “Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.”

Conclusion

General revelation is enough to condemn us, but we need special revelation to save us. Romans 1:20 “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”