glorycloud's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Natural Revelation It is 7:24 AM Thursday morning in the flow of life. Outside this morning it is 72 degrees and sunny. I should take Rudy for a walk someplace this morning. I have been up since 5:15 AM this morning. I feel like going back to bed. I am such a lazy bum. I really have done nothing this morning but write in my paper diary and messed with our main computer. I had some thoughts regarding the novel "The Book Of Strange New Things" by Michel Faber that I thought of sharing here in my blogs, but why? I will just mention that in the novel "The Book Of Strange New Things" the main character named Peter is sent to another planet to be a minister to an alien race. This race of aliens have already been evangelized by another minister who has disappeared. Anyway read the novel, but what I was thinking this morning was according to the Bible sin is passed on to the human race by Adam. I won't go into the theology of the Adamic Fall, but simply say according to the Bible we meaning the human race fell with Adam into the state of sin recorded in the first chapters of the Book of Genesis (Old Testament). Because we meaning mankind fell into a state of sin we need to be saved or delivered from the bondage of sin. This is where the sending of the Son of God Jesus Christ the Second Adam comes into the biblical narrative of salvation. Because of the Fall we need salvation. Now if I take the novel "The Book Of Strange New Things" (this is the titled the aliens give to the Bible) seriously these aliens have not fallen into a state of sin because they have not descended from Adam who is the father of the human race. If sin is passed on to us because of Adam's disobedience in the Garden of Eden these aliens in the novel have no fallen nature/they are not lost therefore do not need to be saved. Get my point? I could write more about the novel "The Book Of Strange New Things" because when I went to Bible College many years ago I was a Missions major/I was thinking of becoming a missionary but changed my mind and sought the office of a pastor/gospel preacher. In some sense all true Christians are missionaries. Anyway I see in the novel how the main character is struggling how to communicate Biblical truth to an alien race that has no comprehension/understanding of the Bible because the Bible can only be understood when it is seen as being in some sense a product of Earth history. The Bible is born out earth reality. For aliens who are not aware of earth reality can not grasp the teachings of the Bible because the Bible takes for granted what is called Natural Revelation. Nature points to God/earth realities direct the mind to spiritual realities that can only be seen when enlightened by God the Holy Spirit. But special revelation is built on natural revelation. Aliens on another planet radically different than earth could not grasped the teachings of the Bible because they would have no understanding of earthly realities. Get my point? Anyway the morning goes by. I suppose I will close to wait to see what I do today. I should take Rudy for a walk. 7:49 a.m. - 2015-07-30 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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