Friday 22 August 2025
In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. (v. 5)
Background
Paul is writing from prison. He is in prison because he was an advocate of a new insight and understanding about God evidenced through the life, work, ministry, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and what the significance of this might be. Paul was claiming that he was right and that Jesus' life and teachings were a new insight into the understanding of God. He said I am right; you are wrong – and ended up in prison as a result. One of the new insights, ironically, was that God loves us all equally.
How do we know if something new is of God? If God brought something new as a revelation of his nature and being through Jesus, as Paul proclaimed, how do we know it is right and how do we know that there haven’t been further new revelations from God about his being and nature? This question was asked very early in the life of the Christian Church and a rabbi called Gamaliel responded that if it was of God, no-one would be able to stop the movement. If it wasn’t of God, then the movement would simply fade away.
As human knowledge increases and understandings of the world change, the question of how we know if something is of God becomes crucial. Some of the big issues of recent years would include the insights of science and the debate about evolution and creation; the ongoing debate about human sexuality and same sex marriage; and the issues around assisted dying. I am sure that we could all bring other examples where there has been controversy and ask how do we know if this is a revelation about God or not?
To Ponder:
- How can we know if something we think challenges traditional church beliefs is of God, or not?
- There have been many revivals, reformations and changes over the course of the life of the Church. What new insights have we gleaned from these changes? Does the acceptance of new things make former things irrelevant?
Bible notes author: The Revd Malcolm Peacock
The Revd Peacock is Superintendent Minister of the Mid Glamorgan Mission Circuit. He has a deep and abiding interest in Celtic theology and believes those who are minorities or feel themselves marginalised should be given a voice to speak for themselves.