N0026
1. The Word of God is the final authority. It is self-attesting. It makes thought and being possible. It cannot be questioned.
2. The Word of God is eternal and is God. The Word of God is the Son of God who makes God known (Jn. 1:1; 1:18; 17:6, 26).
3. The Word of God is in all men as reason (Jn. 1:4). The Word of God is in the creation as natural law (Jn. 1:10). The Word of God comes to men as Scripture (Jn. 1:6–8, 11). The Word of God is incarnate in Jesus Christ (Jn. 1:14).
4. The Word of God as reason is fundamental to all revelation; it is necessary for the understanding of general and special revelation.
5. Reason is the laws of thought: the laws of identity, noncontradiction, and excluded middle.
6. Reason is used to form concepts, judgments, and arguments; it is used to test for meaning; it is used to interpret experience in light of basic beliefs; it is used to construct a coherent worldview. As truth cannot be separated from meaning, so faith cannot be separated from reason.
7. Reason is universal, in all men. It is the common ground for all who think. The Word of God as reason is not neutral; one has to stop thinking to avoid what the Word of God reveals (Acts 28:27).
8. Reason is ontological. It applies to being as well as thought. It applies to all being. The Word of God as reason applies to God’s being: God cannot be both eternal and not eternal; God cannot come into being from non-being. Reason, being in God, is eternal.
9. Reason is transcendental. It makes thought possible. Reason is self-attesting; it cannot be testified to. Reason cannot be questioned, but makes questioning possible.
10. Reason is fundamental in man to feeling and will. Knowing the truth makes a person holy and makes a person free (Jn. 8:32, 17:17).
Tags: authority; Word of God; reason; general revelation; knowledge of God
Editor’s Note: This is part of the Foundation series (1994).
For further reading, consult the list of other publications by Dr. Gangadean.
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