N0022
1. Eternal Life Is Knowing God
i. Eternal life is not heaven; it begins in this life and grows with
understanding.
ii. Knowledge of God is in itself intellectual, not emotional or practical.
iii. Knowledge is the basis of holiness and righteousness.
iv. The good for man as a rational being is necessarily the knowledge
of God.
v. Man's chief end is to glorify God in all that by which he makes
himself known.
2. Creation Is Revelation
i. This is so necessarily and intentionally; all of the original
creation is good.
ii. There is no revelation apart from creation; evil and redemption
deepen this revelation.
iii. There is no direct or infused knowledge of God; there is no
beatific vision of God.
iv. This revelation is full, not bare; the whole earth is full of
God's glory.
v. The Word of God as reason is used to understand general and special
revelation.
3. General Revelation Is Clear
i. If there is no clarity, there can be no sin, and therefore no need
for salvation.
ii. Clarity has philosophical certainty; one must deny reason to avoid
what is clear.
iii. Denial of clear general revelation is the root of all sin and is
without excuse.
iv. Revelation is mediate, not immediate; it is understood through what
has been made.
v. Revelation is objectively clear, not subjectively clear.
vi. The inherent consequence of sin, as the denial of one's reason, is
spiritual death.
4. Knowledge Is Through Dominion
i. In dominion, mankind is to develop all the powers latent in man and
the creation.
ii. Dominion is corporate and historical; it is from the cumulative
effort of many through time.
iii. The goal of dominion is knowledge of God's self-revelation in the
creation.
iv. Since the fall, dominion has been extended to include dominion over
sin.
v. This requires taking every thought captive raised up against the
knowledge of God.
5. The Earth Shall Be Full of the Knowledge of God
i. The goal is achieved gradually by ordinary means, not rapidly
without means.
ii. All believers must come to the unity of the faith through the work
of teaching.
iii. All nations must be discipled and taught to obey God's law in its
fullness.
iv. Natural evil serves this purpose as God's call to stop and think
deeply.
v. The Sabbath affirms that man will complete his work as God completed
his work.
Tags: knowledge of God; dominion; general revelation; eternal life; kingdom of God
Editor’s Note: N0018–N0022 are duplicate copies of the same paper in
progress. N0022 is the most complete version. The papers are all dated
8/30/1994.
For further reading, consult the list of other publications by Dr. Gangadean.
View the original papers: