Progressive revelation (Christian)
Encyclopedia
Progressive revelation in Christianity
is the concept that the sections of the Bible
that were written later contain a fuller revelation
of God compared to the earlier sections. For instance, the theologian Charles Hodge
wrote,
The ultimate revelation
of God is understood to be found in Jesus Christ as revealed in the Gospels. Hence according to this idea, the New Testament
should be used to understand and interpret the Old Testament
, see Christian views on the old covenant, even though all sections of the bible are believed to be accurate according to conservative theology.
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
is the concept that the sections of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
that were written later contain a fuller revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
of God compared to the earlier sections. For instance, the theologian Charles Hodge
Charles Hodge
Charles Hodge was the principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878. A Presbyterian theologian, he was a leading exponent of historical Calvinism in America during the 19th century. He was deeply rooted in the Scottish philosophy of Common Sense Realism...
wrote,
The ultimate revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
of God is understood to be found in Jesus Christ as revealed in the Gospels. Hence according to this idea, the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
should be used to understand and interpret the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
, see Christian views on the old covenant, even though all sections of the bible are believed to be accurate according to conservative theology.
See also
- Biblical inspirationBiblical inspirationBiblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology that the authors and editors of the Bible were led or influenced by God with the result that their writings many be designated in some sense the word of God.- Etymology :...
- Continuous revelationContinuous revelationContinuous revelation or continuing revelation is a theological belief or position that God continues to reveal divine principles or commandments to humanity...
- Direct revelationDirect revelationDirect revelation is a term used by some Christian churches to express their belief in a communication from God to a person, by words, impression, visions, dreams or actual appearance. Direct revelation is believed to be an open communication between God and man, or the Holy Spirit and man, without...
- General revelationGeneral revelationGeneral revelation is a term used by theologians which refers to a universal aspect of God, of God's knowledge and of spiritual matters, discovered through natural means, such as observation of nature , philosophy and reasoning, human conscience or providence or providential history...
- Special revelationSpecial revelationSpecial revelation is a theological term used mainly by evangelical scientists and theologians which refers to the belief that knowledge of God and of spiritual matters can be discovered through supernatural means, such as miracles or the scriptures, a disclosure of God's truth through means other...
- SupersessionismSupersessionismSupersessionism is a term for the dominant Christian view of the Old Covenant, also called fulfillment theology and replacement theology, though the latter term is disputed...