Bad Advertisement?
Are you a Christian?
Online Store:Visit Our Store
| Thus once again every part of creation manifests the glory of God. Nature, the witness to her Creator, yields (by miracles) a second testimony to God Incarnate. The witness of Nature, perverted by man's sin, was thus forced back to truth. If these reasons suffice not, let the Greeks look at facts.
PREVIOUS SECTION - NEXT SECTION - HELP 
§45. Thus once again every part of
creation manifests the glory of God. Nature, the witness to her
Creator, yields (by miracles) a second testimony to God Incarnate. The
witness of Nature, perverted by man’s sin, was thus forced back
to truth. If these reasons suffice not, let the Greeks look at
facts.
Consistently, therefore, the Word of God took a
body and has made use of a human instrument, in order to quicken the
body also, and as He is known in creation by His works so to work in
man as well, and to shew Himself everywhere, leaving nothing void of
His own divinity, and of the knowledge of Him. 2. For I resume, and
repeat what I said before, that the Saviour did this in order that, as
He fills all things on all sides by His presence, so also He might fill
all things with the knowledge of Him, as the divine Scripture also
says325
| 325 Isa. xi. 9. For the
arguments, compare §§11–14. | : “The whole earth was filled with the
knowledge of the Lord.” 3. For if a man will but look up to
heaven, he sees its Order, or if he cannot raise his face to heaven,
but only to man, he sees His power, beyond comparison with that of men,
shewn by His works, and learns that He alone among men is God the Word.
Or if a man is gone astray among demons, and is in fear of them, he may
see this man drive them out, and make up his mind that He is their
Master. Or if a man has sunk to the waters326
| 326 See
Döllinger, Gentile and Jew, i. 449. | , and
thinks that they are God,—as the Egyptians, for instance,
reverence the water,—he may see its nature changed by Him, and
learn that the Lord is Creator of the waters. 4. But if a man is gone
down even to Hades, and stands in awe of the heroes who have descended
thither, regarding them as gods, yet he may see the fact of
Christ’s Resurrection and victory over death, and infer that
among them also Christ alone is true God and Lord. 5. For the Lord
touched all parts of creation, and freed and undeceived all of them
from every illusion; as Paul says: “Having327
put off from Himself the principalities and the powers, He triumphed on
the Cross:” that no one might by any possibility be any longer
deceived, but everywhere might find the true Word of God. 6. For thus
man, shut in on every side328
| 328 The
Incarnation completes the circle of God’s self-witness and of
man’s responsibility. | , and beholding the
divinity of the Word unfolded everywhere, that is, in heaven, in Hades,
in man, upon earth, is no longer exposed to deceit concerning God, but
is to worship Christ alone, and through Him come rightly to know the
Father. 7. By these arguments, then, on grounds of reason, the Gentiles
in their turn will fairly be put to shame by us. But if they deem the
arguments insufficient to shame them, let them be assured of what we
are saying at any rate by facts obvious to the sight of all.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
|
