In the first chapter of the Apostle John’s gospel we find this written about Jesus of Nazareth: “No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, HE HAS DECLARED HIM” (vs 18).  The universally-accepted concept of declaring something is to speak or write about it.  In the case of declaring what someone else said or wrote, “declaring” that person means to speak or write what that person said or wrote.  In the world of language usage there is a process known as “referencing,” meaning to name the person whose words one is speaking or writing.  I do this in my speaking and writing by providing “book, chapter and verse” relative to the information I am proclaiming.  I do this in the hope that listeners and readers will follow up on what I say and write by studying the original source.  I would not have anyone take my word for anything I say or write.  I believe that the Lord would have all who speak or write in His name to give credit to Whom credit is due–to Him Who “spoke” to “holy men of old as they were moved upon by the Holy Spirit”–the instrument God used, and still uses, to “speak” to His messengers (Eph. 2:20/ 2 Pet. 1:21).  I have heard God’s “voice” delivered by the Holy Spirit many times.  He speaks of this spiritual phenomenon in Amos 3:7 where He promises to tell his servants what He is going to do before He does it.  This is called “prophecy.”  When the recipient of prophecy speaks or writes what God is going to do it is called “prophesying.”  Much of both the Old and New Testaments is prophecy dealing with the end times–the times in which we are living.  We are the terminal generation.  Many of those living today will witness the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Those who have been called by God to proclaim His Word/will/Truth/Gospel/light “declare” it by speaking and/or writing what has been prophesied.  However, those who truly know God know that there is more to “declaring” Him than merely speaking and writing what He recorded in His Holy Bible.  Before we examine that deeper level of communication, let us be reminded of the importance of the written Word–the mind of God in print.

The vast majority of people living during Bible times were illiterate.  Only those of high social, political or religious status could read and write.  For this reason people known as “scribes” wrote for those who could not write and read for those who could not read.  Some of the prophets had personal scribes who recorded in writing what they said and preached along with what the Lord told them personally.  From this practice came the Old Testament.  During Jesus’ earthly tenure the majority of people still could not read or write.  Note that the people who witnessed His ministry were astonished that He, a mere carpenter, could read–could “know letters” (Jn. 7:15).  Note also that Faith came from “HEARING THE WORD OF GOD” which was read aloud in the Temple and in local synagogues by priests, who, because of their exalted positions, had been taught to read.

Now let us turn to that deeper concept of “declaring” as it relates to both the Father and the Son.  In the Greek language in which the New Testament was written, the word “declare” simply means “to make known.”  As noted, John 1:18 says that Jesus “declared” God.  However, the meaning of “declared” as it applied to both Jesus of Nazareth and His apostles went beyond simply speaking and writing His Words as they were recorded in the Holy Bible.  The difference between reading the Scriptures and “declaring” them in the ministerial sense is as the difference between knowing how to walk and actually walking.  The latter is what I call the act of “being.”

The Biblical concept of declaring (witnessing) is vastly different from the religious concept with which we are all familiar.  For example, in Acts 11:15 a man named Ananias has come to Saul of Tarsus to take away his blindness and to tell him what he (Saul–later changed to Paul) would be doing for the remainder of his life.  Ananias told Paul that God had chosen him to see Jesus Christ and to hear His voice (he had done both while lying on the Damascus Road).  Ananias also told him that he would be God’s “witness” (testifier) of what he had seen and heard.  God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34).  What he commands of one minister He commands of all ministers.  With the exception of formal preaching and teaching, He commands the same thing of all who claim oneness with Him.  All who are His true saints declare/witness Him to those around them.

At this point I want to again stress the importance of the wording of God’s messages to us as recorded in the Holy Scriptures.  The recognition of specific wording–“fine print”–is of vital importance when it comes to knowing and fulfilling the will of God as it is presented in the Bible.  The Apostle Paul spent three years in the Arabian Desert learning exactly what the Lord’s Gospel entailed (Gal. 1:12).  For this reason he was able to present the “whole counsel of God” to those who truly sought His approval (Acts 20:27).  As this series will show, presenting all of God’s Words is only part of the declaring/witnessing process.  As will be shown, “being” is even more important than speaking and writing.  An old adage states that we should “Do as I say, not as I do.”  This does not work in the spiritual realm, as the following posting will prove.  L.J.