(_b_) Natural theology supplemented.—The Christian revelation is the chief source of theology. The Scriptures plainly declare that the revelation of God in nature does not supply all the knowledge which a sinner needs (Acts 17:23; Eph. 3:9). This revelation is therefore supplemented by another, in which divine attributes and merciful provisions only dimly shadowed forth in nature are made known to men. This latter revelation consists of a series of supernatural events and communications, the record of which is presented in the Scriptures. _Acts 17:23_—Paul shows that, though the Athenians, in the erection of an altar to an unknown God, “acknowledged a divine existence beyond any which the ordinary rites of their worship recognized, that Being was still unknown to them; they had no just conception of his nature and perfections” (Hackett, _in loco_). _Eph. 3:9—_“the mystery which hath been hid in God”—this mystery is in the gospel made known for man’s salvation. Hegel, in his Philosophy of Religion, says that Christianity is the only revealed religion, because the Christian God is the only one from whom a revelation can come. We may add that as science is the record of man’s progressive interpretation of God’s revelation in the realm of nature, so Scripture is the record of man’s progressive interpretation of God’s revelation in the realm of spirit. The phrase “word of God” does not primarily denote a _record_,—it is the _spoken_ word, the _doctrine_, the vitalizing _truth_, disclosed by Christ; see _Mat. 13:19—_“heareth the word of the kingdom”; _Luke 5:1—_“heard the word of God”; _Acts 8:25—_“spoken the word of the Lord”; _13:48, 49—_“glorified the word of God: ... the word of the Lord was spread abroad”; _19:10, 20—_“heard the word of the Lord, ... mightily grew the word of the Lord”; _1 Cor. 1:18—_“the word of the cross”—all designating not a document, but an unwritten word; _cf.__ Jer. 1:4—_“the word of Jehovah came unto me”; _Ez. 1:3—_“the word of Jehovah came expressly unto Ezekiel, the priest.” (_c_) The Scriptures the final standard of appeal.—Science and Scripture throw light upon each other. The same divine Spirit who gave both revelations is still present, enabling the believer to interpret the one by the other and thus progressively to come to the knowledge of the truth. Because of our finiteness and sin, the total record in Scripture of God’s past communications is a more trustworthy source of theology than are our conclusions from nature or our private impressions of the teaching of the Spirit. Theology therefore looks to the Scripture itself as its chief source of material and its final standard of appeal.