This is what separates deism from theism as ordinarily practised, and it does more work than the belief in a creator does. If the laws are never suspended, then there are no miracles to attest a revelation, no prophecy to authenticate a prophet, and no mechanism by which a petition could be answered — so the entire apparatus of revealed religion loses its foundation at once. Paine drew the conclusion bluntly, arguing that revelation is only revelation to the person who receives it and hearsay to everyone else. It is also why deism struggles to sustain congregations: there is nothing for a congregation to do.