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THE BIBLE: GOD-BREATHED
Chapter 9
SPECIAL REVELATION
In the preceding section we examined the matter of general revelation—how God reveals Himself to all people in general.
If the total revelation from God may be labeled The Book of Revelation, volume 1 contains general revelation.
Volume 2, then, contains special revelation, which, by contrast, does not necessarily come to all people.
I. THE AVENUES OF SPECIAL REVELATION
A. The Lot
Although today we would not highly regard the use of the lot, it did serve sometimes to communicate the mind of God to man (Prov.
16:33; Acts 1:21–26).
B. The Urim and Thummim
The breastplate that the high priest wore in the Old Testament was a square piece of beautiful material that was folded in half and open at the top like a pouch.
It was adorned with twelve precious stones, on which were engraved the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
The Urim and Thummim possibly were two precious stones placed inside the pouch that were used, like the lot, to determine God’s will (Exod.
28:30; Num.
27:21; Deut.
33:8; 1 Sam.
28:6; Ezra 2:63).
C. Dreams
God apparently used dreams to communicate many times during the Old Testament period, and He will do so again at the time of the second coming of Christ (Gen.
20:3, 6; 31:11–13, 24; 40–41; Joel 2:28).
Nonbelievers as well as believers experienced God-given dreams (Gen.
20:3; 31:24).
Though a common experience, dreams were used by God in this special way to reveal truth.
D. Visions
In a vision the emphasis seems to be on what is heard, whereas in a dream, it is on what is seen.
Also the human being involved seems to be more active in receiving a vision (Isa.
1:1; 6:1; Ezek.
1:3).
E. Theophanies
Before the Incarnation, theophanies were associated with the appearance of the Angel of the Lord, who communicated the divine message to people (Gen.
16:7–14; Exod.
3:2; 2 Sam.
24:16; Zech.
1:12).
F. Angels
God also uses created angels to carry His message to people (Dan.
9:20–21; Luke 2:10–11; Rev. 1:1).
(Notice Rev. 19:17 where God will use an angel to communicate to birds!)
G.
The Prophets
Old Testament prophets brought God’s message to mankind (2 Sam.
23:2; Zech.
1:1), as did New Testament prophets (Eph.
3:5).
They spoke with authority because they were communicating the Word of the Lord.
A preacher or teacher today does not qualify as a prophet since he proclaims or explains God’s Word, previously given and written.
H. Events
God’s activity in history also constitutes a channel of revelation.
Delivering the people of Israel from Egypt revealed the righteous acts of the Lord, according to Micah 6:5.
Acts of judgment reveal who God is (Ezek.
25:7).
And, of course, the incarnation of Christ exegeted God (John 1:14).
It does not go without saying today that these events have to be historical and factual in order also to be communicative; for today some are putting existential faith before the historical.
In other words, they are attempting to create revelation apart from historical facts, or finding meaning in historical facts while denying that the events actually happened.
Such existential historiography was never a part of the framework of the biblical writers.
Not only must the events be historical, but they also need to be interpreted through divine inspiration if we are to understand accurately their meaning.
For example, many people were crucified; how do we know that the crucifixion of one Jesus of Nazareth paid for the sins of the world?
The Word of special revelation clarifies and correctly interprets the obscurity of the meaning of events.
I. Jesus Christ
Undebatably the incarnation of Jesus Christ was a major avenue of special revelation.
He exegeted the Father (John 1:14), revealing the nature of God (14:9), the power of God (3:2), the wisdom of God (7:46), the glory of God (1:14), the life of God (1 John 1:1–3), and the love of God (Romans 5:8).
Our Lord did all this by both His acts (John 2:11) and His words (Matt.
16:17).
J.
The Bible
Actually the Bible serves as the most inclusive of all the avenues of special revelation, for it encompasses the record of many aspects of the other avenues.
Though God undoubtedly gave other visions, dreams, and prophetic messages that were not recorded in the Bible, we know no details of them.
Too, all that we know about the life of Christ appears in the Bible, though, of course, not all that He did or said was recorded in the Scriptures (John 21:25).
But the Bible is not simply the record of these other revelations from God; it also contains additional truth not revealed, for example, through the prophets or even during the earthly life of Christ.
So the Bible, then, is both the record of aspects of special revelation and revelation itself.
The revelation in the Bible is not only inclusive yet partial; it is also accurate (John 17:17), progressive (Heb.
1:1), and purposeful (2 Tim.
3:15–17).
Two approaches exist as to the credibility of the scriptural revelation.
Fideists insist that the Scripture and the revelation it contains is self-authenticating, that is, autopistic.
The infallibility of the Bible must be presupposed and can be because the Scripture says it is inspired and the Spirit accredits it.
Empiricists, on the other hand, stress the intrinsic credibility of the revelation of the Bible as being worthy of belief, that is, axiopistic.
The Bible’s claim to authority is not in itself proof of its authority; rather there exist factual, historical evidences that constitute the Bible’s credentials and validate the truth of its message.
My feeling is that there is truth in both approaches; both can and should be used.
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