Here is a copy of my paper I wrote for my Systematic 1 class at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary on the question of, "Does God still reveal Himself through the avenue of dreams and visions?" Hope it edifies the saints and exalts our Savior! (In case you are curious, I got a 97! :D)
Issue
This paper
will discuss the question, “Does God
still reveal Himself through the avenues of dreams and visions?” Definitions are key to this discussion. Merriam-Webster defines dreams as, “a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a
person's mind…”[1] While Webster speaks of “dreams” as being experienced
in sleep, in the Bible dreams and visions can happen while a person is fully
awake.[2] Dreams and visions are synonymous in that
they are both audiovisual apparitions.[3]
Both dreams and visions are an
experience or state in which thoughts, images, and sensations occupy someone’s
experience. In this paper we will not be
debating whether God used dreams in the visions to reveal Himself in the past;
we will be considering the role of dreams and visions for the believer
today. We will conclude that God may use
dreams and visions as a form of general revelation, but since the canon of
Scripture is closed, dreams and visions are not to be considered authoritative
as special revelation. I will argue this
thesis by examining alternative views, presenting my view, and answering
potential objections.
