Does God Still Reveal Himself Through the Avenue of Dreams and Visions?

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.  

Positions

Denial of the Sufficiency of Scripture, Affirmations of Dreams as Revelation

There are many New Age religions which affirm the authority of dreams and visions, and deny the truthfulness of the Christian Scriptures.  This group is not the group being addressed in this paper.  But, elements of these groups have had growth and influence on American evangelicalism.  The greater concern is that there are many who profess to be Christians who affirm the sufficiency of Scripture with their mouths, but deny it in their practice, by placing personal dreams and visions on the same level of authority as the Scripture.

Sarah Young’s bestselling book Jesus Calling, which sold over 16 million copies, clearly illustrates that in the mind of many professing evangelicals, the Scriptures are not sufficient.  While the sufficiency of Scripture is vocally affirm, it is denied in practice.  Young writes in the introduction to her book, “I knew that God communicated with me through the Bible, but I yearned for more. Increasingly I wanted to hear what God had to say to me personally on a given day.”[4]  She acknowledges the Bible as God’s Word, and even says later that she knows her words are not equal to Scripture, but in practice, this does not seem to the case.  Her sensations and impressions are the determiner of truth, and obviously in the mind of Young, there is something “more” than the Scripture.

Affirmation of Sufficiency of Scripture, Affirmation of Dreams as Special Revelation

The second viewpoint would be those who affirm the sufficiency of Scripture, but would also affirm dreams and visions as a lesser form of revelation.  Former Mars Hill pastor Mark Driscoll represents this view.  Certainly, Mark Driscoll claims to affirm the sufficiency of Scripture.  But, in an infamous sermon he discusses how he “sees things”, such as “women raped…children molested…people abused.”  He claims to have seen these things “visibly” along with being able to see past events that he was not present for, such as abuse and adultery.  When asked how he knows these things, he says, “Jesus told me.”  Driscoll calls this the “gift of discernment.”[5]

Sam Storms writes in his article, “Of Visions and Revelations (2 Cor. 12:1)” about the place of revelations and visions in the Christian life.  With much reservation, he writes, “On the one hand, we should not dismiss or diminish the importance of the supernatural and revelatory encounters that God provides for certain of his saints. On the other hand, neither should we elevate them to supreme importance or treat them as if they alone, more so than character and conduct, authenticate the legitimacy of one's calling and ministry from God.”[6]  Storms does make the claim that these sorts of visions are “unverifiable.”  Storms is clear that revelations can and do come through visions, not just in the apostolic era.  He compares Paul’s heavenly vision in 2 Corinthians 12 to that of the “revelation” the Corinthians were said to have brought to worship in 1 Corinthians 14:26.  Sam believes that all the first century gifts and experiences continue into today and emphasizes in his article that, “It simply isn't possible to read Peter and Paul and fail to notice that they believed revelatory gifts and other miraculous phenomena were of great benefit in edifying the body of Christ.”[7]  Many, like Sam, would argue that any of these “words or visions of the Lord” would function as a lesser form of revelation than the Bible.[8]

Affirmation of Sufficiency of Scripture, Denial of Dreams as Special Revelation

Finally, there is a position that would claim that while people may have dreams and visions, they are not revelatory.  All forms of special revelation have ceased since the canon is closed.  They would argue that dreams and visions were meant to mark the prophetic and apostolic ministry of those in the first century. While many in this camp do not deny that God can use dreams, they do deny that He uses dreams as a vehicle of communicating special revelation today.  This distinction is significant.  God can speak in general ways (such as how Psalm 19 speaks of the heavens “declaring” the glory of God).[9]  Since dreams and visions can be the fruit of natural brain processes, they would be concerned a part of nature, and therefore general revelation.  Whether chemicals in the brain, or a sunset, God communicates in a general ways through nature.  Through nature someone can know about God, but only by God’s special, apostolic revelation, the Word of God, can someone have a full and saving revelation of God.  As The Baptist Catechism answers the question “How do we know there is a God?” by saying, “The light of nature in man, and the works of God, plainly declares that there is a God; but his word and Spirit only, do effectually reveal him unto us for our salvation.”[10] 

Also, this position would look to passages such as Deuteronomy 18:18-22, which seem to teach that prophets are not only a specific ministry, but also a ministry which can be tested.  If someone who is a prophet claims to receive a revelation and is wrong in any details, he is not to be trusted.  They point to the repeated offenses of those who have followed dreams and visions and have gotten many details wrong.  They also would see the role of New Testament prophets, and the apostles, as functioning in a foundational role for the church, and that these visions, dreams and other “signs and wonders” served to confirm the truth of their ministry.[11]

Support

The latter position is the biblical position: the Scriptures remain the only sufficient source of revelation and that dreams and visions do not function as special revelation since the canon is closed.  I think it would be best to first find areas of agreement among all three positions.  First, all three views affirm the revelatory nature of dreams in redemptive history.  Without question, God spoke in dreams and visions to Joseph, Isaiah, Daniel, and others.  Even in these cases, dreams/visions were rare and often came after long periods of silence from God.  The question about these views is what makes these biblical accounts of dreams and visions unique from any sort of dreams and visions today. God used revelatory dreams and visions for redemptive purposes. First, God used dreams and visions to give a special revelation of who He is, and what He was about to do to encourage people in exile and persecution. Second, God used dreams and visions to lead His people to gospel proclamation, particularly to the Gentiles. 

First, we know the latter to be true.  God used visions, particularly in the book of Acts, to guide the people of God and to influence their actions, particularly for mission.  In Acts 9:10-19, Ananias received a vision which led him to visit Paul, to heal his blindness and to lay his hands upon him.  This vision was a bookend from the vision given to Paul earlier in Acts 9, which is discussed later in this paper.  Paul himself would see visions similar to this in Acts 16:9-10 and Acts 18:9-11.  All of these cases led to the Lord’s name being carried out on mission.[12]  Another example of this is in Acts 10:1-8, where Cornelius is sent by an angel of the Lord to Peter, who would be receiving a vision himself.  While Peter’s vision was revelatory in the sense of teaching the truth that “I should not call any person common or unclean,”[13] the vision served as a springboard for Peter to proclaim the gospel to the Gentiles.

Under the New Covenant, God was grafting in a multitude of tribes, tongues, languages, and nations.  Thus, to signal this New Covenant reality, God used dreams and visions to lead and confirm the apostles in this mission.  Revelatory dreams and visions served a redemptive purpose.

An Old Testament example could be argued from Genesis 20:1-7, where Abraham lied about his wife Sarah (claiming she was his sister) for fear of persecution from Abimelech.  Abimelech takes Sarah, but before he can do anything, the Lord comes to him in a dream warning him not to touch her.  Had Abimelech and Sarah conceived a child, they would have ruined the whole redemptive plan God has promised- and so God had already determined to step in to that situation.  Abimelech returns Sarah and in the next chapter Isaac is born.  The saving plan of God goes forth, in this case, because of a vision from God.

Another very significant feature of the Bible’s use of dreams and visions, is its connections with the theme of “exile” in the Bible.[14]  Throughout the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, the people of God would undergo cycles of exodus and exile.  In these cases of exile, we see God encouraging the people of God by means of dreams and visions.  God broke into the silence of these exiles with visions, such as in 1 Samuel 3:1.[15]  The people of God had been corrupt and exiled under the judges.  But Samuel received a vision, and the author makes it clear that, “And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.”  God was announcing a restoration for the people of God by means of a vision.

Throughout the Old Testament we see God appearing in visions to His people as they live in exile.  Abraham lived much of his life in wandering.  God appeared to him in the wilderness of the Valley of Shavah (Genesis 14:17; 15:1) on his journey to Canaan.  This vision was to encourage Abraham in the midst of his wandering (much as the Lord would do elsewhere in chapters 12 and 17).  The Lord reaffirmed the covenant and spurred Abraham on to faithfulness in exile.

This same pattern follows in two generations after Abraham.  Jacob, as he is pursued by Esau, is given a dream at Bethel where God reinforces His redemptive promises, while saying, “For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”[16]  Esau may be warring against him, but God will keep him and protect him, because He has a redemptive purpose with Jacob (Gen. 17, Rom. 9:13).  God encouraged Jacob in his “exile” under the persecutions from Esau.  Both of these served a redemptive purpose for the people of God.

Joseph is one of the famous examples of dreams in the Bible.  Three times in his life (recorded in Genesis 37, 40 and 41) Joseph received and interpreted dreams.  The dream in Genesis 37 was used by God to bring him into the “exile” of prison and slavery.  He received a vision of his family bowing down to him.  As a result his brothers, in anger, sold him into slavery.  The interpretation in Genesis 40 and 41 were meant to bring him out of his exile and to rise up to a position of authority in Egypt.  God was showing Joseph that his family would one day bow down to him.  This exile and exaltation would serve as a picture for the people of God, as well as a type for Christ.  Joseph’s dreams served as an encouragement for Joseph and a significant redemptive role in the Scripture.

Closing out the Old Testament, we see multiple visions in the book of Daniel which not only speak to the people of God in exile, but also show the future of God’s redemptive purpose.  Particularly in the Messianic visions of chapters 2 and 7, Daniel is encouraged that God’s kingdom reigns, even though there was exile and famine (this is also the case in the visions of God that Isaiah and Ezekiel experienced).  Much like Joseph, Daniel also interpreted dreams for the leader who stood in oppression over the kingdom of God, and these interpretations, along with other sovereignly orchestrated events, led to Daniel’s exaltation out of exile.  Again, we see dreams and visions served a redemptive purpose.

In beginning of the New Testament, dreams and visions also to had a redemptive significance.  Matthew 1:20 and 2:13, along with Luke 1:5-23 served to guide and instruct God’s people, but also signaled that something redemptive was happening.  God had been silent since the closing of the Old Testament, and so God giving dreams and visions shows that God was again giving revelation.  Dreams and visions always followed periods of God’s divine revelation.  The apostles, and their ministry, are shown as the fulfillment of the prophesy of Joel 2:28-29 which says, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.  Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.”[17]  No doubt the events at Pentecost which fulfill this passage would be preceded and followed by visions and dreams; they confirm that a new age of revelation has dawned.

Lastly, we see the most famous of all revelations, the book of Revelation.  In Revelation, we see the redemptive nature of dreams and visions along with the connection to the experience of exile.  John was in exile on the island of Patmos (Rev 1:9), writing to churches that were getting ready to face the incredible weight of Roman persecution (Rev 2-3).  The visions in the book were meant to call them to perseverance (13:10) in the face of imprisonment, torture, and death.

Dreams and visions have always followed God’s revelation of Scripture and important events in redemptive history. It would then follow that if the canon is closed with the death of the apostles that God is not giving dreams and visions in the same way he did in the Bible.  Several Bible texts seem to indicate that the ministry of the apostles served a foundational role of speaking for God in the New Covenant age (1 Cor. 14:37, Eph. 2:20, Rev. 22:14).  Their ministry was unique.

God infallibly guided and revealed Himself to His people through dreams and visions.  We have this revelation in the Scripture, to guide and direct us.  While dreams are a natural phenomenon and God may use nature phenomenon to teach us about Himself, only the Scripture can bring us into relationship with God.  Nature phenomenon may “declare the glory of God” only the Word of God is “perfect, reviving the soul.”[18]

Objections

The first objection that could be raised comes in many forms and that is the objection of experience. Especially with the recent controversy in world missions as to what to make of the widespread dreams of Jesus among Muslims; this is a pressing issue.  Time is insufficient to walk through each and every testimony, but the dream that can be verified all share somewhat similar features.  In these dreams a man, whom the dreamer gathers to be Jesus, is in a glorious scene and commands the dreamer to follow him, or to visit a church, or to read the Bible.  Some of the dreams are simpler, such as of a missionary coming to visit.  A former Muslim who converted to Christianity, Abdul Saleeb, in an interview with Ligonier, confesses that while these dreams play a major role in the testimony of many Muslims, “Usually dreams in themselves do not have a full-fledged gospel presentation, and they do not replace the need for a human witness or the Scriptures.”[19]

Muslim turned Christian apologist Nabeel Qureshi shares his testimony in the article, Crossing Over: An Intellectual and Spiritual Journey from Islam to Christianity.[20]  His testimony is given as an example of these dreams drawing someone to Jesus.  While it is true that Nabeel claims to have had a dream (a reality this author does not challenge), this dream came after several gospel conversations with a friend.  Once again, the position do not deny that God can use dreams, or anything else in nature, to display His glory and majesty, but the message of salvation is only communicated through Christians verbally proclaiming the gospel. There is no reason to believe that God could not use dreams as sovereign means of general revelation, any more than He can use life events to confirm or come alongside the special revelation of the gospel.  John Piper in his seminar on “Let the Nations Be Glad” shares the same view point.[21]

Recall, the position being advocated is not whether God can use dreams or not; the position is regarding the revelatory nature of dreams.  Romans 10 is clear that no one comes to faith apart from the Word of God, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?...So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”[22]  The means the Bible prescribes for people to come to faith in Christ is not through visions and dreams, but through the preaching of the Word of God!  It seems even if the dreams could be verified back to a source (something that is rare) that these dreams are never active apart from the preaching of the Word of God.  God may, and does use sources of general revelation, but never without access to special revelation.

The second set of objections generally come as arguments from Scripture.  These arguments take two different paths.  First, some argue that whatever God did in the first century, He must therefore do for believers in the twenty-first century.  But, historically, evangelicals have agreed that the apostles and prophets of the New Testament carried a special apostolic authority that was not carried on to all Christians.[23]  As examined above, the specific foundational role of apostles seems clear in the Scripture.

The second objection from the Scripture is to present the Apostle Paul’s testimony as a proof of God’s use of visions and dreams.  In Acts 9, Saul encounters Jesus in a glorious vision on the Damascus road.  But is this a fair comparison?   First, Saul was not without gospel witness.  He certainly had heard of Jesus previously and had no doubt been exposed to some of the teachings of the early church, and even possibly with the earthly ministry of Jesus.  Also, Stephen, whose garments were laid at the feet of Saul,[24] had preached the gospel with his last breathe (Acts 7).  While Stephen’s message was cut short, I think it is difficult to argue that Saul was without a witness to the truth of the gospel when Jesus came to him.  Also, the first two chapters of Paul’s letter to the Galatians outline the unique credentials of Paul as an apostle, and thus provides a very unique case to argue from.  Paul would even spend portions of his other letters defending his apostleship.  Paul gives us five reasons in the first 2 chapters of Galatians to defend his unique apostleship:

His Calling (1:1-5)
His Gospel (1:6-9)

His Aim (1:10-11)
His Testimony (1:12-17)
His Apostolic Approval (1:18-2:10)

            Thus, I believe we can conclude that Paul is not a case that can be used.  He certainly was aware of the gospel when Jesus met him, and manner of Jesus appearance as He did seemed to be considered by Paul and other as unique.  Finally, consider the silence of the New Testament writers about the place of dreams and visions in the Christian life, and the constant emphasis upon testing all things by God’s Word (1 John 4, Gal. 1:6-9, 2 Cor. 11:1-4).  Indeed, this illustrates us the clear superiority of the special revelation over dreams and visions.

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[1] dream. 2011. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved August 20, 2016, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dream.

[2] See, for example, Number 24:4 (ESV), which reads: “the oracle of him who hears the words of God, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down with his eyes uncovered.”

[3] This definition comes by combining two different definitions.  One from, Elwell, Walter A. "Entry for 'Vision(s)'". "Evangelical Dictionary of Theology". . 1997.  Another from Easton, Matthew George. "Entry for Vision". "Easton's Bible Dictionary".

[4] Sarah Young, Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence: Devotions for Every Day of the Year (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2004), viii.

[5]Mark Driscoll, “Spiritual Warfare Part 3: Christus Victor” (Video of sermon, Mars Hill Church, Seattle, Washington, February 05, 2008), accessed August 20, 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVyFyauE4ig].

[6]  Sam Storms, “Of Visions and Revelations (2 Cor. 12: 1),” SamStorms.com (blog), August 06, 2008, accessed August 20, 2016, http://www.samstorms.com/all-articles/post/of-visions-and-revelations--2-cor--12:1-. 

[7]  Ibid.

[8] You can find out more on this in Wayne Grudem.  Systematic Theology, 1052-57

[9] Psa. 19:1.

[10] Keach, Benjamin “Question 3” The 1693 Baptist Catechism.  1693.

[11] See Eph. 2:20, Heb. 2:3-4.

[12] Acts 9:15 (ESV)

[13] Acts 10:28 (ESV)

[14] A work that has been incredibly helpful to me in this regard is James Hamilton’s God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgement (Crossway).

[15] See also 1 Samuel 28:6.

[16] Genesis 28:15

[17] Joel 2:28-29 (English Standard Version)

[18] Psalm 19:1, 7 (ESV)

[19] Abdul Saleeb, “Reaching Muslims with the Gospel of God: An Interview with Abdul Saleeb,” Tabletalk.  June 1, 2013, accessed August 20, 2016, http://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/reaching-muslims-gospel-god/?mobile=off.

[20] Nabeel Qureshi, “Crossing Over: An Intellectual and Spiritual Journey from Islam to Christianity,” Answering Islam, n.d., accessed August 20, 2016, http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Qureshi/testimony.htm.

[21] John Piper, interviewed by David Mathis, Minneapolis, MN, October 14, 2011. http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/let-the-nations-be-glad-q-a

[22] Romans 10:14, 17 (ESV).

[23] Westminster Confession of Faith 1.1 says, “Therefore it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal himself, and to declare that his will unto his church; and afterwards, for the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing: which maketh the holy Scripture to be most necessary; those former ways of God’s revealing his will unto his people being now ceased”

[24] Acts 7:58