5. God Revealed by Direct Communication.
This
type of communication is confined to the prophets of God who lived in the days
of the formation of the canon: “God who at sundry times and in divers manners
spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days
spoken unto us by his Son.” (Hebrews 1:1,2)
The divers manners of speaking included visions, dreams, and theophanies, but
of Moses it is written: “With him will I speak mouth unto mouth, even
apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold.”
(Numbers 12:8) It should be noted that God used such
means as long as He was dealing with the nation of Israel and until His written
revelation was completed. In the early churches which Paul established there
were those with the gift of prophecy who received revelations from the Lord to
communicate to the assembly, since they did not as yet have a New Testament
Scripture (1 Corinthians 14:29-33). But Paul made it abundantly clear that this was a temporary
gift which would cease when the revelation for this dispensation was completed.
Therefore, we do not believe that God speaks to His people in this way today.
He speaks through His completed Word. Of course, it is recognized that God may
speak indirectly to His people today in many ways, through providential
dealings, circumstances, influence of others, etc.
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