Theology I: Special Revelation
Special Revelation, Scripture, and How God Speaks — 1 Samuel 3, Inspiration, and the Canon
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0:00 Opening and reading of 1 Samuel 3
0:26 Review of natural revelation
1:02 Student question on infants and the cognitively impaired
2:00 Romans 1, suppression of truth, and God’s mercy
2:50 Review: natural vs special revelation
3:25 Scripture and the incarnation of Christ
4:47 Means of revelation: dreams, visions, angels, direct speech
5:25 Samuel and the Lord appearing by the word
7:01 God reveals himself by means of his word
8:03 Wanting to hear God speak and the role of Scripture
10:10 Three assumptions of revelation and human language
12:04 The Bible as direct revelation from God
12:56 Inspiration and authority
14:24 Speech act theory — locution, illocution, perlocution
16:17 Reading 2 Timothy 3:14–17
17:50 Scripture as God breathed and profitable
19:05 Preach the word — the context of inspiration
19:39 Reading 2 Peter 1:20–21
20:45 Carried along by the Holy Spirit
22:02 Old Testament testimony — “thus says the Lord”
23:00 David in 2 Samuel 23
23:44 Psalm 119 and God’s statutes
25:00 Jesus’ view of Scripture — Matthew 5 and Luke 24
26:12 Apostolic authority and remembrance in John 14
27:04 1 Thessalonians 2:13 — received as the word of God
28:00 Apostles and prophetic authority
28:59 Peter equating Paul’s letters with Scripture
29:33 Missing Pauline letters and God’s providence
31:11 Introducing the canon — canon as a measuring rod
32:00 Apocrypha and pseudepigrapha
33:08 Why false attributions matter
34:13 Law, Prophets, Writings — structure of the Hebrew Bible
36:03 Luke 24 and Christ in all the Scriptures
37:49 Early church recognition of the New Testament canon
38:39 Correcting Da Vinci Code misconceptions
39:30 Revelation dating and early circulation
40:01 Next session preview — criteria for canonicity
This lecture explores the doctrine of special revelation by examining 1 Samuel 3, the inspiration of Scripture, and the formation of the biblical canon. After briefly addressing a common student question about infants and the cognitively impaired, the session reviews natural revelation in creation and conscience and explains why these are sufficient to condemn but not to save. The core teaching focuses on how God reveals himself through Scripture, how prophets and apostles received revelation, and why the Bible is more than a record of past experiences — it is the direct, God breathed word. Texts such as 2 Timothy 3:14–17 and 2 Peter 1:20–21 shape the discussion of inspiration, authority, and the Spirit carrying along human authors. The professor also outlines how Jesus affirmed the Law, Prophets, and Writings, how the apostles understood their own authority, and how the early church recognized the canon long before later councils. The lecture closes with the importance of trusting God’s providence in preserving the Scriptures we have today.
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