The self-manifestation of God by which His character, will, and presence are disclosed to humanity through the writings of the prophets, through the illumination of the intellect by the Holy Spirit, through the works of nature, and through providential experiences. The supreme revelation of the divine mind, will, and character came through the incarnation, life, ministry, and teachings of the second person of the Deity as Son of God and Son of man.
God reveals Himself in order that sinful human beings may apprehend Him and be transformed into His likeness by a divine-human communion. Seventh-day Adventists have always held that the Bible in its entirety is the inspired, authoritative, reliable, and true Word of God, though expressed in imperfect human language ( see Inspiration ). However, Seventh-day Adventists do not hold that special revelation terminated with the closing of the NT canon. They believe that the prophetic gift is the means by which God has communicated inspired instruction to humanity ever since the banishment from Eden, even though the gift may not have been operative at all times, and that it belongs to the church today.
In their unfallen state, Adam and Eve held free and open communion with God. Sin excluded them from the full manifestation of the divine Presence, dulled their cognitive faculties, and marred God’s handiwork in nature. However, to the sincere seeker for truth, creation still reveals the existence and character of God, albeit imperfectly. By the Holy Spirit’s operation on the minds of the prophets and apostles, the acts of God in history, especially in the histories of the Hebrew people and of the apostolic church, have been illuminated.
At times the divine will has been made known through angel visitation and miraculous signs, but more often by means of visions and dreams. By this method of revelation the recipient apprehends truth that he or she otherwise would not have acquired. Seventh-day Adventists believe that in recording, describing, or interpreting such information human beings are as dependent upon God as they were in receiving it in the first place.
Revelation also occurs when the Holy Spirit acts upon human consciousness. While a person endeavors to understand the records of past revelation, or is nurturing spiritual interests, or is consciously seeking union with God and is obedient to the divine will, the Holy Spirit acts upon the mind by expanding its powers, enlightening its understanding, and inducing flashes of insight and conviction. Often this mode of revelation—usually called illumination—cannot be clearly distinguished from the normal powers of the human mind and must therefore be regarded as subjective, and accepted with caution.
All revelation of God has been, and continues to be, through His Son, the Christ, through whom are manifested the truths, attributes, and character of God. In the broadest sense all true knowledge is a revelation of God, for He is the source of all truth. However, ordinary knowledge is concerned with objective things or observable processes, and results from human discovery. Revelation relates these to the acts of God and relates humanity to the person of God. For the person who exercises faith and obedience as well as the normal intellectual faculties endowed by the Creator, the line of demarcation between the natural and the supernatural is almost nonexistent. God is one. His truth—all truth—forms a unity. For finite beings of limited capacity to apprehend truth, perfect communication of infinite truth is not possible. But despite his finite capacity to apprehend truth, that which has been revealed is sufficient to enable humanity to cooperate with the Maker in this life and to prepare for life eternal. See also Bible ; Inspiration of Scripture ; Spirit of Prophecy ; Visions ; White, Ellen Gould .