Original Revelation by Various Means

Owen begins his defense of the Scirptures in the right place addressing the spoken revelation of the Old Testament. Odly enough this is where a lot of ideas about God speaking to me originate from. There was a purpose to it, and one which people use today to validate their need for external revelation:

This divine external revelation was originall, by various ways, given unto sundry persons immediately, partly for their own instruction and guidance in the knowledge of God and his will, and partly by their ministry to be communicated to the church (book 4, pg 8).

This external revelation had a purpose in Owen's mind to be used to edify the church, and to warn the world of coming judgement to which he uses:

So it was granted to Enoch, the seventh from Adam, who thereon prophesied, to the warning and instruction of others, Jude 14, 15; and to Noah, who became thereby a preacher of righteousness, 2 Peter 2:5; and Abraham, who thereon commanded his children and household to keep the way of The Lord, Gen. 18:19 (Ibid)

One thing I think is interesting that Owen points to is that they were only occasional, which I think will be a point to be brought out later that we have a more sure word in Christ. Something occasional or something sure; you will have to be the judge on which you prefer.

It Was From God No Doubt

Something to keep in mind about those who claim that they have received a special external revelation from God that was not found in the Scripture is that people are pretty sure they came from God. When they do not come to pass the assumption is that God's plans were frustrated by them, so the problem was them. Amazingly, God was truly in need of them to accomplish His will. Is His word able to be trusted after all? How is it that they could trust the revelations to be from God?

There was, therefore, a divine power and efficacy attending all divine revelations, ascertaining and infallibly assuring the minds of men of their being from God; for if it had not been so, men had never been able to secure themselves that they were not imposed on by the crafty deceits of Satan, especially in such revelations as seemed to contain things contrary to their reason, as in the command given to Araham for the sacraficing his son, Gen 22:2 (ibid).

How could they discern between Satan and God in terms of revelation? The striking biblical example would be the sacrifice of Abraham's son Isaac which does fly in the face of reason. Some people would say, "God would never ask me to do something like that." Let us hope not. Abraham was asked to do that and was willing to oblige himself to Gods' revelation to him because he was able to discern that it was the words of God. Here is how Owen describes the ability to discern:

For the present I shall only say, that it was an evidence unto faith, and not to sense; as is that also which we have not by the Scirptures (bk 4, pg. 9).

Even though it is by the exercise of faith that we believe the Scripture, reason is not discarded as though it were not needed, on the contrary. Owen says where this is the case men degenerate into atheism. The Scriptures were given to us for the purpose of exercising "faith, conscience, obedience and reason" which was important. This is a telling qoute about the concerns of throwing reason out:

So he tells us that his word differeth from all other pretended revelations as the wheat doth from the chaff, Jer 23:28. But yet it is our duty to try and sift the wheat from the chaff, or we may not evidently discern the one from the other (ibid).

The Bareans were noble because they searched (reasoned) from the Scripture to see if the gospel as told by Paul was true. That is important because there is so much false information out there that if we are not careful we loose the ability to discern between what God says and man says. The two are not always diametrically opposed to one another on the surface. If not brought under the scrutiny of the Scriptures the words of man will seek to have preimenence over the Scripture.

Every Age had Enough for Obedience

God never left any generation in the dark as to what was required of them for proper obedience and for their edification. He even says that people prior to the flood did not perish because they lacked sufficient information. Owen is masterful at helping me to understand how the limited light that those prior to the Scripture had was sufficient to guide them:

Set up but a candle in a dark room, and it will sufficiently enlighten it for men to attend their necessary occasions therein; but when the sun is risen, and shineth in at all the windows, the light of the candle grows so dim and useless that it seems strange that any could have advantage thereby. The Sun of Righteousness is now risen upon us, and immortality is brought to light by the gospel.

If we look now on the revelations granted unto them of old, we may yet see there was light in them, which yields us little more advantage than the light of a candle in the sun; but unto them who lived before the Sun arose, they were a sufficient guide to all duties of faith and obedience (bk 4, pg. 9-10)

This has really helped me understand a little more clearly how revelation pre-Law and anti-Law was enough for the Saints to find joy and delight in. They could even seek and look into those divine revelations to see what manner and time their savior was coming. Thank God for men like John Owen, who are speaking from the grave and drawing the hearts of Gods' people to give praise to Him.