Question: In this chapter you state that the moral will of God is fully revealed in the Bible. But wouldn't special revelation expand the content of God's moral will beyond what is contained in the Bible?

Answer: Yes, it would. And that did happen during the biblical era. For example, when the Spirit directed the church at Antioch to send out Barnabas and Saul as missionaries (Acts 13:1-2), that instruction represented an addition to the Great Commission. And it became God's moral will for them-they were obliged to obey. Later, the "Macedonian Vision" (Acts 16:10) did the same thing for Paul. His travel options were reduced by special guidance that expanded God's moral will for him. So any divine guidance to an individual by means of supernatural revelation is God's moral will for that person.

Is special revelation being given today? Some Bible scholars rule out that possibility. They maintain that with the closing of the canon of Scripture, God's revelation has ceased until the second coming of Christ. While I understand the arguments for that position, I don't see a conclusive case in the Bible itself. It seems preferable to leave open the possibility of divine revelation and subject specific claims to biblical tests-including supernatural means of communication and harmony with existing Scripture. Accordingly, in the first edition of this book, I included another category of God's will-special guidance: "In unique cases God may supernaturally guide believers by divine voice, angel, dream, or miracle according to special revelation."

On the other hand, while special guidance is possible, it is not promised nor do most believers have reason to expect it. When the Bible instructs us with principles for decision making (which is what this book is about), it directs us along other lines as explained in this chapter and the ones that follow. The theoretical possibility of special guidance concerns us less than the concrete, practical guidance already supplied. So when Peter writes that "[God's] divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3, NIV, italics added)," I take that to include the moral will of God fully revealed in the Bible.

A more extended discussion of special revelation is presented in chapter 15, "Special Guidance and Decision Making."