Dear Church,
I wrote last week about the necessity of doctrine. This week I am writing to you about the recovery of the biblical foundation for all doctrine. The biblical foundation for doctrine is well-expressed in the phrase Sola Scriptura, which is Latin for Scripture alone. Sola Scriptura was coined, together with the four other ‘solas,’ sometime after the period of the Reformation. These phrases are often used to summarize the main distinctives of the Protestant Reformers as they sought to reform the Church according to the Word of God.
Sola Scriptura is the truth that God's word alone is the supreme authority, sufficient for all matters of faith and conduct.
The reformers recovered this doctrine, because gradually over centuries the church in Rome had adopted a view of Scripture that placed the final authority over Scripture in the hands of the church rather than God. At the council of Trent in 1546, convened in response to the efforts of the various Reformers, the Roman Catholic Church determined that "Saving truth and rules of conduct" are "contained in the written books and in the unwritten traditions." Tradition was seen as a second source of revelation, over which the Pope and the church bishops (called the magisterium) were the final authority. This meant that whatever the magisterium taught could not be questioned.
The Protestant reformers, however, like Martin Luther, saw that the Bible clearly teaches that ALL Scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and therefore the Bible is fully authoritative, infallible, and sufficient in a way that no teaching of man could ever be.
Thus, Luther wrote,
I do not want to throw out all those more learned [than I], but Scripture alone to reign, and not to interpret it by my own spirit or the spirit of any man, but I want to understand it by itself and its spirit.” (An Assertion of All the Articles, 1520).
They realized that people more often than not are in error (consider for example, Proverbs 14:12, Proverbs 16:25 "there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death"), but GOD, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true (2 Samuel 22:31 and Psalm 18:30).
Like all men the reformers were not without their faults. But they had this right, they saw that the only inspired and authoritative norm for faith and practice, was the Word of God. Notice that they did not say that the Bible is the only authority, but rather that all other authorities (whether reason, science, or tradition etc.) are subject to the word of God. We look to God's word alone as the supreme authority in matters of "faith and conduct" because God's word is infallible & inerrant, whereas the teachings of men are fallible.
Scripture alone means that Scripture alone is our 100% reliable source of truth. God's word is a "MORE SURE WORD" (2 Peter. 1:19), and is the highest authority on any matter on which it speaks.
Scripture alone also means that Scripture is sufficient. In other words, God's word is all we need. As Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is profitable ... that the man of God may be THOROUGHLY (COMPLETELY) EQUIPPED for EVERY GOOD WORK." This does not mean the Bible contains every fact we might possibly need to know. The Bible is not a cookbook, a series of math equations, or a car manual, but the Bible contains all we need to have eternal life and to continue on in the Christian faith. We do not need another source of truth about salvation, or the human heart, or the nature of God, or how God designed us to live - God has given us his final, authoritative, and completely sufficient word. Some things we may never fully grasp, but God is able to teach us all we need to know. Therefore, though God does call & equip teachers to bless His church, any one of us can carefully search the Scriptures to see if what someone says is true.
Indeed one of the many blessings that came from teaching Scripture alone was that God's word began to be translated into the common languages of the people. In 1534 Luther completed a German translation of the Bible, one year later Pierre Olivetan’s translation of the Bible into French was published in 1535, while only a year later William Tyndale was executed for translating God's word in the English language. The debt we owe to God for raising up such men is incalculable and, as in every age, we continue to need such men to defend this gift we have been given, the very Word of God, for when the church takes up the Sword of the Spirit, hell trembles.
To summarize,
Scripture alone is our supreme authority,
Scripture alone is completely sufficient for life and godliness,
Scripture alone is inerrant, completely trustworthy in all it says.
I hope that in going through this, you have gained an understanding not only of WHAT SOLA SCRIPTURA MEANS, but also WHY IT MATTERS. If we compromise on Scripture we will compromise in every other area of our faith. Therefore, it is vital that we seek to know what God has to say about reality rather than looking to the interpretations and traditions of man.
Questions for reflection:
Have you ever been asked a question about your faith and gone to the internet, a book, or your pastor to find the answer rather than reading your Bible? WHY or WHY NOT?
In what areas are you tempted to look somewhere else for truth???
Have you ever doubted that God's word is infallible and sufficient? If so why?
Do you see the Bible as sufficient for your everyday struggles, trying be a good parent, spouse, child, employee, or boss? Why or why not???
I leave you with the testimony of God concerning His word.
Our desperate need for the WORD of GOD.
"Like newborn babes, long for the pure spiritual milk (of the word), that by it you may grow up into salvation" 1 Peter 2:2.
"It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Matthew 4:4
The Beauty, Permanence, and Power of the Bible.
"the law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple." Psalm 19:7.
"The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver refined in a furnance on the ground, purified seven times." Psalm 12:6.
"The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple" Psalm 119:130.
"The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever." Isaiah 40:8
"so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it" Isaiah 55:11.
"But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus."
2 Timothy 3:15
"In God whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?" Psalm 56:4.
A prayer that we might know the word more deeply and a blessing for those who keep it.
"Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law." Psalm 119:18
"Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it." Luke 11:28.
Grace and Peace,
Matt
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