LIFE WITH NO BIBLE
What would the world be like with no Scripture? Can you imagine, there actually was a time when God’s word was spoken into hearts only. From the time of Adam until the giving of the law on Mount Sinai (sometime between 1600-1300 BC), there was no written record of God’s testimony to Man.
And it changed after God spoke audibly to the Children of Israel, and then took a stone and wrote with His own finger the Ten Commandments. After this basis was written, Moses began writing the Penteteuch. Then we have the History books and Poetry books, and the Prophetical writings of the Old Testament.
When the time was right, God sent His Word to earth in the flesh.
Once a Bible professor asked our class, which is more important: Jesus or the Bible. What do you think?
Consider this. If Jesus is the Word of God, and the Bible is the Word of God, in a sense, they are equal.
It makes me cringe to think of the times I have put my Bible on the floor, or stacked things on top of it, or left it on the shelf gathering dust.
DIET OF WORMS
The year was 1521, Martin Luther, one of the lucky ones, knew Greek and Hebrew so he could read the Bible, and know what the Bible said. He found that over the years a lot of Church leaders had neglected Scripture for the traditions of Popes and decisions of Councils before them. His life was one big STOP SIGN held out to them. He wanted them to know that Scripture was sufficient. Scripture in its interaction with the common man’s intellect.
They took him to Worms, and held him on trial. “Do you recant?” they asked him. He looked at his books. They wanted him to deny that they were true. They wanted him to disown what he had written. He apologized for the ones in which he was rude and disrespectful to others. But regarding the rest he said,
“Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason – I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other – my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God help me. Amen.”
This site includes a primary account of the Diet of Worms.
In the same way, we need to trust the Bible to direct us how we may glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
WHAT RULE?
A. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.
FINAL AUTHORITY
When we say Sola Scriptura, we are saying that the Bible is our final authority, and it is enough. We don’t need other books, other people, other conferences, in order to KNOW truth. Other books, people, conferences can help us grow in our relationship with God. But our final authority and SOURCE for knowing God is the Bible Only.
What about the Creeds? What about the foundational doctrines of the church, like the dual-nature of Christ, like the Trinity? DId those not come from Councils?
Yes. We also believe in church–the importance of going, of encouraging each other, of praying for one another. We believe in the Preaching of the Word, that the pastor has a unique message for the church each time he preaches. We are intimately aware of the need for others involved in our lives to teach and instruct. But Sola Scriptura means that if it is not specifically taught in Scripture, it is not authoritative. Trinity is a word that is not in Scripture. But the triune nature of God IS in Scripture. The Councils that depended upon Scripture alone, through the reasonings of Biblical passages, are considered by Protestant Christians to be authoritative for our lives. The others are not. For example, if the evidence is extra-biblical–like some
IN THE BOOK: TRUNK OF SCROLLS
Marcellus, Byziana and his family are some of the rare common people who actually know how to read, and who actually have Scripture scrolls that they can read whenever they want. When they depend upon the Scrolls, they find their relationship with God grows and their peace and joy in life grows. When Byziana reads Leo’s Tome, she understands from Scripture that the nature of Christ was dual–God and man.