Sola Scriptura

Sola Scriptura The next four weeks devotions are going to be on the basics of the Christian faith: “Sola scriptura”, “sola gratia”, “sola fide” and “soli Christo”. This simply means scripture alone, grace alone, faith alone, and Christ alone. These are the very doctrines that define true Christianity. This week we will look at “sola scriptura”. “It is not the word of God because the church says so; but that the word of God might be spoken, therefore the church comes into being. The church does not make the Word, but it is made by the Word.” –Martin Luther 2 Timothy 3:16,17—All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. Is the Bible infallible? I hope you say yes; at least in the original manuscripts. This is not a new question. But this topic has been brought to my attention several times in the past few months so I thought I would give my two cents worth of conversation. “Sola Scriptura” simply means scripture alone. This is one of the declarations of the Great Reformation of the 1500’s. Martin Luther was very vocal about his convictions concerning the infallibility and inerrancy of scripture. Martin Luther believed verses like 2 Timothy 3:16,17 were foundational to the growth and well being of the church. Luther stated that “the church does not make the Word, but it is made by the Word.” You may ask how this is true. 2 Timothy states, first of all, that all scripture is God-breathed. The hand of man wrote the Holy Scriptures but only by the guidance and inspiration of God. Each prophecy of the Bible is given by the Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). Many people believe that the translations we have today are not accurate. On the contrary, the English Standard Version is one of the most accurate translations in print today. Many folks hold to the “King James Only” tradition. They believe that this is the only correct translation of the Bible. Many folks don’t realize that the King James Version was a direct translation from the Geneva Bible, which was a translation of the Matthews, Coverdale, and Tyndale versions, which were in turn translations of the Vulgate in 400 A.D. So how can one really look back at all these translations and believe that the bibles that we use today could be infallible? I think that R.C. Sproul put it best in his book “Grace Unknown”. “Suppose the normative yardstick housed at the National Bureau of Standards were to perish in a fire. Would we no longer be able to determine the distance of three feet with accuracy? With the multitude of existing copies, we could reconstruct with almost perfect accuracy the original yardstick.” Luther also believed that the church was made by the word. If you are a Christian, then you are to believe the Bible. That sounds pretty simple but do you conform to God’s word or make it conform to you. It is imperative that you know who the God of the Bible is and not what you can make Him to be. We are made by the teaching, rebuking, correcting and training of the Bible. These are the things that make us who we are. The Bible is the only authority that may bind the conscience of believers. To take the Bible as anything less than the living, active word of God would be spiritual suicide. “Sola Scriptura”! “Semper reformada” (always reforming) should be the battle cry of all believers who will reckon their lives with the Holy Scriptures. Josh Martin