Balancing Scripture

One of the seeming mantras of the reformed church is the Latin phrase "sola scriptura" which means by scripture alone. It is the idea that the Bible is the only authoritative and infallible source of truth. This belief became prominent during the protestant reformation in order to combat the abuses of papal authority and human traditions. Although this is a foundational tenet of reformed theology, many believers have religiously favored the Bible over a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit. Bill Johnson from Bethel Church in Redding says it this way:

“It’s hard for us to have the same fruit as the early Church when we value a book they didn’t have more than we value the Holy Spirit, whom they did have. I don’t say that to devalue the Bible. It is the inspired Word of God. It’s just that we must reestablish the correct value for the Holy Spirit, who alone can interpret and empower us in the reading and living of the Scriptures. There is a tension between these two realities that the apostle Paul addressed when he said, “The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:6). It’s not either/or. The Spirit makes the Word come alive and enables us to live what we read. [p.91, The Reformer's Pledge]”

Many Christians have valued the principle of "sola scriptura" as a rule of faith while diminishing the role of the Holy Spirit in guiding us into all truth. In today’s society pastors are expected to have a college degree, a graduate seminary degree, and at least a basic understanding of Hebrew and Greek in order to study the Scriptures correctly. Seminaries emphasize exegesis, literary criticism, contextual criticism, Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and even German as necessary components to proper theological study. This limits over 99% of the world’s population. The Bible was not intended only for the educated few, it was given for the growth, encouragement, and sustenance of all God’s people.

What about the poor, uneducated, illiterate, persecuted? What about the early church that had no New Testament as we know now? The Bible is the Word of God. It is our rule of faith. But without a relationship with the Holy Spirit, we are in danger of allowing Scripture turn us into legalistic, religious, and ignorant Christians rather than loving, grace-filled, empowered believers. There are many people who commit their lives to studying the Bible, some as professional scholars. But often they don’t truly know God or are known by Him. We are not measured by our knowledge of the Bible, only our knowledge of the Lord. I will continue this thought in the next post, but may we develop a proper view of Scripture as a means to a divine encounter and not just a holy handbook.

"You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." John 5:39