"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (II Pet. 1:19-21)

Church history reveals that one of the great controversies of the Reformation was centered on the relative authority of church and Scripture. "One of the great controversies of the Reformation centered on the relative authority of church and Scripture. It is often said that though Sola Fide was the material cause of the Reformation, Sola Scriptura was its formal cause."¹

Historically, then, the Reformation is described as "the formal cause of Scripture;" thus, only the Bible, and the Bible alone, has the authority to bind the conscience of the believer. The Reformers of the sixteenth century formally declared that "Scripture Only" is the Christian's authority. "Scripture Only" is a term that refers to the Reformers' convictions that Scripture, and Scripture alone, is the ultimate and final authority in matters of faith and practice, and that Scripture is the sole source of Divine Revelation.

The Absolute Authority of Scripture

"The Scriptures alone." On this statement the historic church established her faith by the authority of sacred Scripture. The phrase "Scripture Only" is the expression that indicates ultimate authority. When reference is made to the Scriptures, the Bible, it is within the formal context of that which has absolute authority. The term "Holy Bible" has taken the meaning of the term "Sacred Canon," and canon means "a measuring rod," or "rule." The term "Sacred Canon" refers to the collection of individual books that together comprise the Old and New Testaments. The Canon is the complete list of books that is received by the church and is codified into what we call the Bible. The Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 4 states the following regarding the Canon: "We receive all these books, and these only, as holy and canonical, for the regulation, foundation, and confirmation of our faith; believing without any doubt all things contained in them, not so much because the church receives and approves them as such, but more especially because the Holy Spirit witnesses in our hearts that they are from God, and also because they carry the evidence thereof in themselves. For the very blind are able to perceive that the things foretold in them are being fulfilled." Hence, the word "Bible" has come to mean the complete Revelation of God in written form, which was established by a special providence for the church.

The true church affirms that the Bible is for the individual believer who has the right to the private interpretation of Scripture. For the Christian to have the Bible is a great Christian privilege; however, with that privilege, a great responsibility falls upon him to interpret the Bible correctly. Although, it is clearly acknowledged that an individual is capable of misinterpreting the Bible, it would be unthinkable, in our day, to argue in support of removing from the Christian his rights to the Sacred Scriptures because he might misinterpret them. For this reason, the Reformers recognized that all Christians have a right to the Bible and that the church must acknowledge that all Christians are to submit to the Bible's authoritative rule.

Authority Comes From God Alone

The Reformers believed that the Bible was objectively the Word of God, which derives its authority from God and not from the church. The church does not authenticate Scripture but receives it and submits to an already established authority. For the Reformers, and all Christians, the Bible is the Word of God, having inherent authority because of its Author, the Sovereign God. The church is obligated to acknowledge that authority and to submit to it. Today, this biblical mandate is often taken lightly by those who believe that extra-biblical revelation is equally authoritative. In the minds of the Reformers, no other revelation could stand as the Bible-the absolute voice of God.

Therefore, at the time of the sixteenth-century Reformation, a debate was waged over the nature of Scripture, and that debate would settle "Scripture Alone" as the basis for Christian authority, which became of immeasurable importance to the church. However, when Christians lose sight of the basis of authority of the Scriptures, the Bible can no longer be trusted as the absolute and objective truth. The Reformed commitment is to preserve the "objective" revelation of the Bible. Undoubtedly, the Christian church has not escaped the modern subtle change that has taken place over time, which has reduced the Bible to being only partly infallible, namely that portion of the Bible that speaks of matters regarding "faith and practice."

The Only Authority for Faith and Life

A reduction of biblical authority takes place when the Scriptures are no longer viewed within the historic context that claimed they are the "only infallible rule of faith and practice." When the nature of the authority of God's Word has been reduced to relativism, and the foundation, "faith and practice," has been redefined in the life of the Christian, the Bible has certainly been principally taken away from the people. If the Bible is reduced to an authority equal to other authorities, then, upon what is the Christian to base his "faith and practice?" What have we lost through the process of time, if not the meaning of the Bible that provides the only means for a single infallible rule, which alone divinely rules and governs all of life!

If the foundation, "faith and practice," were redefined, its function would be quite different; and if faith and life were limited to the scope of a reduced biblical authority and rule, the true meaning of the Scriptures would be lost. The reduction of biblical authority restricts biblical infallibility to certain portions of the Word of God that addresses "faith and practice," and, thereby, reduces the scope of biblical authority and rule to opinion. Christians have become extremely tolerant of teachings that reduce the Bible to a philosophy of relativism which reflects a claim that there are no absolute truths taught in the Scriptures; and as a result, unfounded ideas about God and man are disturbingly tolerated.

In summary, true Reformation thought seeks to present the authority and truth of Scripture in a fresh, relevant way, addressing the modern Christian with his most basic spiritual need of having a truth based upon an objective Revelation that never changes. Even though in today's climate of moral relativism, we must make a distinction between absolute truth and the right to follow ones own subjective inclinations. We must advance, with the Holy Spirit's call, to Christ as the center of all Truth, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." (John 5:39) And, again, "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me." (Jn. 15:26)

The Use of the Holy Scriptures

The call to Reformation thought requires that we be not only knowledgeable about the Scriptures but that we be prepared to reason with the Scriptures intelligently, defend the Scriptures alone, and proclaim them effectively. The Spirit of God is bearing witness by and with the Scriptures in the hearts of believers, and He alone is fully able to persuade that the Scriptures are the very Word of God. The Reformation was responsible for restoring to the church the principle of "Scripture Alone" to its proper place, a principle that had been operative within the church from the very beginning of the post apostolic age. Initially, the apostles taught orally; but with the close of the apostolic age, all special Revelation that God wanted preserved for man was codified in a written form.

Because God is the origin of Scriptures, they are as authoritative as the Scriptures testify themselves. To Timothy, Paul instructs,

... continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:14-17)

The Doctrine of "Scripture Alone" is included in our Reformed Confessions, as The Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 7 asserts,

"We believe that [the] holy Scriptures fully contain the will of God, and that whatsoever man ought to believe unto salvation is sufficiently taught therein...Neither may we consider any writings of men, however holy these men may have been, of equal value with those divine Scriptures. Nor ought we to consider custom or the great multitude, or antiquity, or succession of times and persons, or councils, decrees or statutes, as of equal value with the truth of God. Therefore, we reject with all our hearts whatsoever does not agree with this infallible rule."

The Scriptures confirm this article:

"Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from thy law [and] I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy loving-kindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name." (Ps. 119:18; Ps. 138:2)

Certainly, though these are perilous times for the church with regard to the normative function of the Bible in our lives, as Reformed Christians we must remain optimistic. That optimism is grounded in our conviction of the providence of God. It was by His singular providence that the Bible was originally given by His inspiration and under His providential care. It was also by His providence that the original books of the Bible were preserved and acquired the status of Canon. It is in His providence that we trust for the future of the church.

The Westminster Confession declares:

As the providence of God doth, in general, reach to all creatures; so, after a most special manner, it taketh care of his church, and disposeth all things to the good thereof (Ch. V:VII).

A noted theologian of our time, R.C. Sproul, once said,

"It is the invisible hand of Providence in the history of the church, along with the explicit promises of Scripture, regarding the church and God's own Word that gives comfort to our souls as we rest in the confidence of the abiding work of that same Providence."