Should your faith rely solely on the Bible?

For many of us, the Bible is by far and away the book that has most influenced our lives. But as Baptists, Jesus is our number one authority, writes Chris Goswami.

Here's a short breakdown of how different denominations approach the Bible, and where they get their authority 

 

A Catholic friend I used to work with once told me a surprising story of a meeting at his Belfast church. He was quoting a verse in the Bible when one of his members muttered (just loud enough so everyone could hear) “the Bible – that’s a Proty thing isn’t it?”, (Protestant thing). His comment broke the ice!

In fact, Catholic teaching holds scripture in high regard, but it’s not their only authority. On the other hand, for most “Proty” evangelicals (myself included), the Bible is by far and away the book that has most influenced our lives. It reveals God, it shows us the way of salvation, it teaches us how to live. I, like many of you, love the Bible. I read it, I study it, I memorise it.

But, approaching this topic as Baptists, is the Bible our only authority?
 

“Sola Scriptura”

“Scripture alone” is a view, held by many evangelical Christians when it comes to authority and popular with some Baptists. For these Christians the Bible isn’t simply an important authority in matters of faith, it takes top priority, and even excludes, other authorities.

This view was born out of the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century, as a reaction against the controlling nature of the church and its priests. It asserts that scripture is the highest and only authority for Christians. Each individual believer has responsibility to read and interpret scripture with the Holy Spirit’s help.

But is this view of “only the Bible” right? Let’s summarise some differing perspectives
 

Catholicism

The Bible is a foundational but not exclusive authority for Catholics. Catholics have three sources of authority. Holy Scripture is one. The second is Sacred Tradition, meaning, the oral teachings passed down through generations. For instance, Paul encourages Timothy (2 Tim 2:1-2) to pass on "the things you heard me say”, ie not only things written down.

The third authority is The Magisterium, the teachings of the Pope and the Bishops who provide clarification and consistency.

Example: the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the Catholic belief that Mary’s body did not undergo decay after death. Instead, Mary was taken up, body and soul, into heaven in a special act of divine grace. But this is not stated anywhere in the Bible.Critics argue that Catholicism’s “triple authority” undermines the primacy of scripture and puts too much power in the hands of church leaders, including the Pope.
 

Anglicanism

I am struck, when visiting a Church of England church, how Anglican churches spend more time reading the Bible than many Baptist churches. Each service can have up to four readings: Old Testament, Psalm, Gospel and Epistle.

Anglicans try to maintain a “via media”, a middle way or a balanced view of authority. The CofE Articles of Religion state that scripture contains “all things necessary to salvation”, but Anglicans also value tradition, and reason. Of course, as with all denominations, there is a spectrum of Anglican Christians - some will hold scripture more highly than others.

Example: Church Structures - The hierarchy of the Anglican Communion, with bishops, archbishops etc, is not described anywhere in the Bible. Their roles, and the organisation of the Anglican Church, were shaped by historical developments.

Critics comment that the challenge for Anglicans is maintaining balance – often the emphasis on tradition overshadows the authority of scripture.
 

Evangelicalism

Strictly speaking, evangelicalism is, of course, a tradition, not a denomination. Not all evangelicals hold to sola scriptura, but many hold to some variation of “scripture alone”. Sola Scriptura has already been explained, but what would critics of this approach say?

Well one thing they say is, if God really meant “scripture alone” must be our authority, it seems odd that scripture itself doesn’t say that. Although the Bible affirms scripture as, “alive and active like a two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4) and that “all scripture is God-breathed, (2 Tim 3.16), it is silent when it comes to its own “sole authority”.

Secondly, the list of books that make up the New Testament (the Canon) was determined by the church in the 4th Century, guided by the Holy Spirit. So, to say that scripture has authority over the church that defined it, seems incoherent.

And thirdly, while this approach strongly promotes personal reading of the Bible, it leads to multiple interpretations, including over-literal interpretations. It can minimise the value of tradition and scholarship.

All scripture must be interpreted and, when we do that, we introduce “other authorities” we may not be fully aware of, such as my church tradition, my life experiences, and so forth. Being human, means we cannot leave these to one side.

Example: Evangelicals disagree widely on Bible passages regarding the role of women in church leadership. (* see note below)
 

Methodism

It’s worth also mentioning the Methodist “Wesleyan Quadrilateral”. This four-fold authority recognises scripture as a primary authority, but also highly values tradition, reason, and personal experience as sources of theological understanding. Methodists seek to discern God's will, holistically, through all four of these.
 

What about us Baptists?

Like any historical denomination, Baptists hold a variety of views, and a fundamental part of being Baptist is that we are ready to defend the right for individual and churches to hold any of these views.

As a union of churches, we don’t have a statement of faith, but we do have our Declaration of Principle. This states,

“That our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, is the sole and absolute authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practice, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and that each Church has liberty, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret and administer His laws.”

It seems clear that the people who brought us this declaration decided to create a statement that is different to the more usual “sola scriptura”. As the principles of the four English Baptists colleges wrote (Something to Declare, 1996):

“… our final authority is a person, Jesus Christ. It is not a book, nor a creed, nor even a basis of faith - but a person in whom God expresses himself fully: ‘Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh’”.

Jesus Christ comes first, secondly the Bible witnesses to Christ, and the third authority, the local Church Meeting, discerns the process. Three authorities in all, and in that order.

The distinction between Christ and scripture for some Baptists will be invisible, but for others it can be significant. I would simply remind us that the Word of God, ultimately, is Jesus. So, while the Bible is sacred, it's Christ we worship, not a book.

Lastly, lets return to the question in the title:
 

Should your faith rely solely on the Bible?

All mainstream Christian denominations agree that the Bible is authoritative and trustworthy; a compass in the world, a lamp for our feet and a light for our path (Psalm 119). Furthermore, the majority of Christians acknowledge its unique “dual authorship”, blending Godly inspiration with human expression. Nevertheless, all our understandings of authority can be flawed - we are human after all.

As Baptists a well-rounded faith must be fixed on the person of Jesus and firmly rooted in scripture but should also acknowledge the value (and the biases) of our traditions and lived experiences, and the church meeting’s responsibility to discern. Our differences should make for good discussion, they illustrate the rich diversity of God's Church.

So perhaps in the end the question is not whether our faith should rely solely on the Bible, but how the Bible can help us to open our hearts to Christ; to the entirety of God's voice, including scripture, tradition, intellect, and the experience of God in our church and in our daily lives.

What do you think?
 

Chris Goswami is Associate Minister at Lymm Baptist Church, and a chaplain at Manchester Airport. He blogs regularly at 7minutes.net, where a version of this reflection appeared. It has been adapted and republished with permission 
 

* 

The Baptist Union of Great Britain has affirmed the ordination of women as ministers for more than 100 years.

Project Violet - named after Violet Hedger, the first Baptist woman to be college trained for ordination - is a major study into women’s experience of ministry, which has sought to understand more fully the theological, missional, and structural obstacles women ministers face in the Baptist community in England and Wales.

Its findings were released in May, and responses to its requests for change will be presented to Baptist Union Council in October 2024

Image | Aaron Burden | Unsplash 

 

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