6-Twin Truths of Scripture: Authority & Sufficiency,pt1

One day at the height of the Reformation Luther was asked to write his name on the flyleaf of a copy of the German Bible he had translated. Luther did, but he wrote a message as well, beginning with John 8:25: "'Who are you?...Even I have told you from the beginning.' Luther then added: They...desire to know who He is and not to regard what He says, while He desires them first to listen; then they will know who He is. The rule is: Listen and allow the Word to make the beginning; then the knowing will nicely follow. If, however, you do not listen, you will never know anything. For it is decreed: God will not be seen, known or comprehended except through His Word alone. Wherever, therefore, one undertakes for salvation apart from the Word is in vain. God will not respond to that. He will not have it. He will not tolerate any other way. Therefore, let His Book, in which He speaks with you, be commended to you; for He did not cause it to be written for no purpose. He did not want us to let it lie there in neglect, as if He were speaking with mice under the bench or with flies on the pulpit. We are to read it, to think and speak about it, and to study it, certain that He Himself (not an angel or creature) is speaking with us in it." Oh that God would grow contemporary Christians and the modern Church in such a conviction, rather than getting off track with the pragmatic schemes of man for how God grows His Church, or getting off track in how God grows His children in Christlikeness. As we wrap up our study on THE DOCTRINE OF SCRIPTURE we'll conclude with a study on "Twin Truths of Scripture: Authority & Sufficiency." Since the Bible is inspired and inerrant, it demands Bible Exposition in our public proclamation, as well as Biblical Counsel in our private ministry of the Word, since it answers all the significant issues of life.