The re-discovery of authentic Christianity during the period known as the Reformation was brought about as God's Holy Spirit was at work, bringing light and understanding through the Bible.
The Roman Catholic Church had reached the extremes of corruption, and it was the Reformers, many of whom paid with their lives, who began to have a desire that the church should be reformed, and that its life should be ordered by what they had discovered in the Scriptures, and not by the teachings and authority of the Pope, his Bishops, or the traditions of men.
Sola Scriptura - Scripture Alone, was established as the Formal Principle of the Reformation; a principle from which an understanding of all the great doctrines was to derive. People, as they began to understand more of the Bible, were able to see how far away the teachings and practice of the Roman Catholic Church were from the truth they were now discovering in the inspired and inerrant Word of God.
The Scriptures, we learn, can 'equip us for every good work'; they can reveal more of God, His nature, His holiness, His perfection, His love, and how they also enable us to better understand our own sinful nature, and how we can be saved. The Scriptures give us clarity, and we are are told, are 'profitable', for 'reproof', 'correction' and 'instruction.'
The Bible is not, as some would say, out of date. We do not need something else, fresh revelations, visions, or prophecies. The Bible, inspired of God, is His complete revelation, and it gives us what we need.
Are you a Sola Scriptura person? Where do you stand with the Bible? |
