The Bible is Enough

By: Pastor Alex Dotson

April 28th, 2022

2 Timothy 3:16-17, ESV

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

The 112th congress, elected in 2010, had a rule. Each bill presented had to cite a specific constitutional basis. This rule meant that, at the time, if a member of congress wanted to present a bill, they had to justify the bill by stating which part of the constitution the bill would justify the need for a new law. It got me thinking about people in the church and how Scripture is used. Too often, we utter our beliefs, doctrines, or convictions without being able to explain where we got that idea. If a person at Vine Street states that there is something we should be doing differently or we are advocating something prohibited by God, I will usually ask them to tell me where they found that in Scripture. I try to do this even when I may agree with their idea, and this is not to be some kind of frustrating person. I do this because of how seriously I believe the church should hold the sufficiency of Scripture.

Wayne Grudem wrote in his book on Systematic Theology,

“The sufficiency of Scripture means that Scripture contained all the words of God he intended his people to have at each stage of redemptive history, and that it now contains all the words of God we need for salvation, for trusting him perfectly, and for obeying him perfectly,”

(Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, 127).

The Bible is the final word in the life of a believer in Jesus and contains all of the answers you need to live a life pleasing to God. If our lives are focused on living for Christ, all that is important in living life can be found in His Word. If you are living for Christ, you can find a basis for all of the essential beliefs and convictions in the Bible. The problem comes when we have a conviction or belief that is not explicitly mentioned in Scripture, contradicts something found in Scripture, or we have taken Scripture out of context to fit our worldview.

There are many things that Scripture does not explicitly mention. For instance, Scripture does not speak on what kind of car a person should buy. It does not even mention specifically whether you should buy a car. Scripture may not mention everything specifically, but it does give principles to live by that can help us determine our decisions in every way to make choices that please God. So while the Bible does not mention that you should own a vehicle or what kind of vehicle, it mentions making wise financial decisions (Proverbs 21:5, 1 Timothy 5:8) and informed choices (Proverbs 1:5) that will affect your ability to please God. It mentions asking yourself why you are making decisions and asking whether that motivation is pleasing to God (Proverbs 1:7). We have basic principles found in Scripture to help us determine specific choices in this life that are pleasing to God.

People try and justify sins in many different ways. Once, there was a woman in a church I was a part of who abandoned her husband and kids to be with a guy she had just met. She used the justification that, “God wants me to be happy,” as her excuse. Contrary to what some think, the Bible does not contradict itself. Cheating on your spouse is sinful, and God does not smile down upon adultery (Matthew 5:27-28). God wants you to have true joy but knows true joy only comes from following His ways (Psalm 1). If you have a belief, conviction, or action, not in line with Scripture, the problem is not with Scripture. If there is something you do that Scripture says explicitly is wrong, then you have a problem, not the Bible. Do not put your bad decisions on God or His Word (James 1:13).

My grandfather once told me the first, second, and third rule of interpreting the Bible is context. Understanding the context of a passage of Scripture is vital to interpreting its meaning. However, there are many times that people will “cherry-pick” verses to justify their opinion. Instead of letting Scripture guide conviction, pre-conceived ideas twist Scripture. Here is a fact, the verse numbers, chapter numbers, sub-titles, and book titles are not inspired. They were put in Bibles much later on to help people find specific passages and make studying Scripture easier. The books of the Bible were meant to be read as their context (historical, cultural, and literary context) dictates. The authors wrote letters, poetry, and historical narratives, which are meant to be read as intended. We need to be handling the Word rightly (2 Timothy 2:15). If you come up with an interpretative issue, ask yourself this, what was the author trying to communicate to the audience they were writing?

Scripture is the final word in the life of a believer It is helpful in every single circumstance to help the believer make all decisions pleasing to God when we treat it rightly and it determines our convictions. It is sufficient in every aspect of life because God intended it to be a road map to follow Him and become more like Christ. This should be the essential motivation in a Christian’s life. When you state your convictions and beliefs, do you derive those beliefs from Scripture? Can you tell people where you can find justification for those convictions in Scripture? If you can, then you have headed in the right direction.

Any questions or comments? Email Pastor Alex at alexd@vsbcfamily.org