Answer: The phrase sola
scriptura is from the Latin: sola having the idea of
"alone," "ground," "base," and the word scriptura meaning
"writings" - referring to the Scriptures. Sola scriptura
means that Scripture alone is authoritative for the faith
and practice of the Christian. The Bible is complete,
authoritative, and true. "All Scripture is 'God breathed'
(given of inspiration of God) and is profitable for
teaching, reproof, correction, instruction in
righteousness..." (2 Timothy 3:16).
Sola scriptura was the rallying cry of the
Protestant Reformation. For centuries the Roman
Catholic Church had made its traditions superior in
authority to the Bible. This resulted in many practices that
were in fact contradictory to the Bible. Some examples are
prayer to saints and/or Mary, the
immaculate conception,
transubstantiation,
infant baptism,
indulgences, and
papal authority. Martin Luther, the founder of
the Lutheran Church and father of the Protestant
Reformation, was publicly rebuking the Catholic Church for
its unbiblical teachings. The Catholic Church threatened
Martin Luther with excommunication (and death) if he did not
recant. Martin Luther's reply was, "Unless therefore I am
convinced by the testimony of Scripture, or by the clearest
reasoning, - unless I am persuaded by means of the passages
I have quoted, - and unless they thus render my conscience
bound by the Word of God, I cannot and will not retract, for
it is unsafe for a Christian to speak against his
conscience. Here I stand, I can do no other; may God help
me! Amen!"
The primary Catholic argument against sola scriptura is that
the Bible does not explicitly teach sola scriptura.
Catholics argue, “the Bible nowhere states that it is the
ONLY authoritative guide for faith and practice.” While this
is true, it fails to recognize a crucially important issue.
We know that the Bible is the Word of God. The Bible
declares itself to be God-breathed, inerrant, and
authoritative. We also know that God does not change His
mind or contradict Himself. So, while the Bible itself may
not explicitly argue for “sola scriptura,” it most
definitely does not allow for traditions that contradict its
message. Sola scriptura is not as much of an argument
against tradition as it is an argument against unbiblical,
extra-biblical and/or anti-biblical doctrines. The only way
to know for sure what God expects of us is to stay true to
what we know He has revealed – the Bible. We can know,
beyond the shadow of any doubt, that Scripture is true,
authoritative, and reliable. The same cannot be said of
tradition.
The Word of God is the only authority for the Christian
faith. Traditions are valid only when they are based on
Scripture and are in full agreement with Scripture.
Traditions that contradict the Bible are not of God and are
not a valid aspect of the Christian faith. Sola scriptura is
the only way to avoid subjectivity and personal opinion from
taking priority over the teachings of the Bible. The essence
of Sola scriptura is basing your spiritual life on the Bible
alone, and rejecting any tradition or teaching that is not
in full agreement with the Bible. Second Timothy 2:15
declares, "Do your best to present yourself to God as one
approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who
correctly handles the Word of truth."
Sola scriptura does not nullify the concept of church
traditions. Rather, sola scriptura gives us a solid
foundation on which to base church traditions. There are
many practices, in both Catholic and Protestant churches,
that are the result of traditions, not the explicit teaching
of Scripture. It is good, and even necessary, for the church
to have traditions. Traditions play an important role in
clarifying and organizing Christian practice. At the same
time, in order for these traditions to be valid, they must
not be in disagreement with God’s Word. They must be based
on the solid foundation of the teaching of Scripture. The
problem with the Roman Catholic Church (and many other
churches) is that it bases traditions on traditions which
are based on traditions which are based on traditions –
often with the initial tradition not being in full harmony
with the Scriptures. That is why Christians must always go
back to sola scriptura, the authoritative Word of God, as
the only solid basis for faith and practice.
On a practical matter, a frequent objection to the concept
of sola scriptura is the fact that the canon of the Bible
was not officially agreed upon for at least 250 years after
the church was founded. Further, the Scriptures were not
available to the masses for 1500+ years after the church was
founded. How, then, were early Christians to use sola
scriptura, when they did not even have the full Scriptures?
How, then, were Christians who lived before the invention of
the printing press supposed to based their faith and
practice on Scripture alone if there was no way for them to
have a complete copy of the Scriptures? This issue is
further compounded by the very high rates of illiteracy
throughout history. How does the concept of sola scriptura
handle these issues?
The problem with this argument is that it is essentially
saying that Scripture’s authority is based on its
availability. This is not the case. Scripture’s authority is
universal, because it is God’s Word, it is His authority.
The fact that Scripture was not readily available, or that
people could not read it, does not change the fact that
Scripture is God’s Word. Further, rather than this being an
argument against sola scriptura, it is actually an argument
for what the church should have done, instead of what it
did. The early church should have made producing copies of
the Scriptures a high priority. While it was unrealistic for
every Christian to possess a complete copy of the Bible, it
was possible that every church could have some, most, or all
of the Scriptures available to it. Early church leaders
should have made studying the Scriptures their highest
priority so they could accurately teach it. Even if the
Scriptures could not be made available to the masses, at
least church leaders could be well-trained in the Word of
God. Instead of building traditions upon traditions, and
passing them on from generation to generation – the church
should have copied the Scriptures and taught the Scriptures
(2 Timothy 4:2).
Again, traditions are not the problem. Unbiblical traditions
are the problem. The availability of the Scriptures
throughout the centuries is not the determining factor. The
Scriptures themselves are the determining factor. We now
have the Scriptures readily available to us. Through the
careful study of God’s Word, it is clear that many church
traditions which have developed over the centuries are in
fact contradictory to the Word of God. This is where sola
scriptura applies. Traditions that are based on, and are in
agreement with God’s Word can be maintained. Traditions that
are not based on, and/or are in disagreement with God’s
Word, must be rejected. Sola scriptura points us back to
what God has revealed to us in His Word. Sola scriptura
ultimately points us back to the God who always speaks the
truth, never contradicts Himself, and always proves Himself
to be dependable.