There are the two main extremes regarding the scriptures in the church today but as we shall see they are actually two sides of the same coin. The first is that the Scriptures are “the final word of God”. Here it is held that the gifts of the Spirit were only for the establishing of the church, and all that God has to say to us was recorded during this time of spiritual gifting, in the pages of the New Testament. Therefore outside of nature all that we are to know of, and hear from God is revealed to us through the Scriptures. This view is the most popular in the church today, and to understand it we need to examine our history to see what events created the necessity for such a teaching.         In the fifth century Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire. The spiritual hierarchy that had developed now had the power of the state to enforce its will upon the people. This Church was presented as God’s established authority, the seat of his power on earth. They claimed that spiritually the authority of the church was equal to the Apostles, but in reality anywhere that the Church contradicted the scriptures their teaching was higher. To keep even that from ever becoming a problem the church said the scriptures were their exclusive property, and were kept locked in ancient Latin away from the people. Only the priests could preach and teach because they alone spoke for the Church, the vehicle through which all that was to be known or heard from God must come. Now they were able to write their own ticket and the preeminence of the clergy became unquestionable controlling every aspect of human life because now they alone held the keys to heaven and hell. This gave them the power to rule over even the kings of the earth.   Anyone who dared to challenge any of these points even by memorizing or simply having a page of the scriptures in their own language were subject to arrest torture and even death if they refused to recant, charged with heresy because they dared to believe that the scriptures were written to them so they might know and hear from God. Out of the dark ages created by these errors came the battle cry of the Reformation “sola scriptura” that is, that the scriptures alone are to be the rule of faith the measuring stick against which all teaching must be measured.  While we hold and affirm this truth, it is how over time to protect against the errors of the past, it was change into the scriptures are the final word of God that we must today take issue. The fruit of this teaching has kept the assembly of believers functioning as a lecture hall where God is still revealed first and foremost from the pulpit. After all if it is as they hold, that the scriptures alone reveal God and it is only through the study of them that we are to know Him, and since most of us in this work a day world do not have the time to study as we should, then we must therefore of necessity defer to those whose full time job is to study for us. This is simply repeating the errors of the past by bringing us back again to an unhealthy dependence upon another clergy system. The second extreme is that when we are walking in the fullness of the Spirit we don’t need the scriptures and that they even become a stumbling stone holding us back. While it is obvious that this is a reaction to the first extreme, that the scriptures are the final word of God. It must also be noted that each of these extremes feed off the error of the other to justify their own position. The scriptures speak very clearly to each of these, first is God still speaking and revealing Himself through the Spirit today? Jesus Himself said, “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth.” Jn 16:12,13. Immediately we have an objection, doesn't it say in I Cor 13:8-12 that the gifts have ceased, because all truth was perfectly revealed in the Bible? No! What it says is, that they shall cease when the "perfect" (Greek- telios) comes, when we shall see face to face, when we shall know even as we are known, and that beloved is The Coming of Our LORD Jesus Christ. “We know that when He appears we shall be like Him (perfect) for we shall see Him as He is” (face to face.) I Jn 3:2. “And He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some shepherds and teachers, (why?) to equip God’s people, preparing them (God’s people) to do the work of ministry, building up the body of Christ, ( how long are these gifts to last?) until we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect (Greek-telios) man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. ”. Eph 4:11-13. “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks let him speak as the very word of God; if any serve, do so with strength that God gives. So that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be glory and power for ever and ever.” I Pet. 4: 10, “You are enriched by Him in every spoken word and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: So that you are not lacking in any gift waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”. I Cor 1:7. Notice the gifts are to function until Jesus comes, not until the completion of the Scriptures.  “Now there are different gifts but the same Spirit… The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the benefit of all... But the one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills…God has placed the members, each one of them in the body just as He pleased” I Cor 12.  “Earnestly desire the best gifts… seeking above all to excel in those which build up the assembly … To sum it up, when you gather together, each one of you has a psalm, a teaching, a tongue, a revelation or an interpretation. Let all things be done to buildup the assembly” I Cor 14. Then why do we still need the scriptures? To answer that we must first answer these, when, to whom, and for what purpose was the New Testament written? First the New Testament was written after Pentecost between 40 and 90 AD to the first century church to those walking in the fullness and also to all believers, even us today. How were they used? “Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea” Col 4:16. "I myself am also persuaded about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish others. But I write the more boldly to you in part, as reminding you, because of the grace that was given to me by God". Rom 15:14,15. Listen to the messages written to the first century church.  “These things we write to you that your joy may be full…You have an anointing from the Holy One and you know all things. I have not written unto you because you do not know the truth but because you know it and know lie is of the truth… These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him…Beloved do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone into the world… We are of God he who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error” I Jn 1,2,4.  “I do not write these things to shame you, but as beloved sons I warn you... Now concerning spiritual gifts brethren I do not want you to be ignorant… If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritually gifted, then let him acknowledge that what I am writing unto you is the Lord’s command but if anyone chooses ignorance, let him be ignorant. Therefore brethren desire earnestly to prophesy and do not forbid speaking with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order” I Cor 1,4,12,14. “Beloved I now write to you this second epistle (in both I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder.) that you may be mindful of the words that were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandments of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior…Even as our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of some things that are hard to understand, which those that are untaught and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved seeing you know these things before hand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked I Pet 3. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, so that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly equipped unto all good works. I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His Kingdom. Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, they will gather around teachers that say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” II Tim 3:16-4:4 God has called us to “be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who dose not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” II Tim 2:15. Not caught up in extremes on the right or on the left but walking in the center of the word and of the Spirit. For we are like a ship on the ocean, the Spirit is the wind in our sails; the scripture is our chart and compass. We may choose to ignore the scriptures, but there are many false winds that blow through our sails. How do we test them? Many false harbors with shallow rocks, how will we avoid them? On the other hand we may explain away the wind, and drop our sails cleaving only to the scriptures. Now we feel safer in that we are more in control, but the truth is that we are sitting still in the water and not moving on with God. The one thing I am sure of in all of this, is that it is not the scriptures but these two extremes that are the stumbling stones. The one is there to stop any move of the Spirit from happening at all and the other makes sure any move of God is blown off course and ship wrecked as soon as it begins.                                                                        Return to article index