Sola Scriptura

In preparation for our Sunday Evening Series on Roman Catholic Theology, I drafted the following post on sola scriptura.

The idea of sola scriptura – scripture alone - was not completely formulated in Martin Luther’s 95 Theses.  It developed as Martin Luther interacted with John Eck, a prominent Catholic scholar and outspoken critic of the dissenting theologian.  As they engaged in a series of debates at Leipzig, it became clear that each represented their own case convincingly while appealing to their own authority on the topic.  Eck was rather learned in the teachings of medieval theology and canon law, while Luther argued directly from the text of the Scriptures. 

When presented with evidence that contradicted the Scriptures, yet harmonized with the traditional teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, Luther had a decision to make.   Eck argued that the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church were correct and that Scripture must be examined in light of their infallible teaching.  Luther disagreed. Ultimately he accepted the Scriptures alone as the sole rule of faith.

The reinforced dividing wall between Catholics and Protestants is the issue of sola scriptura. 

Theologian James White gives a five point definition of this all important doctrine.

1. Scripture is the sole infallible rule of faith.
2. No other revelation is needed for the Church.
3. There is no other infallible rule of faith outside of Scripture.
4. Scripture reveals those things necessary for salvation.
5. All traditions are subject to the higher authority of Scripture.

Support for this teaching comes from:

2 Timothy 3:16-17  All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Now Roman Catholics will object to this doctrine of Sola Scriptura.  They reason that the Bible as we know it would not exist apart from the tradition and authority of the Catholic Church to establish the canon (the books which make up the Bible).  But 2 Timothy 3:16-17 does not state that the Scriptures come from the church, but from God.  Subsequently, the early church no more gave us the Scriptures, than Isaac Newton gave us gravity.  The Scriptures are sufficient to speak for themselves. And God through His Spirit allows any and all true believers to recognize them as such.  

Everything that you will ever need to live a life pleasing to God can be found in the Bible.  The Scriptures alone are the only reliable source in which one can extract correct knowledge of God.  It is through the teachings of the Scriptures alone that one must conclude that Christians are saved by grace through faith alone.  It is through the Scriptures that one can discern that there is no basis for purgatory, nor the veneration of Mary, nor the infallibility of the Pope. 

Without this safeguard of the Scriptures, we risk distorting the message of Christ, misrepresenting the person of God, and directing the sheep to the path of the Destruction.  

Dave Hintz

How to Pray for Your Pastors

When people ask me “How can I pray for you?”  I generally ask them to pray for my quiet times and sermon preparation – namely that the Lord would minister to me before I minister to others.   This is especially true on Mondays when I endure my weekly letdown and set to work crafting another sermon. 

Michael Emlet in his book, Cross Talk, wrote the following which is very apropos to the temptations I face.

A temptation in ministry is to think that just because we prepared a Bible study, a sermon, or a discipleship appointment (or wrote a book like this!), we are deeply engaging with the God of the universe. But that’s not necessarily true. It’s easy in ministry to live more as a ‘pipe’ than a ‘reservoir.’ That is, it’s easy to live merely as a conduit to others of the transforming truths of God’s Word, rather than as a changed and transformed reservoir who overflows with lived-out gospel truth. You wouldn’t imagine cooking meal after meal for your family without sitting down to enjoy that nourishment, would you? To paraphrase James 1:22, let’s not merely be hearers or speakers or counselors of the Word, but doers, first and foremost.

While God can use burned out, empty, and uninspired ministers to bless others, such pastors will not last long and eventually poison the flock.  At some point in time, your messages will become insipid and insincere, and when the flock senses that you don’t believe what you are telling them, they will not believe the messages as well.  So if you want to know how to pray for me, pray that I will believe and be transformed by what I say on Sundays.

P.S.  Don’t worry. I am not on the brink of burnout. I am just asking for a preemptive prayer strike.

Dave Hintz

A Glimpse Through the Portal: Part III

At this point, the angelic guardians of the throne, seize him and cast him into what looks like the crater of an active volcano.[1]  Once again, he is greeted by the pain of a thousands flames which inflict his newly acquired body.[2]  His new body experiences all of the pain of the fire as it blisters and burns, yet is never consumed.  

During his life on earth, his body suffered through the aging process replete with muscle aches, arthritis, and a spotty memory.  He sought medical help to maintain its health so that it might deteriorate at a slower rate.  Ironically in hell, his wish has been granted.  Though the burning fire inflicts agony upon every nerve ending in his body, each nerve still functions perfectly allowing his brain to feel the full weight of the pain. 

He anticipates his body falling into a state of shock, so that he might slip into a state of unconsciousness.  Yet, this new body does not seem to have the capability.  In fact, all of the features of the human body which God designed to restrict pain seem to be missing.   As the pain overwhelms him, he ponders suicide.  He strikes himself repeatedly with lethal force and though he feels the full force of burning fist striking a burning face, it does not kill him. After what seemed like years of pummeling, poking, and scratching himself, he realizes that hell does not afford the relief of suicide since he is already dead.  To his dismay he concludes, “This pain will remain with me forever.”      

Though the pain is horrendous, he begins to notice his other senses.  His eyes see nothing but black.[3]  Darkness engulfs the condemned man, clinging to him like ink.  He remembers his childhood and the panicked feeling as being lost in a super market, separated from his mom.   The thought of being left alone in a strange and foreboding place would lead him to cry out in desperation until his mom rescued him.  Hell presents a similar situation.  

Fear overcomes him as he seems to be trapped in an inescapable blanket of blackness.  He frantically tries to escape, but can find no door let alone any wall to orient him or another person to rescue him.   But then his heart skips a beat as he hears a sound.  In elation he reasons, that if his eyes cannot lead him out of darkness perhaps his ears can.    

Concentrating upon this striking noise his ears hear the howl of what sounds like a thousand voices, wailing.[4]  When a child stubs his toe he weeps, but when a mother holds her dead child she wails.   The frightening shrill of a voice which sends shivers down everyone’s spine.  Searching for the sound-bearer of this voice, he seeks to find someone to share in his present misery.   One thinker notes, that he would rather be in Hell than Heaven, because all of the interesting people were there.  Yet, this man could not find an interesting person.  In fact he could find no one; no friend, no companion, and no company for his misery.  Then, this frightening thought strikes him; the source of this wailing comes from none other than himself.

As he persists in the dark flame, he begins to think.  He accesses his mental hard-drive reminiscing all of the missed opportunities he had in his life, how many times he watched football instead of going to church.  How often he told his Christian friends to keep their religion to themselves.  Filled with remorse he weeps dry tears of regret. 

Then his mind turns to the person who sent him here.  The one he holds responsible for this torment.  “God, Jesus, whatever you call him” he recites in rage, “That is the one who put me here.”  Infuriated, he begins to cry out, “I hate you” over and over and over again.[5]  Yet, the release which anger gave him on earth, that slight tinge of power, never comes. 

Crestfallen, at the futility of his rage, he weeps again in hopeless agony.  

Wondering if there will ever be relief from this agony, one more horrifying thought enters his mind, “Forever.”[6]  Even the Jews in the Holocaust had hope that the pain would end, whether by escape, liberation, or death.  They had hope.  But the word, “Forever” robs him of even that simple element of common grace.  “Forever,” he whispers to himself again, “Forever,” he howls in disbelief.  And for eternity, he dwells in Hell, tormented by his conscience, his hatred for God, and the agony of the flame without hope of reprieve.

In the words of Thomas Watson:

The loss of the soul is an eternal loss; for the soul once lost, is lost for ever; the sinner and the furnace shall never be parted (Isaiah 33:14). As the sinner's heart will never be emptied of sin, so God's vial shall never be emptied of wrath: it is an eternal loss. - Thomas Watson

Dave Hintz

[1] Rev. 21:8

[2] Mrk. 9:44 Note that the body never completely disintegrates as the worm never dies

[3] Mat. 8:12

[4] Mat. 8:12

[5] Though a sinner might realize that Jesus is Lord, no one can truly love Jesus apart from the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. Mat. 22:37 and Ezek. 36:25–27.

[6] Mat. 3:12; Rev. 20:10

A Glimpse Through the Portal: Part II

As the days turn into weeks and the weeks into years, the man loses all hope.  Yet, the rhythm of hell comes to an abrupt halt when a loud booming voice summons his presence.  At once he leaves the torments of hell and is fused with his old body.[1]  The unbeliever marvels at the new features of his body, as it seems different than the one he possessed while living on earth.

Assembled with him is a tremendous mass of people before a beautiful man sitting upon a brilliant white throne.[2]  As he approaches the throne, he anticipates who this person might be.  A marginal Catholic, he speculates that this might be St. Peter, the guardian of the gates of heaven asking why he should allow these people into heaven.  Perhaps, his time in purgatory is over, and now he has been called to enter the gates of heaven. 

Thus, he brainstorms all of his righteous works.  He thinks about the money he gave to the church every Easter, how he used to coach his son’s baseball team, how he treated most people well, how he remained faithful to his wife, and never killed anyone.  As he thinks about his own works his hope escalates, until the man on the throne summons him by name. 

At first glance, the unbeliever drops to his knees in fear, as he seeks to shield himself from the glorious light emanating from the throne.  He then begins to make his case for his entrance into heaven, exclaiming all of the virtuous deeds he has done in the name of his religion.[3] Such boasts are greeted with silence.

Then it begins, the glorious man recounts every deed of his life, the time he picked on Gary in kindergarten, every time he disobeyed his parents, every lustful thought he ever had as a teenager and beyond, every covetous desire, the man on the throne even exposed the works he once thought noble as a sham, done only to magnify himself and not his Creator.[4]  After what seems like days of humiliation, the judge pauses to pronounce judgment.  With a voice which sounded like thunder, the Judge finds him guilty, and declares “Away from me, you worker of iniquity, you shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” [5]

Dave Hintz

[1] John 5:28-29 The spirit emerges from the temporary resting place to be reunited with the body.  At this point, God issues final judgment, in which both the body and the soul suffer.

[2] Rev. 20:11-15

[3] Mat. 7:22

[4] Rev. 20:12

[5] Mat. 7:23;  Mat. 25:41; Rev. 20:15

Hope for the Depressed

In light of the fact that yesterday was officially the “gloomiest day of the year” I thought that the following snippet would serve you well.

Depression rarely appears overnight. When you look closely, you usually find that it crept up on you gradually. Take a closer look at its progression. Personal problems that are left spiritually unattended can, in susceptible people, lead to depression. Do you see any of these things in your life?

• If you made someone besides God the center of your life, and you lose him or her, you will feel isolated and without purpose. Can you see how this can give way to depression? You made another person your reason for living and now, without him or her, you feel hopeless and unable to go on. You may not realize it, but the Bible tell us that this is idol worship—you are worshipping what God created instead of him.
• If you feel like you failed in the eyes of other people, and your success and the opinions of others is of critical importance, you can slip into depression. Can you see the spiritual roots? Your success and the opinions of others have become your gods, they are more important to you than serving Christ.
• If you feel like you did something very wrong, and you want to manage your sin apart from the cross of Jesus, depression is inevitable. We always want to believe that we can do something—like feeling really bad for our sins—but that is just pride. We actually think that we can pay God back, but this attitude minimizes the beauty of the cross and Jesus’ full payment for sin.
• If you are angry and don’t practice forgiveness, you can easily slide into depression. The simple formula is sadness + anger = depression. What makes us angry shows us what we love and what rights we hold dear. Unforgiveness shows us that we are not willing to trust God to bind up our broken hearts and to judge justly. Deal with your sadness and anger by pouring your heart out to God. Use the psalms as your prayers. Ask for faith so that you can trust God to be your defender and your helper.

Even students of depression who reject the Bible acknowledge that anger, resentment, and jealousy can contribute to the beginnings of depression. So take a hard look. Look for sin patterns you can confess. This is hard, but it is not depressing. If punishment was on the other side of confession, it would be foolish to follow such a path. But get to the gospel of Jesus and on the other side you will find full forgiveness, love, hope, and joy. They are yours for the asking. “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8–9).

If you want to read the entire article go to http://www.ccef.org/print/684.

Dave Hintz