Sola Scriptura

“For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” ~2 Peter 1:21

Wales has an outdoor national history museum. You can walk around and see what Wales used to be like back in the day – grocery stores, sweet shops, blacksmiths, churches, etc. One feature of the museum (pictured) is Rhyd-y-car Terrace, a row of six terraced houses, where each house represents a different period of Welsh history (AD 1805, 1855, 1895, 1925, 1955, and 1985). Each house displays the evolution of life in Wales – everything from toilets to technology to décor to appliances. Interestingly, slap-dab in the middle of the house portraying Welsh life in 1805 is a grand family Bible. In the next house, portraying life in 1855, the family Bible is still central only smaller. In the 1895 house the Bible is still there but in a bookcase off to the side. And so on, until, in the 1985 house, there is no Bible at all. The Bible incrementally went from being central to life in Wales, to sidelined, to banished altogether.

As Christians, we believe the Bible is the very words of God. They are breathed out by God (2 Timothy 3:16). Men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). If we believe that, if we truly believe the black leather book at home is the words of God – the words of life – then how does that affect where it is located in our lives? Big and central? Small and off to the side? Absent altogether? Peter gives us a clue: “And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to prosecho [hold in mind] as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19).

We do well to hold the Word in our minds as to a lamp shining in a dark place. We are certainly surrounded by darkness – dark, depraved, earthly-minded, God-less ways of thinking. There’s a darkness all around us calling evil good and good evil. And so, we do well to hold the Word in our minds as to a lamp in the darkness, so we can see the way to go and to show others the way to go. We do well also, as we considered a few weeks ago, to hold the lamp up so that our children may see where to go (Deuteronomy 6:6-7) – not only that they might hear the words of eternal life (John 6:68) and that they may know how to live in a way that pleases Him and is good for them (Deuteronomy 29:29), but also because through these words they get to see and know God.  

And that’s ultimately what the Bible is all about. We get to see God! In fact, one man once said you can write over the whole Bible three words: “Behold. Your. God”. My wee boy’s Bible has those three words etched into the front cover: Behold your God. It’s the light by which he can see God, see life, see truth, see everything correctly. Let’s keep this light turned up bright and in the center of our lives.   

Rev. Rob Dykes, Pastor of Preaching & Congregational Care