My position is that the divinely inspired Bible is the only infallible regula fidei of the church of Jesus Christ. I will throughout this debate, show what is meant when we say, "Sola Scriptura", offer a defense of this doctrine, and demonstrate what the position is of my opponent and how it falls short of the example set before us by Christ and the apostles. I will answer the counter arguments, showing that the rebuttals offered by Rome's apologists are spurious and littered with fallacy. Finally, I will summarize this issue once again, but with the viewpoint of a believer in Scripture alone.

What is Sola Scriptura?

Foundational to the presentation of my argument is the definition of what we mean when we say, "Sola Scriptura". Indeed, the concept has been poorly represented in many circumstances, leading to some of the wildest forms of sophistry I have ever heard. I implore both my opponent and any reader not to be caught up in misconceptions or red herrings, but rather deal with Sola Scriptura in its true intent.

Sola Scriptura states that the Scriptures are sufficient to serve alone as the church's rule of faith on matters of doctrine and practice. It is the final authority on all matters that it addresses and without need of a supplement, and only those things that it addresses are to be binding upon the believer. It affirms the universal priesthood of the believer, and the believer's right to privately interpret Scripture. However, while it affirms private interpretation, this not giving allowance to the Christian who would go against the admonishment of Peter and, "distort . . . the Scriptures, to their own destruction." (2 Pet.3:16). Rather, it exhorts the Christian to remain subservient to the Holy Spirit and under the guidance and counsel of his church. Finally, Sola Scriptura affirms the perspicuity of Scripture. This is to say that the subject matter of the Bible is discernible and those things which are needed to know in order to be saved are clear (Jn. 20:31), without denying that some passages are harder to understand, as Peter admits in 2 Pet. 3:16. Tim Enloe writes:

"The few acknowledged obscure places do not mean that the actual things of Scripture (e.g, the ideas of Christ's deity, the Trinity, salvation by grace, etc.) are unclear--indeed, to say such is to impiously charge God with the darkness and blindness of the human heart--and the obscure places are offset by more clear places that discuss the same things. There are two ways of speaking of the perspicuity of Scripture: an internal way and an external way. The former involves the heart comprehension of a man, and is limited to those who have the Spirit of God within them. The latter involves "just the text" of Scripture, about which there can be no substantial doubt as to the meaning."

Hence, the point is also made that the ministry of the Holy Spirit in guiding and enlightening the believer who reads the Word is a vital tenant of Sola Scriptura. Nowhere does the doctrine state that a man with a Bible and nothing else has all he needs. Rather, we affirm what the Westminster Confession of Faith describes:

"VI. The whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men. Nevertheless, we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word: and that there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and government of the church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature, and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed.

"VII. All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves, nor alike clear unto all: yet those things which are necessary to be known, believed, and observed for salvation, are so clearly propounded, and opened in some place of Scripture or other, that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them."

This brings us to the next integral step of our definition of Sola Scriptura, the list of those things that it does not affirm. It does not claim the Bible contains all general knowledge, or even that it contains all religious knowledge. "But the Bible does not have to be exhaustive to function as the sole rule of faith for the Church. We do not need to know the color of Thomas' eyes. We do not need to know the menu of each meal of the Apostolic band for the Scriptures to function as the sole rule of faith for the Church." Furthermore, it does not deny the authority of the Church to teach the Word of God. Paul calls the Church, in 1 Tim. 3:15 ". . . the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth . . ." and indeed she upholds the truth, while remaining submissive to the voice of her Lord, the written word of God. Furthermore, Sola Scriptura does not rule out tradition, but rather states that all forms of tradition are not equal to Scripture. Instead, tradition is to be subservient to Scripture. Finally, espousal of Sola Scriptura does not deny that God's Word was at one time spoken, proclaimed by the apostles in their teaching ministry. "Rather, it refers to the Scriptures as serving the Church as God's final and full revelation"

Having defined what the doctrine of Sola Scriptura teaches, we will now examine how Scripture is sufficient alone and without need of any supplement.

The Evidence for Sola Scriptura

Now, on what grounds do we claim the sufficiency of Sola Scriptura? In order to answer this question, we will first briefly examine the forms of God's revelation.

Adherents to Sola Scriptura do indeed affirm that God has revealed Himself to us in various forms at various times. The author of Hebrews states, "Heb 1:1-2 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways; . . ." If we read further, we see the culmination of His revelation coming to light in the person of Jesus Christ, ". . . in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. " We profess the Scriptures to being God's final form of special revelation to His Church, as it carries with it God's inspiration. While God's creation attests to the glory and existence of its Master, it is in God's written word that we find all that God has chosen to reveal to man in order to be saved and all He has sought fit to reveal about Himself.

Keeping in mind, therefore, that the Scriptures are God's special revelation, we say thus it is inspired. Paul gives us our clearest indication of the inspiration and sufficiency of Scripture in his second letter to Timothy: "2Ti 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 2Ti 3:17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."

The word for "inspired" here is the Greek "theopneustos", which means, "God-breathed". Literally, the passive tense indicates God breathed into Scripture. Furthermore, it is because of this that Scripture is fully sufficient, as Paul indicates. He goes onto stating that their inspiration then makes Scripture "profitable" for the functions of the Church (teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness) and therefore in verse 17, makes the man of God equipped for every good work. The word adequate puts the final seal onto inspiration and sufficiency. The Greek word used is "artios" which is translated by Strongs as "complete, perfect", and by Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich, and Danker as "complete, capable, proficient". The God-breathed Scriptures are profitable due to their inspiration, and therefore "adequate, complete" etc. Dr. James White adds:

"I pause long enough to note that Paul asserts that the man of God can be complete, capable, proficient, and qualified, because God's inspired Scriptures are always available to him. If another source of authority was necessary, surely Paul would have directed us to it in order that we might be complete, but he does not!"

However, this verse, while one of the clearest statements, is not alone. Peter affirms the inspiration of Scripture in 2 Pet. 1:20-21. Furthermore, the Lord Jesus, in Mt. 22:31-32 brings the Sadducees to Scripture, and continues to plead from the Scriptures in countless other times in the Gospels. The phrase "it is written" occurs in 28 verses in the Gospel accounts alone (NASB version), yet the phrase "tradition tells us" or any related concept is noticeably absent. The Bible states that the apostles preached in the temples and on the streets with the Word of God, and in Acts we see the Bereans being the ones exulted for their studiousness in searching the Scriptures. The example set before us by Our Lord and the apostles is that of the sufficiency of Scripture. Furthermore, there are countless quotes from the early church fathers demonstrating that they upheld the sufficiency of Scripture and exalted Scripture to being the church's highest authority.

The Roman Catholic would be quick to point out those verses that discuss tradition to rebut the ideal of scriptural sufficiency, but such claims are spurious (we shall examine this later). In addition, the Roman Catholic apologist finds himself facing other hurdles with the ambiguity of the word "Tradition" and the quandaries their apologetic sets up when pleading to the need for an infallible interpreter.

Roman Catholicism and Tradition

Before we go into the problems with my opponent's position, it's important to note that the Roman Catholic does not completely argue against the sufficiency of Scripture. There is a prevailing opinion that exists within modern Roman Catholic apologetics called "material sufficiency". This means that while all a Christian must believe is in Scripture, explicitly or implicitly, it is not formally sufficient, needing to be supplemented by Catholic Tradition in order to be understood and properly interpreted. This is not much different from their other prevailing viewpoint on the sufficiency of Scripture, "partim, partim", which states that part of God's special revelation is found in Scripture, and part is in Tradition. Namely, this viewpoint believes that oral tradition is a separate revelation, claims that the Bible is materially insufficient (there are some doctrines which are not found at all in Scripture and need Tradition), and was espoused by Trent . This is where the issue lies: In both partim partim and material sufficiency, Rome adds Tradition as a vital component and pleads that an infallible interpreter is needed in order to analyze the Scriptures. This asserts, basically, that the Scriptures are not clear without these elements; hence both viewpoints deny the ability of the Scriptures to serve as the sole infallible rule of faith.

One has to ask themselves, however, if RC Tradition equals the level of inspiration and certainty that is set before us by the Scriptures. If God is the author of both Scripture and Tradition, then they both will bear with it the same signature. So, it is not unreasonable to expect the same level of inspiration. But upon examination of Roman Catholic dogma, we do not see the same solidity and clarity as is given to us in Scripture. David King writes:

"The Church of Rome claims that she possesses an authoritative, extrabiblical oral tradition originating with the apostles themselves. However, though repeatedly declared in Roman Catholic documents, this theory is an unsubstantiated claim and nothing more. No Roman apologist has ever been able to define or produce the doctrinal content of this oral tradition. All that is ever asserted is that content for these traditions does exist, but the inability to establish an historical, objective link for these traditions, traceable to the apostles, proves the spurious nature of such claims."

The fact is: the Roman Catholic concept of Tradition is never defined confidently by Rome or Rome's proponents. Rather, Tradition is a very nebulous term, shape-shifting into whatever form is needed at the time by a Roman Catholic apologist. Robert Godfrey expounds on this:

"Our Roman opponents, while making much of tradition, will never really define tradition or tell you what its content is. Tradition is a word that can be used in a variety of ways. It can refer to a school of understanding the Scriptures, such as the Lutheran tradition. It can refer to traditions - supposively from the apostles - that are not in the Bible. It can refer to developing traditions in the history of the church that are clearly not ancient in origin. Usually, in [the writings of] the ancient fathers of the church, the word 'tradition' refers to the standard interpretation of the Bible among them. And we Protestants value such tradition."

Usually, we find that only a general appeal to tradition is employed by the Roman Catholic. Their appeal never goes beyond this, however and leaves us to wonder if there exists an extrabiblical Pauline or Johannine form of tradition. One would think the defining doctrines of such a tradition would have been preserved and could be easily outlined; in other words that I would be able to verifiably link the Marian dogmas to the Pauline, extrabiblical tradition, etc . This puts the Roman Catholic at a bit of a quandary; as if they cannot succinctly define tradition there's no way of knowing whether one is being true to that tradition. Hence, the conclusion can be drawn that "Tradition" lacks a verifiable heritage with the apostles. How then can the Roman Catholic be certain it is an inspired rule of faith?

Now, the Roman Catholic does claim to have scriptural merit for Tradition, but the scriptural citations are, once again, citations of tradition in a general form. Upon examination of these Scripture verses we see the "evidence" spoken of is hardly indicative of Roman Catholicism's "Tradition". The most commonly cited verse in defense of "Tradition" is 2 Thes. 2:15, which states, "So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us." However, their exegesis of this verse fails on many levels. First of all, there is no proof that these "traditions" were extrabiblical. It is very possible that what Paul is referencing is something that he writes elsewhere in this epistle, or in one of his other letters. What of the transmission by "word of mouth"? Paul had preached there in his ministry; and elsewhere in Scripture the oral proclamations of Paul have been said to be the oral pronouncement of the Gospel, nothing more. A second possible exegesis could be that any of these traditions which existed then no longer are in practice; however upon examining the context this is somewhat unlikely. What can be said with confidence is that Paul gives no proof for what Rome claims in any way, shape, or form. To say otherwise would be to read far more into the text than is implied. Paul gives no indication, not even implicitly, that those things which were spoken to the church at Thessalonica involved anything like the assumption of Mary, or papal infallibility, etc.

The other verses which are cited by Roman Catholics in support for "Tradition" often go in this same vein, a general reference or plea to something "spoken" or to a "tradition" which has to be deceitfully read into, eisegeted, in order to form the conclusion that Rome does. If not this, then the verse Rome's apologist cites just demonstrates that he either does not understand the doctrine of Sola Scriptura, or is being deliberately dishonest in their attempt to defend Rome.

As a final point, the "infallible Magisterium" said to be needed to determine the truth of Scripture gives no infallible certainty and instead relies upon such blatant circular reasoning to assert its claim to interpretation. In Roman Catholicism, the Magisterium is the "keeper" of the Sacred Deposit of Scripture and Tradition, the interpreter of it; but no larger logical fallacy has been promulgated than the one that Rome uses to assert her authority. The Roman Catholic Church authority is authoritative because their exegesis of Scripture states that it is. Church history, likewise, affirms Roman Catholic doctrine when examined by Rome herself. Therefore, the authority in question has interpreted the text and consequently dubbed itself the "infallible interpreter"! How convenient! Rome derives her authority from herself.

Likewise fallacious is the claim that the Bible needs an infallible interpreter in the first place to be understood. This concept defeats itself, for even the pronouncements of the Church need to be interpreted by fallible people. If Scripture itself is unclear, what makes the Magisterial decrees any clearer? Indeed, there exists constant fighting amongst Roman Catholics on different interpretations of the magisterial decrees. Are Protestants heretics or separated brethren? Are the decrees of Vatican II infallible church teachings? Is Pope John Paul II truly the pope? What about the Novus Ordo mass? All of these are very serious questions with a lot at stake. Yet has Rome not spoken? The Roman Catholic may argue that the Holy Spirit guides the pronouncements of the Magisterium, but who is to say that the Holy Spirit cannot, or is powerless, to guide the church of Jesus Christ through the inspired word of God alone? While Tradition is nebulous and the concept of an infallible interpreter self-defeating and without Biblical decree, what stands before us in truth and certainty? Scripture. What is the only infallible rule of faith, the only rule which clearly carries the weight of inspiration behind it? Scripture.

Dr. James White accurately observes the fallacy of Rome's claim that we need an infallible interpreter:

". . . The argument put forth is even more pernicious because it attacks the sufficiency of Scripture itself. It implies that the Holy Spirit did such a poor job of inspiring and producing Scripture that although the Psalmist thought God's Word was a lamp to his feet and a light to his path, he (the Psalmist) was in fact quite deluded, and was treading dangerous ground. Instead of the glorious words of God spoken of in Psalm 119, we are told that such basic truths as the nature of God, including the deity of Christ or the personality of the Holy Spirit, cannot be derived solely from Scripture but require external witnesses. . . . . . Are we to believe that the Bible is so unclear and self-contradicting that we cannot arrive at the truth through an honest, whole-hearted effort at examining its evidence?"

In the final analysis, Scripture is the only infallible regula fidei of the church of Jesus Christ and certain rule of faith.

Objections to Sola Scriptura

Now, obviously, there are always objections to a worldview, and Rome would be foolish to not to challenge the claims of Sola Scriptura, for as the power of Tradition and a Magisterial authority goes, likewise goes with it many of its dogmas which are utterly reliant on an interpretive body and a "Tradition" to give it merit. While space does not permit me to address every potential argument, I will address a couple of the more prominent ones. No doubt that by the time this debate finds its completion, we will have addressed these and a few more.

The Roman Catholic apologist now turns to the Protestant and states, "Sola Scriptura leads to doctrinal anarchy, which is further reason why you need an infallible authority. Look at all of these Protestant denominations, 30,000 of them the last time I checked. How do you know you're in the correct church?"

The first thing to be stated is that this figure is highly exaggerated by Rome's defenders. Indeed, when pressed to cite where they got such a figure, most will not be able to tell you, instead relying upon a mere assertion that this is "just the way it is". Dr. Eric Svendsen, a Protestant apologist, has located the source of this figure, in World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World A.D. 1900 - 2000 (Edited by David Barrett). Barrett's findings, however, hardly proves the Roman Catholic's position.

"First, Barrett, writing in 1982, does indeed cite a figure of 20,780 denominations in 1980, and projects that there would be as many as 22,190 denominations by 1985. This represents an increase of approximately 270 new denominations each year (Barrett, 17). What the Roman Catholic who cites this figure does not tell us (most likely because he does not know) is that most of these denominations are non-Protestant."

He goes on to state that, according to Barrett's figure, Protestants account for 8,196 of these denominations, a far cry from 30,000, and Roman Catholicism accounts for 223 denominations. So much for unity in Rome.

Secondly, the argument on the part of the Roman Catholic is dishonest for it often attempts to lump together churches in its examination which do not belong together. Tim Enloe speaks of this in an argument to John Pacheco.

"The reader needs to bear in mind that the term "Protestant". . . refers only to those denominations that adhere to the central doctrines of the Reformation--which are usually summed up in terms of five broad themes: Sola Scriptura, Sola Fide, Sola Gratia, Solus Christus, and Soli Deo Gloria. It excludes denominations that do not believe in such critical Reformation principles as the bondage of the human will to sin, monergistic regeneration, and the complete sovereignty of God in salvation. In other words, all denominations that can be classified as "liberal" or "Arminian" are excluded from the definition of "Protestant". This is as it should be, for despite their differences all the Reformers agreed upon at least the above items and all who wish to claim the terms that were originally used to describe them ("Evangelical" / "Protestant") must be willing to let those terms mean what they meant then. There is no profit--or honesty--in portraying "Protestantism" as a hodge-podge of Reformation and non-Reformation doctrines."

In true Protestant churches which affirm Sola Scriptura, there exists debate and discussion in matters of which have no consequence, but in the essential points of doctrine, the ones which affect the Gospel, there is unity. To turn the tables on the Roman Catholic, let us look at two other "Churches" which affirm an infallible teaching authority: the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses. Both claim that their "magisterial authority" is needed to properly understand Scripture and that Scripture cannot be understood without it. The Roman Catholic will now cry foul! How dare we lump them in the same category with people who have such differing beliefs! After all, the Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses don't even believe in the trinity like we do. Hence our point is made.

Finally, the question is now posed to the Roman Catholic, to tell us how he came to the conclusion that the Roman Catholic Church is the true church; and while the Roman Catholic so strongly fights against private interpretation he cannot answer this question without participating in it. Thus, the Roman Catholic apologist is guilty of the same thing that they charge against the Protestant. Dr. Eric Svendsen states:

"The final arbiter, for every single human being, is - must be - private judgment and reliance on one's own fallible reasoning faculties. If someone decides to use those fallible reasoning faculties to arrive at Rome, he cannot then claim that these same reasoning faculties are illegitimate for everyone else who does not arrive at Rome - nor can he claim objective "safety" or "certitude" just because he thinks he made the right decision. Remember, the decision to trust Rome is itself a fallible decision."

Now the Roman Catholic may look to expose the evidence for Sola Scriptura itself. Turning to 2 Tim. 3:16-17, he lays on the "Newman Rebuttal" saying, "Your pet verses betray you, you know. You say that 2 Tim 3:16-17 prove the sufficiency of Scripture, but they say too much, as at the time all Paul could have referred to was the Old Testament." Basically, this argument is a reference to the canon of Scripture, and states that the Protestant's plea for Sola Scriptura is moot because the Scriptures were not even finished yet. However, this argument does not take into account why we state that the Scriptures are sufficient. Paul makes it clear that they are sufficient because of what they are: inspired, infallible, God-breathed, etc. Scripture can equip the man of God for every good work because it is theopneustos. This argument is probably an attempt to cover-up what is noticeably absent from this text: that fact that Paul does not cite another infallible rule of faith as having the same capabilities and authority as Scripture. To wit, the Roman Catholic claims to Tradition and an infallible authority are fallacious and cannot be proven. This further evidence from Paul gives us the added confidence to say that the Scriptures stand in a league all in their own.

As a related issue, the Roman Catholic will state that the "Church" gave us the Scriptures and the "Church" defined the canon. These claims are absolutely incorrect. The men who assembled the volume of Scriptures known as the Bible, and who laid down the canon did so not due to an infallible move by an infallible church, but rather recognized the canon due to its inspiration. The fact can be stated once again; the sufficiency of Scripture has nothing to do with having the full and "Golden" index of Scripture (an infallible table of contents). Scripture stands where it is because of the power and weight which accompanies being the God-breathed special revelation of the Lord. It stands alone because it is without equal.

In Summary

In closing, I wish to summarize now my earlier statement about the dangers of embracing the system of an infallible authority and interpreter. If the reader will remember, I exhorted you to the importance of such an issue and its gravity. The Roman Catholic claims are spurious, and as a result of their claims to Tradition, they have bound upon the believer things which Scripture itself does not. The Bible, due to its inspiration, and due to the fact that it has no equal, is our sole infallible rule of faith.

Many people have become enamored with Rome due to these fallacious claims. The pageantry and the authority she claims are alluring. But her promises are empty, her power is self-determined, an empty boast, and her Tradition is without foundation. Nowhere are we admonished to turn to the type of "Tradition" which Rome espouses, or to turn to an "infallible authority". Rather, we are admonished to seek and learn, to be diligent in our study of the Scriptures, to be submissive to the Spirit, to love the truth, and to love the Lord so that we may be equipped for His service. I pray any who reads this debate gives this matter care and attention so as to learn the truth of Sola Scriptura.

Words: 5200+

All Scripture cited is taken from the New American Standard version of the Bible.

Endnotes and Sources

Enloe, Tim. "The Perspicuity ("Clearness") of Scripture - A Reply to Dave Armstrong" (2000) Retrieved February 21, 2002 from the World Wide Web: http://www.graceunknown.com/Apologia/Romana/Armstrong-Perspicuity.html

Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 1.

This discussion into those things which Sola Scriptura does not espouse is taken from Dr. James R. White's book, "The Roman Catholic Controversy" (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 1996 pp.56-59)

White, James R. "Does the Bible Teach Sola Scriptura?" Debate between James White and Patrick Madrid held September 28, 1993 in Chula Vista, California, from his opening statement. (Online) http://www.aomin.org/SANTRAN.html

White, James R. "The Roman Catholic Controversy" (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 1996 pp.65-66)

Ibid

Space does not permit these patristic quotes to be discussed, but more on this can be read in "Holy Scripture, the Ground and Pillar of Our Faith" Volume 3, by David King and William Webster.

See Decree Concerning the Canonical Scriptures (Fourth Session)

King, David "Holy Scripture, the Ground and Pillar of Our Faith, Volume 1" (Battle Ground, WA: Christian Resources, 2001 p.55)

Godfrey, Robert "What Do We Mean By Sola Scriptura?" in Sola Scriptura! The Protestant Position on the Bible , ed. Don Kistler (Morgan: Soli Deo Gloria, 1995), p.10; cited in David King; Holy Scripture, Volume I; Christian Resources, 2001 p.56

I rebut the exegesis employed by Rome in several other verses at: http://www.reachingforchrist.org/falsedoctrines/rcc/cheatsheet.html

White, James R. "The Roman Catholic Controversy" (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 1996 pp.91-92)

Svendsen, Eric "30,000 Protestant Denominations?" (2001) Retrieved December 22, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://www.ntrmin.org/30000denominations.htm

Enloe, Tim "The "Black Hole" of Protestant Epistemology?" Retrieved February 21, 2002 from the World Wide Web.

Svendsen, Eric "The Roman Catholic Challenge: Question #1" from "The Roman Catholic Corner". http://www.ntrmin.org

Julie Staples