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tartanarmy said:
What are we all talking about here? The translations and copy manuscripts we have today or the original autographs which we do not now have?

Mark

Well, if that is not a familiar face. I am losing my trust in the idea of Sola Scriptura. After years of reading both sides of the story, I am more inclined to believe that we look to Christ and not to the Scriptures to whom they point. Dr. Waite and his Dean Burgon mission have left me being dishonest and dogmatic and pounded by those standing in an open field with a few happy fragments.

To quote Dr. M. Mckain,

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"...all authority ultimately comes from God, and one reason we know that the scripture has authority is because God himself acknowledged that authority when He was among us."

and further he states;

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'The Bible is the only authority given into the hands of men for the determination of the truth in regards to God, His desire of mankind, and our relatioship to Him. But no human beings interpretation (my add: include the idea of Sola Scriptura from Protestant confessions ) of the Bible has any authority than any other. As GOD, Jesus invested (my add, his clarification : '..the point is simply that all authority ultimately comes from God, and one reason we know the scriptures has authority is because GOD himself acknowledged that authority when He was among us. ) the scriptures with divine authority, while a man, He deferred to it constantly.'

He adds:

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'I would add to this, however, my understanding of what it means to call the Bible the word of God.'

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'The Bible is God['s] message to mankind, written with the writing implements of people, nations and history, and therefore it is exactly no more and no less [than] exactly what He wishes it to say. Like the writings of many authors the words can have many meanings according to God's intentions and He does not need us to clarify what He means by His words.'

He then quotes John 5:39 and says,

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'The purpose of the Bible is ultimately to lead the way to Jesus and it is only in Jesus that we can find the one thing which is sufficient, in a personal relationship with Him. Furthermore the Bible is and instrument of God in HIS work of salvation. Let that work be done and let us not try to steal it's authority by using it to prop up our own words, but instead to do as Jesus and Paul always did, to SHARE with our brethren the meaning that they had found.'

and still unpacking his ideas;

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'With all these human elements, what does it mean to say that the Bible is the word of God. In [my] mind this can only mean that the result, with all of its complexity, is part of God's intention. If the result is not intended by God, then calling it the word of God doesn't make sense.'

and finally;

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'It is one thing to say, "I kind of understand some of what God is telling us in this passage", and it is something else entirely to say, "this passage only means this..." It is a clarification of what I mean when I say, 'no human interpretation has any more authority that any others.' While there are undoubtedly incorrect interpretations as a result of man's sinful nature twisting the words to his own use, we cannot rule out the possibility that much of what God says is intended to have more than one interpretation.'

My conclusion: Though ideas like 'Sola Scriptura' came as a result of the Reformation....can we still hold to them with such unwavering, dogmatic intensity ??? <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/Banghead.gif" alt="" />

In earnest,

Last edited by straw; Fri Jun 22, 2007 7:00 AM.