Below is only Section 1 on the theological subject of spiritual goodness. I am working on the second section on the biblical teaching on the nature of man.
The “Spiritual Goodness” Controversy: Discerning the Difference Between the
Teachings of World Religions on the Nature of Man and the Doctrine of Man
According to biblical Christianity, Section1
Contents
1.
The
Absolute Authority of the Written Scriptures
2.
The
Biblical Teaching on the Nature of Man
3.
The
World’s Teachings on the Nature of Man
4.
What
If You Are In Hell: A Call to Faith and
Repentance Now
Section 1:
The Absolute Authority of
the Written Scriptures
The written Scriptures are the Word of God. It contains everything we need to know about
what to believe about spiritual salvation and to live rightly before God. It is a complete and divine document. It is indeed infallible, inspired and
inerrant! The hermeneutical method of interpretation is Scripture in light of
Scripture. No teacher or
organization or church is above Scripture.
We are called with the holy responsibility to search the Scriptures
daily to investigate whether or not the matter is true or false (John 5:39 cf. Acts 17:11).
The Bible is all-sufficient for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
The only way to do a “good work” is through the Holy Spirit. No work is meritorious deeds. Rather Christ alone accomplished the only
good work possible for actual salvation and life everlasting in His unified
righteousness of His perfect life and perfect death. Let us dwell on the divine
and unified righteousness of Christ alone imputed to us by the instrument of
faith alone: “Being justified as
a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God
displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to
demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over
sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness
at the present time, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has
faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:24-26).
This is the message of the
divine Scriptures. The answer of the written Scripture is not
cooperation with God. It is not a will subject
to good works to earn heaven in anyway or through scaling the balances of good
works and bad works. It is not a will
that has faith made by human hands through baptism and a participation in the
sufferings of Christ. No man is able to
do a good work. All works are thoroughly
tainted with radical sinfulness (see Romans 3ff). There
is a civil goodness that men do but it is a far cry from meeting the divine
standard of absolute perfection. The
Bible calls the works of men filthy rages (Isaiah 64:6). The heart is desperately wicked and beyond
natural cures. That is, the heart is
spiritual indiscernible and incompressible (Jeremiah 17:9-10).
The Old Testament calls the written Scriptures the words of God
(Numbers 24ff). Divine revelation is
God’s writing with His finger on the tablets of stone (Deuteronomy 9:10).
That is, this is a special revelation of God. We are called to obey all the words of God: “Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it
may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou
doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God” (Deuteronomy 12:28). We are also called not to listen to religions
of men (Deuteronomy 13:3; 28:14) and to hearken upon the words of God to fear
Him and obey Him alone (Deuteronomy 17:19).
The written Scriptures in the OT and NT are powerful enough to
radically change the hearts and minds of sinners through the outworking
presence of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 16:14). The
primary importance of Scripture is seen in the London
Confession of Faith of 1689 in Chapter 1: Of the Holy
Scriptures. For it read as follows:
1._____ The Holy Scripture is the only
sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and
obedience, although the light of nature, and the works of creation and
providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to
leave men inexcusable; yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of
God and his will which is necessary unto salvation. Therefore it pleased the
Lord at sundry times and in divers manners to reveal himself, and to declare
that his will unto his church; and afterward for the better preserving and
propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of
the church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan, and of
the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing; which maketh the Holy
Scriptures to be most necessary, those former ways of God's revealing his will
unto his people being now ceased.
( 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Isaiah 8:20; Luke 16:29, 31; Ephesians 2:20; Romans 1:19-21; Romans 2:14,15; Psalms 19:1-3; Hebrews 1:1; Proverbs 22:19-21; Romans 15:4; 2 Peter 1:19,20 )
2._____Under the name of Holy Scripture,
or the Word of God written, are now contained all the books of the Old and New
Testaments, which are these:
OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: Genesis, Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, II Samuel, I
Kings, II Kings, I Chronicles, II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job,
Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, The Song of Solomen, Isaiah, Jeremiah,
Lamentations,Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum,
Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi
OF THE NEW TESTAMENT: Matthew, Mark, Luke,
John, The Acts of the Apostles, Paul's Epistle to the Romans, I Corinthians, II
Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, I Thessalonians, II
Thessalonians, I Timothy, II Timothy, To Titus, To Philemon, The Epistle to the
Hebrews, Epistle of James, The first and second Epistles of Peter, The first,
second, and third Epistles of John, The Epistle of Jude, The Revelation
All of which are given by the inspiration
of God, to be the rule of faith and life.
( 2 Timothy 3:16)
3._____ The books commonly called
Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the canon or rule of
the Scripture, and, therefore, are of no authority to the church of God, nor to
be any otherwise approved or made use of than other human writings.
( Luke 24:27, 44; Romans 3:2 )
4._____ The authority of the Holy
Scripture, for which it ought to be believed, dependeth not upon the testimony
of any man or church, but wholly upon God (who is truth itself), the author
thereof; therefore it is to be received because it is the Word of God.
( 2 Peter 1:19-21; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 John 5:9 )
5._____We may be moved and induced by the
testimony of the church of God to an high and reverent esteem of the Holy
Scriptures; and the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine,
and the majesty of the style, the consent of all the parts, the scope of the
whole (which is to give all glory to God), the full discovery it makes of the
only way of man's salvation, and many other incomparable excellencies, and
entire perfections thereof, are arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence
itself to be the Word of God; yet notwithstanding, our full persuasion and
assurance of the infallible truth, and divine authority thereof, is from the
inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our
hearts.
( John 16:13,14; 1 Corinthians 2:10-12; 1 John 2:20, 27)
6._____The whole counsel of God concerning
all things necessary for his own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is
either expressly set down or necessarily contained in the Holy Scripture: unto
which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelation 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.
( 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Galatians 1:8,9; John 6:45; 1 Corinthians 2:9-12; 1 Corinthians 11:13, 14; 1 Corinthians 14:26,40)
7._____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 ordinary means, may attain to a
sufficient understanding of them.
( 2 Peter 3:16; Psalms 19:7; Psalms 119:130)
8._____The Old Testament in Hebrew (which
was the native language of the people of God of old), and the New Testament in
Greek (which at the time of the writing of it was most generally known to the
nations), being immediately inspired by God, and by his singular care and
providence kept pure in all ages, are therefore authentic; so as in all
controversies of religion, the church is finally to appeal to them. But because
these original tongues are not known to all the people of God, who have a right
unto, and interest in the Scriptures, and are commanded in the fear of God to
read and search them, therefore they are to be translated into the vulgar
language of every nation unto which they come, that the Word of God dwelling
plentifully in all, they may worship him in an acceptable manner, and through
patience and comfort of the Scriptures may have hope.
( Romans 3:2; Isaiah 8:20; Acts 15:15; John 5:39; 1 Corinthians 14:6, 9, 11, 12, 24, 28; Colossians 3:16 )
9._____The infallible rule of
interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself; and therefore when there
is a question about the true and full sense of any Scripture (which is not
manifold, but one), it must be searched by other places that speak more
clearly.
( 2 Peter 1:20, 21; Acts 15:15, 16)
10.____The supreme judge, by which all
controversies of religion are to be determined, and all decrees of councils,
opinions of ancient writers, doctrines of men, and private spirits, are to be
examined, and in whose sentence we are to rest, can be no other but the Holy
Scripture delivered by the Spirit, into which Scripture so delivered, our faith
is finally resolved.
( Matthew 22:29, 31, 32; Ephesians 2:20; Acts 28:23)
Let us read from the Westminster
Larger Catechism on the Word of God:
Q. 155. How is the Word made effectual to
salvation?
A. The Spirit of God maketh the reading,
but especially the preaching of the Word, an effectual means of enlightening,[993]
convincing, and humbling sinners;[994]
of driving them out of themselves, and drawing them unto Christ;[995]
of conforming them to his image,[996]
and subduing them to his will;[997]
of strengthening them against temptations and corruptions;[998]
of building them up in grace,[999]
and establishing their hearts in holiness and comfort through faith unto
salvation.[1000]
Q. 156. Is the Word of God to be read by
all?
A. Although all are not to be permitted to
read the Word publicly to the congregation,[1001]
yet all sorts of people are bound to read it apart by themselves,[1002]
and with their families:[1003]
to which end, the holy scriptures are to be translated out of the original into
vulgar languages.[1004]
Q. 157. How is the Word of God to be read?
A. The holy Scriptures are to be read with
an high and reverent esteem of them;[1005]
with a firm persuasion that they are the very Word of God,[1006]
and that he only can enable us to understand them;[1007]
with desire to know, believe, and obey the will of God revealed in them;[1008]
with diligence,[1009]
and attention to the matter and scope of them;[1010]
with meditation,[1011]
application,[1012]
self-denial,[1013]
and prayer.[1014]
Q. 158. By whom is the Word of God to be
preached?
A. The Word of God is to be preached only
by such as are sufficiently gifted,[1015]
and also duly approved and called to that office.[1016]
Q. 159. How is the Word of God to be
preached by those that are called thereunto?
A. They that are called to labour in the
ministry of the Word, are to preach sound doctrine,[1017]
diligently,[1018]
in season and out of season;[1019]
plainly,[1020]
not in the enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit,
and of power;[1021]
faithfully,[1022]
making known the whole counsel of God;[1023]
wisely,[1024]
applying themselves to the necessities and capacities of the hearers;[1025]
zealously,[1026]
with fervent love to God[1027]
and the souls of his people;[1028]
sincerely,[1029]
aiming at his glory,[1030]
and their conversion,[1031]
edification,[1032]
and salvation.[1033]
Q. 160. What is required of those that
hear the Word preached?
A. It is required of those that hear the
Word preached, that they attend upon it with diligence,[1034]
preparation,[1035]
and prayer;[1036]
examine what they hear by the Scriptures;[1037]
receive the truth with faith,[1038]
love,[1039]
meekness,[1040]
and readiness of mind,[1041]
as the Word of God;[1042]
meditate,[1043]
and confer of it;[1044]
hide it in their hearts,[1045]
and bring forth the fruit of it in their lives[1046].
The written Scriptures are the sole ultimate authority. John Calvin wrote,
Let this be a
firm principle: No other word is to be held as the Word of God, and given place
as such in the church, than what is contained first in the Law and the
Prophets, than in the writings of the apostles; and the only authorized way of
teaching in the church is by the prescription and standard of his Word. From
this also we infer that the only thing granted to the apostles was that which
the prophets had of old. They were to expound the ancient Scripture and to show
that what is taught there has been fulfilled in Christ. Yet they were not to do
this except from the Lord, that is, with Christ’s Spirit as precursor in a
certain measure dictating the words...Yet this, as I have said, is the
difference between the apostles and their successors: the former were sure and
genuine scribes of the Holy Spirit, and their writings are therefore to be
considered oracles of God; but the sole office of others is to teach what is
provided and sealed in the Holy Scriptures. We therefore teach that faithful
ministers are now not permitted to coin any new doctrine, but that they are
simply to cleave to that doctrine to which God has subjected all men without
exception. (Institutes of the Christian Religion (Philadelphia: Westminster,
1960), Vol. II, Means of Grace: Holy Catholic Church, Book IV, Chapter
VIII.8–9, pp. 1155, 1157).
Sola Scriptura refers to the divine sufficiency of the
written Word. However, the doctrine
also recognizes other subordinate authorities.
A subordinate authority would be the London
Confession and the ruling eldership in
the local church. The Bible has the
spiritual answer about the spiritual condition of man. What is man’s spiritual condition? What is the nature of man according to the
Bible? Let us search the Scriptures to
investigate the nature of man.
