I am currently working my way through the 4-volume Reformed Systematic Theology by Beeke and Smalley. I am reproducing the following concerning the nature of the sufficiency of the Bible and other like-topics as an aid for Latter-day Saints who may interact with Calvinists in general and aficionados of this work specifically:
Sola
Scriptura (“by Scripture alone”). The Holy Scriptures are our
supreme and only rule of faith and life; they, not human tradition and
reasoning, determine our faith and command our obedience. This means that
evangelical theologians are suspicious of fallen reason, so they test their
beliefs and practices by the Holy Scriptures. We receive the Bible “not as the
word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God” (1 Thess. 2:13)—truthful,
uniquely authoritative, and without error. Our minds are servants to receive
the Word, not to judge it. The principle of sola
Scriptura neither rejects Christian tradition nor sets it alongside the
Bible as another source of divine revelation, but requires that tradition be
tested and sifted by the written Word of God. If God is God, then he is beyond
our comprehension and his Word holds absolute authority. This principle also
means that we reject anyone who claims to be an infallible prophet for God
today, as though God had not spoken his final word in Christ, as attested by
Scripture.
How well do we understand the principle of sola Scriptura? Do we search, love,
live, and pray over the Holy Scriptures? Is the Bible the compass that leads us
through the storms and over the waves we encounter in life? Is Scripture the
guide we keep before us always (James 1:22–25), the rule by which we work (Gal.
6:16), the water with which we wash (Ps. 119:9), the fire that warms us (Luke
24:32), the food that nourishes us (Job 23:12), the sword with which we fight
(Eph. 6:17), the counselor who resolves our doubts and fears (Ps. 119:24), and
the heritage that enriches us (vv. 111–112)? (Joel R. Beeke and Paul M.
Smalley, Reformed Systematic Theology, 4 vols. [Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway,
2019], 1:95)
One might object that this is a circular argument: we
know that the Bible is God’s Word because it is God’s Word. We answer this
objection by noting that all arguments for an ultimate authority must be
circular because one can appeal to nothing higher. Furthermore, it is
irrational to recognize supreme authority in anything other or less than God
and what God has said. For those whose eyes are opened, the Bible’s authority
is no blind leap of faith, but as plain a fact to them as knowing that the sun
shines. Calvin said, “Scripture exhibits fully as clear evidence of its own
truth as white and black things do of their color, or sweet and bitter things
do of their taste.” For this reason, philosophical and evidential arguments are
not necessary for faith (though they can be helpful in answering enemies of the
faith), for the least educated person illuminated by the Spirit can see the
glory and authority of God in his Word. (Joel R. Beeke and Paul M. Smalley, Reformed
Systematic Theology, 4 vols. [Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2019], 1:341)
When faced with an apparent contradiction in historical
detail, we should approach it with the presupposition of the Bible’s overall
witness that it is God’s Word. (Ibid., 1:388)
The Word of God, as it exists in each stage of redemptive
history, is sufficient to be the wisdom and righteous law of God’s people (vv.
6–8). As we saw when considering the inerrant veracity of the Bible, Proverbs
30:5–6 says, “Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put
their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou
be found a liar.” The Bible closes with this warning: “For I testify unto every
man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add
unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this
book: and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this
prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the
holy city, and from the things which are written in this book” (Rev. 22:18–19).
(Joel R. Beeke and Paul M. Smalley, Reformed Systematic Theology, 4
vols. [Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2019], 1:401)
Further Reading:
Not
By Scripture Alone: A Latter-day Saint Refutation of Sola Scriptura
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