What Sola Scriptura Means

Justin Taylor: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/one-rule-to-rule-them-all-the-real-meaning-of-sola-scriptura/

Robert Letham, Systematic Theology (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 234:

[There is a] false notion, held widely, that the slogan sola Scriptura means that the Bible is the only source for theology. . . .

The slogan itself, still less the reality to which it pointed, never meant that the Bible was the only source for theology. The dangers of such a position are most clearly seen in the Socinians, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and in the early Plymouth Brethren, who, in their first decade, recapitulated many of the heresies of the early church.

When the slogan [sola Scriptura, Scripture alone] was devised, it was never intended to exclude the tradition of the church.


Oliver Crisp, God Incarnate: Explorations in Christology (London: T&T Clark, 2009), 17, discusses the various levels of sources and authority in Christian theology:

[First-Order Authority: Scripture: The Rule that Rules]

1. Scripture is

  • the norma normans [the norm of norms, the rule that rules—a norming, adjusting, or measuring standard by which other measuring tools are to be measured],
  • the principium theologiae [fundamental principle/foundation of theology].

It is the final arbiter in matters theological. . . . the first-order authority in all matters of Christian doctrine.


[Second-Order Authority: Ecumenical Creeds: Rules that Are Ruled]

2. Catholic creeds, as defined by an ecumenical council of the Church, constitute a first tier of norma normata [a norm that is normed, a rule that is ruled, a standard or measure that is itself subject to, and defined by, a greater standard] which have second-order authority. . . .

Such norms derive their authority from Scripture to which they bear witness.

[Third-Order Authority: Confessional Statements: Rules that Are Ruled]

3. Confessional and conciliar statements of particular ecclesiastical bodies are a second tier of norma normata, which have third-order in matters touching Christian doctrine.

They also derive their authority from Scripture to the extent that they faithfully reflect the teaching of Scripture.


[Doctrines from Theologians: Legitimate Theological Opinions]

4. The particular doctrines espoused by theologians including those individuals accorded the title Doctor of the Church which are not reiterations of matters that are de fide, or entailed by something de fide, constitute theologoumena, or theological opinions, which are not binding upon the Church, but which may be offered up for legitimate discussion within the Church.

Sola Scriptura (Resources)

This excerpt is taken from John MacArthur’s contribution in Sola Scriptura: The Protestant Position on the Bible.

The Reformation principle of sola Scriptura has to do with the sufficiency of Scripture as our supreme authority in all spiritual matters. Sola Scriptura simply means that all truth necessary for our salvation and spiritual life is taught either explicitly or implicitly in Scripture. It is not a claim that all truth of every kind is found in Scripture. The most ardent defender of sola Scriptura will concede, for example, that Scripture has little or nothing to say about DNA structures, microbiology, the rules of Chinese grammar, or rocket science. This or that “scientific truth,” for example, may or may not be actually true, whether or not it can be supported by Scripture—but Scripture is a “more sure Word,” standing above all other truth in its authority and certainty. It is “more sure,” according to the apostle Peter, than the data we gather firsthand through our senses (2 Peter 1:19). Therefore, Scripture is the highest and supreme authority on any matter on which it speaks.

But there are many important questions on which Scripture is silent. Sola Scriptura makes no claim to the contrary. Nor does sola Scriptura claim that everything Jesus or the apostles ever taught is preserved in Scripture. It only means that everything necessary, everything binding on our consciences, and everything God requires of us is given to us in Scripture (2 Peter 1:3).

Furthermore, we are forbidden to add to or take away from Scripture (cf. Deut. 4:2; 12:32; Rev. 22:18-19). To add to it is to lay on people a burden that God Himself does not intend for them to bear (cf. Matt. 23:4).

Scripture is therefore the perfect and only standard of spiritual truth, revealing infallibly all that we must believe in order to be saved and all that we must do in order to glorify God. That—no more, no less—is what sola Scriptura means.

“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.” —Westminster Confession of Faith

Pdf – Scriptura Alone by R. C. Sproul: Introduction and First Chapter (here)

What Do We Mean by Sola Scriptura? – Article by Dr. W. Robert Godfrey (here)

Sola Scriptura in Dialogue – Article by Dr. James White (here)

Video & Audio Resources:

Phil Johnson – Why We Can’t Abandon Sola Scriptura:

Dr. James White – 2 Hours on Sola Scriptura:

Dr. Robert Godfrey: Martin Luther and Sola Scriptura:

Dr. Michael Horton: John Calvin and Sola Scriptura:

A young James White:

Dr. James White – Audio Message from 2017:

Dr. Al Mohler (speaking from Deut. 4):

Continue reading