Scripture - a Final Revelation
Christianity is based upon revelation from God.
We as reformed Protestants are committed to the principle of "Sola Scriptura", or Scripture alone. Through Scripture, God has revealed all that is necessary for us to know about Himself, and about our salvation. In fact, we say that the "Holy Scripture alone is our infallible authority for all matters of faith and practice.
Scripture alone is able to bring a person to saving faith in Jesus Christ. No mere man can do it, nor can the church, nor a vision or some experience. General revelation cannot bring man to saving knowledge of God. The Bible alone reveals the way of salvation and the way to please God.
Last week we looked at Chapter one, Section one of the WCF. The last sentence of Sect. 1 says: "which maketh the Holy Scripture to be most necessary; those former ways of God's revealing his will unto his people being now ceased."
What are those "former ways of God's revealing Himself?"
There was the audible voice of God, there were dreams and visions, there were tongues and prophecies, and miracles. These ways of God's revealing His will were temporary. How do we know they were temporary?
Let's take a look at 1Corinthians 13:8-13
"Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12 Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
1. Paul said that tongues, prophecy and the special gift of knowledge were temporary. All 3 would cease at some point.
2. In contrast to these three gifts, "faith, hope and love" remain.
3. V. 9 says, "For we know in part and we prophesy in part" - Revelation through these gifts is partial - incomplete.
4. v. 10 says, "but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears." The Greek word for "perfection" is "teleios", which means "brought to its end, finished; wanting nothing necessary to completeness". In other words, the partial or temporary means of revelation would be replaced by something that was permanent and complete. At that time there would be no need for further revelation. I.e. when the Scriptures were completed the temporary revelatory gifts would cease.
5. V. 11, "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me." The state of childhood is state of immaturity and limitations. "The temporary partial revelation was like the childish ways that would be replaced by adult ones (the complete revelation)." (J. Adams) Those who seek to speak in tongues and have the miraculous gifts of prophecy and knowledge today are trying to go back to when the church was in the period of childhood. Since we have the completed Scriptures, there is no need to go backward.
6. V. 12, " Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."
The mirrors in those days were not like our mirrors. They were bronze mirrors that reflected a poor, fuzzy, dim image. The mirrors we have today allow us to see ourselves clearly face to face. So today, since the Scriptures have been completed, it is like seeing face to face - that is, we see the truth much more clearly now. It has come into sharper focus.
Paul has not made any reference here to heaven or the eternal state. He has been discussing God's methods of revelation. He is not introducing another subject here.
7. "Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." It says nothing about heaven here. When Paul says "I shall know fully", Gary Crampton says he means that he "would know fully all that God has chosen to reveal" i.e. the Scriptures.
If Paul meant to refer to heaven in v. 12 then v. 13 would make no sense. "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
If Paul was talking about the eternal state, love would remain, but not faith and hope. Faith and hope will not be necessary in heaven! Faith will be turned to sight! Hope will be realized!
The prophet Daniel said, in 9:24 "Seventy weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy."
Daniel refers to a time when vision and prophecy would be sealed up. Paul simply reiterates this fact.
John MacArthur states that: "The Bible records only three periods of history in which human beings were given the gift of performing miracles (that would authenticate the message of those called to proclaim it):
1. During the ministries of Moses and Joshua.
2. During the ministries of Elijah and Elisha
3. During the ministries of Jesus and the apostles.
"Each period lasted only about 70 years and then abruptly ended. The NT miracle age was for the purpose of confirming the Word as given by Jesus and the apostles."
Hebrews 2:3-4 says, "This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will."
The writer tells the purpose of these miracles - to confirm the message of salvation. He even speaks of these miraculous gifts as if they had already ceased.
Tongues and other sign gifts have ceased because the NT has been completed. Nothing is to be added to the Bible. If tongues really were for today, then we would still have revelation from God and the Bible would keep being written, but we know this is not the case. Nowhere in the writings of the early church fathers do we find a reference to the practice of tongues.
MacArthur said that "The historians and theologians of the early church unanimously maintained that tongues ceased to exist after the time of the apostles. The only exception of which we know was within the movement led by Montanus, a second century heretic who believed that divine revelation continued through him beyond the NT."
Apparently no other tongues-speaking was practiced in Christianity until the 17th and 18th centuries, when it appeared in certain RCC groups and the Shakers. Then in the 19th century, the Irvingites in London claimed to speak in tongues and have new revelations of the Spirit. Around the turn of the 20th century the holiness movement started, which later developed into modern Pentecostalism. The Charismatic movement which began in the 1960's, brought the practice of tongues and new revelations beyond Pentecostalism into other churches - both Protestant and Catholic.
But in contrast to this relatively recent movement which we are in the midst of, we hold to the historic Protestant and biblical position - which is that the miraculous, revelatory gifts have now ceased because their purpose has ceased - and the Scriptures are complete. God's written word is that perfect, complete and final revelation of God until we go to live with Him forever.
Scripture alone is the only revelation from God we have today. It is the only revelation we need. It is sufficient for all of life and godliness until Christ returns.
