Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions

Scripture Text: Revelation 1:1-3

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Revelation 1:1-3

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning the Church – part 26

But there is no need to cite many testimonies, since they are obvious throughout the Scriptures. We have referenced much of it in the latter articles of our Confession. In a while, we will need to repeat the point that must be decided in this controversy: whether human traditions are acts of worship that are necessary for righteousness before God. There we will discuss this matter more fully.

Pulling It Together

“It is written.” This was a favorite saying of the prophets, the evangelists, the apostles, and Jesus. Sometimes it is phrased as a question: “What is written?” They use this expression almost 100 times to point to the truth of what is stated in the Scriptures. Oh, that we would be content with what Scripture says, instead of going beyond what is written (1 Cor 4:6) by depending upon our traditions, old sayings, and pronouncements. These things swell the head but do nothing for the heart. We may even feel like we have won an argument but at the end of that disputation, the question remains. “What is written?” This is how we must decide all controversies. 

Prayer: Speak through your Scripture, Lord, for your servant listens. Amen.

A Latin phrase meaning “Scripture Alone,” Sola Scriptura is one of the traditional Lutheran slogans used since the time of the Reformation. It expresses our confession that Scripture is “the only rule and norm according to which all doctrines and teachers alike must be appraised and judged.” Using the familiar phrase as its title, Sola Scriptura is a new, advanced-level Bible Study in a two-part series, of six chapters each, on the functional authority of Scripture. For those who would like to cover the topic in detail, there is enough material to cover one chapter in two sessions, making each part a 12-week study.

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