The Protestant Reformation carried out its work on this foundation: “Scripture alone.” Every other Reformation “alone” principle rests on this one. How could we know that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, and that life is to be lived only to the glory of God, if not by the testimony of Scripture alone?

This Reformation principle is more than a mere rejection of the authority of oral church tradition. It affirms the sufficiency and clarity of the Bible in all matters essential to faith and life. This was not a novel principle discovered by the Reformers. “Scripture alone” is a biblical principle with an ancient pedigree.

The first time “scripture” is mentioned in the Bible is in Exodus 32:16. Here we find Moses coming down Mount Sinai with the tablets God had given him, and we read, “Now the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved on the tablets.” The “writing” (Hebrew mikttab) of God is the first reference to what will prove to be God’s great spiritual sword. It is a tool precise enough to perform spiritual surgery to save life and powerful enough to cut off God’s enemies. This writing of God divides the people of the world between those who seek the living God—the God who speaks and writes to us—and those who choose gods of their own making—gods that are speechless and helpless.

“Scripture alone” is here proclaimed in force and effectiveness with all the drama and power of which the Hebrew Scriptures are capable. As soon as the Scripture was carried down the mountain, it confronted an Israelite church that had imported traditions from Egypt and was worshiping a dumb golden calf, invoking the name of the God who speaks and who writes. The Scripture immediately began to demonstrate its usefulness “for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). Israel was taught that imported traditions brought death; the Scripture alone brought life. God spoke, then wrote, to Israel and to us in order to provide all that every generation of His church needs to “be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (v. 17).

If we add to God’s mikttab, God’s writing, we will stray from the truth. If we neglect it, we walk in darkness. It is only through this mikttab that we come to know God’s logos, the Word Incarnate. The Son of God is the Word who is living and active and who has eyes that see all things (Heb. 4:12-13). We need to understand what He has indeed said to us: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4).

The Holy Spirit assures us that the Word of God will be proclaimed with power in the world (Acts 4:31; 16:6-10). The Spirit also guided the apostles into all truth (John 16:13). When they had committed to writing what the Spirit revealed to them, those writings were integrated into God’s Scriptures. To this collection of God’s writings, nothing more can be added with divine authority. An honest reading of the Bible leads to this conclusion. We have in the Bible all that God Himself has spoken to us for our faith and life (2 Tim. 3:16). This is His Scripture alone.

When we receive God’s Scripture as the word of God (1 Thess. 1:5-6; 2 Thess. 2:13), it works effectively in us (1 Thess. 2:13). When we receive God’s Scripture with “a noble and good heart,” we “keep it and bear fruit with patience” (Luke 8:15). Trusting the Scripture and acting on its basis will bring confirmation of its supernatural and eternal power to you in your daily living. The Scripture is self-authenticating: It testifies about itself and proves itself to be entirely reliable. “Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him” (Prov. 30:5).

Everything needed for faith and life has been revealed to us in the Scripture. But this does not mean that if we study the Bible hard enough, we will arrive at direct, scriptural regulation for every detail of life. This is not what the principle affirms. We will not find that degree of guidance in the Bible, though often we would like to. God created us in His image and gave us minds and language so we could think and discuss issues. Wise Christian living sometimes requires knowledge gleaned from the study of God’s creation or man’s society. God leaves lots of room for us to hear sermons, study, think, pray, read books, and discuss how to live life to His glory. Anything learned from the world that may affect our lives, though, must be examined with the light of Scripture shining brightly on it. Where the Scripture is silent, we must venture forth with prudence and prayer, understanding that there may be more than one right way ahead.

God’s Scriptures, for example, do not tell us what must constitute a wedding ceremony or a funeral service, but they do tell us what a marriage should look like and how to die well. Jesus condemned the Pharisees for teaching rule upon rule and missing the gracious teaching of mercy and justice that God spoke into the world. We need to be aware of the pharisaical seed that can invade our good soil. Where the Scripture speaks, it does so with divine authority. Where it is silent, it is silent also with divine authority.

The key to understanding the daily, practical value of “Scripture alone” is to understand what God’s Word affirms about itself. Very often God’s Word is said to reveal His way. “Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name” (Ps. 86:11). A way is a path. Like many other aspects of Christian living, “Scripture alone” invites us to a journey that begins at Mount Sinai and ends at Mount Zion, where we find the heavenly Jerusalem. Along the way, if we will hear the Word of God (Isa. 30:21), we will learn much about our Lord. We will learn much about the corruption of our hearts, and about God’s great love, which moved Him to speak into the world through His Scripture for our hearing, our study, and our salvation.

The path revealed at Mount Sinai that leads the Church to Mount Zion is “Scripture alone.” This is the true path that leads us to the kingdom that cannot be shaken, where the King is revealed in all His holy glory (Heb. 12:28-29). We Christians have come to know the Son of God, who declares Himself to be “the way, the truth and the life.” It is in Him that we walk (1 John 4:4). God’s path is a clear and firm place on which to walk in a dark world of shifting attitudes and opinions that deny any possible knowledge of truth (1 John 4:5-6).

Walking in God’s way means being faithfully obedient and open to the teaching of God’s Word as the Holy Spirit applies it to our understanding. First John 3:24 says, “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.” We are people of light walking in a dark world. We need God’s Scripture to stay on the path of life. “The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple” (Ps. 119:130). Over time, the little details of our lives will be outlined and brightened by the holy light of the Scripture.

The greatest meditation on the principle of “Scripture alone” is the glorious Psalm 119. This is a psalm that teaches God’s method for applying the Scripture daily. It is a way of walking with the Lord as you would walk through a fragrant, sunny meadow, or as you might walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Take your time and learn of Him. Linger and enjoy His beauty. Find comfort through His fellowship. Store His wisdom in your heart to strengthen and sustain you at every step of your journey. He will lighten your load.

As you learn to meditate on God’s Scripture through Psalm 119, you will notice that God teaches us to keep His testimonies, long for, pant for, seek, cry out for, choose, learn, love, rejoice in, delight in, meditate on, sing, remember, take comfort in, treasure, savor, hope in, fear, walk in, persevere in, run in God’s way. Clearly, if we are to live according to “Scripture alone,” we need the Lord’s help at every turn. The Lord has not only given us His Scripture, He has given us Himself through it. He will teach us, guide us, and bring delight to our hearts. His Word is living and active. Psalm 119:34-37 says, “Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart. Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. Incline my heart to Your testimonies, And not to covetousness. Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, And revive me in Your way.” The psalm ends with the psalmist gone astray and praying for God to rescue him. Have you ever started on God’s way and at some point realized that you left the path? What are we to do? Call for help: “Seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments” (v. 176). Then you can go back and start the walk over again, being a little more thoughtful.

How many times have you stopped, at the end of the day, frustrated about the distractions that kept you from using the day wisely, for blessing, for joy, for good, for growth in faithfulness? How often have you run out of time for reading the Bible and for prayer because e-mail, chats, television, or an addiction to news or sports has used up your time? The world does not know the blessing of walking in the way of the Lord. And you will not either, unless you get on His path and walk with Him continually. Psalm 119:133 -134 says, “Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have dominion over me. Redeem me from the oppression of man, that I may keep Your precepts.”

A daily walk with God will do your soul much good. He will teach you, open your eyes, revive you, make you understand, strengthen you. He will remove the way of lying from you and will enlarge your heart in His way. Over time, you will even see that He has afflicted you in faithfulness and comforted you with His merciful kindness.

It is only in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments that you will find the living and active way of God, which is the way of life, of truth, of liberty, of peace, of comfort, of mercy, of light, of safety, of wisdom, and of salvation. The words of man flood the airwaves, cover the pages of books, and fill the internet. The writings of man summarize much wisdom and knowledge, but also much foolishness and wickedness. Where can Christians turn for help in the babble of the opinions of their generation? They can turn to the word of our Lord. Isaiah 40:6-8 says, “The voice said, ‘Cry out!’ And he said, ‘What shall I cry?’ ‘All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.’”