Living Under the Sufficient Word

In a recent article, I quoted Paul Washer saying that we are truly Reformed when we are “trying to take every aspect of [our] thought, [our] doctrine, [our] disposition, [our] life, [our] family, [our] church, and submitting it to what is written.”¹ To be truly Reformed is to be striving, by the grace of God and the power of the Spirit, to be in humble submission to the Word of God in every single thought, word, and deed. We must not be hearers only, but also doers of the Word, lest we be found to be deceiving ourselves. Our Lord puts it in these sobering terms:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it” (Matthew 7:21-27 ESV).

These words of our Lord presuppose that His Word is available to us, that we can hear it clearly, that we can understand, and that we can therefore obey Him. They uphold not just the authority and inerrancy, but also the perspicuity (that is, clarity) and sufficiency of Scripture. God has spoken clearly, and He has in His Word given to us all we need for our faith and practice: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).

Perhaps the most important text affirming the sufficiency of Scripture is found in Paul’s final exhortation to his young disciple Timothy:

“[F]rom childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:15-17 ESV).

We see here that Scripture is sufficient “that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work”. Nothing is lacking. Nothing more is required for us to be saved and sanctified and fully equipped for life in this world.

Furthermore, we are warned: “You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you” (Deuteronomy 4:2 ESV). And again: “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar” (Proverbs 30:5-6 ESV). And again: “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book” (Revelation 22:18-19 ESV). Nothing whatsoever is to be added to or taken away from Scripture. This means that Scripture is sufficient as our authority for faith and life. It doesn’t contain gaps that we need to fill in with other alleged knowledge and wisdom drawn from other sources.

Here we find one of the key Reformation principles: Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone). The Westminster Confession of Faith provides an excellent summary of this doctrine:

“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. Nevertheless we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word; and that there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and the government of the church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed.”²

Attacks Upon the Sufficiency of Scripture

Given that Scripture alone is “able to make you wise” for salvation, sanctification, and Christian living, it is no wonder that the devil works so hard to turn people away from it. The attack upon the sufficiency of Scripture is hotter today than perhaps at any time since the Reformation, and it is coming from all sides. Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, Muslims, Liberals, NAR Charismatics, the list goes on: All these will give a place – greater or lesser – to the Bible in their religion. But they reject the Bible as being the fully sufficient authority. There is some other authority needed in addition to the Bible, they say. And in reality, this other authority is the true foundation of their religion.

Taking just Roman Catholicism as an example, the Council of Trent decreed as follows:

“[S]eeing clearly that [the] truth and discipline [of the faith] are contained in the written books, and the unwritten traditions which, received by the Apostles from the mouth of Christ himself, or from the Apostles themselves, the Holy Ghost dictating, have come down even unto us, transmitted as it were from hand to hand; [The Council]… receives and venerates with an equal affection of piety, and reverence, all the books both of the Old and of the New Testament… as also the said traditions, as well those appertaining to faith as to morals, as having been dictated, either by Christ’s own word of mouth, or by the Holy Ghost, and preserved in the Catholic Church by a continuous succession.”³

According to the Roman Catholic Church, then, Scripture is indeed the Word of God. But there is said to be another source of authority: An unwritten tradition that was passed on from Christ by the Apostles. This tradition exists outside of Scripture, and stands as an equal authority to Scripture. In reality, of course, it is the Pope and the Roman Catholic Magisterium – the keepers of this alleged tradition – who claim the right to authoritatively interpret the Bible. So in fact the Magisterium and its traditions stand over and above Scripture as the true authority within the Roman Catholic religion. It is Sola Ecclesia (Church Alone).

The Pharisees were guilty of burying the true religion of the Old Testament under a mountain of human traditions and inventions. And what does our Lord say to them? “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men”” (Mark 7:6-8). The Roman Catholic Church does exactly the same, but to a far greater degree. They have buried the Word of God under their own traditions and inventions, and are holding millions of people in bondage to a blasphemous, idolatrous false religion of works and sacraments and superstitions, devoid of light and truth.

Mere Profession is Empty and Void

But what about we who would call ourselves Evangelical and Reformed? We agree enthusiastically with the words of the Westminster Confession quoted above, but if we really and truly believe in Sola Scriptura, we don’t just talk about it: We practice it. So I ask: Do we practice Sola Scriptura? Does this vital Reformation principle govern every thought, word, and deed of our lives as Christians, corporately and individually? Are we doers of the Word, or merely self-deceived hearers of it?

Are we governed by Scripture, or by tradition? A Jehovah’s Witness I spoke to a few years ago challenged me: “It’s important to believe what you believe because you see it in Scripture, not just because it’s what you’ve been told in church”. Agreed, which is why I reject your doctrine as false. But this is an important point: You can believe all the right doctrines, and still be standing upon tradition. When it comes to fundamental doctrines of the faith like the Trinity, the Deity of Christ, Penal Substitutionary Atonement, do you believe these because you see them in Scripture? Or just because your church believes them? If the latter, then you believe these doctrines – true as they are – on the authority of man’s word, and not God’s Word. You are standing on tradition, and not Scripture, and this is a dangerous place to be. We must be like the Berean Jews, who tested even the words of the Apostle Paul against Scripture, and are commended for it: “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11).

What about our church: Scripture, or tradition? If we truly believe in Sola Scriptura, then this means that every aspect of our church’s life and worship must be governed by Scripture. This is called the Regulative Principle, and it is set down in the 1689 Confession:

“[T]he acceptable way to worship the true God is instituted by Him, and it is delimited by His own revealed will. Thus, He may not be worshipped according to imagination or inventions of men or the suggestions of Satan, nor through any visible representations, nor in any other way that is not prescribed in the Holy Scriptures.”⁴

Are we prepared to test every aspect of our worship and practice against Scripture – preaching and teaching, church governance, church discipline, evangelism, discipleship, prayer – to make sure that we are truly serving and worshipping God faithfully? Are we prepared to make all the changes necessary in order to reform our church, and conform it to the written Word? Or would we rather just do things according to our own traditions because it’s what we’ve always done, and we like it that way? Are we worried about offending those who cling to cherished, and yet unbiblical, traditions? “[A]m I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a slave of Christ” (Galatians 1:10).

Are we governed by Scripture, or by culture? Every culture has certain expectations and demands about how people are to act, think, and speak. Are we prepared to examine ourselves in the light of the Word of God, and allow it to expose those evil elements of the culture – such as superficial politeness, avoidance of soul-searching conversations, selfish individualism, ideologies of lawlessness and rebellion such as feminism – that are still influencing us to our spiritual hurt? Are we prepared to repent and be transformed into the men and women God calls us to be? Let me ask it this way: Does our church look like an authentic, Biblical fellowship, striving to live according to the written Word, as salt and light to the culture? Or does it just look like a gathering of people from the culture, acting the same as everyone else, except with a veneer of religion over the top? If the latter, then we are driven by Sola Cultura (Culture Alone) not Sola Scriptura. The Apostle Paul exhorts us as Christians: “[D]o not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2).

Are we governed by Scripture, or by experience? Certain men who once were more orthodox and sound in doctrine have, over time, drifted into error or even apostatised from the faith altogether. Why? Because they experienced something, or they spoke to other people about their experiences, and as a result, they began to change their doctrine to fit with these experiences. But for the true Christian, Scripture is the authority that tests our experiences, not the other way around. Peter was privileged to experience the transfiguration of Christ on the mountain. And yet, writing just before his martyrdom, it was to Scripture that he pointed, not to his experience: “[W]e have as more sure the prophetic word, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. Know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes by one’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever made by the will of man, but men being moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:19-21).

Are we governed by Scripture, or by strongholds of worldly “wisdom”? A specific example: When people come to us in anguish of mind, do we point them to the Wonderful Counsellor (Isaiah 9:6), or to the secular counsellor?  Is Scripture not enough in this supposedly “advanced” and “enlightened” day to make “the man of God… complete, equipped for every good work”?  Does Scripture now need to be supplemented or even replaced by the teachings of secular therapists?  Do materialistic “mental health experts” have greater insight into the human soul (which they deny exists) than the Creator of man? Sadly very many professing Christians, by their actions if not by their words, deny the sufficiency of Scripture on precisely this issue, and thus many sufferers are pointed by pastors away from the light of Christ and to the darkness of the world in their hour of need. It’s a simple question: Do we believe Christ when He says, “[I]f the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36), and again, “Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth” (John 17:17)?

Is Scripture sufficient, or not?  “Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you be limping between two opinions? If Yahweh is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him” (1 Kings 18:21).

Michael Kruger addresses those men who have the privilege and responsibility of preaching and teaching in Christ’s Church, and his words are a fitting conclusion:

“The lessons of the Reformation have been largely forgotten, and the church, once again, has begun to rely on ultimate authorities outside of Scripture. In order to lead the church back to sola Scriptura, we must realize that we cannot do so only by teaching about the doctrine itself (although we must do this). Instead, the primary way we lead the church back is by actually preaching the Scriptures. Only the Word of God has the power to transform and reform our churches. So, we should not only talk about sola Scriptura, but we should demonstrate it. And when we do, we must preach all of God’s Word – not picking and choosing the parts we prefer or think our congregations want to hear. We must preach only the Word (sola Scriptura), and we must preach all the Word (tota Scriptura). The two go hand in hand. When they are joined together in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can have hope for a new reformation.”⁵

Amen.

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1 Paul Washer, “Greatest Threat to the Church in Our Generation?”, I’ll Be Honest (2021). Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQDY58wZd0U, accessed 7^th May 2026.

2 The Westminster Divines, “The Westminster Confession of Faith (1:6)”, Ligonier Ministries (2021). Available at: https://learn.ligonier.org/articles/westminster-confession-faith, accessed 8^th June 2026.

3 “The Fourth Session (8^th April 1546)”, in J. Waterworth (Tr.), The Canons and Decrees of the Sacred and Ecumenical Council of Trent (London: C. Dolman, 1848), p.18.

4 Founders Ministries (2026), “The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in Modern English (22:1)”. Available at: https://founders.org/library/chapter-22-religious-worship-and-the-sabbath-day, accessed 10^th June 2026.

5 Michael Kruger, “Understanding Sola Scriptura”, Ligonier Ministries (2016). Available at: https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/understanding-sola-scriptura, accessed 3^rd November 2021.

Image: Andrew Barden, "Open Bible at Genesis" (July 2018).