Faith Basics: Sufficiency of Scripture

The Bible has all things that we need for life and Godliness. So what exactly does that mean? ...and what doesn't it mean? Ian and Dan team up again to help us understand this vital topic in part 3 of our Faith Basics series on the podcast.

• Automated Transcription

• Dan Jarms 0:00
  Today on faith matters, we're going to continue our series on faith basics. I've got Ian Rush, and we're going to talk about sufficiency of Scripture.
  
  Dan Jarms 0:15
  I'm Dan Jarms and you're listening to faith matters a podcast to help update you on matters of faith Bible Church, as well as equip you in matters of the Christian faith.
  
  Dan Jarms 0:34
  We've talked about the inspiration of Scripture. And last time we talked about inerrancy and infallibility this time we're going to talk about sufficiency of Scripture. We're eventually going to get to illumination, how God helps us know it and the clarity of scripture. But this time, it's a big topic. We're going to talk about sufficiency of Scripture. Welcome in. Thank you. It's, it's great. You and I work together, both as pastors, but also for the master seminary. And so the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture drives our training of men. Because the Bible says that it has everything we need to love God and love people. Well, as we start talking about the sufficiency of Scripture, you're going to give us a sort of a layman's definition en of what we're thinking about.
  
  Ian Rush 1:21
  Yeah, really. And yeah, just echo what you said, it's, it's really the, it's the center should be the center of all ministry that we do is our understanding of what the Word of God is, and why we need it. And our understanding of those things comes from Scripture itself. So you think of Matthew four, four, Jesus says, Man shall not live by bread alone, but from every word that comes from the mouth of God. You see, like, that's a striking statement. And it's Yeah, and it should make you think, well, it may he sounds like he's saying that the Bible is more important than food, that you know that what God has delivered to us is more important than our physical sustenance. So it should get us thinking and kind of ticking over well, how is it that Jesus can say something like that? Is that in fact, what he's saying? And if it is, then how should that affect the way that I live? And I think that really, that verse gives a really good kind of bottom line as to what the sufficiency of Scripture is all about, you can go to places that more directly speak to it, like Second Timothy, 315, and 16. But really, the sufficiency of Scripture is all about what our what our needs are, I think we, we do we have many needs in life. Some of them are primary, some of them are secondary. And Jesus really here in Matthew four, four, what he does is he lays out for us, what is the number one need in your life. That's the spiritual need, and the way your spiritual needs are met through the word of God. So the sufficiency of Scripture is all about how what God has given us in His Word is all that we need, in order to be able to live lives that glorify Him, and, and, and live lives in the way that he calls us to live.
  
  Dan Jarms 3:16
  Yeah, and if we could contrast it to what is commonly thought today, I have various needs, emotional needs, psychological needs, I might have physical needs, and I need something that I need something to handle that I need something to handle my anxiety or my stress or, or a problem that I'm having with a co worker, or a problem that I'm having with a sibling or a spouse, you know, and, and what we're arguing for what the Bible argues, argues for in the sufficiency of Scripture, is that God has what you need for those things. So he has everything you need. So that's why it's really important. And we live in an era where the, the idea of expertise, you have to be an expert in, in all kinds of things to be listened to. Almost makes people think well, yeah, that's, that's good for, like things about faith and hope, and maybe God's general plan, but it doesn't really have what I need to overcome depression. It doesn't have whatever I need to overcome. So I need to go somewhere else I need to go to, I might need to go to a doctor, I might need to go to a therapist, I need something else. And that's very common. But in all cases, what we want to do is we want to encourage you who are listening, and you who disciple other people, you invest in other people, that if you have problems you can turn to God in order to know how to please Him and love Him. And God's word has answers for us. So what does it not mean? When we're talking about sufficiency of Scripture? There's often some confusion what are we not saying about it? Yeah,
  
  Ian Rush 4:58
  I think sometimes people when I hear us talk about the sufficiency of Scripture, or kind of throw the baby out with the bathwater, and and say things like, well, you're saying that that Scripture is is ultimately all that we need. So what does that mean for these other issues in my life that Scripture doesn't talk about? So just a really silly example would be okay, so I've cut my finger and my fingers bleeding. What does Scripture have to say about that was great, you know, Scripture doesn't have anything to say about your finger bleeding, and what you should do when your finger is bleeding. So we're not what the sufficiency of Scripture does not mean is that you shouldn't go and get a band aid and put a bandaid on your finger. Yeah.
  
  Dan Jarms 5:43
  Or you shouldn't go see a doctor. Yeah, so
  
  Ian Rush 5:45
  it's not like with the sufficiency of Scripture means therefore, we then throw out everything else that's not spoken about in Scripture. Like when you have a headache, you take an Advil when you caught yourself, you put a bandaid on, and those are just simple examples to kind of ramp up. But what it what it does mean is that when you cut your finger, or when you have a headache, scripture, Scripture does help us with those things. Right, we can be instructed on how we can respond in those situations
  
  Dan Jarms 6:13
  in a way that pleases God in a way that looks to him for trust, in a way that doesn't justify us being nasty and mean to somebody else. But yeah, yeah. So the one way I think about it is it doesn't mean the Bible speaks exhaustively about everything ever. I mean, it would be a really big book, if it is both spoke about everything ever, I just think about what an owner's manual of a new car looks like, or an owner's manual, old car look like it's really big, as he's not talking about that. Because it's it's talking about those issues in our life with God. So it would talk about how the the manner or attitude in which we would read an owner's manual of a car. And it doesn't mean, it does not tell us many things that we need to get through life like we need, we need to go to the licensing department to get our our license for that car, or our driver's license, it doesn't tell us how to get a driver's license. So that's we're not talking about that, in places where people I think, are most confused in our world is like, well, so what about the role of doctors and people who have studied the brain or psychologists, where there are, there are things about the human physiology that seem to go in tandem with spiritual things? So are we saying that if I have depression, there are no medical issues? It's just spiritual issues? No, we're not saying that. You may have your complex, we're both physical and spiritual. So we're gonna have physical problems, we're gonna have spiritual problems. And what we say all the time in the counseling center, and when we're discipling people is we deal with spiritual matters with the means that God's given, so go to your doctor. So that's, that's what when we get into those trickier areas, that's what we're talking about. We're not
  
  Ian Rush 8:11
  saying that you should ignore the physical side of things. But I think what we tend to do is sometimes when we have a physical diagnosis from a doctor, we kind of ignore the spiritual side of it. Yeah. And we'll think, oh, worse, this is a physical thing. And there's no spiritual component to it whatsoever. So I think it's important equally to say, Well, yeah, you might have a physical diagnosis which you need to follow the certain procedures that the doctor has assigned. But don't ignore the fact that there's there's probably a spiritual component to this as well, that you need to work through and, and explore scripture about and and have brothers and sisters in Christ help you work through these things, wherever they may be.
  
  Dan Jarms 8:54
  That's really good. We want to talk about it in terms of it is our food and is what we need. So talk to me in on just some more helpful things. What do we mean? How does the Bible help us?
  
  Ian Rush 9:08
  Say Psalm 119? Is a very long Psalm 76 verses Yeah, there is there's just tons in there about the beauty of God's Word, God's word, and also the practicality of God's Word. So Psalm 119 103, how sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth. So again, it kind of ties in with what Jesus was saying in Matthew four for like, this is something that's good for us. It's, it's something that we should, we should crave to consume and eat. But then just two verses later, your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path. So that's Psalm 119 105. And really, it gives like, a nice kind of general idea as to what God's Word does for us. It doesn't get into any specifics there. It's It's this poetic illustration of our walk being like a walk down a path as we walk through life. And what God's Word does is helps us to stay on the path kind of reminds me of Pilgrims Progress, yes, and how pilgrim he's on his on his pilgrimage towards the celestial sea. And the instruction is, stay on the path. And that's what God's Word does for us. It instructs us informs us. It directs us as to how we are to live and stay on the path as we
  
  Dan Jarms 10:34
  do. Right tied to that. So I think of Psalm 119 is the long poem about the value and the wonder of the Word of God and all various areas. The short version is in Psalm 19. So 119 and 19, seven, seven through 12, give these beautiful pictures, I'll just, I'll just read seven, and eight. And you can see what we mean. The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. So there it has abilities. When you think of sufficiency, we think of scriptures power, and its ability, it can revive a tired soul. So knowing God's precepts, the way he wants us to live in the world, can actually be life giving to us because oh, that's, that's the way we go about that. The Testimony a testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple Oh, I didn't know how to do this to please go out. And you could fill in the blank whatever this is. I didn't know how to please the Lord in this way. Now I know how I didn't know how to love somebody this way. And now I know how so it makes the life simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. So you know what is righteous, the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes gives us a sense that's, that's the Solomos other version of lights our path, and on it goes with that More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold sweeter also than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb. So Scripture speaks very highly of its of its ability. I was thinking that the other one in Second Timothy 314, through 17, where Paul tells Timothy, remember the scriptures that you learned when you're when you're young, I'm paraphrasing here, which made you wise to salvation. And that's a that's a really key area. This this is making us wise for salvation scripture has this power it for us?
  
  Ian Rush 12:20
  And I think, yeah, that that the I think it's important not to stop there. Because one of the ways that people I think wrongly, we talked about what sufficiency does not mean, one of the ways that people wrongly view and understand sufficiency is to say, yeah, it's got everything I need, so that I can be saved. But then apart from that, it doesn't really have what I need, right. But if you if you go on Second Timothy 314 15, and into 16, he not only says, You have been acquainted with the sacred, right, sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. But then he says, All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. We just had our youth camp and John Gardner's message on the last session was from Ephesians 210, which talks about how believers are saved, to do or live in the good works that God has prepared for us to do beforehand. That's the reason he saved us to live lives of good works. And here, Paul instructs Timothy and says, you've got the Scripture, to know how to do that, to know what those good works are, and then how to live them. So the Scripture is, it is useful, and it does give us everything we need for salvation. But it gives us everything we need for way more than that as well to live the godly lives that God has called us to. Yeah,
  
  Dan Jarms 13:55
  that's good. So what kinds of things then would you be encouraging somebody to go to the scripture for? Just give a handful of examples?
  
  Ian Rush 14:05
  Yeah, I would say how to grow in communication with others, how to work through difficulties or conflict that you're having with another person. So
  
  Dan Jarms 14:18
  proverbs are filled with those? Yep. Some specific directions in Ephesians? Four? Yeah, yep. Yep. So
  
  Ian Rush 14:23
  those are two, two that immediately come to mind. Another would be how do I, how do I share my faith with other people? What types of things should I say? Um, so that I mean, there's just so much in there when, when an unexpected, difficult, perhaps seemingly evil event occurs in my life, how, like, how do I respond to that? Like, what what should I do? How should I work through that? What should my attitude be? How does God lead through those things?
  
  Dan Jarms 14:54
  You could think of so many, so many things I think of in terms of heart issues. So anytime I have a heart issue like what I'm setting my affections on what I've lost my hope in what I really love what I really mad at like all those affection words, all those heart words like that's what the Bible answers for us because it always directs us to God and our relationship. For me, the the culminating reality about the sufficiency of Scripture is that it gives me everything I need to know God. And the Bible is written so that we would know God, His Word, His will, how we can relate to him, how we can be restored to him, shows us Christ. So it is, it is the book I go to about my relationship with God and any other good things that men write, like, sermons or devotionals. We write sermons devotionals, they only are meaningful to the degree that they express what God has written in his word. And that's what that's what we are anchored in with the sufficiency of Scripture, if you want to know God, everything you need to know God is in His Word.
  
  Ian Rush 16:06
  And that that might, it might sound or feel overwhelming, because the word of God, it's a big book that's in there, right.
  
  Dan Jarms 16:15
  So as we wrap up in let's talk about what a sufficient scripture means in terms of discipling and being discipled.
  
  Ian Rush 16:25
  So I think that's again, where we, I mean, we say this a lot. But it's because it's important that it's important to have relationships with other believers and have someone that you can walk alongside with through these things, have spiritual mentors who have been there and done it, people that are older and more mature in the faith in you. So you can say, Hey, I just lost my job. I'm not really sure what Scripture says about it. You help me? Can you help me work through how I'm to respond what I'm to do, or I'm having, I'm having a struggle in this area, or that area of my life, and just having people that you can go through it with and that can point us to different places in Scripture. That's what we that's what we all need.
  
  Dan Jarms 17:04
  So yes, in being that's really key in what you just said, Ian, is I need to be discipled. I think another thing that's important to remember about the sufficiency of Scripture is that individuals are not sufficient. Scripture, sufficient individuals are not sufficient. I can't think of everything. So I can't know everything. And even if I read the Bible, I just read it with the one brain that I have, which is an insufficient brain. And it's, I can understand some things but I need other people plus sin gets in the way, and busyness gets in the way and my life experience gets in the way. So it's really valuable in discipling, any area where you need to please God, to love others, Scripture is going to have direction for you. Thanks again for joining me, thank you.
  
  Dan Jarms 18:05
  But it was great to talk with Ian, working through this idea of the sufficiency of Scripture. And if you think about it, in our, in our modern culture, with hyper specialization, many people think that a lot of the issues that Christians would face are just out of bounds for the church and the Bible. But anything that has to do with how to live in a way that pleases God, how to genuinely love people in a Christ like way, which includes all kinds of things, from how we think how we deal with marriages and relationships. The Scripture covers it. The Scripture covers all things for life and godliness. And we want to encourage you as a person who searches the scripture to find all that God has to say about it. If you want to expand on that, what, what kind of implications does that mean for biblical counseling or as just being a skilled spiritual friend? What kind of things can I grow in? You could check out Brian Sayers online class, the foundations of discipleship and it opens with key key lectures talks about the sufficiency of Scripture. And those are things that come up all the time when we're discipling people, and it will be an encouragement to you

Dan Jarms

Dr. Dan Jarms is teaching pastor and team leader at Faith Bible Church in Spokane Washington, as well as associate dean at The Master's Seminary in Spokane. He has been married for over 30 years to Linda, and has three adult children. He earned his B.A. in English at the Master’s College, B.Ed. at Eastern Washington University, M.Div and D.Min in Expository Preaching at The Master’s Seminary. His other interests include NCAA basketball, woodworking, and art.

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Ian Rush

Ian is the Youth Pastor of Faith Bible Church. He and his wife, Claire, have 5 kids and recently spent a few years serving in a small church in England.

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