Tuesday, November 04, 2008

God Reveals Himself

Barth argues (see below) that Calvin's basing the authority of Scripture in the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit is a way of ensuring and realising that God must reveal himself. Calvin does list what might be termed evidences for Scripture's inspiration (sorry for the lack of references) but these are not conclusive.

I'm sure there must be a wealth of literature on this subject, but I have a hunch even trying to ask the question 'what is this testimony' will only leave us going round in circles, attempting to securely pin down something which floats through our hands.

If this is the case then the multiplicity of Reformed confessions is inevitable and necessary because we have no way to arrive at a public and universal statement (as Barth argues the Augsburg confession was). Even our canon is arrived at by faith. The Church lives by faith all the way down ...

Saturday, November 01, 2008

How is the word of God to be read?

The holy Scriptures are to be read with an high and reverent esteem of them; with a firm persuasion that they are the very Word of God, and that he only can enable us to understand them; with desire to know, believe, and obey the will of God revealed in them; with diligence, and attention to the matter and scope of them; with meditation, application, self-denial, and prayer.

Larger Westminster Catechism