I’m a Restoration Movement preacher. What does that mean? During the second great awakening, several preachers had the same idea: We want to be Christians, and we want trust what Scripture says over the words of man. The movement was spearheaded by Barton Stone and Thomas Campbell, and their goal was not to create a new denomination, but to bring Christians together as Christians only under no authority but Christ and the Scriptures. It wasn’t to be superior to everyone else. The hope was to unify believers on what was essential, and get in to the word of God to lead us instead of charters, bylaws traditions and doctrines founded by men. To teach this, several mottos were developed that used to be taught in Restoration Movement churches and repeated regularly, but I think have been, by and large, neglected over the years. Some of these are as follows:
"Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent."
"The church of Jesus Christ on earth is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one."
"We are Christians only, but not the only Christians."
“In essentials, unity; in opinions, liberty; in all things love."
"No creed but Christ, no book but the Bible, no law but love, no name but the divine."
"Do Bible things in Bible ways."
"Call Bible things by Bible names."
Now, I want to make it clear: these are not in any way a replacement for Scripture. They were (and are) intended to be a guide to draw us back to our source: Scripture. And note, the emphasis IS on Scripture. This morning, as I’m thinking on this, I wondered “when the scriptures speak plainly, why do we argue with it so much?” Seriously. Jesus, when facing Satan in the wilderness said, “it is written,” not “my tradition states.” Shouldn’t we, who claim to follow Him, seek the same authority? “It is written” is more powerful than “I think,” “I feel,” or “I was taught.” It has authority that comes from the Author of Life, and it should be our rally cry in times of plenty and times of peril.
I know there are some scriptures that are full of intense, and sometimes (to us) bizarre imagery, or there are visions whose interpretations are not so clear, but when the Bible says something plainly and simply, why do we feel the need to reinterpret it to fit our world view? It seems that this seems to be more important than anything. “I have faced this tragedy,” or “I have always believed this” or “I was raised this way” are no excuses for ignoring, reinterpreting or reimagining what God speaks clearly. We need to follow the authority of the Scriptures.
2 Timothy 3:1-17
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.
You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from 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.
Hebrews 4:6-13
Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.
Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
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