Salvation according to scripture alone: 2 Timothy 3v14-17

2 Timothy chapter 3, beginning at verse 14, and that's on page 1197 of the Church Bibles.

2 Timothy 3 · chapter mention

2 Timothy chapter 3, beginning at verse 14, on page 1197.

2 Timothy 3 · chapter mention

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of,

because you know those from whom you learned it,

and how from infancy you have known the holy scriptures,

which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,

so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead,

and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge.

Preach the word and be prepared in season and out of season.

Correct, rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.

For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine.

Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers

to say what their itching ears want to hear.

They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship,

do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

Thanks very much, Chris.

Well, let's pray together.

The Lord says,

These are the ones I look on with favour,

those who are humble and contrite in spirit

and who tremble at my word.

Father, we come to you in humility,

with a contrite spirit.

We place ourselves under your authority,

asking that your word and your truth

would shape us,

mould us,

change us,

as a church

and as a people.

Father, may that very word that

brought life into existence

be that same word

that speaks to our hearts and lives today,

bringing life

and bringing truth.

Father,

Father, without you

and without you speaking,

we are lost.

we need you.

We need your help.

Thank you for your word

and for its truth to us today.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, I was thinking during the week

that it would be great

to have a new church building.

Controversial, I know,

but hey,

wouldn't it be nice?

Not just a smaller version

of this community centre,

but a modern,

state-of-the-art building.

The problem is

we don't have any money.

So that got me thinking some more.

So here's my idea

I want to put to you.

For a small fee,

let's say 250 euro per person

and at a bargain,

500 euro per family,

we're going to offer

to look after any births,

deaths and marriages.

So if there's anybody

in the community out there

who's unsure

about what they believe

and just want to cover their bases

in case,

just in case,

there is a God,

we will baptise,

we will bury,

and we will bless.

Or hatch, match and dispatch,

as they say.

For a modest payment,

we will assure them of salvation.

They mightn't understand

what they do,

but we can say,

it's all right,

we have you covered.

And we can even put an announcement

in the local newspaper.

Carragoline Baptist Church,

we have your life covered.

So what do you think?

Well, I hope you would say

something like this.

Johnny, you really can't do that

because that's not what the Bible says.

Salvation is a free gift from God,

received by faith in Jesus Christ.

Well, if you think my idea

is a little bit far-fetched,

come with me back 500 years

to the established church in Europe.

And something similar was happening.

They needed a new church building.

So the Pope at the time,

Leo X,

came up with this ingenious plan.

They were going to sell indulgences

or pardons

to the local people.

Because at that time,

most people believed in a place

called purgatory.

It was kind of an in-between

heaven and earth.

It's a place of torment.

A place where people went

when they died.

It's not in the Bible,

but nevertheless,

this is what the church taught.

And here people would go

and they would have to work off

all their sins

before moving off into heaven.

It was kind of a middle stage.

And this was the genius of the idea.

By selling these indulgences

or pardons

and people buying them

with their hard-earned money,

the Pope was giving them off

time off purgatory.

He was basically accelerating

the place from earth

when you died

to heaven.

For a very small fee,

salvation was being guaranteed

to the people.

You could buy it

with money.

Now, at the same time,

there was a young German monk,

you may have heard of this guy,

called Martin Luther.

And he was teaching

in one of the church's seminaries.

He was an up-and-coming theologian.

And he was serious

about reading the Bible.

And as he began

to lecture his students,

he was teaching through Psalms

and then Romans

and then Galatians,

he discovered something

the church had never,

ever taught him.

In fact,

he was discovering

that what the church taught

wasn't what the Bible said.

And he came to understand

some really core truths.

They weren't new,

but they were rediscovered truths

from the Bible.

They could be summarised

like this.

That salvation

is according to Scripture alone,

in Christ alone,

by grace alone,

so it's a free gift,

through faith alone,

so not something we work for,

but trust in Christ,

for the glory of God alone.

So filled with this passion

for this rediscovered truth

and a concern

for all these people

who were being led astray.

Martin Luther went down

to his local church

and he nailed up

or stuck up

on the church door

95 theses

or, if you like,

95 mini-statements

about the truth

of the Gospel.

Because the local church door

was like your town notice board.

It's where people went

to find out

what was going on

and what was happening.

And his aim was

to challenge the church

and the leaders of the church

to get back

to the central truth

of the Bible.

And this great event,

which will be celebrated

in October of this year,

500 years,

has become known

as the Reformation.

Because

it was a desire

to reform the church

in line

with the teaching

of Scripture.

Now we may be sitting here

and thinking

500 years ago,

I hate history.

And that was

an awful long time ago.

I sympathise with you.

I sat through

history classes in school

and I did not like it.

But,

there's lots

that we can learn from it.

And in one sense,

500 years later,

we are still

to be

reformers.

So I want us

to think of ourselves

as being reformers.

As we go back

to the Bible,

we are always

being reformed.

We are being shaped

and changed

by what the Bible

teaches.

Or to put it

another way,

if we as a church

are to go forward,

if we're to be

the kind of church

that God calls us to be,

if we're to be

the kind of Christians

God wants us to be,

we are to first

go back to Scripture.

We must take

one step back

to Scripture

to be able

to take

steps forward.

You see,

what Martin Luther

had rediscovered

was not new.

And his desire

to get back

to the Bible

was not new.

It was something

that the Apostle Paul

took seriously

and encouraged

his fellow servant

Timothy to do.

So have a look

in 2 Timothy

2 Timothy 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

and verse 14.

2 Timothy 3

2 Timothy 3:14

verse 14.

Verse 14,

but as for you,

so the Apostle Paul

here is writing

to this young pastor

called Timothy.

He's somewhere

about 16 or 18.

and he was pastor

or one of the elders

of a church

in Ephesus,

a very,

very young man.

And he's been given

this responsibility

of taking care

of the church.

Paul is nearing

the end of his life

and so he's passing on

and he's encouraging

to Timothy

to start his ministry

and to continue

his ministry

by getting back

to Scripture.

So let's read

verse 14.

But as for you,

Timothy,

continue in what

you have learned

and have become

convinced of

because you know

from those

from whom

you've learned it.

So what has

Timothy been learning?

Well, look at verse 15.

How from infancy,

from a little child,

you have known

the Holy Scriptures.

Timothy,

you've started

with the Scriptures.

Chapter 1 tells us

that it was his mother

and grandmother

that took the time

to teach

their young Timothy

and that's an encouragement

for us as parents

if we've got children

to be investing

at the very early stages

and teaching them

the good news

of God's Word.

So he started

with this knowledge

of the Scriptures

and Paul is now saying

continue on.

Make the Bible

central to your life

and to your teaching

and the reason

look down at

chapter 4 verse 3.

For the time

will come

when men

will not put up

with sound doctrine,

they'll not put up

with the truth

of what Scripture teaches.

Instead,

to suit their own desires,

they will gather

round them

a great number

of teachers

to say what

their itching ears

want to hear.

So people

don't want to hear

what the Bible

has to say

but they want to hear

what they want to hear.

Verse 4,

they will turn

their ears away

from the truth

and turn aside

to myths.

You see,

just as there was

in the time

of Timothy,

just as there was

500 years ago

and it's still

the same today,

there will always

be those

who come to the church

who will wander

away from

the truth of Scripture

and lead

other people

away from

the message

of the Bible.

They move away

from God's revelation

to man-made

tradition

and our job

like a Timothy

or a Martin Luther

is to get back

to what the Bible

teaches.

You see,

one of the most

important questions

we could always

be asking ourselves

is this,

what does

the Bible

say?

How are we

made right

with God?

Well,

what does

the Bible

say?

What should

the church

teach?

What should

we be doing

as a church?

Well,

what does

the Bible

say?

How are we

to live as

Christians

in the world?

Well,

what does

the Bible

teach?

What determines

my decision-making?

What kind

of church

should I

go to?

Well,

what does

the Bible

say?

It's not

important

what I

think

or what

you think

or what

anybody else

has to say,

but what

does

Scripture

have to

say?

What does

it teach

us?

When

Martin Luther

was challenged

and questioned

about these

rediscovered

views,

these truths

about salvation

and Scripture,

he said

this,

your

imperial

majesty

and your

lordship

demand a

simple

answer.

Here it

is,

plain and

straight.

Unless I

am convicted

of error

by the

Scriptures,

I cannot

and will

not recant

anything.

On this

I take

my stand.

I can

do no

other.

God

help me.

So he

took his

stand on

Scripture

alone and

everything

was lived

and practiced

under that.

So Scripture

alone is

where we

must begin

and where

we must

continue.

There's three

things we

want to learn

about Scripture

and why

it is so

central and

so important

to us.

First,

the source

of Scripture.

We start

with Scripture

because its

origin or

its source

is not

man or

a church

but God

himself.

So look

at verse

16.

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 3:16

chapter 3

verse 16.

There's a

little phrase

there.

It says

all Scripture

is God

breathed.

Now all

Scripture

implies both

the Old

Testament

and the

New

Testament.

So when

we're talking

of Scripture

think old

and new.

Let me give

you an example

of this.

If you just

go back a

couple of

pages to

1 Timothy

1 Timothy 5:17

chapter 5

verse 17.

1 Timothy

1 Timothy 5:17

chapter 5

verse 17.

So he's

giving instructions

to Timothy

about elders.

So chapter

3 he's been

talking to the

elders, the

leaders of

the church.

And one of

the primary

roles of an

elder, he

tells us in

chapter 3, is

that they must

be able to

teach.

They must be

able to teach

God's word

and apply

God's word.

And here he

says something

else.

Chapter 5

verse 17.

The elders

who direct

the affairs

of the church

so they give

direction through

the word.

He says they

are worthy

of double

honour,

especially those

whose work

is preaching

and teaching.

And now he

wants to back

up what he's

saying.

Verse 18.

For the

scripture says

do not

muzzle the

ox while it's

treading out

the grain,

which is a

quote from

Deuteronomy,

the Old

Testament.

So if the

donkey or

the horse

or the ox

gets some

food,

well then so

should those

who are doing

the work of

teaching.

And then he

says the

worker deserves

his wages,

which is a

quote from

Luke's gospel,

which is in

the New

Testament.

So can you

see what Paul

is doing?

He's making

a case and

to make his

case he refers

to both the

Old Testament

and the New

Testament and

he calls them

the scriptures.

So when we're

talking about

scriptures,

we're talking

about everything

that's in the

Old Testament

and everything

that's in the

New Testament

from Genesis

to Revelation,

the whole

Bible.

It's this book

that we're

looking at right

now, nothing

more and

nothing less.

And that must

remain central

to the life

of the church.

So all of

scripture, we

don't pick the

pieces that we

want and the

bits we don't

like we leave to

one side.

We don't go,

oh well this is

what Jesus said,

I can deal with

that, but Paul

said that so I

don't listen to

Paul because I

don't like Paul.

No, all of

scripture, everything

together is God's

word because it

is, secondly, God

breathed.

So go back to

2 Timothy 3

2 Timothy 3:16

verse 16.

It says that all

scripture is God

breathed.

Now God

breathed is a

technical term

and it's really

important that we

understand it.

It simply means

that the words,

the Bible,

originates in

the mind of

God.

So every word

written in the

Bible has been

chosen or has

been inspired by

God.

So the Bible is

not man's

invention, it's

not the church's

idea, but it is

God's revealed

truth to us.

Again, if we

go forward just

a few pages to

2 Peter, so

Hebrews after

Timothy, Hebrews

James, well

there's a

Titus in there

as well, Titus,

Hebrews, James

and then 1

Peter, 2

2 Peter 1:20

Peter chapter

1 verse 20.

2 Peter chapter

2 Peter 1:20

1 verse 20.

So we're

thinking about

what it is to

be God

breathed, that

God's word

originates in

the mind of

God, not in

somebody's ideas.

So 2 Peter

2 Peter 1:20

chapter 1

verse 20.

So Peter is

writing, he

says, above

all you must

understand that

no prophecy of

scripture came

about by the

prophet's own

interpretation.

For prophecy

never had its

origin in the

will of man,

but men spoke

from God as

they were carried

along by the

Holy Spirit.

So what the

authors had to

say, the

authors of

scripture, it

isn't their own

ideas, their own

imagination, but

if you look at the

end of verse 21,

men spoke from

God as they

were carried

along by the

Holy Spirit.

So as the

work of God's

Spirit was in

their lives, so

they began to

write what God

called them to

write.

Now another

person who's

just died

recently, a few

years ago, John

Stott, explained

it like this, which

I think is very

helpful.

He said, God

spoke his

words through

their words, using

their different

personalities and

style in such a

way that their

words were

simultaneously his.

So God didn't

just dictate

mechanically and

go write this

and then say a

whole load of

things and they

just wrote down

word for word,

but God used

their personalities.

That's why when

we read Paul, he

writes in a

different way.

Peter writes in

a different way.

Moses writes in

a different way.

God used their

different personalities

and style, but

yet their words

were at the same

time God's

words.

So we start

with Scripture

because the

source of

Scripture originates

in the mind of

God and it's

for us today.

The second

reason why we

need Scripture

is its purpose.

And again, we

see two things

here.

The purpose of

Scripture first

is it leads to

our salvation.

So go back to

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

and verse

15.

Back to

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 3:15

3 verse

15.

So he says

there, how

from infancy

you have

known the

Holy Scriptures

which are

able to

make you

wise for

salvation

through

faith in

Christ Jesus.

So it

leads people

to salvation.

If you

were to

summarize the

whole of the

Bible in

one word,

what would

you use?

If you

were to

summarize the

whole Bible

in one

word,

you ever

thought what

you would

say?

Well, I

think salvation

would be a

good word

because the

whole of

Scripture from

beginning to

end is God's

unfolding plan,

his true

story to

save us

from the

judgment that

we deserve.

The Bible

tells us the

story of what

we're like,

that God

made us,

that he

loves us,

that he

rules over

us, but

we rebelled

against him,

we turned

against God,

we sinned,

just like

Adam and

Eve, we've

turned away

from God,

and we

need saved

from God's

judgment,

from his

wrath, and

that salvation

comes not

through our

own efforts,

not by the

things I can

do, but

through the

person of

Jesus Christ.

So it

says in

verse 15,

the

scriptures

which are

able to

make you

wise for

salvation

through

faith in

Christ Jesus.

So as we

read and

listen to

scripture, it

makes us

wise for

salvation, it

shows us our

need to be

saved.

Scripture

itself doesn't

save me, so

if I read

the Bible, it's

not going to

save me by

itself.

Rather, the

scriptures

open up my

eyes to help

me see the

need for

Jesus.

It brings me

back to who

Jesus is and

shows me that

Jesus died for

me on the

cross, that he

rose again from

the grave, defeating

death, and as

we trust in the

person of Jesus, we

are saved.

As it says at the

end of verse 15,

for salvation

comes through

faith in

Christ Jesus.

It's by trusting

in him.

Let me quote

again, this

time from a

living author.

Tim Keller

explains it like

this, which I

think is very,

very helpful.

The Bible, he

says, then is

not a collection

of fables or

fictional stories

that give us

insights on how

to find God

and live right.

Rather, it is

both true

history and a

unified story

about how God

came to find

us in the

person of Jesus

Christ, who

died in our

place so that

we could be

saved by grace

through faith

and live with

him forever in

a remade world,

the garden city

of God.

The Bible is

not primarily

about us and

what we should

do.

It is first and

foremost about

Jesus and what

he has done.

So as we read

through Scripture,

we discover that

God's great plan,

it's all about

pointing us to

Jesus Christ and

how he can save

us and how he

changes us.

So the first

purpose of

Scripture is to

bring us to

Jesus who can

save us.

The second

purpose of

Scripture is

for our

sanctification.

Sanctification is

just simply a

word to describe

God's ongoing

work in our

lives to mature

us and to

grow us in

our Christian

faith.

And the way

that God does

this is through

Scripture,

through the

Bible.

So again,

look at

verse 16.

All Scripture

is God

breathed,

so it has

its origin in

God and it's

for us,

and it is

useful for

teaching,

rebuking,

correcting,

and training in

righteousness.

us.

So as we

come to

God's Word,

we are to

let God's

Word filter

into our

minds.

We're to let

it have an

effect in

us.

Because the

more we read

God's Word,

the more we

listen to it,

as we are

told that we

are taught by

it.

We're taught

more about

who God is,

who Christ

is, who

the Spirit

is.

We learn

more about

God, and

how we

should relate

to Him.

But we're

also rebuked

by it,

verse 16.

So as I

begin to

read the

Bible and

listen to

it, then

it shows me

the areas

in my life

that need

to be

changed,

the areas

that don't

fall in

line with

God's

way.

And unless

I read

it, I'm

not going

to know

that I

need to

change.

It doesn't

just rebuke

us, but

it corrects

us.

So it

shows us

the area

we need

to change,

but it

also

corrects.

It shows

us how

we can

be changed.

It actually

shows me

how I can

change to

be more

like Jesus

through acts

of repentance

and faith

and meeting

together with

one another

and through

prayer.

But it

doesn't just

correct me,

it trains

me, trains

in righteousness,

builds up my

understanding of

the Bible so

I can teach

and encourage

others.

But that's

not just the

job of the

pastor or

the elder.

Each one

of us should

be trained

up so that

we can teach

and encourage

others.

And the

whole purpose

for all of

this, look

at verse

17, so

that the man

of God and

the woman of

God may be

thoroughly

equipped for

every good

work.

You see,

scripture is

the nutrients,

the energy

that we

need to

keep on

growing as

a Christian.

Yesterday, I

had a great

day where I

went walking

up Caron

2 and

along the

way I

needed to

drink, as

everybody does.

If we don't

drink, you

run out of

water and you

have no energy

and you can't

do anything.

Well, imagine

trying to

climb a

mountain without

any water.

Or imagine

trying to live

just a few

days without

water.

You'd maybe

last, at

best, two,

three days

maximum.

But then what

happens without

water?

Your organs

begin to fail.

They dry up,

they shrivel

up, and they

stop functioning.

And then you

die very, very

slowly.

But you do

die.

And the

same is true

that if we

don't drink

in God's

word, if

we're not

being immersed

in God's

word, then

the same

effects will

happen to us

spiritually.

We will

never mature.

We will

never grow.

We will

never become

the people

God calls

us to be.

We will

slowly die

as a

Christian.

So let

me ask the

question.

Are we

people who

are being

immersed in

God's word?

When was

the last

time that

you opened

up the

Bible to

read it

for yourself?

to hear God

speaking to

you?

How he

can change

you?

How he

can shape

you?

How he

can build

you up?

If you

find reading

difficult,

when was

the last

time you

heard it

on audio?

Just hearing

what God

is saying

to us.

Without

it, we

die.

We never

grow, we

never mature.

We're

just like

little

toddlers,

never being

the people

God calls

us to

be.

So God

gives us

the gift

of his

word to

bring us,

to make

us aware

of our

need of

salvation,

to bring

us to

Christ.

But not

just to

bring us

to Christ,

to grow

us to be

more like

Christ.

And he

does that

through his

word.

So, if

we have

the source

of

scripture,

which is

God, the

purpose,

which is

for our

salvation and

our

sanctification,

what's our

response to

scripture?

How should

we be

responding as

God's people

to his

word?

Well, let

me give

you three

areas that

I think it

should really

affect us and

shape us as

a church and

as individuals.

First, in

the area of

authority.

Scripture alone

doesn't mean

that we can't

read other

people's

writings.

We've already

listened to

some of them

today by

listening to

what Martin

Luther said

or John

Stott or

Tim Keller.

It doesn't

mean that we

can't read

what anybody

else says.

It doesn't

mean to say

we can't

listen to

other preachers

or teachers

or have

our own

opinions.

It simply

means that

everything we

listen to,

everything that

we read,

must come

under the

authority of

scripture.

In other

words, what

we teach as

a church,

what we

practice as

a church,

must be

ruled by

scripture.

And the

problem at

the time of

the Reformation

500 years

ago was the

church as

an institution

had become

the authority.

authority.

So what

the church

leader said

was equal

in authority

to what

scripture said.

So if the

church leader

said this,

well it was

to be taken

as if God

had spoken.

They didn't

submit themselves

to God's

word.

Rather the

people had to

submit to

man's word.

They followed

tradition

instead of

God's

revelation.

revelation.

And the

same kind

of things

can happen

to us

today if

we are not

careful.

It's not

only wrong

to do it

but it's

extremely

dangerous

because it

leads people

away from

Christ and

away from

God's

truth.

We don't

want to be

following

man-made

traditions.

We want

to follow

God's

revelation.

That is

our authority.

And this

was something

that Timothy

had to watch

out for.

If you go

back to

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 2:17

chapter 2

verse 17

as Paul

is writing

to this

young

pastor

leader

he's

encouraging

him to

get back

to scripture

and to be

aware that

there will

be those

who go

away from

scripture.

So verse

17 he

says their

teaching

will spread

like gangrene.

It's

infectious.

It's

poisonous.

It's going

to do

damage to

people.

Among

them

were

Hymenaeus

and

Philetus.

Two

people who

were in

the church

who were

teaching

things they

ought not

to.

Verse

18 they

wandered

away from

the truth.

They were

teaching

traditions

rather than

God's

revelation.

So as

a church

we need

to seek

to submit

to God's

authority.

Everything

we say

everything

we do

must come

under

God's

word.

So it's

not the

authority

of the

pastor.

It's

not the

authority

of our

statement

of belief.

It's

not the

authority

of our

church

constitution

and all

those things

may be

good and

proper but

everything

must come

under the

authority of

scripture.

So let me

challenge you

and encourage

you.

As you

listen to

me or to

whoever else

may be

preaching,

as you

observe what

we practice

and what we

do as a

church,

do you

just listen

and go

yeah that's

fine,

oh we'll

do this,

that's fine.

How do

you know

it's fine?

You might

be listening

here right

now and

you haven't

even got a

Bible with

you and

you're

thinking oh

yeah except

that,

how do

you know?

How do

you know

it's true?

It's your

job,

your

responsibility,

your role

to look to

scripture and

say is this

what the

Bible says?

Is what we

are practicing

what the

Bible teaches?

So first,

it must be

our authority.

Second,

it's sufficient.

Scripture,

the Bible,

is God's

revelation of

himself.

This is how

we get to

know God

because God

has revealed

himself to

us through

his word

and it's

complete.

Everything that

God has to

say about

us today

is in

God's

word.

It's

complete.

It's

sufficient.

God didn't

leave us

speculating

about what

we should

believe or

how we

should behave

as Christians.

It is a

clear word

to us

today.

That means

we don't

need a

further word

or we don't

need more

revelation.

We don't

need somebody

writing in

new books

or coming

up with

new ideas

and say,

did you

know this

about God?

You never

heard about

this.

No,

what we

have in

God's

word is

sufficient.

John

Calvin was

another man

similar to

Martin Luther

who was

seeking to

reform the

church, to

bring it

back to

scripture.

He was

working in

France and

he stood

against those

who sought

to add to

scripture.

And this is

what he said,

which I think

is helpful.

let this

then be a

sure axiom.

Let this

be the

standard by

which we

measure

everything.

That nothing

ought to be

admitted in

the church

as the

word of

God,

save that

which is

contained

first in

the law

and the

prophets,

which refers

to the

Old

Testament,

and secondly

to the

writings of

the ten

apostles,

which refers

to the

authors of

the New

Testament.

And that

there be

no other

method of

teaching in

the church

than according

to the

prescribed rule

of his

word.

And that

message is

the same

message for

us today.

We shouldn't

allow in any

other teaching

or any

other ideas

except that

which is

contained within

scripture.

Now today

you might go

to some

churches and

they'll say

things,

well,

we have

the Bible,

but that's

not enough,

that's not

sufficient.

There's still

more things

we need to

hear from

God.

So they'll

say something

like this,

God told

me,

or God

has said.

So rather

than rely on

what God

has said

about himself

in the

Bible,

people depend

on their

own thoughts

and imaginations.

Because the