Baptists and the Authority of Scripture.

Last night was the inaugural meeting of the Scottish Baptist Theological Society, held at Newton Mearns Baptist Church. This is neither a College nor Baptist Union "thing". It will be an informal and open society where Scottish Baptists can meet together to explore who we are and why we are. We agreed several Values that are intended to shape the ethos of shared faith and trustful exploration together.

The inaugural lecture was given by Dr Stephen Holmes. lecturer in Systematic Theology at the University of St Andrews: A Baptist View of the Authority of Scripture. Amongst all Evangelicals the Bible holds an honoured and unrivalled place as the source of authority in matters of faith and practice. Numerous confessions of faith begin with statements which affirm the Bible as the supreme, absolute and sole authority. Linked to this high view of Scripture authority, is the further conviction amongst Evangelicals that Scripture is clear, plain and can be read by all who humbly seek the will of God in Scripture. From the least tutored to the textual expert, the Scripture is given as gift of grace to lead, guide and teach the Church.

British Baptists however have a particular way of understanding the authority of Scripture, as clearly set out in our Declaration of Principle.

That the Lord Jesus Christ our God and Saviour is the sole and absolute Authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practice, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and that each Church has liberty, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret and administer His laws.

From this nuanced and profound statement, Dr Holmes explored "the Scripture Principle" from a Baptist perspective, and indicated the quite specific emphases of a Baptist theology of Scripture.

1. The Bible is interpreted within the Church, in a process of community discernment, as in prayer, with open Bible, gathered in the presence and the name of Jesus, the Church meets to discern the mind of Christ.
2. The guidance of the Holy Spirit is an essential assumption in how Christians are enabled to read and interpret this gift of grace called Scripture; the inner testimony of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness to Christ in Scripture.
3. In such a process of discernment, prayer and shared seeking of the way of Christ, each local Church is a complete competent Church under Christ, to interpret and administer "His laws". Such a dynamic nexus of people, word and Spirit, means that Scripture is there to be obeyed as its truth is brought home to the heart.
4. However the first statement of the Declaration qualifies significantly the nature of Scriptural authority. Uniquely amongst Evangelical statements of faith, Baptists place the Lord Jesus Christ. Absolutised predicates such as "supreme", "sole" and "absolute", refer to Christ in the first instance. Known as the Christological hermeneutic this means that for Baptists the authority of the Bible derives from the final and sole Authority of Christ "as revealed in the Holy Scriptures". Dr Holmes was careful not to set Scripture and Christ over and against each other. Rather, Scripture is to be seen as the uniquely authoritative means, in sacramental terms, a means of grace through which access is given to Christ. Thus through the text of Scripture the truth of Christ is given, spoken, revealed, so that the Holy Scriptures do more than ,merely facilitate encounter - they bear witness to the One who is encountered, in unique, historically rooted, divinely given documents whose text becomes transforative, quick and powerful in their impact on those who seek in them the truth of God in Christ.

Now all that is my summary of Steve's lecture. I hope I haven't misrepresented or misquoted him. Please feel free to correct or comment Steve. This lecture was rich in historical reference, and rooted Baptist theology in its own origins and articulated Confessions, while tracing trajectories through the Reformation and into the period the the Early Church Fathers. It also drew upon insights and experience from the wider Evangelical tradition, and had a good balance of Baptist affirmation and self-criticism. This isn't a matter of academic debate, but goes to the very core of baptist faith and practice, and is an important ongoing discussion as together we seek to discern the mind of Christ in each Church and in our fellowship together under Christ.

The discussion afterwards picked up several key points, some of which may well be ideas for following up in later meetings.