Vienna Presbyterian Church Core Beliefs
Jesus is Lord
 Scripture is our Authority
Ministry is the Mission of Every Member

What does “Scripture is our Authority” mean?
 

We believe that Scripture is the final authority in all matters pertaining to Christian faith and practice.  We treasure, delight in, long for, trust in, cling to, find comfort in, revere, and love the Word of God because it is life-giving!

All Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  It was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope (Romans 15:4).

We constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers (1 Thessalonians 2:13).

We read the Bible not so much for information, but for transformation into the very likeness of Christ. The aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith (1 Timothy 1:5). 

Jesus saturated himself in God’s word. He studied, recited, explained, and obeyed Scripture. He relied on Scripture to define his mission, inspire his teaching, empower his ministry, guide his decisions,  keep him from temptation, address his critics, and withstand suffering. As people learning to follow Jesus, we turn to Scripture as the guide for living faithfully.

God, the Author and Creator of life, has given us a rich, multi-layered narrative of his ongoing redeeming work in the world.  The Bible was written by real people, in real places at real times exploring and experiencing God.  In the process, they were part of God’s Big Story of restoring, redeeming, and transforming the world. Through God’s Spirit, their story becomes our story, and the authority of Scripture comes alive at this time, in this place, in us. Thus, we become part of God’s Big Story, too. 

We depend on God’s Spirit to illuminate truth found in Scripture.  Peter said that the Holy Scriptures are not of private interpretation (II Peter 1:20). Thus, we look not only to inward illumination of God’s Spirit, but also to the same Spirit working in the community of believers for understanding truths in the Bible. When there is a question about the true and full sense of any passage, we search Scripture for other places that speak more clearly.