Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1958, Page 42

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42 Proceédings of the Forty-fifth Convention

where we disagree either in the doctrines themselves or in their
relevance and application, and to let the Word of God give us
clarity and conviction.

Basic to all doctrinal agreement is common ground as to the
source and authority of all doctrine. Therefore, the first study
to be undertaken and brought to a successful conclusion concerned
the doctrine of Holy Scripture. The joint committee unanimously
adopted the following statement:

_ STATEMENT ON SCRIPTURE
Adopted by the Joint Union Committee of the Synodical Conference

May 7, 1958

(The seven asterisks refer to amendments adopted by the convention. Cf. the
floor committee report below.)

I. Introduction

God reveals Himself to men primarily through His incarnate
Son, whom He attests and presents to His church through Scrip-
- ture. The purpose of Scripture is to proclaim Christ as the Savior
of sinners (John 5:39, 46; Acts 10:43). All Scripture is written
because of Christ and. has a connection with the revelation of
God in Christ, some passages directly, some more remotely.
Every word of Scripture is therefore an organic part of the
Scripture’s witness to Christ. And Scripture is the complete
message of God to sinners. By it man is freed from carnal
security and self-righteousness, is delivered from despair, and
regains by faith the lost image of God. (Gal. 3:26; cf. 4:31; James
1:18; 1 Peter 1:23; John 8:31-32) .

We reject the idea that the natural knowledge of God is
sufficient to salvation or useful beyond the use made of it in
Scripture. (Romans 1:20; 2:1; 2:14-16; Acts 17:22-23). The reve-
lation of God in nature and conscience is insufficient for salva-
tion because man by reason. of his fall is so constituted that he
persistently perverts and distorts the revelation given to him by
God and refuses to acknowledge or. to submit to the God who
thus reveals Himself. And man pursuing this perverted course
is either led to feel secure in his self-righteousness or is driven
to despair. - : :

We reject the idea that other new sources or norms of divine
revelation besides Scripture are to be expected. (Heb.1:1-2;
Matt. 28;19-20:*) .

Il. The Inspiration of Scripture

We believe and teach that all Scripture (that is, all the
canonical books of the Old and New Testaments) is given by
inspiration of God and is in its entirety, in its parts, and in its
very words inspired by the Holy Spirit. God revealed Himself
personally and directly to such men as Adam, Abraham, Moses,
and the prophets. Some of these He called to transmit His mes-
sage to men orally or in writing. Their message was thus not
their own, but God’s Word. They were moved by the Holy Spirit,
so that He is the true Author of their every word. Inspiration
means, then, that mighty act of God whereby He spoke His Word
in the words of men and made them the effective and final vehicle
of His revelation. Hence these words do not merely inform us
concerning God’s past action; they also convey God’s action now.
(1 Thess. 2:13; 2 Peter 1:19-21; 2 Tim.3:15-17; 1 Cor. 2:13; Jer.
23:29; Rom. 1:16-17)

In giving men His message by inspiration, God had men ex-
press His Word in their own language (Hebrew, Aramaic, or