Calvin Synod Herald, 2004 (105. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2004-05-01 / 5-6. szám
6 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD The Second Helvetic Confession Chapter 1 - Paragraph 1 Of the Holy Scripture Being the True Word of God Canonical Scripture. We believe and confess the canonical Scriptures of the holy prophets and apostles of both Testaments to be the true Word of God, and to have sufficient authority of themselves, not of men. For God himself spoke to the fathers, prophets, apostles, and still speaks to us through the Holy Scriptures. And in this Holy Scripture, the universal Church of Christ has the most complete explanation of all that pertains to a saving faith, and also to the living of a life acceptable to God; and in this respect it is expressly commanded by God that nothing either be added to or taken from the Scriptures. Commentary: By canon it is meant the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. There cannot be anything added to or taken away from the Bible. We believe in the plenary-verbal inspiration of the Scripture. This means God inspired each word written and though God used men and allowed those men to use the language and culture of their day, God so led the writer that it is the same as if God had spoken each word in person. God himself says nothing can be added to or taken away from the Bible. The Bible is sufficient for everything needed for faith (salvation) and as a rulebook for how we live life today. What is necessary for men to know is so clearly worded there can be no doubt God has said this. The statement then would be that the Bible is sufficient for everything needed in faith and practice. This opening of the confession is an absolute necessity to the Christian. We can go so far as to say that without the acceptance of this truth people do not have a Christian Worldview and cast doubt on their own salvation (By their works you shall know them). Every person has a worldview by which that person form core beliefs about life in this world and the next. The foundation of a Christian worldview is the Bible and that Bible being inerrant and infallible. On the foundation of the Bible we can add the statements of the Apostle’s Creed to create the full criteria of such a worldview. Unlike some so-called scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries, the appeal is to the Scriptures in the original language and not some mystical and nonexistent original documents penned by the prophets. We have the very word of God and it is most complete in the canonical Scriptures. The Bible is the revelation of Jesus Christ and the only foundation upon which mankind may safely build a life and future. Why do we link worldview to salvation like this? Because our worldview will flavor everything we believe and what we do about these beliefs. In other words our actions in life are directed by our view of life and eternity. The unsaved do not have the same view of this world as a believer. Unchristian worldviews allow for situational ethics and a changing future left to the whims of fate. For the Reformed churches the Bible as the very word of God is the first tenet of faith followed closely by the sovereignty of God. These two divine truths establish what we believe about God, how we interpret God’s revealed word, and more especially what we are going to do about that word in our lives. Dr. Chuck Baynard Clover EPC Clover, South Carolina www. cloverepc. org Lorantffy Zsuzsanna High School in Nagyvarad On March 6th at its meeting: Eastern Classis recommends that the churches and others be encouraged to assist with the restoration of the Lorantffy Zsuzsanna High School in Nagyvarad (Oradea, Romania), returned just recently to the Reformed Church, with a goal of $5,000.00 for one classroom.” - Passed. A letter from the Synod office in Nagyvarad carries an urgent plea for help now! Thanks to God - the building of the Lorantffy Zsuzsanna Reformed High School was returned last year by a government decree into the legal possession of our Church. When the communist dictatorship confiscated this building in 1848, we needed to leave it urgently, and they forbade us to take any properties with us. However, we have now received back the empty building, and the facility itself is in an extremely bad condition, it needs full restoration. The repairs on the impressive building situated in the historic city-center of Nagyvarad/Oradea is a high priority of our Church. As a first step, we rebuilt the former orphanage connected to the complex, so that our students have appropriate conditions in their future dormitory. Work has also started in one wing of the building. We already have 300 students in the high school! The foreseeable costs of planning, constructing, engineering and equipping this facility for religious, educational, cultural and social programs are approximately $75,000.00 USD." May I suggest that a collection be initiated amongst our Hungarian sisters and brothers in the New World to restore a classroom (that would cost approx. $5,000.00), so that we can put a plaque on the door: “This classroom has been renewed thanks to the donations from our American sisters and brothers.” Rev. Albert W. Kovács Dean - Eastern Classis
