Holy Scripture: The Ground and Pillar of Our Faith, Volume I: A Biblical Defense of the Reformation Principle of Sola Scriptura

By William A. Webster and David T. King

A Biblical defense of the Reformation principle of Sola Scriptura. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1893531023
• ISBN13: 9781893531024
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Christian Resources, Inc.
• Length: 308 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Know who writes these reviews when you read them

To make this simple, of the 12 reviews posted when I wrote this, all of them with 3 stars or less were written by Roman Catholic apologists and all of them with 4 stars or more were written by Protestant apologists. Since the formal cause of the reformation was 'sola scriptura', one would expect Roman Catholics to downgrade a book such as this one. I'm a bit surprised they gave even 3 stars.

The Only Work Like It On the Protestant Side

Although it does not cover every disputed exegetical and historical question in detail (and what book could without making the volume massive!), I give this three volume set five stars since there is simply nothing else like it from the Protestant/Evangelical side out there. Since it is a popular polemical work, I shall use a polemical tone in my review. But, before I get to the review, I would like to note that much of the criticisms of this work by the Roman Catholics below are actually addressed in the three volumes. These people remind me of the militant Darwinists who don't even read I.D. books before giving the book a one-star review and repeating ad infinitum ad nauseum the same tired arguments the book tries to address. So, now to the review: Volume One: Chapter 1 King starts out by summarizing the differences and the epistemological abilities of general and special revelation. This chapter should be taken to heart by everyone, Protestants and Roman Catholics alike. Roman Catholics because of their adherence to Thomism and other philosophical theologies. Protestants because of the pervasiveness of "evangelical Thomism" and the "Book of Nature" crowd. Chapter 2 King summarizes the historic Protestant doctrine of sola Scriptura: Scripture is the only *infallible* rule of faith for the Church *today*. This is important since Roman Catholic apologists frequently use straw-man arguments (i.e. misrepresentations) against sola Scriptura. Chapter 3 King summarizes the Roman Catholic view of the relationship between Scripture and Tradition (and notice the capital T). He then points out the fallacy of equivocation that Roman Catholic (R.C. from now on) apologists have been trying to get away with since the Reformation: R.C. apologists equivocate on the term "tradition" as it is used both in Scripture and the church fathers. Next, he tries to draw a parallel between R.C.ism and Gnosticism on the view of Scripture. In my opinion, though they have their similarities, there are too many differences that the Protestant shouldn't use this argument except to bring context to the writings of the earlier church fathers (i.e. Irenaeus, etc.). He also discusses (and refutes) the R.C. use of John 20:30. Chapter 4 Here, King attempts to make a Biblical case for sola Scriptura using 2 Timothy 3:16. Despite P.J. Porvaznik's (see the reviews below) quick dismissal of King's argument (assuming that it is a tired, old, rehashed argument), King goes into great exegetical detail. He notes the Greek and (even more important) the context in which Paul is writing. If Paul is going to be martyred soon and Timothy is going to be left as the highest elder at the church at Ephesus, to what did Paul direct Timothy to for theological and moral matters? A church council? No. Peter? No. An oral "Tradition" not found in Scripture? No. It is Scripture which fully equips the Christian. King also argues (persuasively in my opinion) that the "Scriptures

Amazon should have a policy . . .

. . . which requires people who are trying to post an opinion to have actually purchased the book in question. I stand by this book (and its companions in the series) as a 5-star read even for the opponents of the theology it proposes, and roundly challenge the 1-star "reviewers" to cite any part of this book in substantiating their low rating.This is great scholarship, great readability, and great food for thought.

Outstanding Introduction to / Defense of Sola Scriptura!

This book is a thorough and sustained argument for the final authority of Scripture over all other authorities, and proceeds partly by expositions of the principle under various headings and partly by interaction with a number of common Roman Catholic polemics against Sola Scriptura. The book is divided into three parts. Part 1 deals with the concept of divine revelation, expositing the differences between general revelation and special revelation, the relationship of special revelation and Scripture, and the Roman Catholic concept of special revelation as it relates to Scripture and "oral Tradition". Pastor King thoroughly exposes the amazing ambiguity that exists among Roman Catholic scholars as to the exact status of "Tradition" (is it or is it not a second source of divine revelation, independent of Scripture and containing information that Scripture does not contain?). His case is made mainly with copious citations from prominent Roman Catholic theologians, thus removing this part of the work from the sorts of distortions that can often occur in the midst of heated apologetic battles among laymen. Part 2 sets forth the biblical foundations for Sola Scriptura, exegeting the New Testament texts that speak of the nature and sufficiency of Scripture and also those that concern "apostolic tradition". Of great use here is the discussion on private judgment and the self-attesting nature of Scripture's authority. Part 3 is concerned with the meaning of Sola Scriptura. Here pastor King ably and often with delightful wit further exposes a number of problems with standard Roman Catholic positions on Scripture and Tradition, and in the process also helps to correct common Evangelical misunderstandings of Sola Scriptura. This book is the best contemporary treatment of these issues that I know of, and I highly recommend it to anyone. Protestants will find their belief in the sufficiency and clarity of Scripture deeply bolstered, and Roman Catholics will find many of their misconceptions about Sola Scriptura held accountable to the bar of sound reason, history, and simple honesty.

A new standard for sola Scriptura discussions

It seems as if the demise of sola Scriptura has been highly exaggerated. I admit that there are few comprehensive works of this vital truth. Furthermore, one would have to go back a few centuries to the work of William Whitaker, "Disputations on Holy Scripture" in 1588 or William Goode's "The Divine Rule of Faith and Practice" in 1853 for a comprehensive defense of sola Scriptura. However, with the work of David King and William Webster things have now changed. A contemporary comprehensive work is now available in "Holy Scripture The Ground and Pillar of Our Faith". In this three-volume work King and Webster has done the church an enormous service. Volume 1 contains close to 300 pages and deals with sola Scriptura from a biblical perspective. Volume 2 is over 400 pages and deals with sola Scripture from an historical perspective. Finally, volume 3 is approximately 300 pages of quotes from the fathers on the subject of sola Scriptura. In the end, I think King and Webster have set the new standard for discussions on this topic. This generation and generations to come are blessed with the most thorough comprehensive investigation of sola Scripture from a biblical and historical perspective available.Volume 1 deals with the biblical evidence for sola Scripture and until reading it I hadn't really considered all the ancillary doctrines that affect sola Scripture. In this volume David King covers revelation (Catholic and Protestant views), exegesis of primary New Testament texts, New Testament meaning of tradition, Scripture the only infallible norm, Scripture the only certain norm, material sufficiency of Scripture, formal sufficiency of Scripture, final authority (Catholic and Protestant views), and common misrepresentations of sola Scriptura. These are all major categories that are further broken down into numerous sub-categories. For instance at one point under the major category of Scripture the only certain norm, King deals with an accusation against the integrity of Scripture by a well-known Catholic apologist. King systematically destroys this argument by a barrage of evidence to show the charge is baseless. He uses Jesus Christ, the church fathers, contemporary Protestant scholars, and even Catholic scholars! By the time King finishes one is left in amazement that anyone who has seriously studied the issue would doubt or attempt to assail the veracity of the Scriptures. King is never a lone ranger in his interpretation or conclusions, but always has one or more of the aforementioned witnesses to confirm his reasoning. Therefore, for the non-Protestant who thinks this will be a futile exercise of Protestants reading their belief into Scripture you will be in for a surprise. King consistently confirms his exegesis and conclusions with fathers, theologians, and scholars from many different camps.After reading volume one you might wonder what more is there to know in order to defend or believe in sola Scriptura? Well, if anyon