We have already seen this week how important having Bible authority is in rightly dividing the Word of Truth.  The question is how can we be sure we have it for our various practices?  Rightly dividing the Word of God demands that we know when we have authority for something and when we do not.

To have Bible authority for something, one of three things is necessary—a command, example, or necessary inference.   We do not have to have all three of these things for something to be authorized, but we have to have at least one of them.

By command, I am referring to instructions given to us by Christ or one of His inspired apostles.  An example of this would be the great commission.

Matthew 28:19 (ESV)
¹⁹  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Do we have the authority to preach the gospel to the lost?  Of course, because we are commanded to do so.  Notice, however, Jesus did not specify how we are to do this; thus, we have options so far as our going is concerned.  We are authorized to preach on the radio, knock on doors, or engage in any method that does not violate or contradict any passage in the Word of God.  It is important to understand that when God specifies something in a command, we have no choice but to do it exactly the way He tells us to do it.  When God commanded Noah to build an ark, He specified the kind of wood He wanted Noah to use.  He told him to build it out of gopher wood.  At that point, Noah had no choice.

Sometimes God gives us generic commands.  Generic commands leave us with some options.  God has commanded us to assemble (Hebrews 10:25), but He has not specified where.  This leaves us the option of meeting in a building, a rented hall, a park, etc.  Just remember—specific authority is exclusive, while generic authority is inclusive.  If we are to rightly divide the Word of Truth, we must understand the difference and act accordingly.

By examples, I am referring to practices that we see the New Testament church doing under apostolic guidance.  In Acts 20 we see the church partaking of the Lord’s Supper.

Acts 20:7 (ESV)
⁷  On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

We do not have to guess when the church in the first century met to partake of the Lord’s Supper because we have a biblical example of it.  When we partake of the Lord’s Supper on the first day of the week, we know we have the authority to do so because we have an example of the church in the Bible doing it.  We must understand when an example is binding and when it is not.  We will cover that in tomorrow’s blog.

By necessary inference, I am referring to something that is not specifically stated in the New Testament but is necessarily implied.  An example of this can be seen in the baptism of Christ.  The Bible does not say that He went down into the water when He was baptized but we know He did because the Bible does tell us that He came out of the water.  By saying that He came out of the water, necessarily implies that He went down into the water.  While this is a valid way to establish authority for something, we have to be careful that what we are attempting to authorize is really a necessary inference and not just an opinion.

We must have Bible authority for everything that we do (Colossians 3:17).  To have it, we must be sure we have either a command, an example, or a necessary inference.  If we do, we can proceed with confidence, but if not, we are acting without authority and sinning against God (2 John 1:9).

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.