The Bible and Saving Faith in Christ

Here's an important idea from David Wells (from his excellent new book, "The Courage to Be Protestant").

"The disciples did not shrink from [the] fact [that the unchanging, saving truth of the Gospel is found in the pages of Scripture]. ‘Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life’ (1 John 5:12), declared John.

"And this life-giving knowledge, this knowledge of Christ as incarnate God and self-giving sacrifice in our place, is brought to us through the knowledge of the written Word. How are we to call upon him if we have not believed? And how are we to believe if we have not heard? ‘And how are they to hear without someone preaching?...”How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’ (Rom.10:14-15).

"The Holy Spirit first inspired this Word, whose principal work is now to point men and women to Christ and so to work in them that they are able to bow before him, accept him for who he is, and by faith receive his death in their place. The Holy Spirit, in doing this, uses this Word to glorify Christ.

"There is no saving knowledge of God except through the truth of Scripture, except as our trust is placed in Christ by its teaching, and except as the Spirit imparts to us the desire to trust Christ in this way.

"We cannot know God in any other way. Whoever ‘does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God’ (2 John 9)."

-- David Wells, "The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World" p. 83 (Eerdmans 2008)