#2 - A place where we all use the same map.

     The "map" I'm referring to here is obviously the Bible.  The Journey believes that all 66 books of the Bible are the authoritative, inerrant, infallible word of God (2 Timothy 3:15-16, Hebrews 4:12, 2 Peter 1:19-20, Isaiah 55:11, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

     Isn't this ridiculously important for a church to believe?  Without this component we're left to speculate, guess, or pick-and-choose what we believe about God and who He really is.  In other words, without Scripture we make the rules and boundaries in which God exists.  If we behave with this assumed authority then we may as well admit we're our own god.  That or go ahead and carve an idol out of a piece of wood just the way you want and like it, right? 

     Is there absolute truth out there?  Claiming there is no absolute truth is an absolute truth in and of itself, right?  We certainly believe that there is absolute truth.  We believe that God has spoken truth to us through His word, the Bible.

"We believe that God has spoken truth to us through His word, the Bible."

     Many people have altered, added, or subtracted what they believe about the Bible in the past.  For example, Joseph Smith did just that and created Mormonism.  Charles Taze Russell took this path and created Jehovah's Witnesses.  Mary Baker Eddy also found the Bible insufficient and created Christian Science.  The Bible has existed and survived numerous cultures, countries, trends, and people and yet the Bible has remained the same and was relevant to all of those.

     The heart behind the Protestant Reformation was the desire to return to Scripture as the ultimate authority.  During the Reformation the slogan "sola Scriptura" was conceived to express this intense conviction to place Scripture above all other writings.  We believe in the doctrine of sola Scriptura. 

"We believe in the doctrine of sola Scriptura."

     Scripture trumps all other writings.  It's the lens by which we determine truth from anything else.  The Bible is the message from God of his unending love for us.  It's from the Bible, God's word, that we accurately learn just who God is, who we are, and what He has done for us.  It's so tempting to look for hope in people, self-help books, or in various other methods or philosophies.  However, God's word leads to a hope that is unparalleled by anyone or anything.  

[8] See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. [9] For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, [10] and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.  (Colossians 2:8-10 ESV)

     The Bible is our go-to authority.  I so desperately hope and pray that we are a church body that CLINGS to Scripture!  We're so prone to wonder from God's truth.  Yet it's the primary way in which God speaks to us and the filter by which we determine truth outside of it. 

"Christians worship God, not the Bible.  But the Bible informs us of who God is and how he is to be worshiped and is therefore essential to our worship.  As a result, we come to the Bible for transformation, not just for information.  As the same Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures illuminates our understanding, we deeply enjoy our new life guided by our new wisdom of Scripture and our new power from the Holy Spirit, delighting in our new gift of repentance as part of God's kingdom people together on mission in the world for Jesus." - Mark Driscoll (Doctrine)

     We will hold Scripture above all other writings at The Journey.  Scripture will be our road map.  We hope to pass out a lot of these maps as we seek to make disciples of Jesus and launch The Journey Church of Marietta. 

September is getting closer!

Cody Parman

Hope #1 - A place where nobody walks alone.