The Search For The Standard Authority Of The Early Church

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The search for the standard authority in the Early Church

I understand and have not violated the Seminary¡¦s position on plagiarism

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Introduction: The Problem of Authority
One of the hallmarks of the Reformed tradition is the concept of sola Scriptura, which is the teaching and belief that the only authoritative special revelation from God that man has is the written Scriptures or the Bible. Underlying this belief is the understanding concerning the nature of Scripture itself, that it is the inerrant, infallible, and inspired word of God. The idea of sola Scriptura stems from the work of the Protestant Reformation where figures like Luther, Calvin and Zwingli countered the claims of the Roman Catholic Church who attributed their authority in the church¡¦s traditions or what is called the magisterium. The magisterium is the official teaching body of the Church that is inspired by the Pope. Underlying this conviction is the belief that Jesus Christ transferred His authority to the apostles and their ordained successors, the bishops, where the primary authority was given to the Roman see; this concept is also known as apostolic succession. However the reformers denied that such authority could be attributed to an individual or tradition within the post-apostolic church as seen in the Westminster confessions, which reads:
¡§The whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit or traditions of men.¡¨ (WCF 1:6)
Clearly we see that for the reformers, the authority of the Scriptures would find no equal, whether in terms of traditions or any individual whose claim to authority is said to parallel Scripture. H...