What is the foundation of the Christian faith—Jesus or the Bible?

The Relationship Between Jesus and the Bible: A Baptist Perspective

The foundation of the Christian faith is the person and work of Jesus Christ, specifically His death, burial, and resurrection. Without these historical events, there is no salvation and, consequently, no Christianity. The Bible is the means by which we know these truths. It is God’s inspired revelation, through which He reveals His plan of redemption and points us to Jesus as the object of our faith.

Jesus: The Cornerstone of Our Faith

The Bible is clear that Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Christian faith:

  • “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11, NKJV).

  • “The Lord is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved” (Psalm 62:6, NKJV).

Jesus is the chief cornerstone upon which everything in the faith is built:

  • “Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; whoever believes will not act hastily’” (Isaiah 28:16, NKJV).

  • “Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20, NKJV).

Our salvation depends upon Jesus:

  • “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12, NKJV).

  • “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16, NKJV).

Clearly, Jesus is the object of our faith and the foundation of our salvation. He is the solid rock upon which our faith stands.

The Bible: The Revelation of Our Faith

While Jesus is the cornerstone, the Bible is how we come to know and understand Him:

  • “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17, NKJV).

  • “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me” (John 5:39, NKJV).

The Bible is the inspired Word of God and the means by which God reveals His plan of salvation:

  • “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, NKJV).

  • “Having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1:23, NKJV).

Without the Bible, we would not know who Jesus is, why He came, or what He accomplished for us:

  • “By this gospel you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:2–4, NKJV).

The Bible is the foundation for understanding Jesus as the object of our faith. It contains the inspired testimony of the prophets and apostles, through which we come to know Christ:

  • “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Romans 15:4, NKJV).

The Connection Between Jesus and the Bible

The Bible and Jesus are inseparably linked. Jesus is the Word made flesh:

  • “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1, 14, NKJV).

The Bible is the written Word, pointing us to the living Word, Jesus Christ:

  • “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31, NKJV).

Some attempt to separate Jesus from the Bible, claiming that faith in Jesus can exist apart from the Scriptures. However, without the Bible, we would have no authoritative record of who Jesus is, what He taught, or what He accomplished. Removing the Bible as the foundation for faith leads to subjective and speculative beliefs about Jesus, resulting in a distortion of the gospel.

Guarding Against Bibliolatry

While the Bible is essential, we must avoid the error of bibliolatry, which is the worship of the Bible instead of God. The Bible is not God; it is God’s revelation to us. The purpose of the Bible is to point us to Jesus and lead us to salvation in Him:

  • “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3, NKJV).

  • “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4, NKJV).

Believing in the authority and sufficiency of Scripture is not bibliolatry. Rather, it is a recognition of God’s gift to humanity, revealing the path to salvation and the truth about Himself.

Conclusion: Jesus and the Bible as the Foundation

Jesus Christ is the foundation of our faith. He is the object of our trust and the reason for our salvation:

  • “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2, NKJV).

At the same time, the Bible is the foundation for understanding and knowing Jesus. It is God’s inspired Word, pointing us to the Savior and revealing His plan of redemption:

  • “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Matthew 24:35, NKJV).

The Bible and Jesus are not in competition; rather, they work together as the basis of our faith. Jesus is the cornerstone, and the Bible is the foundation upon which the knowledge of Jesus is built:

  • “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matthew 7:24, NKJV).

By standing on the truth of God’s Word and placing our faith in Jesus Christ, we are anchored in the unshakable foundation of biblical Christianity.

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