Regula Fidei

1 Corinthians 14:36-38: Did the word of God begin with you, or did it come to you alone?14:37 If anyone considers himself a prophet or spiritual person, he should acknowledge that what I write to you is the Lord’s command. 14:38 If someone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.

From the very beginnings of the church, as evidenced by this letter to the Corinthians, heresies were creeping into the church. People were distorting the gospel, misunderstanding the gospel, and generally messing up the gospel. In the case of the Corinthians, some were preaching a gospel that excluded the resurrection.

The early church had the OT and was compiling letters and narratives that would eventually become the canon of scripture.

But the big question was, not only what constituted the Scriptures, but how were they to interpret what the Scriptures said.

In these few verses, Paul is saying that, even though the Lord had delivered a text (the OT, epistles and narratives) these materials were not open to private interpretations (cp. 2 Pet. 1.20) The answer to the rhetorical question is obviously “no”. The word of God did NOT begin with the Corinthians nor come to them alone.

There must be rules for interpreting the text. The text is the final authority, but how we understand that text is vital. We call these rules, Hermeneutics.

Where do we get these rules?

First, according to Paul in 1 Corinthians, there is a group of Godly people, gifted people (in this chapter he calls them prophets and spiritual persons) who recognize a proper interpretation of the text and we must submit our interpretations to their evaluations.

Second, since the apostles and prophets who first received and delivered the text of God’s revelation understood it to mean certain basic truths, the early church fathers summarized these truths in creeds, based on the regula fidei (i.e. Rule of Faith.)

Isn’t it interesting that the issue of hermeneutics is raised in a letter dealing, in large part, with division in the church!

Division often occurs in churches (and in the church, generally) because of poor interpretations of God’s revelation. Although the Scriptures are THE final, infallible authority in faith and practice, radical individualism in the interpretation of Scripture leads to all kinds of false doctrines and deep schisms (e.g. not believing in the resurrection)

Now, lest anyone is tempted to think all this is just a bunch of “hooey”, and that we have the Bible and that’s all we need…look at what follows: a regula fidei!

15:1 Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, 15:2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you – unless you believed in vain. 15:3 For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received – that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, 15:4 and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, 15:5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 15:6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 15:7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 15:8 Last of all, as though to one born at the wrong time, he appeared to me also. 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been in vain. In fact, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God with me. 15:11 Whether then it was I or they, this is the way we preach and this is the way you believed.

Here is a summary statement of the Gospel. Here is implied a rule that, if violated, would lead to division and heresy. Whatever teaching or interpretation of Scripture was contrary to this gospel, was wrong and to be shunned.

Note also Galatians 1.8-9: But even if we (or an angel from heaven) should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be condemned to hell! 1:9 As we have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell!

The Regula fidei guide us in our interpretations of revelation. Now this idea applies to the essentials of the faith. In the non-essentials, there is freedom, flexibility, and a certain amount of individuality. But in the essentials, one’s interpretations must be consistent with the historical rules of faith.

If you were to look at the heretical churches that have erupted over the centuries, they all violate one or more of the essentials (i.e. deity of Christ, deity of the Holy Spirit, Trinity, Christ’s death, Christ’s resurrection, Christ’s return, etc)

So when we Evangelicals say we believe the Bible and the Bible only, we are not saying that we can interpret the Bible any way we please.

In fact, when we cite a creed, we are announcing that we disagree with any interpretation of Scripture that is contrary to that creed.

Furthermore, even when we claim to believe in the principles of the Reformation: Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Soli Deo Gloria, we are refusing any teaching or interpretation that is contrary to these principles.

So let us join the ancient church...

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. AMEN.

(Apostles Creed)