That the Scriptures are still with us after a sustained assault from antiquity forward, is an attestation to preservation by heavenly providence and not human effort. With great care God has preserved His Word. “By countless wondrous means Satan with the whole world has tried either to oppress it or overturn it, to obscure and obliterate it utterly from the memory of men — yet, like the palm, it has risen ever higher and has remained unassailable.” (pg. 91) God’s Word has been miraculously preserved throughout history and is available to us today by divine will.
Calvin also turns his focus on those who, under the guise of the Spirit, elevate personal revelation, over Scripture. Interesting to see that it is as true today as it was in reformation times. The Spirit will always lead us into his Word, never away from it. “Therefore the Spirit, promised to us, has not the task of inventing new and unheard of revelations, or of forging a new kind of doctrine, to lead us away from the received doctrine of the gospel, but of sealing our minds with that very doctrine which is commended by the gospel.” (pg. 94) The Church is ruled by the voice of God and by the Spirit of God. They are in complete agreement.
Lord, I praise you for gloriously preserving your Word throughout history so that I might feast upon its riches and depths of its revelation of you. Let me never elevate thoughts about you that are not in accord with how you have revealed yourself in Your Word and let me cast them aside. Your Word is complete and it is enough for me.
