Wise men have great respect for the opinions of other wise men, and the Bible itself says that “in the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Pr. 11.14). “He that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.” Being as weak as we are in knowledge and understanding, we have great need of the advice and admonition of wise and godly men. To suggest otherwise is reckless to the highest degree.

There is a difference, however, between counsel and a rule. Good men may advise and admonish us, and we ought to give heed; but the rule of our faith and practice is God’s word. In the multitude of counselors there is safety, Solomon says, but he does not tell us that in them lies absolute certainty. That is found only in the word of God.

Since only God has all wisdom, only He is to have all authority in the church. Men – even the best of men – may make mistakes in judgment, but not so with God. We may rely upon what God has said always to be true, and so only what God has said is totally reliable as our guide. It is true that elders do rule in the church, but only by preaching the truths of God’s word and insisting that the church follow them. We do not set the standards, but we insist that the congregation follow the rules that God has set.

Men do draw up documents from time to time that express our understanding of what the Bible teaches. We call these documents articles or confessions of faith. This is a good and proper practice and one that has been most helpful to the church over the years. We should not drift to and fro with every wind of doctrine, for God’s word does not teach “every wind” of doctrine, but teaches the one true doctrine. We are not to wander endlessly, but must find and put down roots in “the faith once delivered to the saints,” and these documents tell us what the saints believed in years past.

It is wise to be guided by the expressions of wise and good men in matters of religion. It is totally improper, however, to be ruled by them. As our articles of faith state, the Scriptures are our only rule of faith and practice. Those who disregard the wisdom of their fathers are rash and irresponsible; those who make the counsel of uninspired men to be their rule bring the church into bondage. Both attitudes are highly dangerous and unscriptural.