What Is Your Source of Authority?

February 17, 2025

Did you hear about the thief who stole a Preacher’s diary and his Bible? He died. The preacher’s thoughts and prayers are with his family.

Growing up, my parents made me go to Sunday School every week from first grade through twelfth grade. I actually liked it, but I didn’t let my parents know. Most of my teachers were kind and fun, and most of the kids were my best friends. I just didn’t think the Bible part was that great. So, I whined about going, and I would always answer, “Nothing,” when mom asked if I learned anything.

My first semester of college was terrible, until God directed my steps to a student led Bible study. They were studying Isaiah and I thought I wouldn’t know anything. I not only knew more than I thought I would, I was able to enter into the discussion throughout the night. As an adult, my love affair with the Bible had begun, and I was grateful for the years of Sunday School my parents “made me” endure.

I have had my struggles with the Bible and, like so many others who have tested the Bible, I have come out with a firm conviction that it is the Word of God, just as it says it is in II Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…” I have tested it scientifically, historically and literarily and, it has passed every test. So much so, that now when I ask questions of the Bible that seem to have contradictions with my knowledge and experience of the world, I assume that the problem is me, that I just don’t know enough, or that my experience is incomplete. The Bible is always right.

Through the years I have met people who seem to have problems with the Bible. When I ask them if they have read the Bible they usually answer that they have not, but they have read a lot about the Bible. I tell them that it is time to stop reading about the Bible and start reading the Bible. I remember the first time I read the Bible from beginning to end, it was one of the most powerful spiritual experiences of my life. I was overwhelmed that this book, written over a span of 1500 years by dozens of different authors in different languages, held together so tightly. I concluded that only God could do such a miracle. Today, I make sure it is the one book I read every year.

Our country is going through a challenging time right now because we are realizing our federal government appears to have lied to us about almost everything for decades. Interestingly, I have had the opportunity to deceive people a lot over the last year. I got an amazing magic kit months ago, and I have been using the tricks to teach Bible truths. In one trick, I pull three cool looking cards out of an envelope and declare I can read someone’s mind. Unbeknownst to the volunteer, each card is marked in such a way that I can convince them that I knew they would choose it before they do. To make the trick look good, all I have to do is show them the “sign” after they choose a card.

Next, I break the magician’s code, and show them how I have deceived them so that I can teach them the importance of having good sources of authority. Just because someone tells them they are telling the truth doesn’t mean they are (e.g. the Internet!!!). Then, I challenge them to accept the Bible as the best authority there possibly can be because it is the word of God. C.S. Lewis once said, “Ninety-nine per cent of the things you believe are believed on authority… I believe it because reliable people have told me so” (from The Case for Christianity). What this means is that most of what we know is from what others have seen and written or talked about. We better choose our authorities carefully.

What are your sources of authority? Have you ever had a source of authority prove false? Is the Bible your most important source of authority? Why or why not? If you are struggling with any part of the Bible, I challenge you to do a thorough study of your struggle, and see if you don’t end up where I always did, that God may be glorified through His word in your life.

(To learn more about Al Earley or read previous articles, see www.lagrangepres.org. You can purchase my book, My Faith Journal, at Amazon.com, a compilation of 366 articles as a daily devotional).