Are Paul's Writings as Authoritative as Jesus' Words?

Many years ago as a young man I heard it said by a young lady of my own age that the apostle Paul just
had a thing against women with the idea being that what he wrote on the subject of women had no
authority but was merely the expression of personal prejudice on his part. That young lady many years
later became a preacher (?) within her denominational body contrary to Paul's teaching on the subject
in 1 Tim. 2:12. Over the course of the many years that have transpired since that time I have heard the
same or similar comments regarding things Paul wrote. It seems many believe he lacked the authority
of Christ. Did he? That is the subject I wish to pursue in this article. I add that the reality is that if what
Paul wrote is not authoritative then we cannot stop there but have to go right down the line and ask
about what Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, James, Peter, and Jude wrote as well.

The truth of the matter is every single word of the New Testament excepting only those words added by
translators for clarification (usually marked by being printed in italics) came directly from God the Father
including the words of Jesus himself. In John 1:1 Jesus is called "the Word" (NKJV) but he says later, "He
who rejects me, and does not receive my words, has that which judges him— the word that I have
spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority; but the Father who
sent me gave me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that his command
is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told me, so I speak." (John 12:48-50
NKJV) He says again, "The word which you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me." (John 14:24
NKJV) One could add to these references but the point has been made.

Before Jesus ascended back to heaven he promised to send the Holy Spirit to his apostles. "But the
helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to
your remembrance all things that I said to you." (John 14:26 NKJV) "I will pray the Father, and he will
give you another helper (the Holy Spirit – DS) … even the Spirit of truth." (John 14:16-17 NKJV) "But
when the helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, … he will testify of
me." (John 15:26 NKJV) Now here is where one needs to pay special attention. Did the Holy Spirit speak
free lance style? Listen carefully.

"However, when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak
on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak; and he will tell you things to come. He will
glorify me, for he will take of what is mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are mine.
Therefore I said that he will take of mine and declare it to you." (John 16:13-15 NKJV) The apostles were
commanded by Jesus to stay in Jerusalem until they were baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5 NKJV).
That day came on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:1-4.

The important thing thus far is to see the chain of command. Even though God the Father, Jesus the
Son, and the Holy Spirit are all one all being equally God yet they have an order in which they of their
own accord have chosen to work. Jesus, "being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be
equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant." (Philippians 2:6-7
NKJV) Jesus thus submitted himself to God the Father and spoke only the Father's words. When the
Holy Spirit came after Jesus returned to heaven it is clear from the passage just quoted in the prior
paragraph (John 16:13-15) that he did not originate truth for he did not speak on his own authority but
spoke what he heard. He glorified Jesus by taking what was of or from Jesus and declared it to them.
Thus when an apostle spoke by means of the Holy Spirit he spoke not of himself but rather spoke the
very words of God. Peter speaks of "those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent
from heaven." (1 Peter 1:12 NKJV) On the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 Peter himself spoke just such a
gospel sermon after the Holy Spirit fell on him and the other apostles. Paul says, "No one knows the
things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit
who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things
we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing
spiritual things with spiritual." (1 Cor. 2:11-13 NKJV)

If Paul was not an inspired writer (as well as a gospel preacher) then Peter was in error for he said of
Paul's writings that some twisted them "to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the
scriptures." (2 Peter 3:15 NKJV) Not only does Peter compare Paul's writings with the rest of the
scriptures but also says his writings can be twisted to one's destruction. That would be a little hard to do
if they were uninspired writings would it not? If one recalls correctly Ananias was sent to Paul at his
conversion with one reason being that Paul might be "filled with the Holy Spirit." (Acts 9:17 NKJV)

Sometimes people latch on to a few statements made by Paul in 1 Cor. 7 and read into them more than
they should in that they feel Paul is there giving uninspired advice or giving only his own judgment or
opinion apart from any direction of the Spirit. For example, Paul says in verse 12, "I, not the Lord, say,"
(NKJV) and then in verse 25 he says, "I have no commandment from the Lord; yet I give judgment as one
whom the Lord in his mercy has made trustworthy." (1 Cor. 7:25 NKJV) Well, is Paul trustworthy or not?
He closes this very chapter with these words, "according to my judgment—and I think I also have the
Spirit of God." (1 Cor. 7:40 NKJV) Do you think Paul had the Spirit of God? Do you think he was
questioning himself by making that statement? You know better.

Here is the bind that those get themselves into when they begin questioning scripture and taking some
of it as inspired and other parts of it as not inspired—how do you decide which is which? Are you that
all wise and knowing so that you can declare beyond doubt that this scripture is inspired while that one
is not? How do the rest of us know you are that smart, even God like, in your declarations? How did
you come to possess these mighty powers of discernment? Maybe showing us a miracle would help the
rest of us build confidence in you. In New Testament times miracles were performed to confirm the
word as being from God (Heb. 2:1-4). We need confirmation of like nature if you are going to start
cutting out scripture from the Bible for proof is needed that your word is from God when you do such
cutting. After all you will be giving us a new Bible when your cutting is done.

Needless to say all such approaches to scripture end up being faith destroying. How do you have faith if
you do not know what to have faith in and what not to have faith in? Yes, I know these types proclaim
their faith but real faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom. 10:17) and not by one's
own I think so. It does not come by one declaring himself to be God and thus able to give man the true
scriptures versus the false one's.

The bottom line ends up being that one either has to hold to the scriptures as being authoritative
verbally inspired of God or else he holds to the words of some man that declares otherwise but can
work no miracle in proof of his declaration.

In closing yes the words of Jesus in red are authoritative but no more so than the words in black in your
New Testament for the truth is the source of all inspired writings is God the Father. When Paul or Peter
or whomever the New Testament writer was spoke with pen and ink or otherwise on matters of the
faith his words came from the same source that Jesus' did while Jesus was on the earth. The idea that
Paul was writing for Paul's sake promoting his own doctrine contrary to what Jesus would have said is as
unscriptural as it gets.

"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 Tim. 3:16-17 NKJV)