A Christadelphian Reply 

• Adrian Miles claims this is

"THEIR FUNDAMENTAL ERROR

The foremost statement of their BASF (Birmingham Amended Statement of Faith) claims that the Bible is the Foundation of their Faith...

The Bible teaches thatJesus Christ is the True Foundation of the church, NOT the Bible, however much we think we understand it!

(The relevant Scripture for this is in 1 Corinthians chapter 3:11, 2 Timothy chapter 2:19 and John chapter 5:39-40)"
 

•  Elsewhere,  in An Overview of the Christadelphian Community point 6, Adrian Miles claims 

"The key to where Christadelphian teaching goes astray is their insistence that the Bible is the True Foundation of their Faith. Jesus should be".

1. No Christadelphian would disagree that Jesus Christ  is the foundation of the first century ecclesia and of true believers ever since. So Adrian Miles is putting up a straw man and thinks he has knocked him down.
2. We do deny that Jesus Christ is the foundation of any church which does not preach the gospel taught by him and the apostles, which includes the overwhelming majority of Christianity. (Gal. 1:8, 9)
3. We deny that we claim "that the Bible is the Foundation of [our] Faith". If Adrian Miles had quoted the foundation of the Christadelphian Statement of The Faith any normal reader would be able to determine that what Adrian Miles claims is not what the statement says. So we quote it.
 
A STATEMENT OF THE FAITH

THE FOUNDATION

That the book currently known as the Bible, consisting of the Scriptures of Moses, the prophets, and the apostles, is the only source of knowledge concerning God and His purposes at present extant or available in the earth, and that the same were wholly given by inspiration of God in the writers, and are consequently without error in all parts of them, except such as may be due to the errors of transcription or translation.

2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Corinthians 2:13; Hebrews 1:1; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 Corinthians 14:37; Nehemiah 9:30; John 10:35
 

4. Obviously this foundation statement is talking about the inspiration of the scriptures which forms the basis of the knowledge of our fellowship. In other words we do not accept church tradition nor extra-Biblical writings like the Book of Mormon nor testimonies because they are not inspired and therefore are unprovable. Our source of knowledge is an inspired Bible. The Catholic Church and many protestant groups do not believe in an inspired Bible.
5. However none of the verses quoted by Adrian Miles supports his innuendo which is in effect saying 'that the foundation of his faith is Jesus' but 'the foundation of Christadelphian faith is the Bible'. Have a look. None of the verses talks about faith.
6. The context of the first verses referred to describes Paul as being "a wise masterbuilder" who "laid the foundation" while others build on it. Paul says that "foundation is ... Jesus".
7. The second scripture referred to says "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." It does not say Jesus is the foundation of faith.
8. The third scripture is irrelevant to the point Adrian Miles is trying to make. They speak neither of foundation nor faith. The context (v38) speaks of those who do not have the Father's word abiding in them and therefore "believe not". The "Father's word" is now equivalent to the written Bible.
9. Brown Driver Briggs Lexicon (Online Bible) defines faith (pistos) as 5 things, the first two of which are relevant to the discussion and Christadelphians believe them:-

1) conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a
   conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and
   divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and
   holy fervour born of faith and joined with it
   1a) relating to God
       1a1) the conviction that God exists and is the creator and
            ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal
            salvation through Christ
   1b) relating to Christ
       1b1) a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is
            the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in
            the kingdom of God.

It seems pretty obvious that Adrian Miles does not believe the first definition since in his A New Statement of Faith he uses the unbiblical term co-created. "God co-created the world..."

1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
2 For by it the elders obtained a good report.
3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
(Hebrews 11:1-6, KJV).

Ac 6:7 And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Ac 13:8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.
Ac 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
Ac 16:5 And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.
Ac 24:24 And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, which was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ.
Ro 3:3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?
Ro 14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
1Co 16:13 Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
2Co 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

Conclusion:

• Having faith in God and in Jesus is not the same as The Faith. The first is contained in the second, but does not replace it or superintend it. There are many more doctrines in a definition of The Faith than the attribute known as faith.
• We have looked at Adrian Miles' claim and found that he is comparing the foundation of A Statement of THE Faith with a verse which describes Christ as the foundation of the true ecclesia.  Therefore Adrian Miles is trying to compare two differenct things, which is a logical vacuity, or in other words an error in reasoning. It is like trying to compare apples and oranges.
• We found that none of the verses Adrian Miles supplies supports his case.
• To us it is obvious what the facts are but we leave the reader to determine whether Adrian Miles has found a "fundamental error" or "The key to where Christadelphian teaching goes astray". If this is the best Adrian Miles can do then there is really no need to continue on with the rest of his site.