16 All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work.
(2 Tim. 3:16–17 NASB)
I want to start off by setting the standard of what I'm basing these thoughts off of. As a Protestant, I believe in sola scriptura or "by scripture alone". This teaching states that the word of God is sufficient enough for all things that we would need in a Christian life. This is one of the main points that separates Catholicism from Protestantism. Catholics believe in the authoritative power through scripture as well, however they also hold sacred tradition as an equally authoritative power, administered by the Holy See and it's magisterium. In a perfect world, with a perfect Church, I also agree that this would be the ideal structure. After all, Jesus' teachings weren't written down until many years after his ascension, meaning that there must have been a period of solely teaching from tradition for the early Church. The canon of the bible wasn't established for a couple hundred years after that either, and mass printing of it took another millennia or so. It is evident that tradition, at least historically, is an important part of Christian teaching and instruction.
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path
(Psalms 119:105 NASB)
However, the Church is not perfect. In fact, it is deeply flawed. This is evident in the world today, just take a look at some of the people around you locally and globally that proclaim to be Christians. We teach that there is one truth through the Word of God. However, every church teaches something different. There are hyper conservative churches that say if you aren't handling snakes or speaking in tongues then you aren't saved. Then there are hyper liberal churches that say that God is a woman, and that blatant sins are to be accepted. If both claim to be the truth, then either God's truth is different for everyone (when we know it's not) or man has a hard time with recognizing the truth. It must be then, that man is bad at recognizing truth, because God's truth is eternally steadfast, never changing or wavering.
7 The Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
(Psalms 19:7-9 NASB)
The same problem pokes it's head to any body that prioritizes tradition. Man has a wicked way of twisting tradition based on what he wants. Over years and years of tradition twisting, you get something that doesn't resemble the gospel at all. That's why it's important to have the baseline of scripture above all else. If a teaching is ever found to have strayed from the Word of God, then we know it is a false teaching and it should be rebuked and rid of.
1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned for thirty-one years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. 2 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord and walked entirely in the way of his father David, and did not turn aside to the right or to the left.
8 Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it. 9 Then Shaphan the scribe came to the king and brought back word to the king and said, “Your servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house, and have handed it over to the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord.” 10 Moreover, Shaphan the scribe informed the king, saying, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it in the presence of the king. 11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes. 12 Then the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Achbor the son of Micaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, 13 “Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found, for the wrath of the Lord that burns against us is great, because our fathers did not listen to the words of this book, to act in accordance with everything that is written regarding us.”
(2 Kings 22: 1-2, 8-13 NASB)
The last thing I want to ponder on is the story of Josiah. He was a King of Israel when it was following the wicked path it often did. The line of kings before him was filled of wicked rulers who turned from the Lord. Josiah was following in their earthly ways, until he found the Word of God. Once it was read to Josiah, he turned his ways to that of the Lord and all of Israel did likewise. The power of the scripture here cannot be overstated. It's discovery and reading was enough to sway the path of a whole nation back to God.