Results 1 - 2 of 2
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | What do we believe? | Jude 1:3 | New Creature | 117032 | ||
Below is the doctrinal statement of my church denomination. I post it merely as an example. Please notice I did not give the name of the denomination, so as not to seem to promote the denomination I am affliliated with. I do however personally agree that these doctrinal statements are Biblical, and thats why I choose to be affiliated with them. 1. There is one God,(1) who is infinitely perfect,(2) existing eternally in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.(3) (1) Deuteronomy 6:4, (2) Matthew 5:48, (3) Matthew 28:19) 2. Jesus Christ is the true God and the true man.(4) He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.5 He died upon the cross, the Just for the unjust,(6) as a substitutionary sacrifice,(7) and all who believe in Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood.(8) He arose from the dead according to the Scriptures.(9) He is now at the right hand of Majesty on high as our great High Priest.(10) He will come again to establish His kingdom, righteousness and peace.(11) (4) Philippians 2:6-11, (5) Luke 1:24, (6) I Peter 3:18, (7) Hebrews 2:9, (8) Romans 5:9, (9) Acts 2:23–24, (10) Hebrews 8:1, (11) Matthew 26:64) 3. The Holy Spirit is a divine person,(12) sent to dwell, guide, teach, empower the believer,(13) and convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.(14) (12) John 14:15–18, (13) John 16:13, Acts 1:8, (14) John 16:7–11) 4. The Old and New Testaments, inerrant as originally given, were verbally inspired by God and are a complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men. They constitute the divine and only rule of Christian faith and practice.(15) (15) 2 Peter 1:20–21, 2 Timothy 3:15–16) 5. Man was originally created in the image and likeness of God:(16) he fell through disobedience, incurring thereby both physical and spiritual death. All men are born with a sinful nature,(17) are separated from the life of God, and can be saved only through the atoning work of the Lord Jesus Christ.(18) The portion of the unrepentant and unbelieving is existence forever in conscious torment;(19) and that of the believer, in everlasting joy and bliss.(20) (16) Genesis 1:27, (17) Romans 3:23, (18) 1 Corinthians15:20–23, (19) Revelation 21:8, (20) Revelation 21:1–4) 6. Salvation has been provided through Jesus Christ for all men; and those who repent and believe in Him are born again of the Holy Spirit, receive the gift of eternal life, and become the children of God.(21) (21) Titus 3:4–7) 7. It is the will of God that each believer should be filled with the Holy Spirit and be sanctified wholly,(22) being separated from sin and the world and fully dedicated to the will of God, thereby receiving power for holy living and effective service.(23) This is both a crisis and a progressive experience wrought in the life of the believer subsequent to conversion.24 (22) 1 Thessalonians 5:23, (23) Acts 1:8, (24) Romans 6:1–14) 8. Provision is made in the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ for the healing of the mortal body.(25) Prayer for the sick and anointing with oil are taught in the Scriptures and are privileges for the Church in this present age.(26) (25) Matthew 8:16–17, (26) James 5:13–16) 9. The Church consists of all those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, are redeemed through His blood, and are born again of the Holy Spirit. Christ is the Head of the Body, the Church, (27) which has been commissioned by Him to go into all the world as a witness, preaching the gospel to all nations.(28) The local church is a body of believers in Christ who are joined together for the worship of God, for edification through the Word of God, for prayer, fellowship, the proclamation of the gospel, and observance of the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's Supper.(29) (27) Ephesians 1:22–23, (28) Matthew 28:19–20, (29) Acts 2:41–47) 10. There shall be a bodily resurrection of the just and of the unjust; for the former, a resurrection unto life;(30) for the latter, a resurrection unto judgment.(31) (30) 1 Corinthians 15:20–23, (31) John 5:28–29) 11. The second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ is imminent(32) and will be personal, visible, and premillennial.(33) This is the believer's blessed hope and is a vital truth which is an incentive to holy living and faithful service.(34) (32) Hebrews 10:37, (33) Luke 21:27, (34) Titus 2:11–14) |
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2 | What do we believe? | Jude 1:3 | Aixen7z4 | 117154 | ||
What can one say about a church's document? This one probably serves very well to let everyone know where they stand on key points of doctrine. I am especially happy to see item #6 which spells out the requirements for salvation, which are: repentance and faith. This seems to be missing in some of the prominent creeds. Some of us may not agree that there is healing in the atonement (#8). We may understand Isaiah to be referring to the sickness of the soul and think that James is calling for the elders respond to a call and to visit and pray for the sick in the home or hospital. Even there they should be careful to minister to the spiritual needs. I hope it is not a major point, or important enough to sidetrack this discussion. The other points are very well made and supported with scripture. Again, I do not know that it is the privilege of an outsider to critique a document of a local church. But the presentation seemed to invite comment and I trust one can be forgiven for trespassing. I am imagining that one who is considering joining that church needs to indicate agreement with the statements in it. I wonder if one can be a member of that church while holding reservations on any one of the points. As for the church universal, if you will, which is the body of Christ, it is my understanding that each of us becomes a member of it at the time that we get saved. We are baptized by the Holy Spirit into that body. We would have repented of our sins and we would have placed our trust in Christ. We therefore believe all that he says, about himself, about us, about everything. It is probably true that we do not know or understand all that we believe. More and more is revealed to us as we read the word of God. But blessed is the person who can say now, "I know whom I have believed". |
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