Subject: Christian Primer Terms? |
Bible Note: Christianity in a Nutshell part 2 Here's the rest of the story: Faith - This is believing something even though there is not absolute proof of its truth (Heb 11:1). In Christianity, it is critical to have faith that the essentials of Christianity (ie. Apostle's Creed) are true. Apostle's Creed - A summary of beliefs that are essential to Christianity. It is the most famous of many creeds that were created by a council of church leaders with much prayer and discussion. I would encourage any introduction to Christianity to include reading this creed. Ministry - A way of life that is primarily focused on doing the will of God. The most commonly thought of way of doing this is as a Pastor of a church, but there are of course many other ways to "minister" to people. In fact, all Christians should be involved in some type of ministry (Eph 4:11-12). Baptism - A ceremony where an individual is either submerged with water or has water poured or sprinkled on their head. This ceremony is a symbolic representation of the complete change that has taken place in the person?s life. It shows to all who observe it that the person has chosen to have faith in Jesus Christ, has been cleansed of their sins, and has become a new creation (1 Pet 3:21). Bible - This is God's written message for mankind (Matt 5:18). God used many different people over hundreds of years to write, copy, compile, and even translate this message so that it could be read and trusted by the entire world (Rom 15:4). Old Testament - This is the record of the time before Jesus Christ was born on the Earth. It is focused around how God used one chosen nation, Israel, to be an example to the world of how to relate to God (Jer 3:17). New Testament - This is the record of the time during and shortly after Jesus Christ was born on the Earth. It is focused around how God Himself, through His own Son, Jesus, showed the ultimate example of how to relate to God (John 8:42). Prophecy - These are statements made about future events. Many of these are recorded in the Old and New Testaments, and of these, the vast majority have already been proved true (Isa 7:14). Some have not happened yet, and are anticipated by Christians (Acts 1:11). Heaven - The final destination of all persons who ultimately accept God's plan for their lives. It is a place of eternal joy both physically (no pain or tears) and most importantly spiritually (ultimate communion with God) (Rev 21:3-4). Hell - The final destination of all persons who ultimately reject God's plan for their lives. It is a place of eternal pain both physically (lake of fire) and most importantly spiritually (completely seperated from God) (Matt 25:41). |