Simplified Doctrinal Statement.<\/a>”<\/p>\n
\nBible<\/h2>\n
The Bible is the only inspired Word of God, without error in both it’s words and ideas, and the only rule for\u00a0the Christian life, practice and doctrine. The 66 books of the Old and New\u00a0Testament are the fully complete and authoritative revelation of God to man.<\/p>\n
See Mt. 5:18; John 10:35; 2\u00a0Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21<\/p>\n
God<\/h2>\n
There is one true God, eternally\u00a0existing in three persons \u0096 the Father, Son and Holy Spirit \u0096 each of whom\u00a0possess all attributes and characteristics of deity and personality.<\/p>\n
See Deut. 6:4; Ps. 90:2; Mt.\u00a028:19; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Cor. 13:14; Rev. 1:4-6<\/p>\n
In light of current\u00a0theological trends, we believe that God has a full and complete knowledge of\u00a0all events, past, present and future, possible, impossible and probable.\u00a0We also believe that while it is unsafe to overemphasize one attribute of\u00a0God above another, if we had to pick “one defining characteristic” of God,\u00a0it would not be the sovereignty of God, as some say, nor would it be love,\u00a0as others say. Both must be taken together as a outworking of God’s holiness\u00a0(Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8).<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ<\/h2>\n
Jesus Christ is fully God and fully\u00a0man. He is God incarnate, was born of a virgin, and lived without sin. On\u00a0the cross, He died as a substitute for all the sins of all mankind and\u00a0accomplished justification for all who believe in Him for eternal life. As\u00a0proof that His sacrifice was acceptable to God, He rose from the dead on the\u00a0third day, and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father in Heaven.\u00a0From heaven, He intercedes for all Christians as our Great High Priest. He\u00a0will come again in the air to rapture His church, and then physically to the\u00a0earth to receive His kingdom.<\/p>\n
See Mt. 3:17; Luke 1:30-35; John\u00a01:1, 14; Acts 1:10-11; Rom. 3:24-25; 8:34; 1 Cor. 15:1-4; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb.\u00a09:23-28<\/p>\n
The Holy Spirit<\/h2>\n
The Holy Spirit was sent by the\u00a0Father and the Son into the world to apply to benefits of the saving work of\u00a0Christ. He enlightens the minds of sinners and convicts them of their need\u00a0of a Savior. At the moment a person believes in Jesus Christ for eternal\u00a0life, the Holy Spirit regenerates, indwells, baptizes and seals them for the\u00a0day of redemption.<\/p>\n
The victorious Christian life\u00a0is accomplished through the filling, or controlling of the Holy Spirit. This\u00a0is accomplished by faith as we immerse ourselves in the Word of God. The\u00a0signs of being filled are the fruit of the Spirit, singing, thanksgiving,\u00a0and mutual submission. The signs and wonders that were accomplished by the\u00a0early church were for the purpose of authenticating and verifying the\u00a0message that Christ and the apostles were teaching. While God can \u0096 and\u00a0still does \u0096 cause signs and miracles to accompany the spread of the Gospel,\u00a0we no longer need them for verification purposes because we have the Word of
\nGod as the guide for life and doctrine.<\/p>\n
See John 3:5-8; 14:16-26;\u00a016:5-15; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:11; Gal. 5:22-23; Eph. 5:18-21<\/p>\n
Humanity<\/h2>\n
The first human, Adam, was created in\u00a0the image of God. Through disobedience he sinned, and was separated from a\u00a0relationship with God. He died spiritually, and suffered the corruption of\u00a0his body and nature, making him unable to please God. All individuals born\u00a0since Adam suffer the same consequences. All men are sinful, lost and are in\u00a0need of the saving grace of God. This grace cannot be merited by our own\u00a0good works, and cannot be experienced by any person in the entire world\u00a0apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n
See Genesis 3:1-19; Rom.\u00a03:10-20, 23; 8:12-21; Eph. 2:1-3; 8-9<\/p>\n
Salvation<\/h2>\n
God, out of love for the human race,\u00a0sent the Lord Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. Jesus Christ, God\u00a0incarnate, paid the full penalty for human sin when He died on the cross.\u00a0Any person who believes in Jesus Christ for eternal life receives that gift\u00a0which, as the words “eternal life” suggest, can never be lost. Once a person\u00a0believes, they are safe and secure for all eternity.<\/p>\n
However, a Christian can,\u00a0through sin and disobedience, experience the discipline of God and lose his\u00a0fellowship, joy, power, testimony, physical life and future reward. The\u00a0relationship is eternal and secure; fellowship is conditional upon obedience
\nto the Word of God.<\/p>\n
See John 3:16-18; 5:24; 6:47;\u00a010:27-30; Rom. 3:21-25; 4:5; 8:38-39; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-10; 1 Tim.\u00a01:15-16; Titus 3:3-7; Rev. 22:17<\/p>\n
The Church<\/h2>\n
All believers during the present age\u00a0are members of the body of Christ, the church, and are united to Christ and\u00a0to one another by the indwelling Spirit. The Word of God commands believers\u00a0to gather together in local congregations, to devote themselves to\u00a0fellowship, prayer, the teaching of the Word, and the observance of the two\u00a0ordinances of the Lord’s Supper and the water baptism of believers. The goal\u00a0of the church is the glorification of God though the edification of the body\u00a0for the evangelization and discipleship of the world. Biblical church\u00a0government is by a plurality of elders.<\/p>\n
See Mt. 4:10; 28:19-20; Eph.\u00a04:11-16; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Cor. 1:2; 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 5:17-21; Eph. 1:22-23;\u00a04:11-16; 5:24-30; Col. 3:16; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; 5:17-18; Heb. 10:23-25<\/p>\n
The End Times<\/h2>\n
There will be a pretribulational\u00a0rapture of all the dead and living Christians of this present church age.\u00a0Following soon after the rapture will be the seven year tribulation period\u00a0during which times God’s judgment will be poured out upon the earth. At the
\nend of this seven year period, Christ will return physically to the earth to\u00a0judge those who have survived the tribulation and set up His kingdom which\u00a0will last for 1000 years. At the end of the millennium, there will be a\u00a0resurrection of all the unsaved dead, and they will be brought to the Great\u00a0White Throne Judgment where they will be judged and condemned to an eternity\u00a0in the Lake of Fire with Satan and his fallen angels. Following this, Christ\u00a0will create a new heaven and a new earth which will last forever.<\/p>\n
See Dan. 9:24-27; 1 Thess.\u00a04:13-18; Mt. 24-25; 2 Pet. 3:13; the book of Revelation
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nA Simplified Doctrinal Statement<\/h2>\n
I recently tried to simplify and summarize my doctrinal statement. It currently reads like this:<\/p>\n
\n- Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human.<\/li>\n
- Jesus was crucified on a cross, died, was buried, and rose again physically from the dead, and will return physically in the future to rule and reign over the earth with justice and righteousness.<\/li>\n
- Eternal life is granted by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus alone.<\/li>\n
- There will be a future physical resurrection for all who believe in Jesus for eternal life.<\/li>\n
- The church is currently God’s primary means for accomplishing His mission in the world.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
As of today, there is nothing on this more recent statement with which I disagree. This doesn’t mean that I disagree with the points from above that didn’t make it onto the list, only that I didn’t think they were crucial to include on a statement of my core beliefs.<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This is an old Doctrinal Statement which was posted on this site from 2001-2007. My theology, and even my thinking about how to do theology, has changed drastically since then so please do not take this Doctrinal Statement as a statement of what I actually believe. Some of it I still do believe, but the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7925,"parent":0,"menu_order":1000000,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-7923","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\n
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![\"What](\"https:\/\/redeeminggod.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Doctrinal-Statement-570x121.jpg\" "\\"Doctrinal")
<\/p>\n