I do not promote the erroneous idea that Christian fellowship between believers hinges in any way upon agreement concerning secondary matters of faith. Or, for that matter, simply between the members of your local congregation or your particular denomination. I also do not promote the erroneous idea that the children of Yahweh should be fellowshipping with those who merely have a religious veneer, who "profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him,"1 "holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its [transforming] power";2 Yahweh's Word commands us to "Avoid such men as these."3
Christians ought to weigh all information from all sides according to the commandments of right living and relationship with Yahweh. They should judge for themselves whether it affects their relationship with Yahweh, if it affects their behaviour and interaction with other people, or if it affects their salvation. For example: within Christendom, the much-argued topic of creation and evolution has young Earth creationists, old Earth creationists, intelligent design, theistic evolution, etc., and the much-argued topic of eschatology (the end times) has at least five different views. Does knowing the specifics of the beginning or the end affect our relationship with Yahweh, our interaction with others, or our salvation? No, of course it does not! Changing our understanding of the beginning or the end does not change our trust in Him. We may grow in knowledge and our understanding may change, but the Creator knows everything and His Word remains steadfast. We should just proceed with our lives and apply Romans 14 with grace, loving the brethren and pursuing unity of the faith and of the Spirit above all else.
The biblical basis of fellowship between believers is simply their confession of Jesus with their belief that Yahweh has raised Him from the dead, and their striving to obey Him in holiness to the best of their ability (separation from the world; killing sin; walking in righteousness), which requires reliance upon the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, it is nothing but behavioural modification, which does not save. You are not a "sinner saved by grace"; you are a saint who has died to sin! Matters pertaining to denominational practices are not the basis of Christian unity in the faith as brothers and sisters in the Lord. The Ephesians and Colossians loved "all the saints."4 Do you love all the saints, even those who believe infinitesimally different than you do?
Apart from the essentials of the faith,5 each individual must wrestle with the Scriptures and reach his/her own personal conviction.6 Believers should know for themselves both what they believe and why they believe it. Denominations should not dictate doctrinal positions. That does not mean that we tolerate anything among ourselves that would be considered actual heresy or false teaching.7 The Word of Yahweh is our final authority on all matters pertaining to doctrine (teachings), congregational practice, family life, and personal holiness. Believers are to diligently search the Scriptures,8 submit to the Bible's teachings, and reform and conform themselves and their beliefs in accordance with what Yahweh's Word teaches.
1 Titus 1:16 2 2 Tim. 3:5a 3 2 Tim. 3:5b 4 Eph. 1:15; Col. 1:4 5 1 Cor. 15:3-4 6 Rom. 14:5c 7 2 John 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:3-4; Acts 20:28-30; 2 Pet. 3:14-18 8 John 5:39; Acts 17:11; 2 Tim. 2:15
Tertullian stated,
"I say that my gospel is the true one. Marcion [a leading Gnostic teacher] says that his is. I say that Marcion's gospel is adulterated. He says mine is. Now, how can we settle this stand-off, unless we use the principle of time. According to this principle, authority lies with the one who is prior in time. It's based on the elemental truth that corruption (of doctrine) lies with the one who is shown to have originated later in time. Since error is falsification of truth, truth must necessarily precede error."
Why do Christians today choose doctrines that were first taught 1,400 years or more after the deaths of the apostles over ones that were taught within a few decades of their lives? Who are you going to listen to? The Reformers, who were 1,500 years removed from the lives of the apostles? Modern preachers, who are 1,900 years removed from the lives of the apostles? Or the early Christians (A.D. 70 to 300)? The question is a rhetorical one as the answer is a no-brainer—at least for those who desire truth.
ESSENTIALS OF THE FAITH:
"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:3-4
"The Congregation, though dispersed throughout the whole world, even to the ends of the earth, has received from the apostles and their disciples this faith in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven, earth, and the sea and everything in them; and in one Christ Jesus, the Son of [Yahweh], who became incarnate for our salvation; and in the Holy Spirit, who proclaimed through the prophets the dispensations, the advents, the birth from a virgin, the suffering, the resurrection from the dead, and the ascension into heaven in the flesh of the beloved Christ Jesus, our Lord, and his appearance from heaven in the glory of the Father to gather all things into one and to raise up anew all flesh of the whole human race, in order that every knee should bow—of things in heaven, things in earth, and things under the earth—and that every tongue should confess to him, and that he should execute just judgment towards everyone; that he may send spiritual wickednesses and the angels who transgressed and became apostates together with the ungodly, unrighteous, wicked, and profane among men into everlasting fire, but may, in the exercise of his grace, confer immortality on the righteous, holy, and those who have kept his commandments and persevered in his love—some from the beginning of their course and others from their repentance—and may surround them with everlasting glory." —Irenaeus
"Now, with regard to this rule of faith, so that we may acknowledge from this point on what it is we defend, it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of [Yahweh], was seen in diverse manners by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; (then) having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ and raises among ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce and which make men heretics." —Tertullian
SOUND DOCTRINE* (i.e., HEALTHY TEACHING):
"But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine. Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance.
Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.
Likewise urge the young men to be sensible; in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.
Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect." Titus 2:1-10
* The words "sound doctrine" are only found in the letters to Timothy and Titus (1 Tim. 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:3; Titus 1:9; 2:1). We are commanded to fight for sound (i.e., healthy) doctrine (teachings) [2 Tim. 4:2-3], but very few of us know what healthy doctrine is. The very last letters Paul wrote were those to Timothy and Titus, who each had 20+ years of congregational community experience. In 2 Timothy 4:7, Paul wrote, "I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course." These letters were the last teachings Paul left behind. In them, he was careful to explain healthy teaching.
My foundation is Sicut Christus (Like Christ) because in everything we should be pursuing Christ-likeness and striving to imitate Jesus. The Bible is not an end in itself; it points us to Jesus. Strict biblicism and doctrinal purity mean nothing if you are not walking in the likeness and power of Jesus by the grace of the Holy Spirit. We are supposed to worship Yahweh in spirit and in truth—not just in truth. Jesus even said that the Holy Spirit would point people to Himself. Jesus is the central figure of everything! (Not Israel!) There should be no difference between the Scriptures and Jesus, yet focusing on the text at the expense of the Person the text was intended to reveal has done precisely that. Regardless of how we have been raised, what we have been taught, or what we presently believe, we need to be continually reforming ourselves and our beliefs, conforming them entirely to the Word of Yahweh (both Jesus and Scripture)—not to be content with the traditions we have been taught and the things we have been told.
"Ecclesia, semper reformanda secundum verbi Dei."
("The Congregation, always reforming according to the Word of God.")
THE ESSENTIAL FOUNDATIONAL BELIEFS OF EVERY GENUINE CHRISTIAN BELIEVER
THE SCRIPTURES:
I believe and teach that the entire Bible—all 66 canonized books (39 OT books, 27 NT books)—is inspired1 by Yahweh and inerrant2 (without error) in the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek autographs. All copies and translations are characterized by the same inspiration in so far as they faithfully represent the original autographs. Written over many centuries by men of differing perspectives, experiences, styles, temperaments, and languages, the Bible's unity is explained by the fact that the Holy Spirit is the true author of Scripture, moving men to write what they wrote while incorporating their human personalities and literary styles into the text. Through the providence of Yahweh, the Word of Yahweh has been protected and preserved (having 5,800 complete or fragmented Greek copies in existence), and is the only infallible (incapable of error), immutable (without change), sufficient, and authoritative rule for doctrine, congregational practice, family life, and personal holiness.3 The Deuterocanonical, Pseudepigraphal, and Gnostic books are not inspired and are not part of the canon of Scripture.
1 2 Tim. 3:16-17 2 2 Pet. 1:20-21 3 Matt. 4:4; Psalm 119:11, 89, 105; Is. 40:8; Matt. 5:18; 24:35; John 16:12-13; 17:17; 1 Cor. 2:13; Heb. 4:12
GOD:
I believe and teach that there is only One1 true,2 eternally existent3 God, named Yahweh,4 who is Spirit,5 with no gods created before or after Him.6 He is holy,7 infinite,8 omnipotent (all-powerful),9 omnipresent (ever-present),10 omniscient (all-knowing),11 sovereign,12 and unchanging.13 He is gracious,14 merciful,15 righteous,16 faithful,17 just,18 avenging and wrathful,19 good,20 patient,21 and loving.22 He exists in three co-eternal, co-equal simultaneous persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.23 The triune God is the Creator24 and Sustainer of all things, and is worthy of worship and obedience. There are not three gods; there is not one person who took three modes, offices, or forms; and God did not used to be a man who progressed to godhood.
1 Deut. 6:4; Is. 45:5 7; 1 Cor. 8:4 2 John 17:3 3 Ps. 90:2 4 Ex. 6:2 5 John 4:24 6 Is. 43:10; 44:6; 44:8; 1 Tim. 1:17 7 Is. 6:3; Rev. 4:8 8 1 Tim. 1:17 9 Is. 43:13; Jer. 32:17, 27; Dan. 4:35; Matt. 19:26; Rev. 19:6 10 Ps. 139:713 11 Ps. 139:1-6; 1 John 3:20 12 2 Chr. 20:6; Job 42:2; Ps. 93:1; 115:3 13 Mal. 3:6; James 1:17 14 Ps. 145:8; Eph. 2:8 15 2 Sam. 24:14; Ps. 145:8; 1 Pet. 1:3 16 Ex. 9:27 17 Deut. 7:9; Ps. 36:5; 89:8; 119:90; 1 Cor. 1:9; 2 Thess. 3:3; Heb. 10:23 18 Deut. 32:4; Is. 30:18; Luke 18:7; Acts 17:31 19 Nah. 1:2; Ps. 7:11; Is. 26:21; John 3:36; Rom. 1:18; 2:5; Rev. 19:11-21 20 Ex. 33:19; Ps. 119:68; Mark 10:18; Rom. 8:28 21 Rom. 2:4; 2 Pet. 3:9 22 1 John 4:8, 16 23 Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14 24 Gen. 1:1, 31; Is. 40:12, 22, 26; Eph. 3:9; Rev. 4:11
FATHER:
I believe and teach that the Father is God, the fountain of all being. He orders and disposes all things according to His own purpose and grace.1 His fatherhood involves both His designation within the Trinity and His relationship with mankind. As Creator He is Father to all men,2 but He is spiritual Father only to believers.3 He has decreed for His own glory all things that come to pass.4 He continually upholds, directs, and governs all creatures and events.5
1 Ps. 145:8-9; 1 Cor. 8:6 2 Eph. 4:6 3 Rom. 8:14; 2 Cor. 6:18 4 Eph. 1:1 5 1 Chron. 29:11
SON (JESUS):
I believe and teach that Jesus is God1 manifest in the flesh,2 eternally begotten and without beginning. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit;3 born of a virgin;4 lived a sinless life;5 performed miracles;6 was crucified,7 shed His blood,8 suffered, and died9 a substitutionary and atoning death on the cross to pay the debt for our sins;10 was laid in a tomb;11 bodily resurrected three days later;12 ascended13 to sit at the right hand of the Father;14 and will return literally, physically,15 visibly,16 personally,17 and suddenly18 in glory and power.19 He died on the cross for all humanity,20 His death and resurrection being completely sufficient to provide salvation for all who receive Him as Lord and Saviour.21 Jesus is the Messiah, also called the Christ, both of which mean "Anointed One."22 He is Mediator between Yahweh and man,23 a High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.24 He is fully God and fully man;25 not part God and part man. He is one person, not two persons. Whether having two distinct natures (divine and human, known as the hypostatic union) united in one person, or one nature from the two (the unity of the two natures being without mixture of, without confusion of, and without change to the natures [as posited by Cyril of Alexandria]), both are acceptable understandings of the Word becoming flesh as they are man's best opinions of the union of God and man. Jesus is not Lucifer's spiritual brother, nor is He a created being.
1 John 1:1-3 2 John 1:14 3 Matt. 1:20; Luke 1:35 4 Is. 7:14; Matt. 1:23, 25; Luke 1:27, 34 5 Heb. 4:15 6 Matt.4:23; 11:4-6; 14:19-20, 25 7 Acts 4:27-28 8 Luke 22:44; Matt. 27:26, 29, 35; John 19:34 9 John 19:30; 1 Cor. 15:3 10 1 Pet. 2:24 11 John 19:40-41; 1 Cor. 15:4 12 1 Cor. 15:4; Matt. 28:6 13 Acts 1:9-11 14 Luke 22:69; Acts 2:33; 5:31; Col. 3:1 15 Luke 24:39-41; Phil. 3:20-21 16 Mark 14:61-62 17 Acts 1:9-11 18 1 Thess. 5:2-3 19 Luke 21:27 20 Ez. 18:22-23; John 1:7; 1 Tim. 2:3-4; 4:10; Titus 2:11; Heb. 2:9; 2 Pet. 3:9; 1 John 2:2 21 John 1:12; 4:10; Acts 16:31; Rom. 10:12-13; Rev. 3:20 22 John 4:25 23 1 Tim. 2:5 24 Ps. 110:4; Heb. 5:5-6 25 Phil. 2:5-11; Col. 2:9; 1 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 1:5-13
HOLY SPIRIT:
I believe and teach that the Holy Spirit is God, co-equal and co-existent with the Father and the Son. Being sent by both the Father1 and the Son,2 He is the Chief Convictor of sin and the Chief Agent of regeneration3 and sanctification. He causes sinners to be born again4 so that we repent and exercise saving faith,5 baptizing all believers into the Body of Christ.6 The Holy Spirit indwells every genuine believer7 and sanctifies, instructs, and empowers them for service and to live a holy, godly, Christ-like life, sealing them until the day of redemption.8 He distributes spiritual gifts to believers according to the need that each gift meets for the edification of the Body of Christ.9 The Holy Spirit never glorifies Himself, but always glorifies Jesus.10
1 John 14:16-19, 26 2 John 15:26; 16:7-15 3 2 Cor. 3:6; Titus 3:5 4 John 3:1-8 5 1 Cor. 12:3 6 1 Cor. 12:124 7 Rom. 8:9, 11; 1 Cor. 6:19-20 8 Eph. 1:13 9 1 Cor. 12:11 10 John 16:13-15