Beliefs
Four Guiding Principles
(1)
GRACE ALONE
We are saved by “grace,” that is, the unmerited and undeserved love of God for us. No one deserves to be saved and no one can merit being saved. Further, being spiritually dead, (Ephesians 2:1), unbelievers are powerless to cooperate in their salvation (Romans 8:7) (1 Corinthians 2:14). Thus salvation is entirely God’s doing. He alone brings us to faith, and thus no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8,9).
(2)
SCRIPTURE ALONE
The
Bible is God’s inerrant and infallible Word (2 Timothy 3:16) (2 Peter 1:21) (1
Corinthians 2:13). It is the sole rule and norm for Christian teaching.
It should be taken literally unless obvious rhetorical considerations
dictate otherwise (metaphors, similes, hyperboles, allegories, etc.)
(3)
FAITH ALONE
People
are saved, not by works nor by faith and works, but by faith in Christ alone.
(Romans 3:28) (Ephesians 2:8,9)
(4)
JESUS ALONE
By His perfect life, fulfilling heaven’s entrance requirement of perfection on our behalf, and by His sacrificial death on a cross, Jesus earned for us forgiveness of sins and eternal life. All who trust in Jesus alone receive the benefits of what He has done for them. (John 1:12) (John 3:16-18) (John 14:6) (Acts 4:12) (Galatians 3:26) (1 John 2:23) (1 John 4:15) (1 John 5:1).
Other Biblical Truths
Jesus Christ is
according to His divine nature, God (John 1:1-3) (John 20:28) (Romans 9:5)
(Hebrews 1:8) (Titus 2:11-13), and according to His human nature received
through the virgin Mary (Luke 1:26,27), the Son of God (Galatians 4:4,5) (John
3:16). He died on a cross to pay for our sins, rose from the grave, (1 Thessalonians
4:14) and is coming again (Matthew 24:30) (Acts 1:11).
The only true God is the Triune God.
He is by nature, three persons (Matthew 28:19), and yet one God
(Deuteronomy 4:35,39) (Deuteronomy 6:40) (John 10:30).
The appropriate gratitude responses of those who believe is: (a) to seek first the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33), (b) to love God (Matthew 22:37) by striving to know and obey His will (John 14:15) as revealed in the Scriptures (Matthew 7:24-27) (John 13:17), (c) to love all others (Matthew 5:43-48) (Matthew 22:39) by doing deeds of kindness (1 John 3:18), (d) to serve God (Romans 7:4) (Ephesians 2:10) (2 Corinthians 5:15), (e) to weekly and publicly assemble for worship (Exodus 20:8-11) (Leviticus 23:3) (Leviticus 26:2), (f) to grow in graciousness (kindness) and knowledge of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 4:13) (2 Peter 3:18), to become more and more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18), and (g) to share Jesus with others (Matthew 5:14-16) (1 Peter 2:9) (1 Peter 3:18).
Keys To a Blessed Life
(1) BELIEVING
Absolutely
nothing is more important than BELIEVING in Jesus Christ, for how we respond to
Him has eternal consequences (John 3:16-18).
Anything else we do is, by comparison, temporary and as such, is of much
less significance.
“What good is it for a
man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?”
Jesus said. (Luke 9:25) (Luke
12:16-21). BELIEVING
in Christ then is the first and most important key to a joyful life in the here
and the hereafter.
It is not, however, a guarantee of blessings beyond forgiveness and
eternal life. For
while salvation comes from BELIEVING, blessings such as peace and joy come,
first of all,
from…
(2)
KNOWING
…God’s
will. KNOWING
is essential to living a blessed life, for it is the first step to obedience,
and obedience to the will of God leads to blessings. But KNOWING must be
accompanied with PUTTING INTO PRACTICE what we come to KNOW through our study of
God’s Word. Put
another way, BLESSINGS come from also…
(3) DOING
…God’s
will. This,
Jesus said, is the mark of true “wisdom” (Matthew 7:24-27).
“Now that you KNOW these things,”
He added, “you will
be blessed if you DO them” (John 13:17).
(4)
REPENTING
(5)
CONFESSING
…that sin. When we do, our heavenly Father promises to forgive and forget our sin. It’s as if, we had never done it (Psalm 103:12) (Jeremiah 31:31) (1 John 1:9).