When Jesus ascended to heaven, He left behind one church. But soon there were disagreements about things like circumcision or what food Christians could eat. In some cases, Christians could agree to disagree, but other times it was clear that certain beliefs were no longer Christian. It is the same today. On many issues, such as worship, spiritual gifts, and church government, Christians disagree but still call each other Christian brothers and sisters. But some issues are so central to Christian belief that they cannot be compromised.
Mostly, what defines Christian belief is about Jesus. Christians disagree about many things, but they all agree about who Jesus is, what He did, and what His death and resurrection means for us. Two-thousand years ago, some people denied Jesus had a physical body or said His death did not pay for all our sins. Peter, John, and Paul rejected these so-called Christians. Today, some of the same issues are around. That is why Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses are not Christian, even though they also read the Bible. These religions do not believe Jesus is the One True God.
A good rule to use to determine Christian belief was created very early in Christian history, as early as the middle of the second century. This confession is called the Apostle’s Creed, and it is the basis for many denominational statements of beliefs, including that of our own church:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Finally, it’s important to note that what a person believes doesn’t make them a Christian. It’s who you believe in. To be a Christian, a correct knowledge about Jesus is not enough—we must have a correct relationship with Jesus!
**********************************
Basic Christian Labels
Paul was clear that there is only one body of Christian believers and God doesn’t care about denominational divisions, but definitions to some basic Christian labels are below. Not that labels matter to God, but New Hope International Church is a protestant, evangelical, charismatic, non-denominational church.
- Evangelical: Believes people must make a conscious decision to be “born again.” A conversion experience is necessary for salvation, and people are not born Christians.
- Pentecostal: Believes that the gift of “speaking in tongues” is given to people today.
- Charismatic: Not only believes in speaking in tongues, but also all of the miraculous gifts of the Spirit, such as healing and prophesy.
- Catholic: Today’s Catholic church is descended from the ancient Roman church established by Peter and Paul. For more than a thousand years, nearly all Christians were part of the Catholic church, except for Christians outside of Western Europe.
- Protestant: In 1517, the Catholic priest Martin Luther protested against wrong teachings in the Catholic church. This resulted in many different, independent churches. As a result, all Christians today are either Catholic (Western), Orthodox (Eastern), or Protestant (descended from Luther’s protest, like our church).
- Denominations: There are many different types of Protestant churches. Some are in denominations, such as Anglican (Episcopalian, in the United States), Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, and Presbyterian. Denominations are formed based on common beliefs about worship or church government, for example. Other churches independent of denominations are called non-denominational churches.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment