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Foundational Doctrines In December 2003 the Barna Research Group proved beyond question what many had suspected and feared for quite sometime. There is a serious crisis concerning the absence of a biblical worldview among Americans both outside and inside the Church. Now we should first observe that the Barna Group’s definition of a biblical worldview was not complex. The fact is it was quite simple and basic, beliefs you would expect children who regularly attend Sunday School would know and affirm. A basic biblical worldview was defined as: 1) The belief in absolute moral truths. 2) The belief that absolute moral truths are revealed in and defined by the Bible. 3) The belief that Jesus lived a sinless life. 4) The belief that God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe who sovereignly rules it today. 5) The belief that salvation is a gift from God and cannot be earned. 6) The belief that Satan is real. 7) The belief that a Christian has the responsibility to share his faith in Christ with others. 8) The belief that the Bible is accurate in all its teachings. Given post-modern’s rejection of truth as a fixed, universal, objective reality, one is not surprised that only 4% of Americans have a basic biblical worldview of thinking. However, the real shock came when it was discovered that only 9% of those who claim to be born again have a biblical worldview. The numbers were even lower among other religious classifications: Protestants (7%), adults who attend mainline Protestant churches (2%) and Catholics (less than one-half of 1%). The denominations that produced the highest proportions of adults with a biblical worldview were non-denominational Protestant churches (13%), Pentecostal churches (10%), and Baptist churches (8%). To live biblically we must know what the Bible says, understanding it, and then integrate it into the totality of our lives. There are certain foundational tenets that are essential to our being a worldview Christian. They are non-negotiable, not optional. To jettison even one is to seriously compromise a genuine Christian worldview way of thinking. Here are some foundational doctrines that are necessary for a Christian to believe and practice in order to be obedient to God and successfully run their race to the finish. A foundational doctrine(belief) is defined as one that is necessary to receive salvation. Foundational Beliefs of a Christian Worldview Belief One: God There is one true God, personal, infinite, self-revealing, all powerful, all knowing, everywhere present, self-existent, sovereign, and eternal. God is righteous, holy,loving, merciful, and redemptive. God is a trinity of three eternal persons, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; God is also one – a unity. Gen. 1:1; Deut. 6:4-6; Jonah 4:2; Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 4:4-6; 1 Peter 1:16-21. Belief Two: Revelation God has revealed Himself in nature and Scripture, and supremely in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible truthfully reveals to us knowledge about God, the world, and ourselves.. Psalm 19; 119; Matt. 5:17-18; John 10:35; 17:17; Rom. 1:18-20; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21. … according to a 1997 poll, only one out of three U.S. citizens is able to name the most basic of Christian texts, the four Gospels, and 12% think Noah’s wife was Joan of Arc. That paints a picture of a nation that believes God speaks in Scripture but can’t be bothered to read what he has to say… God also reveals Himself to us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and through this revealing we are able to come into all truth revealed in scripture and even outside of scripture. A worldview Christian will not only affirm his confidence in the Bible’s truthfulness, he will prove it by knowing it and obeying it. After all the North Carolina evangelist Vance Havner was right when he said, “what we live is what we believe, everything else is just religious talk.” Belief Three: Creation The universe and all that exists was created by God alone through the power of His Word, and as the theater of His own glory. He oversees what He has made, exercising His holy and wise government for moral ends. Gen. 1-2; Psalm 19; John 1:1-5; Acts 17:22-31; Col. 1:15-17. Belief Four: Human Beings Human beings, male and female, are created equally in the likeness and image of God; However, they are born sinners in rebellion against God. Humans are sinners by nature and sin by choice. Gen. 1:26-31; 3:1-19; Psalm 51:5, 139:13-16; Rom. 3:9-20; James 3:9. Belief Five: Jesus Christ Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. He is perfect both in His deity and also in His humanity, two natures united in one person. He lived a perfect sinless life. He suffered and was crucified for our sins, buried, and rose again in bodily resurrection. He ascended into the heavens and will come again in glory. Isa. 9:6-7; Micah 5:2; John 1:1-18; 8:58; 14:1-9; Acts 1:1-11; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 2:6-11; Col. 1:13-23; 2:9-10; Heb. 1:1-3; 4:15. What you think about Jesus is the fulcrum of your Christian worldview. What you think about Him will influence what you think about everything else We believe in one God, the Father All-sovereign, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible; And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, Begotten of the Father before all the ages, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of one substance with the Father, through whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from the heavens, and was made flesh of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man, and was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried, and rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures, and ascended into the heavens, and sits on the right hand of the Father, and comes again with glory to judge living and dead, of whose kingdom there shall be no end. (emphasis mine) Belief Six: Salvation by Grace Alone Through Faith Alone in Christ Alone Salvation is God’s work accomplished in us by His grace alone, through faith alone, in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, whose death on the cross accomplished the redemption of sinners. He died as our penal substitute and was raised victorious over death in His bodily resurrection. Isa. 52:13-53:12; Mark 10:45; Rom. 3:21-26; 1 Cor. 15:1-11; 2 Cor. 5:17-21; Gal. 3:13-14; 1 John 2:12, 4:10. Belief Seven: Repentance – take up your cross daily. Mar 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Luk 5:32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. According to the Bible, repentance is for the forgiveness of sins and for salvation: Act 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Act 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; Act 17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Act 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Act 26:20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance. Mar 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. Belief Eight: The Holy Spirit Acts 1:8 - But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. |