It’s important to think about God, his character, and how he interacts with his creation. Theology is the study of God, and a vital part of theology is asking questions about God that may never get answered this side of Heaven. God is, after all, God and will remain somewhat of a mystery to humans because of our finite minds. Restoration Church is currently studying the book of Ephesians. In the opening chapter (Ephesians 1:5), Paul uses the word “predestined”, which led to a conversation about the predestination vs. free-will debate, which, in turn, led to forum where the topic of predestination could be discussed outside of the Sunday morning gathering. The goal of these kind of forums is to show that it is possible to worship and serve with Christian brothers and sisters, even when you disagree about secondary issues. As Christ-followers, it’s important to disagree well, leading arguments with love while viewing one another as brother and sisters in Christ.
Disagreeing on issues will naturally happen among any group of people, but with all the different churches withing Christendom, it does pose the question, “how does a believer in Christ know what is essential to the Christian Church and what is secondary?” There are certain doctrinal stances that are unique to Christianity. Those include doctrinal stances found in ancient documents written thousands of years ago. The Nicene Creed is officially accepted by the Catholic, Orthodox, and major Protestant churches today, and it is a good place to start when understanding Christian beliefs. It is one of the most famous and influential creeds in the history of the Church because it settled the question of how Christians can worship one God and claims that this God is three persons.1 Take a moment to read the creed, listed below.
The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, 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 worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
The Nicene creed summarizes what Christians believe; however, history shows significant division throughout Christendom happening over vital issues like sacraments, baptism, communion, predestination, and more. In recent times, major Protestant denominations have separated over issues surrounding marriage, sexual orientation, gender roles, women's roles in the church, and the work of the Holy Spirit, just to name a few.
With so many church options, how does a Christian know where to worship? First, a Church must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Belief in Jesus Christ is what makes a Christ-follower a “Christ”ian. Second, a church must preach and teach the Bible. A church is not a social club to join. The Church exists so that believers in Jesus Christ can gather to worship Jesus. Next, a church should align with the foundation principles of the Christian faith which include the infallibility of the Bible, the Trinity, the nature of Jesus Christ, salvation by grace through faith, the resurrection of the dead, and Church as the body of Christ. From there, the Christ-follower must earnestly seek the Scriptures and pray fervently to determine where the Holy Spirit is leading them. They also must ask themselves what they believe about different secondary issues and search the Bible to find answers. If legitimate Biblical support exists for both side of an issue, have confidence that the Holy Spirit will lead you in the right decision.
Many churches will have some sort of document explaining what they believe. The beliefs of Restoration Church can be found here. I hope you take time read through these statements and pray about each claim while reaffirming your understanding of your Christian faith.
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