CHRISTIANITY

BASIC CHRISTIAN BELIEFS

  • God loves us and would like for us to live eternally with Him in glory.
  • Because of our sin (= willful rebellion), we are separated from God.
  • We cannot overcome sin by our own efforts.
  • Because God loves us, He came to earth in human form (as Jesus) and died on the cross to take the penalty for our sins.
  • Because Christ has died for us, salvation (= forgiveness of sin and reconciliation to God) is available as a free gift to anyone who is willing to receive it.
  • We receive salvation by making a life-changing commitment to Christ, not merely by accepting doctrines or joining an organization.
  • Christianity is a call to this life-changing relationship — not a mere set of beliefs or values or a political or cultural agenda..

JESUS OF NAZARETH

  • Jesus was a Middle Eastern Jew born in Bethlehem around 4 B.C. The title Christ(“Anointed one”) was applied to Jesus by his followers.
  • Jesus displayed unusual religious insight at an early age, but until age 30 he apparently worked as a carpenter with his (adoptive) father, Joseph. Then he began to preach and work miracles, gathering around him a group of twelve apostles (“sent ones”).
  • At age 33, Jesus was arrested by an angry mob and turned over to local authorities who gave him a hasty trial (violating their own laws and procedures) and executed him on charges of blasphemy. He suffered a cruel death on a cross and was buried. Then, according to the Bible, he rose again and later miraculously ascended into heaven.
  • Christians believe that Christ is God in human flesh (not merely a human being with godly attributes) and that he has existed for all eternity as part of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).

CHRISTIAN MORALITY

Christian morality is quite similar to morality in other religions and cultures and to pre-existing Jewish morality.

“Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them.” — Jesus, Matthew 5:17

Christians emphasize two things that modern western culture tends to neglect:

  • Intentions matter just as much as effects.“You have heard that it was said… ‘Thou shalt not kill; and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who hates his brother shall be liable to judgment.” – Jesus, Matthew 5:21
  • Sin is not the same thing as temptation.Human nature is corrupted by sin, and you cannot be good by simply following your natural instincts in their present, damaged form.

    “Temptations to sin are sure to come.” – Jesus, Luke 17:1

    “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to mankind. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.” – St. Paul, I Corinthians 6:13

Christian sexual morality is based on the idea that sexual pleasure is holy and good; that God created it; that its purpose is to unite husband and wife and, at appropriate times, to pro-create children; and that it has spiritual as well as physical significance. It is not a mere physical thrill, nor is it something to be ashamed of.

Jesus taught that a person’s mental sex life is as important as what he or she carries out physically. This is the basis of the Christian objection to pornography and other exploitative uses of sexual desire.

Christians do not approve of sexual intercourse outside of marriage nor homosexual erotic behavior. However, homosexual orientation, when involuntary, is not a sin; it is a condition in which people find themselves, or a besetting temptation.

There is no reason to expect these teachings to “change with the times.” There are people who want to alter Christianity to allow various sexual practices today, just as there are people who wanted to alter it to allow slavery in the early 1800s. But God’s law is not ours to change. If it were, it wouldn’t do us much good.

 

CHRISTIANS AND OTHER RELIGIONS

“It is the atheist, not the Christian, who has to believe that nearly all the people that ever lived have been mistaken about one of the things that mattered to them most.” – C. S. Lewis, paraphrased.

Christians don’t believe that other religions are totally false — only that they are less complete or less accurate than Christianity. Because only one God actually exists, all concepts of the divine throughout the world must come from Him.

It is nonsense to claim that “all religions are equally true” since some religions directly contradict others. In particular, most religions assume that people can overcome sin by working hard to better themselves. Christians insist that forgiveness of sin is a free gift from God.

 

CHURCH HISTORY AND CHRISTIAN DENOMINATIONS

Most divisions within Christendom arise from the following events:

  • 1054 A.D: After centuries of tension over the increasing political power of the Pope, the Roman Catholic church in Western Europe splits with the Orthodox Churchin the eastern Mediterranean and Russia.
  • 1521 A.D: Protesting abuses within the Catholic Church (which the Church itself later condemned), Martin Luther starts a movement intended to reform the church, but ends up splitting it. Numerous self-governing Protestant churches are formed (Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, etc.).Some churches loosely classified as Protestant might better be described asindependent and Bible-based, not controlled by a central organization nor closely tied to Protestant history. Examples include Baptists, Churches of Christ, and many locally organized churches with a variety of names.
  • In the 1500s, the Church of England (Episcopal Church) takes a “middle way” between Catholicism and Protestantism, forming a church that is locally governed but preserves Catholic traditions.

Orthodox and Catholic Christians claim to be (branches of) the one true church. They consider Protestants to be true Christians, albeit politically separated and mistaken about some doctrines.

Protestants do not claim to be the church, “but merely a part thereof.” Many Protestants believe the church was never intended to be a single earthly organization with a single headquarters; rather, the emphasis is on self-governing congregations and local associations.

Despite disagreements, there is an enormous common ground shared by all who proclaim Jesus Christ as Savior. All Christians, Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox, hold the essential beliefs listed at the beginning of this web page, and would agree with almost everything here.

Outside the borders: The Mormons (Latter-Day Saints), Unitarians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Scientists, and Unification Church (of Rev. Moon) identify themselves as Christians but do not hold the core beliefs of Christianity. For example, the Mormons believe that God is a glorified human being and is not unique. (For a well-produced set of videos contrasting Mormonism with Christianity, click here.) The Unitarians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Unification Church deny the deity of Christ. The Christian Scientists teach that sin and suffering are an illusion.

It is our experience that some members of each of these groups do stick close to the Bible and have beliefs more consistent with mainstream Christianity. When evaluating any of these groups, we urge you to get your information from multiple sources.