Statement of Faith

 

Statement of Faith

Eric Kuhns

 

The following is an overview of my beliefs concerning some of the most important theological themes such as God, man, revelation, sin, Christ, salvation, the Holy Spirit, the church, last things and angelology. It may not be exhaustive but I will try to cover my most core beliefs about these topics.

 

God

God is an eternal, non-created, all-powerful spirit being (Isaiah 40:28). God is a trinity: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Mat. 28:19). They are not three separate, distinct gods but three persons in one God. Jesus is not the Father or the Holy Spirit or vice versus. Yet the three together is God. The trinity has been in perfect, eternal love and union. The three persons have distinct roles. The Father sent the Son to our world. The Son was in complete submission to the Father and His will, and after His death, resurrection and ascension, the Son sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within His followers and to convince the world of sin and righteousness (John 5:23, Gal. 4:6, John 16:7-15).

God is the creator of all that exists, all that ever existed and all that ever will exist. By His power and Word, He created the world in 6 days. He created man in His own image. (Gen 1)

God cannot sin. He is holy and His works are holy. He cannot lie, deceive, tempt to sin, or commit anything contrary to His Word (James 1:13). His attributes are love, light, faithful, forgiving, longsuffering, merciful, just, omni-present, omniscience, sovereign, eternal among others (I John 4:16, I John 1:5, Ephesians 2:4).

He is a personal God. He has not created the world and left it to run on its own as believe the Deists. He is a god that interacts with humanity. Through His Holy Spirit He speaks to man, He calls him into a personal relationship, He wants to save every person from damnation and wants to have a loving intimate relationship (Isaiah 1:18, Mat 11:28-30).

He will judge the living and the dead. All people who have ever existed will stand before God on the day of judgement. He will judge every man according to his deeds and whether they have accepted His Son Jesus Christ as their Savior (Rev. 20:12)

 

 

Man

The first man, Adam, was formed from dirt by the hands of God (Gen. 2:7). God then breathed into him and he became a living soul. Man is the crowning creation of God. He is made in God’s image (Gen. 1:27), which means that he bears many of God’s traits such as: freewill, the power to love, the ability to reason, etc. Man is a mirrored trinity of God, made up of body, soul and spirit.

Man committed sin and as a result was separated from God. Because of Adam’s sin, the very nature of man was corrupted and is transmitted (Romans 5:12). Every person is born with a sinful nature and is destitute of God’s glory. Naturally, man is disobedient, deceptive, proud and selfish (Jeremiah 17:9). This corruption produces sinful acts.

Christ came to our world to save man and to restore his relationship with God and his fallen nature (John 3:16). Through Christ man can be redeemed and purified.

Man has freewill. He can choose to do good or to do evil. He is not predestined to be evil or good by God’s foreknowledge. Man chooses for himself if he will be saved or perish (Joshua 24:15, I Timothy 2:4).

Man is an eternal being. God breathed upon man and he became a living soul. Each person has a soul and that soul will live forever either in heaven or in the lake of fire. He will never not exist (I Thess. 5:23, Hebrews 9:27).

Man becomes a living being at the moment of conception. God commands to protect life and not to kill. Destroying a fetus is killing. Life is to be preserved at all stages from conception until old age. Every person is valuable and loved by God and we are commanded to reflect that love (Jeremiah 1:5, Psalms 51:5).

Men are equally valued and loved by God. Salvation is not offered to man based on race, sex or economic status. God loves jew and gentile alike. (Romans 5:8, Gal. 3:28, Romans 2:11).

Revelation

God has revealed His existence and power through general revelation. The order of the universe, the heavenly bodies, the birds and beasts all speak to the fact that there is a creator and we must seek Him (Romans 1).

God has also communicated with humanity through specific revelation. In times of old He spoke to prophets and priests who would write down the messages and share them with the people. He has spoke through dreams, miracles, angels, and His written Word. He spoke to Moses and gave him the law. God wrote the ten commandments on tablets of stone to give to the people. All through the Old Testament God chose certain people to speak to and to be His messengers (Hebrews 1:1, Exodus 33:11).

In the New Testament God himself was revealed through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. He walked, talked, taught, loved and showed us who God is. After Christ’s ascension He sent the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. The Spirit abides within the believers. He guides us into all truth and empowers us to preach the revelation God has given.

The Holy Spirit inspired men to write the 66 books of the Bible (II Peter 1:21). All scripture is inspired of God and worthy of instruction and correction. The Bible is God’s complete revelation for salvation and instruction and is inerrant. The canon is closed and finished. We are not waiting for more revelation from God to His church or to sinners (II Timothy 3:16-17, Gal. 1:8).

The office of apostle is now closed. There is the gift of apostleship, where members are authorized by the church to represent the church in new areas and start new works such as a church planter. But the office of apostle, such as were Peter and John and others who were used of God to write God’s revelation is now fulfilled.

 

Sin

Sin is anything done contrary to God’s law and revealed will (I John 3:4). God did not create sin but He did create the possibility to sin. By endowing man with freewill God allowed for the possibility to sin.

When any law of God is disobeyed and unfulfilled, sin is committed. Sin can be committed in thought, in word, in deeds and can exist as a corrupted nature.

There are two forms of sin. First is the nature of sin, or original sin. This corrupted nature is inherited from Adam (I Corinthians 15:22). It turns man’s desires and tendencies away from God and towards self. This corrupted nature produces the second form of sin, committed sin or sins of actions (John 8:34). A person is tempted to do something wrong; they know it’s wrong but allow the desires of the corrupted nature to control them and they commit what they know is not right. There are also sins of ignorance(I John 5:16). The person does not know yet that they are doing something wrong but even in their ignorance they break a law of God.

Sin must be confessed and forsaken. If it is not repented of it will bring death, God’s wrath and eternal damnation (Acts 3:19). God has provided the remedy for the sin problem. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We must recognize our need and ask Jesus Christ to forgive us for the sins we have committed. By faith in Christ, we can receive His forgiveness and be saved from our sins and receive eternal life. As a Christian grows in faith, the Holy Spirit will be faithful to show them their need of the cleansing of the sinful nature. The believer will perceive that although forgiven of committed sins, there is still a bent towards sin. Desiring to love God with all of his heart and to obey him in all that he does, the believer will seek for God to change his nature. It will require a complete surrender of will and self to God and through faith in the power of Christ, the sinful nature can be entirely cleansed (I Thess. 5:23). This allows for the Holy Spirit to take full control to purify and empower the believer to live a stabilized Christian life and to fully love God and man.

 

Christ

Jesus Christ is the second person of the trinity. He is equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Christ has always existed; He was not created. He created all things and all things were made for His glory (John 1:3).

Jesus Christ took the form of man and was incarnated. He was not born with the sinful nature nor did He ever commit sin. He was born of the Virgin Mary. God the Father did not have sexual relations with Mary for Christ to be born, but the Holy Spirit planted the seed of the incarnate Christ in her womb (Luke 1:35).

Christ was born in Bethlehem, and the angels announced His birth to the shepherds. He grew as a boy and when it was time to begin his ministry, he was baptized by John the Baptist. He preached that men, should repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. He did miracles, raised the dead, healed the sick and cast out demons. He taught us how to please and serve God.

His main purpose in coming to earth was to die for our sins and provide us with salvation. God’s law required blood to be shed for remission of sins and a sacrifice that was sinless (9:22). He needed to be a man so He could die, and He needed to be God so He could be a sinless sacrifice. Jesus is the God-man. He fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah and gave His life, crucified on a cross. His death satisfied God’s wrath against sinful man, and fulfilled the requirements of His law and justice. Jesus was buried and on the third day arose from the dead victorious. He appeared to many of His disciples over a period of 50 days. He then ascended to heaven where He is seated at the right hand of the Father and intercedes for His children (Col. 3:1).

Jesus Christ is the only Savior. No man can come to the Father except through Jesus Christ (John 14:6). He is the truth, the light, and the way. We cannot be saved by any other person, angel or by good works. He who has the Son has life and He who does not have the Son does not have life.

Jesus Christ will return to earth as He promised. He will defeat the Devil, the antichrist and the false prophet and all their followers. Jesus will reign on this earth for 1,000 years. After his earthly reign He will destroy all creation and make new heavens and a new earth. Those who repented of their sins and served Christ will reign with Christ forever in His kingdom (Revelation 19:11-20:6).

 

Salvation

When Adam sinned, man in his sinful state was separated from God who is holy. In this sinful condition it was impossible for man to enter heaven and be in God’s presence, he was worthy of eternal death and suffering.

Jesus Christ came to our earth to die for our sins. He paid the price for our punishment, He shed His blood for the remission of our sins and then he arose from the dead. God has required that if we want to be saved and cleansed from our sins and forgiven, we must put our faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice and invite him into our hearts to be our Savior (Acts 2:38-39). With Christ’s forgiveness He as our lawyer represents us before the Father and we receive a pardon for our sins. With God’s forgiveness we will not be doomed to Hell and eternal suffering. As long as we are serving Christ and His blood cleanses our sins, we have communion with God and eternal life.

Salvation is received only by faith. We cannot do enough good works to impress God to grant us forgiveness (Eph. 2:8). We do not have to pay for salvation. We do not have to be a Jew to be saved, all races and peoples are invited to receive God’s forgiveness. Any person of any age as long as they have a basic understanding of their need and who Jesus is, can be saved. We do not have to have a priest or religious person or a saint or the virgin Mary pray for us for salvation (I Timothy 2:5). We must believe that Jesus Christ is the God-man, that He is our only and worthy sacrifice for sins and we must repent to Him and ask for forgiveness and receive His gift of salvation with faith.

Salvation can be lost. Once a person repents and is saved, they can turn their backs on God and return to their sin. They are not saved once and forever. The believer must persevere and grow in grace and in knowledge. But if salvation is lost, it can be regained. If there is true repentance and sorrow, salvation can be restored.  

When a justified person dies, they enter into the presence of the Lord as they await the day of judgement and resurrection (II Corinthians 5:8). They will have eternal life.

 

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the third member of the trinity. As His name suggests, He is a spirit and does not have a body as does Jesus. He is equal to the Father and to the Son.

He works to draw men unto Christ and convinces of sin, of righteousness and of coming judgement (John 16:8). He dwells within the believer and guides them into all truth. He sanctifies the believer. He empowers the believers to be witnesses of God’s power and salvation. He oversees the evangelization of the world and instructs evangelists where to go, when to go, and to whom to speak (Acts 16:6).

The Holy Spirit can also guide us in personal decisions (Should I buy this car? Who should I marry? Does God want me to be a missionary?). Through the Holy Spirit we can be warned of pending danger, prompted to witness to a stranger or shown future events (Acts 21:4).

He will never speak or teach anything contrary to God’s will. He gives gifts to believers so they can be effective ministers to the body of Christ.

The Holy Spirit can be grieved and blasphemed (Ephesians 4:30).

 

The Church

The church is the bride of Christ and is made up of all believers who have put their saving faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:25-27). There is the local church, where groups of believers meet for fellowship, edification in the Word of God and to partake of the sacraments. These congregations often meet in a building that is also called a church or they can meet in houses, outdoors, basements, or any suitable place. There is also the universal church, which consists of all Christian believers from around the world (I Corinthians 12:13).

Christ is the head of the church (Ephesians 5:23). Believers have been saved by Christ, they follow His teachings and commands and submit themselves to the authority structure that He has established for a functioning church body. A local congregation has a pastor/bishop (I Timothy 3:2). His duty is to oversee the flock of believers and care for their spiritual well-being. There are also elders in the church. These are spiritual men/women who have years of experience serving the Lord and act as role models within the congregation (I Timothy 3:1-16). They help the pastor lead and to make wise decisions. The church board members would be considered elders. There are also deacons. These are Christians with good testimonies who help to serve within the church body (I Timothy 3:8-13). They fill such roles as janitors/Sunday school teachers/bus captains/parking lot attendants/greeters etc.

Within the church body there are many members but each one is given gifts by the Holy Spirit. Baptism is the rite of entrance into the church and a public testimony to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Each member is expected to exercise their gifts. These gifts are: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, the gifts of healing, miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, divers kinds of tongues, and interpretation of tongues (I Corinthians 12:4-11, I Corinthians 12:13).

A church service usually includes, worship, giving, praise and preaching (Acts 2:42). The church’s duty is to be salt and light for Christ, show forth good works, evangelistic, given to prayer and fasting, disciple new believers.

Authority is given to the church to loose and bind. The expression to loose or to bind was very common in Jewish legal phraseology. It meant to allow or to forbid. The church has been given the responsibility to be the guardian of truth and to preach God’s will to man (Matt. 18:18). The church is to teach what God has allowed and what He forbids and how to live a pleasing life before the Lord. God has chosen the foolishness of preaching as the primary means of bringing men to salvation. It is the church’s duty to preach sound doctrine and to exemplify God’s love. Church leaders are authorized to exhort, correct and even ex-communicate members (Matt 18:17).

There are eight offices within the greater church. They are, apostles, prophets, teachers, miracles, healings, administration, and diversity of tongues. The first and primary office is that of apostle, a person that is authorized to plant a church where the church does not exist (I Corinthians 12:28-31).

 

Last Things

God’s Word informs us about events that will take place around the time of His return and of things that will happen after His return to earth. There will be seven years of great tribulation. Evil will grow worse and the love of men will grow cold. A leader will appear (known as the antichrist) at the beginning of the great tribulation and will promise peace. The nations will follow him and the Jews will believe he is the Messiah. He will unite the world into one government and there will be one currency. He will have a prophet who will do great wonders, so great as to even deceive the remnant of believers. During the tribulation the antichrist will seek to kill everyone who follows Christ. Anybody who does not take his mark and pledge their allegiance to him will not be able to buy or sell goods (Revelation 13:1-18)

God will send great plagues and judgement upon the earth during the tribulation (Matthew 24:29). Great portions of the earth and seas will be destroyed or contaminated. God will also send two great prophets during that time to warn the people and to tell them to turn to God. They will be killed in the streets of Jerusalem but will resurrect after 3 and a half days (Revelation 11).

The antichrist and his prophet will gather all the armies of the world together to the plains of Armageddon to make war with God. Christ shall then return with the armies of heaven and the saints and destroy the armies and set up his earthly kingdom for 1,000 years (Revelation 19:11-21). The dead in Christ will rise from the grave and reign with Christ, this is the first resurrection (Revelation 20:4-6, Psalms 37:11). During that time Satan shall be bound and cast into the bottomless pit. During the millennium the nations will worship Christ and the earth will have peace.

After the 1,000-year reign, Satan will be loosed once more to go out and deceive the nations. He will once again attempt to gather a large army from the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, and fight against Christ and His kingdom. But fire will come down from heaven and destroy all of them. Satan will then be cast into the lake of fire with the antichrist and false prophet. Those who were resurrected and met Christ in the air when He returned to reign 1,000 years will not die during or after the millennium (Revelation 20:7-10).

After the destruction of the armies at Gog and Magog, all of the dead will stand before Christ. All of the sinners will be resurrected and each person will be judged by God (Revelation 20:11-15). Those who are found written in the Lamb’s Book of Life will be granted entrance into heaven and those not found in the book will be cast into the lake of fire.

Christ then creates a new heaven and new earth and the new Jerusalem is brought down and established. Those who were found righteous in Christ and their names in the book of life will live with Christ forever (Revelation 21).

 

Angelology

Angels are created beings that serve and worship God in heaven. They have been used by God as messengers, such as Gabriel, when he was sent to Mary to tell her she was chosen to be the mother of Jesus Christ (Luke 1:26-38).

There appears to be a hierarchy among angels. The Bible mentions cherubim, seraphim and archangels.

Satan and the demons were once angelic beings. Lucifer (Satan) was filled with pride and wanted to be God (Ezekiel 28:16-17, Isaiah 14:12-14). He persuaded 1/3 of the angels to follow him and attempt a coup d’état and overthrow God from His throne (Revelation 12:4). There was war in heaven and Michael and the angels fought against Lucifer and his followers. Satan and his followers were cast out of heaven. They now fight against God’s people, seeking to discourage them and turn them from God so they will be damned.

The battle for souls continues between angels and demons. Prayer can aid in helping angels overcome the powers of evil (Daniel 10:13).

Angels encamp around the children of God and help to protect them from harm and danger (Psalms 34:7).

Angels will be the ministers of God’s wrath in the last days (Revelation 15-16).  

Satan and the demons will all eventually be cast into the lake of fire where they will suffer torments forever and ever.

The angels will dwell with God and His saints forever and ever.