As Christians, particularly in the Reformed tradition, we love a healthy and lively doctrinal discussion. Many of these dialogues center on issues where, in light of the Scriptures, there is some “wiggle room” for interpretation. Credobaptism or Paedobaptism? Egalitarian or Complimentarian? Contemporary vs. Traditional music or liturgy? Calvinism or Arminianism? The list goes on and on. As a (self-proclaimed) fledgling scholar in theology, I am so glad for these discussions because they inform and edify, ultimately pointing us back to a deeper quest to unlock the hidden treasures of God’s word (at least in theory). It is sad, then, when Christians use the differences in scriptural interpretation to fight, spew hate, theologically caricature, or even divide the Church in matters of opinion. The truth of God’s word is always meant to unify, so (in our finite minds) there must be room for disagreement… but where?
St. Augustine famously wrote: “In the ESSENTIALS… UNITY. In the NON-essentials… LIBERTY…. In ALL things… CHARITY”. Volumes have been written on the need for Christian love (charity) in all things…. and you could live 3 lifetimes and not exhaust the amount of reading there is on the ever-debating viewpoints for the “non-essentials”… so these I’ll leave to other writers. However, many churches today do not choose to talk substantially on the “essentials”. Don’t get me wrong… “God loves you”, “Believe the gospel”, and “Walk the Walk” and other such teachings are all wonderful messages, but I think we need to go deeper. In the parable of the sower (Mark 4:1-20), Jesus not only talks about those who “when they hear [the Word], Satan immediately takes away the word that is sown in them” (aka the non-believers) but He also talks about those “who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away”.
Persecution, as many Reformed scholars and pastors of late have pointed out, has been (by and large) a foreign concept to the American church. Slowly, that is changing. With no disrespect to the “prosperity gospel” folks, Jesus did teach about the inevitable persecution that comes with being a Christian. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12) If persecution and/or tribulation will come (in one form or another) to those who profess the name of Christ, it is important to understand the “essentials” of Christian doctrine, uncompromiseable truths on which all Christians can hang their hats on… truths that are vital to the Christian faith… truths that all Christians must not only be willing to live for, but also (if necessary) to die for. While there are many, let me offer 9 crucial ones:
1. The Holiness of God: God is a God of many attributes, all of which stem out of His own Holiness. If repetition (a scriptural literary device for emphasis) is any indicator, then the most important attribute about God is the only one … the only word at all… that gets repeated three times “Holy… Holy… Holy” (Isaiah 6:3). To deny that God is holy, is to reject that God IS (by His very nature) God. Such a rejection is damnably problematic.
2. The Sinfulness of All Mankind: When Isaiah looked up to see a thrice-holy God, his only response (when he finally could speak) was to acknowledge his own uncleanliness. A true and honest understanding of God’s holiness is to understand that we, by contrast, are NOT holy… and because God’s standard is perfection (Matt. 5:48, 1 Peter 1:16, Lev. 11:44), then we must conclude that “ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory OF GOD” (Rom. 3:23)
3. The Triune Nature of God: The Trinity is the hardest doctrine in all of Christian theology to teach, because it is one clouded in mystery. Even though it is largely inferred, there is still scriptural evidence to support this truth (ex. Gen. 1:26, Matt. 3:16-17). God’s “three-ness” (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) cannot be separated from His “One-ness” (“the Lord your God is ONE”). To deny any aspect of the Trinitarian nature of God is to cannonball into the deep end of the toxic waters of heresy. It is important that the Trinity is “a hill to die on” in theology, and one of the main reasons why is because on its shoulders rests…
4. The Divinity of Christ: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. The Divinity (God-ness) of Jesus Christ is, by far, the most attacked doctrine of the Christian faith today. Don’t believe me? Just read Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code (one of many contemporary examples). In short, people have no problem believing in a historically-documented person named Jesus Christ who walked this earth and gained a following over 2000 years ago. They have no problem accepting Him as A moral teacher. But acknowledging that this human man was Himself GOD? That is where they draw the line. Nevertheless, the inspired word of God speaks clearly to this: “In the beginning was the Word… and the Word was WITH God… AND the Word WAS God” (John 1:1). Despite being fully human, with all the trials therein, He HAD to be fully God… for were He NOT fully God, we would not have…
5. The Resurrection of Christ from the Dead: Let me ask you this, believer…. How can a man who did not have the power of God Himself be able walk out of the grave, risen from the dead… something no other human has ever done? He would HAVE to be God to do that (let alone all the other supernatural miracles). Paul makes the clearest case for just how essential the Resurrection is: “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. … For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ HAS been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Cor. 15:12-14, 16-20) If we lose all hope without the resurrection, it must be worth dying for.
6. Salvation by Grace Alone, Not by Works: You’d be hard pressed to find a Christian who didn’t believe this about salvation, but it is worth mentioning. There are those who, even in subtle ways, who are depending (in part or in full) on their works to achieve salvation, in spite of their sinful state. If you give even one penny to the giver of a gift, it then becomes a wage or payment and is no longer a gift. Paul makes that clear, but also makes clear that “It is by grace you have been saved… and this not of yourselves, it is a GIFT of God… not by works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). “WAIT”, you say. “Haven’t you left something out of that verse?”… I know! I’m getting there…
Photo Attribution: “lighthouse” by Petras Gagilas; CC 2.0
7. Salvation Through Faith (in Christ) Alone: It is indeed “by grace” that we’ve been saved, but it’s also “through faith”. Just because a giver has offered you a gift… AND you haven’t tried to pay anything for it… that doesn’t mean you yet have it. You have to reach out and grab it. Say I have the “gift” of a nice juicy steak for my beagle… If my dog wants the steak that I hold up to his nose, he’s got to, first, let go of the bone in his mouth. Faith is transferring your trust from self (works, our own goodness) to Christ, as the only means by which we may receive this free gift of God called salvation from our sins. Otherwise, why did He die? Again… pretty simple and widely-accepted… but it nevertheless cannot be compromised.
8. The Wrathful Judgment of God on EVERY… SINGLE… SIN: “The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, AND that will by no means clear [acquit] the guilty; (Ex. 34:6-7). Make no mistake. Every sin is a crime that must be punished under the law… a debt that must be paid… a stain that must be removed. God is not going to let ANY sin go unpunished. His Holy nature cannot… will not… allow it. The only question is… Will that punishment rest on Christ on the cross or will it rest on you for all eternity? (Yes, Hell is very real.) C.S. Lewis said (and I’m paraphrasing here) that the worst part about Hell is not separation from God, but the very presence of God, only in the form of His righteous wrath, forever. It is real and those who deny it are in for a big surprise.
9. God Will Be Glorified Forever: The very reason why you exist, why God created you was for His glory (Is. 43:7). Philippians tells us that every knee will bow and every tongue will (one day) confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. The very creation seeks to give Him praise (Ps. 19:1, Luke 19:40). How much more so will we, who were created in His Image, not praise Him also throughout eternity? If you accept truths 1-8 here, then you certainly don’t think it is for YOUR glory. Everything is for God’s glory and when that is fully realized at the end of time, God will glorify us, as His children… and He continues to work on this process of our glorification even now (Romans 8:30).
Friends, it is my fervent prayer both that the freedom we enjoy as Christians remains with us as long as possible AND that the Holy Spirit is continually strengthening us for when that freedom is gone. In those days, “the essentials” of God our Father and the gospel of Christ will be all that we have left. Are you willing to live for them today? Are you willing to die for them tomorrow? As 2 Corinthians 4:16-17 says, “We do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison”… an eternal glory SO good… you might say it’s “to DIE for”.
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