Undergirding the Faith
Core doctrinal definitions • By Greg Strand
As a leader in the church, you likely wear many hats. But consider one of your especially crucial roles—that of correctly explaining the Word of truth, handling it with precision (2 Timothy 2:15). As you unfold the Word for those under your spiritual charge, what are the core doctrines with which they should be most familiar? Where do you start?
Consider these seven doctrines as articulated in the EFCA Statement of Faith—plus a few of the ways they are being undermined in our culture today. How might you help undergird the Church with their richness?
1. The Trinity
God is one God; He has within Himself three Persons, revealed to us as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Each of these Persons is equally divine, and these three have forever existed as one God in an eternal union of love. They are distinct in the relationship they have with one another, for the capacity for relationship is at the heart of the notion of “person” when used of the members of the Trinity. They also have distinct roles in the unfolding of redemption. (See Article 1, “God,” in the EFCA Statement of Faith.)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
The doctrine of the Trinity, with its distinction of three divine Persons, is at the heart of the Christian faith. Our understanding of who God is—and that God is love—is centered in this doctrine. The atoning work of Christ on our behalf is rooted in the second person of the Trinity, God the Son, such that when He dies, God demonstrates His love for us. Even many Christians do not understand this doctrine well, and those who do affirm it often struggle with defending it biblically. Of the major world religions, Islam specifically denies the Trinity, so it is essential that we are equipped to respond to Muslims who deny it. An additional challenge associated with ministry among Muslims is how to translate the expression Son of “God.” The Muslim conception is that Christians believe Jesus was God’s Son by procreation with Mary.
2. God As Creator
God alone is the Creator of all things out of nothing (ex nihilo); God pronounced His creation “very good”; God created with order and purpose; God is the sovereign ruler over all creation which, by His personal and particular providence, He sustains. (Article 1, “God”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
This doctrine is being questioned in many ways, especially in the realm of moral accountability. God created with order, and this expresses God’s design. Sexuality, male and female, is a critical aspect of this divine design.
Though God created all and rules over all, He is not one with all; He stands over, above and apart from His creation. This doctrine is being questioned in many ways, including atheistic naturalism; disregarding of our material, created world (i.e. denying the goodness of creation and of our bodies); worshiping of our material, created world (i.e. worshipping mother earth, our bodies).
3. Inerrancy
God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. (Article 2, “The Bible”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
This doctrine has been questioned from the time Satan asked, “Did God actually say?” (Genesis 3:1). In our postmodern day, when the notion of absolute truth is denied, this doctrine is being questioned again, even among evangelicals. Some claim that the Scriptures are true, inerrant and authoritative for faith and practice, but not when the Bible addresses matters of history and science. Two of the major reasons for this are the questions raised by science (cf. points 2 and 4), and the parallels in Ancient Near Eastern Literature. As a result, the doctrine of “divine accommodation” has been redefined.
Traditionally, this doctrine has been understood as God condescending and accommodating Himself to communicate in ways humans can understand, and doing so without losing truth or scriptural authority.
Some, however, assert that it refers to God speaking in time, in a specific culture, in a specific context, using the erroneous beliefs of humans as a means of communicating divine revelation. (As an example, those holding this view teach that Moses, the author of Genesis, had a wrong understanding of creation and science, yet God used those erroneous beliefs to communicate truth, i.e., He accommodated Himself and His revelation to the wrong beliefs of humans.)
In response, consider this comment from Hans Madueme, assistant professor of theological studies at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Ga. : “The classical Reformation doctrine of accommodation denied that God could ever inspire genuine errors in Scripture. By the 18th century, a Socinian, rationalistic, and historical-critical view of accommodation emerged that justified real errors in the Bible.”
Biblical authority is also being undermined by those who question the process by which certain books were recognized as canonical.
4. Adam and Eve
Only human beings are created in the image of God. Man is a creature of great majesty, but it is a derived dignity, a God-given greatness. This image is defined in terms of a relationship with God. Adam, the first man, was joined by the first woman, Eve; and the design of God to create “man” in His own image as male and female was complete. Adam and Eve were historical figures in the following sense: 1) from these two all other human beings are descended; 2) they were the first creatures created in God’s image such that they were accountable to God as responsible moral agents; and 3) they rebelled against God, affecting all their progeny. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
The historicity of Adam has been raised recently as a result of the Human Genome Project, in which the human DNA was mapped. This study has led some to conclude that human beings originated from a group of 6,000-10,000 and that no single pair was the primogenitors of the entire human race. This is an important doctrinal issue with significant connections to the gospel and the second Adam, Jesus Christ, which affects the doctrines of sin and salvation.
Another aspect to the creation of Adam and Eve is the significance that they were created in the image of God. This is a major issue in any and all discussions of bioethics and human sexuality (male and female, marriage), and the way in which we stand with and for “the least of these.”
5. God's Wrath
God’s holiness issues in a righteous rejection of evil, which the Bible calls His wrath. God’s wrath flows from who He is. Since God alone is worthy of worship, He is personally jealous for His own honor. To refuse to acknowledge Him as God and to give to another the honor rightly due Him is idolatry, which is a personal affront to His majesty and glory. Because of this sin, and apart from Christ, we stand under God’s wrath, facing the prospect of eternal condemnation. In this condition we need a divine Savior—someone who can save us from God’s wrath and renew us in God’s image. Our only hope is Jesus Christ. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
A denial of God’s wrath calls into question two key doctrines: God and His attributes, and the sacrifice of the Son. Many today pit one attribute of God against another, e.g., His love against His holiness. For example, some have concluded that because God is love, then the death of Jesus Christ is not a loving act but a form of divine child abuse. Yet these two divine attributes of love and holiness are not contradictory but complementary. Because God is one, His love is always perfectly holy, and His holiness is always perfectly loving. There are no divisions in the character, or attributes, of God (known as divine simplicity).
6. The Exclusivity of Jesus Christ
God need not have saved anyone; but in His love, having purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself, He determined to save us through the work of His Son. In the wisdom of God, it was not possible any other way. Christ’s atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only grounds for our salvation. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
In our pluralistic age, the exclusivity of Christ (also known as particularism when applied to salvation) offends many. Some are agnostic and claim that we cannot know how God can save, and that our claim to exclusivity is arrogant. Others claim a wider hope of salvation through inclusivism—either through other religions or general revelation (the work of Jesus can be applied in means other than the gospel). Others embrace a second chance, so that one can be saved even after death (postmortem evangelism). Still others believe in universalism—that all will be saved in the end.
Read more of the author's thoughts on theology, culture and truth on his blog, “Strands of Thought.”
7. Eternal Conscious Punishment
Hell is understood as a culmination of the effects of sin and the confirmation of God’s opposition to it. It is both the inexorable result of human choice and the active and deliberate judgment of God. Apart from experiencing God’s saving work in Jesus, the state of wrath, alienation and corruption will be confirmed, intensified and made permanent when, at the judgment, God’s verdict of condemnation is pronounced and the sentence is executed in the ongoing reality that the Bible calls hell. (Article 10, “Response and Eternal Destiny”)
How this doctrine is being challenged today:
The doctrine of hell offends postmodern sensibilities. It is one of the key doctrines that stands for all that contemporary culture rejects. Some affirm hell as annihilation—a position also referred to as conditionalism. In this view the wicked deserve to be punished, but only temporarily; after a certain amount of time, they are annihilated and cease to exist. Others embrace universalism—that all will be saved; there will be no one in hell.
There are a few contemporary variations of the doctrine of hell that are also aberrant. One variation is that hell is present now in the atrocities experienced in this life, e.g., AIDS, starvation, genocide. Another variation concludes that hell is the exclusion of God, which is self-chosen, and God affirms this human choice and allows it to happen; He remains passive.
This doctrine is reflective of the sum of many other doctrines—one’s belief about God, sin, Christ, the cross, etc.—that will determine one’s belief regarding the doctrine of hell. This was one of the earliest lies propagated by Satan in his temptation of Adam and Eve: “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4).
Resources For Exploring More
All of the doctrinal definitions come from the book Evangelical Convictions: A theological exposition of the Statement of Faith of the Evangelical Free Church of America. Read the referenced chapters to learn of the essential biblical and theological beliefs of these important doctrinal truths. A number of the resources listed below specifically address some of the ways the doctrines are being undermined today. (Available from NextStep Resources, unless otherwise indicated.)
The Trinity
The Holy Trinity: In Scripture, history, theology and worship, by Robert Letham
The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity changes everything, by Fred Sanders
Jesus the Son of God: A Christological title often overlooked, sometimes misunderstood, and currently disputed, by D. A. Carson (expected publishing date: November 2012)
Delighting in the Trinity: An introduction to the Christian faith, by Michael Reeves
God As Creator
Creation (Gospel Coalition Booklets), by Andrew M. Davis (Available from Amazon.com)
The Message of Creation: Encountering the Lord of the universe, by David Wilkinson
The Dawkins Delusion? Atheist fundamentalism and the denial of the divine, by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath
Inerrancy
Inerrancy, Norman L. Geisler, ed.
Do Historical Matters Matter to Faith? A critical appraisal of modern and postmodern approaches to Scripture, James K. Hoffmeier and Dennis R. Magary, ed.
“But My Words Will Never Pass Away”: The enduring authority of the Christian Scriptures, 2 Vol., D. A. Carson, ed. (expected publishing date: early 2013)
Canon Revisited: Establishing the origins and authority of the New Testament books, by Michael J. Kruger
Adam and Eve
Did Adam and Eve Really Exist? Who they were and why you should care, by C. John Collins
Three Views on Creation and Evolution (Counterpoints: Bible and Theology), J. P. Moreland and John Mark Reynolds. ed.
Reading Genesis 1 and 2: Five views (Bryan Institute symposium), Daryl Charles, ed. (expected publishing date: early 2013)
Why the Church Needs Bioethics: A guide to wise engagement with life’s challenges, John F. Kilner, ed.
The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and hermeneutics, by Robert A. J. Gagnon
God's Wrath
The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God, by D. A. Carson (cf. chapter 4, “God’s Love and God’s Wrath”)
Where Wrath and Mercy Meet: Proclaiming the Atonement today, David Peterson, ed (Available from Amazon.com)
Forsaken: The Trinity and the cross, and why it matters, by Thomas H. McCall
The Exclusivity of Jesus Christ
Faith Comes by Hearing: A response to inclusivism, by Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson, ed.
Encountering Religious Pluralism: The challenge to Christian faith and mission, Harold A. Netland
Eternal Conscious Punishment
Hell Under Fire: Modern scholarship reinvents eternal punishment, Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson, ed.
What is Hell? (Basics of the Faith), by Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson
Christ Alone: An evangelical response to Rob Bell’s Love Wins, by Michael E. Wittmer (Available from Amazon.com)
Undergirding the Faith
AS A LEADER IN THE CHURCH, you likely wear many hats. But consider one of your especially crucial roles—that of correctly explaining the Word of truth, handling it with precision (2 Timothy 2:15). As you unfold the Word for those under your spiritual charge, what are the core doctrines with which they should be most familiar? Where do you start?
Consider these seven doctrines as articulated in the EFCA Statement of Faith—plus a few of the ways they are being undermined in our culture today. How might you help undergird the Church with their richness?
1. The Trinity
God is one God; He has within Himself three Persons, revealed to us as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Each of these Persons is equally divine, and these three have forever existed as one God in an eternal union of love. They are distinct in the relationship they have with one another, for the capacity for relationship is at the heart of the notion of “person” when used of the members of the Trinity. They also have distinct roles in the unfolding of redemption. (See Article 1, “God,” in the EFCA Statement of Faith.)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
The doctrine of the Trinity, with its distinction of three divine Persons, is at the heart of the Christian faith. Our understanding of who God is—and that God is love—is centered in this doctrine. The atoning work of Christ on our behalf is rooted in the second person of the Trinity, God the Son, such that when He dies, God demonstrates His love for us. Even many Christians do not understand this doctrine well, and those who do affirm it often struggle with defending it biblically. Of the major world religions, Islam specifically denies the Trinity, so it is essential that we are equipped to respond to Muslims who deny it. An additional challenge associated with ministry among Muslims is how to translate the expression Son of “God.” The Muslim conception is that Christians believe Jesus was God’s Son by procreation with Mary.
2. God As Creator
God alone is the Creator of all things out of nothing (ex nihilo); God pronounced His creation “very good”; God created with order and purpose; God is the sovereign ruler over all creation which, by His personal and particular providence, He sustains. (Article 1, “God”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
This doctrine is being questioned in many ways, especially in the realm of moral accountability. God created with order, and this expresses God’s design. Sexuality, male and female, is a critical aspect of this divine design.
Though God created all and rules over all, He is not one with all; He stands over, above and apart from His creation. This doctrine is being questioned in many ways, including atheistic naturalism; disregarding of our material, created world (i.e. denying the goodness of creation and of our bodies); worshiping of our material, created world (i.e. worshipping mother earth, our bodies).
RESOURCES FOR EXPLORING MORE
3. Inerrancy
God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. (Article 2, “The Bible”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
This doctrine has been questioned from the time Satan asked, “Did God actually say?” (Genesis 3:1). In our postmodern day, when the notion of absolute truth is denied, this doctrine is being questioned again, even among evangelicals. Some claim that the Scriptures are true, inerrant and authoritative for faith and practice, but not when the Bible addresses matters of history and science. Two of the major reasons for this are the questions raised by science (cf. points 2 and 4), and the parallels in Ancient Near Eastern Literature. As a result, the doctrine of “divine accommodation” has been redefined.
Traditionally, this doctrine has been understood as God condescending and accommodating Himself to communicate in ways humans can understand, and doing so without losing truth or scriptural authority.
Some, however, assert that it refers to God speaking in time, in a specific culture, in a specific context, using the erroneous beliefs of humans as a means of communicating divine revelation. (As an example, those holding this view teach that Moses, the author of Genesis, had a wrong understanding of creation and science, yet God used those erroneous beliefs to communicate truth, i.e., He accommodated Himself and His revelation to the wrong beliefs of humans.)
In response, consider this comment from Hans Madueme, assistant professor of theological studies at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Ga. : “The classical Reformation doctrine of accommodation denied that God could ever inspire genuine errors in Scripture. By the 18th century, a Socinian, rationalistic, and historical-critical view of accommodation emerged that justified real errors in the Bible.”
Biblical authority is also being undermined by those who question the process by which certain books were recognized as canonical.
4. Adam and Eve
Only human beings are created in the image of God. Man is a creature of great majesty, but it is a derived dignity, a God-given greatness. This image is defined in terms of a relationship with God. Adam, the first man, was joined by the first woman, Eve; and the design of God to create “man” in His own image as male and female was complete. Adam and Eve were historical figures in the following sense: 1) from these two all other human beings are descended; 2) they were the first creatures created in God’s image such that they were accountable to God as responsible moral agents; and 3) they rebelled against God, affecting all their progeny. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
The historicity of Adam has been raised recently as a result of the Human Genome Project, in which the human DNA was mapped. This study has led some to conclude that human beings originated from a group of 6,000-10,000 and that no single pair was the primogenitors of the entire human race. This is an important doctrinal issue with significant connections to the gospel and the second Adam, Jesus Christ, which affects the doctrines of sin and salvation.
Another aspect to the creation of Adam and Eve is the significance that they were created in the image of God. This is a major issue in any and all discussions of bioethics and human sexuality (male and female, marriage), and the way in which we stand with and for “the least of these.”
5. God’s Wrath
God’s holiness issues in a righteous rejection of evil, which the Bible calls His wrath. God’s wrath flows from who He is. Since God alone is worthy of worship, He is personally jealous for His own honor. To refuse to acknowledge Him as God and to give to another the honor rightly due Him is idolatry, which is a personal affront to His majesty and glory. Because of this sin, and apart from Christ, we stand under God’s wrath, facing the prospect of eternal condemnation. In this condition we need a divine Savior—someone who can save us from God’s wrath and renew us in God’s image. Our only hope is Jesus Christ. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
A denial of God’s wrath calls into question two key doctrines: God and His attributes, and the sacrifice of the Son. Many today pit one attribute of God against another, e.g., His love against His holiness. For example, some have concluded that because God is love, then the death of Jesus Christ is not a loving act but a form of divine child abuse. Yet these two divine attributes of love and holiness are not contradictory but complementary. Because God is one, His love is always perfectly holy, and His holiness is always perfectly loving. There are no divisions in the character, or attributes, of God (known as divine simplicity).
6. The Exclusivity of Jesus Christ
God need not have saved anyone; but in His love, having purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself, He determined to save us through the work of His Son. In the wisdom of God, it was not possible any other way. Christ’s atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only grounds for our salvation. (Article 3, “The Human Condition”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
In our pluralistic age, the exclusivity of Christ (also known as particularism when applied to salvation) offends many. Some are agnostic and claim that we cannot know how God can save, and that our claim to exclusivity is arrogant. Others claim a wider hope of salvation through inclusivism—either through other religions or general revelation (the work of Jesus can be applied in means other than the gospel). Others embrace a second chance, so that one can be saved even after death (postmortem evangelism). Still others believe in universalism—that all will be saved in the end.
7. Eternal Conscious Punishment
Hell is understood as a culmination of the effects of sin and the confirmation of God’s opposition to it. It is both the inexorable result of human choice and the active and deliberate judgment of God. Apart from experiencing God’s saving work in Jesus, the state of wrath, alienation and corruption will be confirmed, intensified and made permanent when, at the judgment, God’s verdict of condemnation is pronounced and the sentence is executed in the ongoing reality that the Bible calls hell. (Article 10, “Response and Eternal Destiny”)
HOW THIS DOCTRINE IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY:
The doctrine of hell offends postmodern sensibilities. It is one of the key doctrines that stands for all that contemporary culture rejects. Some affirm hell as annihilation—a position also referred to as conditionalism. In this view the wicked deserve to be punished, but only temporarily; after a certain amount of time, they are annihilated and cease to exist. Others embrace universalism—that all will be saved; there will be no one in hell.
There are a few contemporary variations of the doctrine of hell that are also aberrant. One variation is that hell is present now in the atrocities experienced in this life, e.g., AIDS, starvation, genocide. Another variation concludes that hell is the exclusion of God, which is self-chosen, and God affirms this human choice and allows it to happen; He remains passive.
This doctrine is reflective of the sum of many other doctrines—one’s belief about God, sin, Christ, the cross, etc.—that will determine one’s belief regarding the doctrine of hell. This was one of the earliest lies propagated by Satan in his temptation of Adam and Eve: “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4).
The Trinity
The Holy Trinity: In Scripture, history, theology and worship, by Robert Letham
The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity changes everything, by Fred Sanders
Jesus the Son of God: A Christological title often overlooked, sometimes misunderstood, and currently disputed, by D. A. Carson (expected publishing date: November 2012)
Delighting in the Trinity: An introduction to the Christian faith, by Michael Reeves
God As Creator
Creation (Gospel Coalition Booklets), by Andrew M. Davis (Available from Amazon.com)
The Message of Creation: Encountering the Lord of the universe, by David Wilkinson
The Dawkins Delusion? Atheist fundamentalism and the denial of the divine, by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath
Inerrancy
Inerrancy, Norman L. Geisler, ed.
Do Historical Matters Matter to Faith? A critical appraisal of modern and postmodern approaches to Scripture, James K. Hoffmeier and Dennis R. Magary, ed.
“But My Words Will Never Pass Away”: The enduring authority of the Christian Scriptures, 2 Vol., D. A. Carson, ed. (expected publishing date: early 2013)
Canon Revisited: Establishing the origins and authority of the New Testament books, by Michael J. Kruger
Adam and Eve
Did Adam and Eve Really Exist? Who they were and why you should care, by C. John Collins
Three Views on Creation and Evolution (Counterpoints: Bible and Theology), J. P. Moreland and John Mark Reynolds. ed.
Reading Genesis 1 and 2: Five views (Bryan Institute symposium), Daryl Charles, ed. (expected publishing date: early 2013)
Why the Church Needs Bioethics: A guide to wise engagement with life’s challenges, John F. Kilner, ed.
The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and hermeneutics, by Robert A. J. Gagnon
God’s Wrath
The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God, by D. A. Carson (cf. chapter 4, “God’s Love and God’s Wrath”)
Where Wrath and Mercy Meet: Proclaiming the Atonement today, David Peterson, ed (Available from Amazon.com)
Forsaken: The Trinity and the cross, and why it matters, by Thomas H. McCall
The Exclusivity of Jesus Christ
Faith Comes by Hearing: A response to inclusivism, by Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson, ed.
Encountering Religious Pluralism: The challenge to Christian faith and mission, Harold A. Netland
Eternal Conscious Punishment
Hell Under Fire: Modern scholarship reinvents eternal punishment, Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson, ed.
What is Hell? (Basics of the Faith), by Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson
Christ Alone: An evangelical response to Rob Bell’s Love Wins, by Michael E. Wittmer (Available from Amazon.com)