What We Believe: Intro – “Why a Series on Theology?”
Intro –
1. VIDEO – “Why Theology Matters?” by Joshua Harris…
2. The EFCA SOF begins with these words, “The Evangelical Free Church of America is an association of autonomous churches united around these theological convictions…”
3. The reason for starting that way is so that we understand that it is our theology that joins us together, not our model of ministry or anything secondary issue.
4. In 2011, George Barna’s research agency released the results of a survey of more than 5,000 interviews with American Christians. His conclusion was that “The Christian Church is becoming less & less theologically literate & that many church attenders today do not really know what they believe.”
5. ILL – George Whitfield, a British evangelist and preaching companion of John Wesley, is recorded as asking a fellow, "Sir, what do you believe?” He answered, "I believe what my pastor believes!” Whitfield asked, “Well, then what does your pastor believe?” “My Pastor believes what my church believes." Whitfield then asked, "And what does your church believe?" “Well, my Pastor & my church believe that same thing I believe," the man replied. "And what do all of you believe?" Whitfield asked. "We all believe the same thing!"
6. This should not surprise us as Paul spoke of it in 2 Tim. 4:1-5 (read).
7. Unfortunately, Many today think that theology & doctrine are irrelevant to life & should be reserved for seminary students. In fact, someone once said, “Theology, who needs it? That’s just for seminarians in ivory towers.”
8. C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, “Theology is practical: especially now...If you do not listen to Theology, that will not mean that you have no ideas about God. It will mean that you have a lot of wrong ones--bad, muddled, out-of-date ideas.”
9. The truth is that if you’re a believer, you “do theology” every day. Every time you make a moral decision, tell someone about your faith, or attend a worship service, you are “doing theology.”
10. What is Theology? It is literally the study of God, mainly through His Word. Most of the time when people use the term theology, they mean Systematic Theology.
11. I like Wayne Grudem’s definition of Systematic Theology, which is “any study that answers the question, ‘What does the whole Bible teach us today?’ about any given topic.”
12. So why a series on theology? Because studying theology can help us overcome our wrong ideas, it can help us to make better decisions, & it can help us grow as Christians!
13. We will be using the EFCA Statement of Faith as our guide. Why? We are an EFCA church. While all denominations are “man-made” the Free Church is unique in several ways –
a. We are a believers’ church (all believers) with a strong commitment to evangelical unity in the gospel.
b. We “major on the majors & minor on the minors.”
c. We believe that both sound Christian doctrine & an active relationship with God are essential to the life of the believer.
14. 3 key reasons for a series on theology –
I. What We Believe Determines What We Do –
“Our theology drives our lives. What we know and understand about God impacts everything - everything we think, say, and do.” David Murray
A. Belief determines our reality –
1. What we believe about God determines the way we act, think, reason, speak & even how we respond to difficulty.
2. 1 Tim. 4:16 “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.”
3. A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”
4. A low view of God, which is so prevalent today, is the cause of so many of our problems today. Why? We have lost the sense of awe & reverence that God so rightfully deserves.
5. Common misperceptions of God & their results...
a. Overzealous policeman = walking around on eggshells.
b. Angry judge = always feel guilty.
c. Grandpa asleep in the rocker = if He doesn’t care, I don’t care either.
d. Always working somewhere in the world = He is too busy for me.
e. What is/was your earthly father like? = his characteristics strongly influence your perception of God today. Especially the negative views you have of your Dad.
6. What’s YOUR misperception of God? We all have them and if we don’t learn the truth about God, we will live & die with our misperceptions.
7. SO? That means you will miss out on the kind of friendship, love & encouragement that could have been yours in Christ.
B. Belief naturally leads to commitment –
1. We live in an age of low commitment. This is nothing new.
2. A. T. Olson, 1961, “This is an age of emphasis on freedom & freedom of conscience often becomes freedom from conscience. It is a time when strong convictions are considered reactionary. Theology is taught on a cafeteria basis. ‘Here it is, take what you like, leave the rest.’ It is a period when (people) refuse to commit themselves.”
3. In 2 Cor. 4 Paul is writing about the fact that the ministry God put him in caused him great trouble & anguish, but that he kept on going! Why? Because of what he believed about who Jesus was! His theology led to his commitment to Jesus!
4. 2 Cor. 4:13 “It is written: ‘I believed; therefore I have spoken.’ With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak,”
5. Jim Scobbie, “We only truly believe that which motivates us to action.”
6. ILL – Lutefisk vs. grilled steak…I believe that lutefisk will probably make me sick – as a result I am committed not to eat it! I believe the steak will taste good, satisfy my hunger & make me happy – I am committed to eat it eat it as often as I possibly can! What I believe naturally leads me to a commitment!
7. What kind of commitment is God looking for? He wants everything we are!! If I am 80% committed to my wife, I am not really committed to her. Why is it ok for us to be so flippant about our commitment to God?
8. ILL – John Hus was a man who believed the Scriptures to be the infallible and supreme authority in all matters. He died at the stake for that belief in Constance, Germany, on his forty-second birthday. As he refused a final plea to renounce his faith, Hus's last words were, “What I taught with my lips, I seal with my blood.”
9. Rev. 12:11 “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”
II. What We Believe Determines Who We Are –
Like it or not, labels do tend to define us. Lutheran, Catholic, Baptist, etc…
ILL – Class project – bring in a symbol of your faith…
We are an Evangelical Free Church. I am often asked, “What is a free church? Does that mean you don’t have to give?” NO!! So what exactly is a free church?
A. Evangelical = gospel centered
1. The gospel is the “evangel” or “good news” of Jesus Christ.
2. 1 Cor. 15:3-4 “3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,”
3. To Paul, the gospel was the center of everything he did!
4. 1 Cor. 2:2 “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”
5. As evangelicals, our #1 concern cannot be what style of ministry or music we practice, or any other such thing. We must be centered on the gospel of Christ!
6. God’s gospel alone can address our deepest need – the need for forgiveness. We must also remember that the good news demands a response – belief in Christ!
7. Acts 16:31 “…Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved”
B. Free = self-governing
1. With roots in Scandinavia, our Free Church forbearers broke away from the state church & developed a deep conviction that the local church should be autonomous or free to govern its own affairs.
2. Jesus is the head of the church & no one else!
3. Col. 1:18 “And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.”
4. The New Testament pattern seems to be that while churches worked together, each church was an individual body with its own leadership (Acts 14 & 15).
5. In the Free Church, we have a denomination that offers support & help, but has no authority to rule the affairs of local congregations.
C. Church = the body of Christ
1. When we talk about the church we are not referring to a building! We are talking about that spiritual organism of which Christ is the head (Col. 1:18).
2. The word church comes from the Greek term which literally means “A called out assembly.” This has a two-fold meaning –
a. They are called out of the world & sin into a relationship with Christ.
b. They are called together for a purpose – to fulfill the great commission!
3. So the church is literally called out of the world to go back into the world!!
4. Matt. 28:19-20 “19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
5. We must remember that the purpose of the church is the public worship of God, edification of the saints, and spread of the gospel.
6. Hopefully, next time someone asks you about our church, you can positively explain why we are an “Evangelical Free Church!”
III. What We Believe Determines Where We Go for Eternity –
It is safe to say that everyone has a built in desire to go to heaven, although many will not.
Matt. 7:13-14 “13Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
What makes the difference? It is what or whom we believe in –
A. Believing there is a God is not enough –
1. Just believing there is a God will not gain you salvation, you must have a personal relationship & commitment to Jesus Christ!
2. James 2:19 “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder.”
3. Biblical faith is more than just a mental assent to a set of theological truths. In fact, theology itself is not just a group of presented facts, rather, it is the presentation of a person – God himself! Therefore, Biblical faith is an act of personal trust or commitment to God through his Son Jesus Christ.
4. John Calvin, “Faith is not a distant view but a warm embrace of Christ.”
5. ILL – C. H. Spurgeon claimed that 98 percent of the people he met-- including the criminals he visited in England's prisons--told him that they believed in God. But the vast majority had never made a personal, life-changing commitment to Jesus Christ. Why? For them, “believe” was not an active verb.
B. Salvation is only found through faith in Jesus Christ –
1. Over 200x the New Testament declares that belief or faith in Jesus Christ is the only condition for salvation!
2. Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
3. Rom. 10:9-10 “9That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”
Conc. –
1. So what comes to your mind when you think about God?
2. Do you know God? Really know Him or just kind of know about Him?
3. I invite you to journey with us over the next 10 weeks as we seek to get to know Him & learn together more about “What we believe.”
