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Salvation and sin
Importance of living a Christlike life
Salvation and sin
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Christianity. What does it mean? What does it take to be a Christian? These questions have long plagued the Christian community itself, let alone non-believers. What do we have to do to be saved? How do we enter the church? If you see a common theme, you’d be correct. We keep asking what do WE have to do? I believe that it is not so much what have to do to join the “club.” It is you agreeing to receive the gift. So, what do you have to do? You must simply believe.
What does it mean to believe? The best baseline definition of a Christian is outlined in the Apostles’ Creed. A summary of this creed is as follows. You must believe that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are three in one. One God, one deity. God came to us through His son, and was sacrificed for our sins. He rose again, and is in Heaven. His spirit guides us here on earth (Apostles’ Creed, web)
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Jesus commands us to believe and be baptized, and we will be saved (Mark 16:16, NIV, web). If the Apostles’ Creed is confessed, I consider Jesus’s command to “believe” to have been covered. What about His command to be baptized? Does the act of baptism confer salvation? I do not, believe this is the case. Baptism is the public proclamation of our faith. We will want to show the world that we are saved. Our desire to have this done will come with our newfound faith. Are there those that don’t wish to be baptized? Absolutely. Will God condemn them if they do? I don’t have that answer. I believe, that only by the grace of God, we are saved. He already showed His grace by the death of Jesus. I do not believe he will condemn us on a
In order to become a Christian, one must accept the presence of God as our savior and provider of eternal life. Christians must acknowledge God’s divine nature as the mere entity of human redemption. According to Diffey (2014), the acknowledgement of God’s existence provides wisdom and fear which enforces Christians to love and obey God through the existence of three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit simply means God is spiritually present in our life. Because God spoke and created the world he is considered the “Father” of
“In baptism every Christian has enough to study and to practice all his life. He always has enough to do to believe firmly what Baptism promises and brings – victory over death and the devil, forgiveness of sin, God’s grace, the entire Christ, and the Holy Spirit with his gifts. In short the blessings of Baptism are so boundless that if timid nature considers them, it may well doubt whether they could all be true.”
Baptism is also away for Christians to connect with Jesus and value of his death and the power of his resurrection. It is not just a union with Jesus but also with the Father and the Holy Spirit consequently baptism by the word of institution, signifies union with the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Within this union there takes place purification from sin that happens when one enters the baptismal water they buried in death and raised in life just like Jesus. After the purification some Christians believe that the person is regenerated
Christians are people who adhere to Christianity. Christians are required to believe: that there is one supreme, eternal, infinite God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the good will be rewarded by him forever in heaven, and that the wrong who die unrepentant will be punished for ever in hell, that in the Holy Trinity there are three Persons, coeternal, coequal: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity became man and died on the cross to save us, in the Commandments of God and of the Church, the seven rituals were instituted by Christ to give us grace; especially, that Baptism is necessary and that the Eucharist is a pledge of our upcoming glory, That
Growing up and into my teens I had thought of baptism as a sort of insurance policy; babies are too young to accept Jesus as their savior, so baptism is a way to do it for them – just in case.
Once an individual accepts Jesus as his/her faith, they are ready to be baptized. It is up to the individual’s preference, when he/she wants to be baptized in their lifetime (Christian Today). In the Middle Ages many individuals preferred to be baptized later in life, so they can wash way their sins before they approach judgment day (Cooke and Macy 70). In today’s modern society, the ceremony is viewed as initiation into the Christian community. Any individual can be initiated as long as the willing to accept Jesus Christ and see the world in a new way, the Christian way (Cooke and Macy
A public form of Christian worship is a “Baptism”. A baptism is a rite that a young Christian would go through. In a baptism the child would be totally submerged under the water to try and cleans the soul. Another form of baptism includes pouring water three times on the forehead. Some Christians believe that a baptism is necessary for salvation. Salvation to Christians is that on the day they die their soul will be saved from the eternal fires of hell and it they will spend eternity in heaven with their lord. Another meaning of the word "baptism" has been used to refer to any ceremony, trial, or experience.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptiz- ing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” ( Matt. 28:19-20 NIV ). The idea of sharing in the death of Christ connects remission of sins with baptism which the death of Christ effected. ( Act 2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21). Just as physical washing cleanses our bodies from filthiness, so also baptism symbolically cleanses our spirits through participation in the death of Christ. “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink (I Cor. 12:13 NIV). In addition, baptism connects with spiritual birth along with the Spirit’s reception. Hence, participation in Christ’s resurrection indicates that the Holy Spirit is presently in our lives. Baptism is an indication of the relationship we have with Christ and wherever we find ourselves in the world, our deportment, attitude and disposition should be in alignment with our confession of faith. Jesus’ baptism should help us realize how much we are loved by God. Jesus died to pay a debt he did not owe to release from a debt we could not pay. Baptism is a two-fold operation because we are symbolically
The broadest definition of Christianity is also perhaps the simplest. Across the history and branches of the religion, “it is faith in Christ, not the scrupulous and religious keeping of the law...which is the basis of salvation” (McGrath 15). The religion that is now a major global force has grown out of a small group tucked away in one corner of the world, breaking and changing over time, yet united by a faith in this revolutionary man who claimed to be the son of God, Jesus Christ.
Ideally, according to the Christian view, Christianity is to believe in Jesus even when he is not visible. In other words, Christians walk by faith and not by sight. Furthermore, Christianity involves consistency of morality which entails features that requires people to be honest and truthful in all areas in life. Overall, the emergence of Christianity was concerned with a spiritual, not earthly kingdom.
However, we do not earn salvation by being baptized. Salvation is a gift. (Ephesians 2: 8-9) Yet, while salvation is God’s gift, He has laid down certain conditions upon which He offers His salvation. Faith is one of those conditions, so no one who does not believe in Christ will be saved.
For any Christian, one of the most important questions a person can ever answer is, “How does a Believer know that they are for sure a Christian?” All Believers needs to have the assurance of their salvation. Finding the answer to this question brings confidence and contentment to the Believer’s life. Sadly, many people live their lives never really having an answer to this question. However, the Word of God is the starting point to find this assurance.
It is followed by years of catechesis before being completed late by Confirmation and the Eucharist, the summit of Christian initiation. Baptism is the Church 's way of celebrating and enacting the embrace of God and the promise of salvation. 'Peter replied, "Repent and be baptised..." ' (Acts 2: 38-39) Baptism happens not only to the individual, but also the wider Church. At the time of Christ it signified that the person being baptised became a follower of Christ and acquired a relationship with him. '... I (Paul) also baptised the household of Stephanas... ' (1 Corinthians 1:16) The rite is celebrated with the community present and actively participating. It is the community, who will journey with them throughout their
During the ceremony the child also receives the Holy Spirit, through the laying of hands a symbolic presence of security is depicted with blessings given. The process of washing or being anointed with water is believed to be powerful. Many Christians see baptism as a practice done in obedience to the commands of Christ, as stated in the New Testament in Matthew 28:19-20 (New International Version); “go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. Baptism is an act of individual repentance and the washing away of sin;
The Meaning and Significance of Baptism for Christians Today. Baptism is a sacred action in which the Christian community comes. together to celebrate the day. This sacrament is a symbol of God's care for. us, and by carrying it out we bring ourselves closer to the Lord.