Core Beliefs (Values Series 1 of 6)

We've looked at worldview. Now we're going to take a look at beliefs. What the church planter believes, what the church planter requires church members to believe, what the church planter requires church leaders to believe. It matters. What are their beliefs now in terms of issues of orthodoxy, or non-orthodoxy, and then we'll go from beliefs shifting over values all the way to behaviors, and ask and answer the question, what behaviors are expected of members of this body called the church? You are inevitably going to be faced. It's not whether, it's just when. What is acceptable belief, and what is not? What is acceptable behavior, and what is not?

Church leaders, whether you call them elders, whether you call them deacons, whether you call them ministry leaders, or group leaders, they all have certain things that they are expected to believe, and the sooner that you are crystal clear on what are the requirements, and what aren't the requirements, the better the church planter is. One of the biggest mistakes that church planters make is not being clear on who must believe what, and only dealing with that in a reactive sort of sense when problems arise. Normal adherence to a belief statement is required in church planting, whether it's formalized, whether it's written, or whether it's not.

What must the church planter believe theologically, or doctrinally? In my tradition, as a Presbyterian, anyone who is going to plant a church in the Presbyterian tradition is required to actually take a vow before God and others that they believe in the system of doctrine taught in a certain confession of faith called the Westminster Confession of Faith, Larger and Shorter Catechisms. In certain Baptist traditions, it's a very similar practice. A lot of people don't realize this, that there is a Philadelphia confession of the 1680s that a lot of Baptists require that their church planters adhere to a certain confessional document. There is this declaration that we, as a church, have this confession of faith, this doctrinal statement, that if you are going to be a leader here, you must affirm before God and before us, normally actually seen as vows, or ordination vows, that you believe these things. Whether you are Baptistic, whether you are Presbyterian, whether you are Anglican and using the prayer book in this way, whatever tradition, what is your answer to that question? Is it the Westminster Confession? Is it unique elder affirmation? Is it a Philadelphia Confession? Is it a simple one or two page doctrinal statement? What must you believe? What must your elders believe for them to be ordained?

An emerging leader must have personal piety, 1st Timothy 3, Titus 1; sound theology that would be in adherence to whatever your doctrinal standards are; ministry, and a philosophy of ministry that matches yours. Those four criteria. When you get to sound theology, the question is, how do you define sound theology?

There are also a set of beliefs that members must adhere to. I'm not talking about above and beyond the gospel. I'll give you an example. In my tradition, in the Presbyterian church, there are five questions that the elders have to ask you, and you have to answer in the affirmative. Normally in private, and also in corporate worship. These are the first two regarding expected beliefs. Then questions three, four, and five are expected behaviors if you become a member of this church.

Question number one: "Do you acknowledge yourself to be a sinner in the sight of God, justly deserving his displeasure, and without hope except in his sovereign mercy?"

Number two: "Do you believe in the Lord, Jesus Christ, as the son of God, the savior of sinners, and do you receive and rest upon him alone for salvation as he is offered in the gospel?"

Why have a set of agreed upon beliefs? Normally the push back I head at this point is no creed but Christ. Then all you have to do is sit down with somebody that says no creed but Christ and ask them what they believe about Christ, and what they believe about the Bible, and what they believe about the nature of God, and then write those things down, and say everybody has a creed. You have a creed. You may just not have written it.

This is why maintaining orthodoxy within the history of the church, and maintaining unity in the body, is often at stake. The church declines in influence on people and culture when doctrine is compromised. Your task is a very solemn task as a minister of the gospel. To maintain purity of doctrine, and unity in that church around theology. What this will involve will be you taking the third mark of the church, given to us through the tradition of the Protestant Reformation, seriously and that is spiritual discipline as you explore the concept of the keys of the kingdom that Jesus spoke of. This means that you are actually given a very holy task of maintaining the purity of the gospel in doctrine and in life.

I will never forget Francis Schaeffer, before his death, he said, "As I look out, especially at the Western world, I am very fearful for the evangelical church, because I see almost no biblical sense of discipline." What he meant by that was not church leaders getting involved in all the specifics of individual people's lives. What he meant was the concept of church leaders, or spiritual authorities, elders seeing themselves as responsible for maintaining purity of doctrine, and purity of life. I'll never forget him saying, "When the church, historically, loses the concept of church discipline, and if you plant a church where the elders do not have a deep sense that God has called them and set them apart to maintain the purity of doctrine and life in that covenant community," Schaeffer said, "The next thing to go, historically, after church discipline, is purity. Purity of theology, purity of life," and then he said, "Always, inevitable when purity of doctrine and purity of life is lost, the next thing always to go is power. Power for transforming lives, power for changing cultures, and power for discipling nations."