Members of the church of Christ believe (based on
the Scriptures) there are certain steps which must
be taken, in obedience to the commands of the New
Testament. We believe that these steps bring about
salvation and at the same time make one a member of
THE church.
FAITH: This results from HEARING the
Word of God (Romans 10:17), and is stated as
essential to salvation (Mark 16:16; John 8:24;
20:30-31; Hebrews 11:6).
REPENTANCE: This too, is commanded (Acts
2:38; 3:19). Repentance is a change of mind which
causes one to turn away from sinful practices. It is
commanded for everyone (Acts 17:30; Luke 13:3).
CONFESSION: This is an outward confession of
faith in Jesus as the Son of God (Matthew 10:32;
Romans 10:9-10).
BAPTISM: This is not taught by members of
the church of Christ as a "church ordinance," but as
a "command" of Christ. The New Testament teaches
baptism to be an act which is essential to salvation
(Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16).
Proper subjects for baptism are:
- Taught persons (Matthew 28:19)
- Believing persons (Mark 16:16)
- Penitent persons (Acts 2:38)
- Persons who have confessed Jesus (Acts 8:37)
Scriptural baptism must be an immersion in
water. The Greek word from which the word baptize
comes means "to dip, to immerse, to submerge, to
plunge." The Scriptures always point to baptism as a
burial (Acts 8:35-39; Romans 6:3-4; Colossians
2:12).
Baptism is extremely important because the New
Testament sets forth the following purposes for it:
- It is to enter the kingdom (John 3:3-5)
- It is to contact Christ's blood (Romans
6:3-4)
- It is to get into Christ (Galatians 3:27)
- It is for salvation (Mark 16:16; 1 Peter
3:21)
- It is for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38)
- It is to wash away sins (Acts 22:16)
- It is to get into the church (1 Corinthians
12:13; Ephesians 1:23)
REMAIN FAITHFUL: Following the obedience
of these commands we believe it is important that
the Christian live faithfully, because the Bible
teaches the possibility of falling from the grace of
God.
- Paul said he had to guard himself, lest
after preaching to others he himself should be a
castaway (1 Corinthians 9:27)
- He warned the Christians at Corinth to take
heed lest they fall (1 Corinthians 10:12)
- He told some of the Galatians they had
"fallen from grace" (Galatians 5:4)
- The Hebrew writer sounded warning: "Take
heed, brethren, lest there be any one of you an
evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the
living God" (Hebrews 3:12)
- He also spoke of those who had known Christ
Jesus, but who had reverted to their old ways
... and said it would have been better for them
never to have known the truth (2 Peter 2:20-21)
From: What Is The
Church of Christ? By Joe R. Barnett
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