What are the minimum theological beliefs to be called Christian?

[Van]

So God initiated before faith existed?
Here is your twist, which is false. The ungodly do not have faith therefore it cannot be righteous.
By grace alone, yes.
Once grace is provided, faith is given.
You cannot say "alone" to two different things. That would be a dual thing, not an alone thing. Here you twist your theology.
If God never initiated the relationship with Abram, would Abram have believed?
Agreed, Abram's faith had nothing to do with God's covenental grace bestowed upon Abram.
Correct, human faith has nothing to do with God's gracious choice to save. Faith is an effect of God's gracious salvation of the sinner. "Even while we were yet sinners..."

Since we are chosen on the basis of faith, how do you suppose God chose an individual to give them faith.
Through faith requires faith before being chosen and saved.
Our faith provides our access to the grace in which we stand.

 

[Van]

Why did God choose Abram to receive the three-fold promise? Does scripture say? Nope.

 

[Van]

Unless it is an error, to be called a Christian, one must actually be a Christian, thus born anew and indwelt.
But why does God choose to credit a person's faith as righteousness and place them into Christ where they are born anew and indwelt? Does a person need a PhD in Theology? Does the person need to condemn Calvinism? Holding the right doctrine probably makes us more effective witnesses.

 

[Yeshua1]

Say a person would flunk a Systematic Theology test.
Their understanding of the Trinity is flawed
They do not know the difference in reference between Son of God and Son of Man
They do not know they were made sinners as a consequence of Adam's sin.
But even though they swim in the sea of the untrained and unstudied, they love Jesus because He first loved them.

Might not God choose to credit their faith as righteousness and cause them to be born anew?

They must know the right Jesus and right Gospel though to get saved, correct?

 

[Yeshua1]

Right, to be called a "Christian" one must ascribe to the TULIP, but Y1 never said non-Christians were not saved. Got it...

No, in order to rightly understand salvation process, need to hold to TULIP, but not required to be saved!

 

[Yeshua1]

Van, as long as you promote a backwards understanding of "faith," we will not agree.
First, God must make a person alive with Christ (born anew). Then God will credit the faith He gave them as righteousness (because God is the one who established faith in them and God is righteous).

Van, you have it backwards. Accept your error and we can talk.

His view makes it sound that God found something in us worthy to now save us!

 

[Yeshua1]

You are combining two issues, at least.

The question of the op, as I understand it, is what are the most basic doctrinal beliefs of the Christian faith?

In other words, after salvation, what basic doctrine must be believed to be part of the “Christian” community (seen and unseen).

If the question is “what theological beliefs are required for a person to be saved?”, then the answer is different.

peace to you

Must still know the real Jesus and the real Gospel!

 

[Yeshua1]

Pay no attention to Mr. AustinC, he said I had not stated my beliefs, even after posting on my Doctrinal Thread. He claims being saved through or on the basis of faith does not by logical necessity mean our faith provided the basis of God choosing to save us.

Utter nonsense, repeated non-stop. He denies the people of Matthew 23:13 were seeking God. He denies Christ died as a ransom for all mankind. He denies we are saved through faith, that faith provides our access to the grace in which we stand. On and on folks, on and on...

We must have God gift to us "saving faith", and renew us first in order to apply it!

 

[Yeshua1]

Since we are chosen on the basis of faith, how do you suppose God chose an individual to give them faith.
Through faith requires faith before being chosen and saved.
Our faith provides our access to the grace in which we stand.

For His own good pleasure and purposes God elects out For Himself His own people!

 

[AustinC]

Since we are chosen on the basis of faith, how do you suppose God chose an individual to give them faith.
Through faith requires faith before being chosen and saved.
Our faith provides our access to the grace in which we stand.

We are NOT chosen on the basis of faith. Your statement is utterly false.
God chooses not based on merit, but solely by His Sovereign will (Read Romans 9 until this sinks in to you).

God chose whom He chose by His mysterious purpose, which He never, ever, reveals to us (nor is he obligated to do so). God creates vessels for his purpose, without consulting us or judging us by our merit (Honestly, you really have to ask God to help you understand Romans 9).
Through faith, does not require faith, before we are made alive. In fact, Galatians 3:10-12 says:
For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”

Notice that before God makes you alive, you are under the law. It's not faith. God will not and does not see any faith in you because you only have law. Van, your entire assertion is therefore false.
Van, by your teaching no one will ever gain access to God. They (and you) will be condemned under the law and justly die under the righteous law of God. Van, you are presenting a heresy to the children of God. I beg you to repent.

 

[Van]

No, in order to rightly understand salvation process, need to hold to TULIP, but not required to be saved!

Utter nonsense non-stop from Y1. The TULI of the Tulip are false doctrines as shown by Matthew 23:13, 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 Timothy 2:6, 1 Peter 2:10, and so forth and so on...

 

[Van]

We must have God gift to us "saving faith", and renew us first in order to apply it!

Unbiblical nonsense is regurgitated over and over by Y1. God must credit our faith, as worthless as it may be, as righteousness in order for our faith to become the basis for God to place us spiritually into Christ.

 

[Van]

For His own good pleasure and purposes God elects out For Himself His own people!

Not what 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says.

 

[Van]

We are NOT chosen on the basis of faith. Your statement is utterly false.
God chooses not based on merit, but solely by His Sovereign will (Read Romans 9 until this sinks in to you).

God chose whom He chose by His mysterious purpose, which He never, ever, reveals to us (nor is he obligated to do so). God creates vessels for his purpose, without consulting us or judging us by our merit (Honestly, you really have to ask God to help you understand Romans 9).
Through faith, does not require faith, before we are made alive. In fact, Galatians 3:10-12 says:
For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”

Notice that before God makes you alive, you are under the law. It's not faith. God will not and does not see any faith in you because you only have law. Van, your entire assertion is therefore false.
Van, by your teaching no one will ever gain access to God. They (and you) will be condemned under the law and justly die under the righteous law of God. Van, you are presenting a heresy to the children of God. I beg you to repent.

Note the appear to generality, lacking any specific reference. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says God chooses people for salvation through or on the basis of faith in the truth.

Note we are made alive "together with Christ" thus after God places us spiritually into Christ, and God takes that action on the basis of crediting our faith as righteousness.

All they have folks is to wave their arms and shout taint so, taint so, your assertions are false. But the verses cited are crystal.

 

[Yeshua1]

Unbiblical nonsense is regurgitated over and over by Y1. God must credit our faith, as worthless as it may be, as righteousness in order for our faith to become the basis for God to place us spiritually into Christ.

God must give to us saving faith, as lost sinners cannot produce in themselves!

 

[Yeshua1]

Note the appear to generality, lacking any specific reference. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says God chooses people for salvation through or on the basis of faith in the truth.

Note we are made alive "together with Christ" thus after God places us spiritually into Christ, and God takes that action on the basis of crediting our faith as righteousness.

All they have folks is to wave their arms and shout taint so, taint so, your assertions are false. But the verses cited are crystal.

God chose us in Christ before we were even born, from eternity past!

 

[AustinC]

Note the appear to generality, lacking any specific reference. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says God chooses people for salvation through or on the basis of faith in the truth.

Note we are made alive "together with Christ" thus after God places us spiritually into Christ, and God takes that action on the basis of crediting our faith as righteousness.

All they have folks is to wave their arms and shout taint so, taint so, your assertions are false. But the verses cited are crystal.

Van, I specifically addressed every verse you provided in this thread. How I wish you would stop lying.
You continue to insist on merited favor (the law). No biblically sound, mature Christian, will follow your legalism.

 

[Salty]

Warning:
This thread will be closed no sooner than 330 am (Tue) EDT / 1230 am PDT

 

[atpollard]

If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. - [Romans 10:9-10 NIV]

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him." For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. - [John 3:14-18 NIV]​

 

[Alan Gross]

Was Abram chosen by God, elected by God before God gave him faith? Yes or no?

No unchosen person has faith and therefore God does not see their faith as righteous and thus save them.

GILL:

"And he believed in the Lord,.... The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan are,
"in the Word of the Lord;''
in the essential Word of the Lord, in Christ the Lord his righteousness;

he believed in the promise of God, that he should have a seed,
and a very numerous one;

he believed that the Messiah would spring from his seed;

he believed in him as his Saviour and Redeemer;

he believed in him for righteousness,
and he believed in his righteousness as justifying him before God:

and he counted it to him for righteousness;

not the act of his faith, but the object of it;

and not the promise he believed, but what was promised,
and his faith received, even Christ and his righteousness this was imputed to him without works, and while he was an uncircumcised person, for the proof of which the apostle produces this passage, Romans 4:3;

wherefore this is not to be understood of any action of his being esteemed and accounted a righteous one, and he pronounced and acknowledged a righteous person on account of it;

for Abram was not justified before God by his own works, but by the righteousness of faith, as all that believe are, that is, by the righteousness of Christ revealed to faith, and received by it: what is imputed is without a man, and the imputation of it depends upon the will of another;

such the righteousness of Christ without works imputed by God the Father. This is the first time we read of believing, and as early do we hear of imputed righteousness."