ONLY to allow conversation
and of course ADDITION-- I post a list of "Essentials" of the Christian faith.......
The deity of Christ.
John 10:30 says, “I and the Father are one.” Jesus was claiming deity, and, interestingly enough, He did not deny that He was God. Another example is
John 20:28, when Thomas says, “My Lord and my God!” Again, Jesus does not correct Him by saying that He is not God.
Salvation by grace.
Ephesians 2:8-9
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast” There is nothing we can do to earn God’s favor or gain access to heaven apart from His grace.
Salvation through Jesus Christ alone.
Acts 4:12 tells us that “salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” This passage speaks of the name of Jesus and His saving power. Another example is found in the book of John. Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (
John 14:6). No one gets into heaven except by faith in the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ on his or her behalf.
The resurrection of Christ.
The Christian faith is based on Christ crucified and resurrected to life. “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (
1 Corinthians 15:14). Lastly, to deny Christ’s bodily resurrection (
John 2:19-21) is to deny that Jesus’ work here on earth was a satisfactory offering to God for the sins of mankind.
The gospel.
“That Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.” This is the essence of the gospel.
Monotheism.
Quite simply, there is only one God
The Holy Trinity.
Three distinct Persons in ONE God head. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” While this verse mentions all three Persons of the triune God, it does not call them the Trinity. So to understand the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, we must look at the “totality” of Scripture and glean from it the definition.