The doctrines of Christianity are extremely important. Many of us overlook the doctrines of Christianity, yet they are crucially important. A person’s doctrine of Christianity can tell us a lot about their view of theology.
If you are unsure about some of the doctrines of Christianity, here is an explanation of the doctrine of God, the doctrine of God’s Word, the doctrine of angels, the doctrine of man, and the doctrine of sin.
The Doctrine of God
God is three distinct Persons, but One God. The Godhead consists of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All are equal, and all are One. God is not three separate gods but One God. The truth of the Bible clearly refutes atheism, polytheism, and pantheism.
The Father is God, Jesus Christ is God, and the Holy Spirit is God (1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 2:9; Ephesians 4:4-6).
God’s perfect attributes consist of wisdom, infinity, sovereignty, holiness, omniscience, faithfulness, love, and forgiveness (Romans 11:33; Job 12:13-14; Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 6:3; 1 Peter 1:15-16; 1 Corinthians 10:13; Deuteronomy 7:9; 1 John 4:8; Ephesians 4:32).
Jesus Christ is equally God because He had been around with the Father and the Holy Spirit from the beginning. Jesus shows Himself to be God through His earthly ministry and His resurrection from the grave.
God reveals Himself through special revelation through the Bible, and He also reveals Himself through general revelation in nature. An example of special revelation is how the writers of the Bible experience special revelation, encounters with angels, and dreams from God.
General revelation is how God reveals Himself through nature; however, general revelation cannot save. General revelation is how God has revealed Himself in the beauty of nature and His creation.
The many names of God reveal His character, and the Hebrew and Greek words do well in conveying His character. The different Names of God in the Bible consists of Elohim, El Shaddai, El Eyon, El Olam, Yahweh (YHWH), Adonai, Theos, Kurios, Despotes, and Abba.
The Name for God, Yahweh, shows that he is personal and that He is faithful. Similarly, the Name of God of El Shaddai shows that He gives strength to His people.
Also, God is the Creator of everything and the One to be forever praised, as Colossians 1:16 states; “For in Him all things were created: things in Heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him.”
The Doctrine of God’s Word
The Bible is the inerrant Word of God. This means that the Bible has no flaws, imperfections, or disagreements. The Bible is completely accurate and complete as “All Scripture is God-breathed, and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
There is a dual authorship concerning the Bible as the text is inspired by God, not man. The Bible cannot fail because God never fails, and He cannot lie (Hebrews 6:18). God’s Word will never trick or harm us.
God’s Word never changes as God never changes (Hebrews 13:8). The Bible is completely true and accurate as the Bible is trustworthy, faithful, and has stood the test of time.
The Word of God is meant to be read with a literal hermeneutic, and believers need to be able to recognize that the Lord’s Coming is imminent (James 5:8; Revelation 1:3).
Man did not write the Bible by their own understanding; rather, man was guided by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-21). God’s Word is never to be altered or changed for any reason. Believing and understanding that the Bible is inerrant is highly important because it will affect one’s view of theology.
Also, we have a faithful witness who states that the scriptures are true and that witness in Jesus. God's Word is crucial for all believers to possess as we need it to instruct us to live Christian lives as God’s Word is alive, active, and sharper than any sword (Hebrews 4:12).
The Doctrine of Angels
Angels are created beings by God, and they are not equal to God (Colossians 1:16). Angels are not physical beings, but they are spiritual beings.
All of the angels that are recorded in the Bible are said to be male, such as Gabriel and Michael (Daniel 8:16; Luke 1:19; Daniel 10:13; Jude 1:9; Revelation 12:7).
Angels are very strong, as one can see that one single angel destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, and one angel had the power to hold Satan in the form of a dragon (Revelation 20:2, 10).
They are strong, but they are not stronger than the Lord. There are a variety of different angels in the form of ranks. Michael is an archangel, and it seems that archangels are at the top of the ranks (Jude 9:1; 1 Thessalonians 4:16).
There are also cherubims, who were placed in the Garden after Adam and Eve were sent out. Satan was a cherubim. There are also seraphim angels, who are depicted as being similar to fiery serpents, who provide punishments to mankind for their sin (Isaiah 6:2-7).
There are elect angels (good angels) and fallen angels (demons). There is not a known amount of angels given in the Bible, as they are described as “thousands upon thousands” (Hebrews 12:22). Angels have a heavenly ministry and an earthly ministry.
Angels’ heavenly ministry consists of worshiping and serving God (Revelation 5:11-12). Their earthly ministry consists of doing services for God’s people as they are referred to as “ministering spirits” (Hebrews 1:14).
Angels are sent by God to do His bidding as when an angel appears to Abraham as well as when the angel appears to Mary to tell her that she was going to be with child (Genesis 19; Luke 1). An angel was also sent to help Daniel when he was in trouble (Daniel 9:1-27).
In the New Testament, angels were still sent to help God’s faithful believers, as in the case of Mary, Paul, and Peter.
Angels also guard dead believers’ tombs, such as the angel who guarded Jesus’ tomb and the archangel Michael, who guarded Moses’s body when Satan was trying to take Moses’ soul since he had murdered the Egyptian in Jude 9.
Lastly, angels come with Christ at His Second Coming, and they also administer the wrath of God during times of the Tribulation. Demons are the angels that follow Satan instead of following God.
There are two different types of demons; the ones who have the freedom to roam and those who are confined, either temporarily or permanently. Demons are very much present in this age, but God has ultimate power over them and Satan.
Demons are depicted as beasts, such as jackals, owls, and goats (Isaiah 13:21). Demons complete what the devil wants them to do, which is to cause chaos and havoc in the life of man and to go against God. Satan was the most beautiful of all angels (Ezekiel 28).
Satan chose to not follow God and caused sin to enter the human race. Satan is evil, horrible, wretched, a liar, a deceiver, and wicked. He is God’s ultimate enemy; however, all demons and Satan will ultimately meet their end in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10).
The Doctrine of Man
Man is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). God created everything and that includes mankind. God created man on the sixth day of creation, and He declared everything He had made to be good (Genesis 1:31).
God created man from the dust as the Scripture states; “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7). Mankind was not the product of evolution nor part of an evolutionary process.
Evolutionary processes try to teach that man has been evolving since the Big Bang and that mankind is seen as animals; however, God separates us from animals. Man is made in the image of God, and this is what makes mankind unique of God’s creation.
While man and animals do have the same Creator, man does not have the same purpose. Mankind was created to be the image of God for His glory, to serve Him, and to love Him. Human beings only exist because of God, and we owe our whole existence to Him.
Furthermore, man has many aspects to his immaterial, self-including a soul, a spirit, a heart, a conscience, a mind, flesh, and free will. Mankind is made in the image of God also by the characteristic that man’s soul is immortal, just as God is immortal.
Believers in Christ will be with God forever, in heaven, throughout the Millennial, and in the Eternal State, while unbelievers will continue to exist in hell and in the lake of fire (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:4). Mankind is meant to worship God and praise Him always.
The Doctrine of Sin
Sin is anything that goes against God and what He Stands for. Sin was not created by God, and God does not approve of sin. In fact, He cannot even stand in the presence of sin, and that is why He sent Jesus to die for mankind for us to be able to stand before Him, righteous by Jesus Christ’s blood.
There are many Greek and Hebrew words used for sin, with the most common term being the Greek word of hamartano, which means to miss the mark or to fall short.
In the Book of Romans, Paul states, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (3:23). God is holy, and man is not. Therefore, we could never earn our way to forgiveness for our sins.
Only by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross can we be saved. Sin was first seen during the times of the angels before the world was created. Satan was an angel as were the demons, but they chose to sin and turn away from God which happened before the creation of the world (Isaiah 14:12-14).
Sin came into the human race at the time of the Fall of Man (Genesis 3). However, our sinful flesh will be gone once we are in heaven, or when the rapture occurs, for we shall be changed into our new bodies without our sinful nature (2 Corinthians 5:1-5).
Sin is a free choice on the part of the believer. Mankind has freely chosen to sin with our free will, and sin inhibits our relationship with God. Our relationship with God can only be restored by placing faith in His Son and living in obedience to Him.
Mankind is totally and completely depraved, and only by the blood shed for us on the cross by Christ can we be saved (Acts 4:12). Mankind is not complete within itself as the soul needs Jesus. Man is born into sin as a result of the Fall, and we inherited Adam’s sin nature.
As in the Psalms, all are born into sin, as David states, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” (51:5).
Every person needs to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord to be redeemed from their sinful nature and to be able to have eternal life with Him forever in heaven.
For further reading:
If There Is One Truth, Why Are There So Many Doctrines?
Core Doctrines of the Faith That Every Christian Should Know
What Is the Difference Between ‘Your Truth’ and The Truth?
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Vivian Bricker obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Ministry, followed by a Master of Arts with an emphasis in theology. She loves all things theology, mission work, and helping others learn about Jesus. Find more of her content at Cultivate: https://cultivatechristianity.wordpress.com/.