[CS-FSLUG] Attention to List Members: New Statement of Faith

[Nigel Ridley]

Timothy Butler wrote:
> Dear ChristianSource Members,
>     The moderating team has taken into consideration suggestions 
> concerning the statement of faith, and I present to you the final 
> replacement for the old statement. All members are asked to agree to 
> this new statement, just as you did the old one. The old statement  will
> be removed from the web site, soon.
> 
>     Blessings,
>             Tim
> 
> The Sakamuyan Declaration
> Sakamuyo Christian Fellowship Declaration of Faith and Belief:
> 
> * Note: This statement differs from the official Sakamuyan  Declaration
> concerning Article VII, of which we only require respect  for those who
> hold this position, not agreement with it.
> 
> We, as members of the ChristianSource Free Software and Linux Users 
> Group (CS-FSLUG), affirm the essentials of the faith expressed in the 
> Apostle's and Nicene creeds. We also affirm the following points as  the
> essentials of the Christian faith and as the minimum requirements  to
> become a part of the earthly expression of the one true and holy  church
> of Jesus Christ.
> 
> I. We affirm the one true God of the Bible, all powerful, all knowing 
> and eternal; we affirm that God exists in three persons, Father, Son 
> and Holy Spirit and that these three are one.
> 
> II. We affirm the Earthly ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. We  affirm
> His existence as God made flesh, both fully God and fully Man.  We
> believe in his physical death and his physical resurrection after  three
> days in the tomb.
> 
> III. We affirm the presence of the Holy Spirit in all believers as  the
> divine comforter sent by God to provide support and guidance  since the
> time of Pentecost.
> 
> IV. We affirm all humanity was made in the image of God, but through 
> willful disobedience fell into a corrupt state of sin. In this fallen 
> state we are totally depraved and unable to in anyway bring about our 
> own salvation.
> 
> V. We affirm God, in His mercy and despite our depravity, chose to 
> bestow completely unmerited grace upon anyone who would personally 
> accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior through repentance and 
> faith. This is made possible through the vicarious atonement provided 
> by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, who was sinless and 
> innocent of the punishment bestowed on him for our sake. We believe 
> that works after salvation show only the fruit of the Spirit and in  no
> way are necessary to obtain or retain saving grace. A personal 
> relationship with Jesus is the key to true membership in the Church.
> 
> VI. We affirm the Bible as the true, holy and divine revelation of  God.
> We accept the universally accepted 27 books of the New Testament  and
> the Jewish canon of 39 books as the inspired Word of God through  which
> other revelations ought to be interpreted. While the full Truth  of God
> is larger than the Bible, the Bible is wholly Truth. We affirm  the
> validity of the scripture canon and believe the entirety of God's  Word
> must be included in our theology. We believe between the front  and back
> covers of the Bible in its original form, we find what God  intended to
> have written.
> 
> VII. While ChristianSource affirms the following article of this 
> declaration, we recognize that not all Christians agree on this 
> assertion and therefore do not require acceptance of it but only 
> respect for those who hold to this belief:  We affirm Baptism and 
> Communion as sacraments  instituted by Christ for this age as outward 
> signs of inward spiritual grace. Neither baptism nor communion are 
> necessary for salvation nor the continued remission of sins.
> 
> VIII. We affirm all professing Christians ought make every effort to 
> keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
> 
> IX. We believe in the triumphant return of the Son at the end of the 
> age, the judgment of all the people of the world, and the eternal 
> sentence to bliss or condemnation.
> 
> X. We affirm all Christians, as members of the body of Christ, are 
> called to follow the Great Commission given to us by our Lord before  he
> ascended to Heaven. Christians, regardless of status as laity or 
> clergy, should seek to make disciples and be instrumental in  baptizing
> and teaching them the commandments of Christ to the very  end of this age.
> 
> 
> ---
> Timothy R. Butler | "Now  that  I am a  Christian  I  do have moods
> Editor, OfB.biz   | in which the whole thing looks very improbable:
> tbutler at ofb.biz   | but when I was an  atheist I had moods in which
> timothybutler.us  | Christianity looked terribly probable."
>                                                       -- C.S. Lewis
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> ChristianSource FSLUG mailing list
> Christiansource at ofb.biz
> http://cs.uninetsolutions.com
> 
> 

Just something to think about: Isn't it a bit too long?

I'm not sure that most folks would actually have the patience to read
all of it, let alone digest all the theological implications of the 10
articles.
Could it be condensed a bit? I'm sure that folks would then read all of
it before clicking the 'I Agree' button.

Blessings,

Nigel

-- 
It's not a problem -- it's a learning opportunity.
--

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