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Essential doctrines

 Submitted: 8/3/2004
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Question: I know that there are many different doctrines within the apostolic movement. I have heard preachers say, 'If you don’t do this or that, you aren’t going to heaven.' What do you consider to be the essential doctrines in Scripture for salvation?
Answer: We would say that a person must repent, believe the gospel, be baptized in the name of Jesus, and be filled with the Holy Spirit to be saved. Paul wrote that God has saved us by the washing of regeneration (water baptism) and renewing of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). Beyond that, I would say that everything else constitutes what Paul called “the things that accompany salvation” (Hebrews 6:9). This does not mean that these things are optional, only that they are not the basis of salvation. They are instead the things we need to do to make our calling and election sure. Once we are saved, we must live by faith, we must persevere to the end. Without adding things such as prayer, praise, knowledge of the Word, participation in a local assembly, godly character and holiness to our lives, we just won’t be able to make it to the end. We would be like soldiers going to war without weapons or armor. There are many things we must do, not to be saved, but to protect ourselves from the forces of evil that are trying to lead us to destruction.

Please see our articles on the Doctrine shelf. Also read our article titled How to Motivate God’s People on the Authority shelf.


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