The Essentials
Anyone who takes a look at Protestant Christianity today will notice the large amount of denominations and differences of belief between them. There can be large differences and small differences, and opinions vary widely as to what the small and big issues are. Because of this, most Christians settle themselves in a set of essentials, the basic beliefs that someone must confess and adhere to to be considered a Christian. Personally, I think those essentials are adequately summed up in the Apostles' Creed and the Five solae.
The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary:
Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell:1
The third day he rose again from the dead:
He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty:
From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead:
I believe in the Holy Ghost:
I believe in the holy catholic church2: the communion of saints:
The forgiveness of sins:
The resurrection of the body:
And the life everlasting. Amen.
Five Solae
The Five solae are sola Scriptura, sola fide, sola gratia, solus Christus, and soli Deo gloria.
Sola Scriptura
"Scripture Alone." Scripture is the only source of revelation from God, is its own interpreter, and is the ultimate and infallible authority.
Sola Fide
"Faith Alone." Justification is by faith alone, not good works. Good works are evidence of faith, but do not save.
Sola Gratia
"Grace Alone." Salvation comes through the merciful, undeserved grace of God, not through any merit of our own.
Solus Christus
"Christ Alone." Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man, and is the only way to salvation.
Soli Deo Gloria
"Glory to God Alone." God alone is deserving of glory.
The Distinctives
Most Christians, however, go beyond those essentials and hold to beliefs that distinguish themselves from others. This isn't because of misguided individuality, but because different people, through study of the same Bible, have come to different conclusions that they earnestly and truly believe the Bible teaches.
I, for example, am Reformed, Baptistic, Covenantal, and cessationist (terms which I'll define in a moment). This doesn't mean I think anyone who disagrees with me on any of those points are sub-Christian or unsaved. My family tends towards Arminian Pentecostalism. I have a friend who aligns with Third-Wave Pentecostal Dispensationalism. Some of my favorite theologians are either infant baptists or dispensationalists (all terms which I won't define because they aren't relevant to this blog's distinctives). But we all agree on the essentials, and they all show evidence of salvation in their lives, so I genuinely believe they are saved.
Now I will define my distinctives.
Reformed
While Reformed Theology is far more than this, I use the term primarily to say that I hold to the Five Points of Calvinism, which are as follows:
Total Depravity
Man is corrupt to his core. This does not mean he is as bad as he can possibly be, but that every part of him is corrupted by sin.
Unconditional Election
God elects sinners to salvation not on any conditions that they must fulfill beforehand, but by his divine mercy.
Limited Atonement
God only elects some to salvation. Jesus came to die only for those whom God elected before time began.
Irresistible Grace
All whom God has elected will come to him in faith someday.
Perseverance of the Saints
All whom God has elected will persevere in the faith and never ultimately turn away from him. This doesn't mean they won't sin or backslide, but they will ultimately turn to him in the end.
Baptistic
This means that I believe that only those who have made a confession of faith should be baptized. Infants of believers should not be baptized because there is no command or evidence from Scripture that this must be done.
Covenantal
All of redemptive history can be viewed under three overarching covenants: the Covenants of Redemption, Works, and Grace
Covenant of Redemption
Before time began, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit made a covenant to redeem a people for the Kingdom of God. The Father promised to give the Son a kingdom and a people and Jesus promised to redeem them. The Holy Spirit promised to regenerate them and bring them to faith.
Covenant of Works
God made a covenant with all mankind that man would follow and obey God's law, and God would dwell with and bless man. Man, however, broke this covenant in the Garden of Eden and had broken it since.
Covenant of Grace
God made a covenant with his elect that he would provide the substitute who would fulfill the Covenant of Works in their place. This substitute was the Son, Jesus Christ.
Covenant theology also holds that the Church is the fulfillment of Old Testament Israel. The Bible makes a distinction between the nation of Israel and the faithful, true Israel, and the Gentiles have been brought into those promises, forming the church with all Jews who confess Jesus as Messiah. The church has not replaced Israel, but has been grafted into it. The Bible also teaches, however, that God still has a plan for the nation of Israel.
Cessationist
Cessationists believe that the miracles seen in the New Testament were for the purpose of verifying the testimony of the Apostles. Once Scripture was finished, the miracles generally ceased because there was no longer a need for them. This does not mean that God can no longer work miracles but that, generally at least, he doesn't.
Regarding this view, I would say more that I lean towards it, but I'm okay with the idea that miracles still occur. I don't think that anyone who does not work miracles has less faith than others, or that tongues must manifest in someone before we can be sure of his salvation. However, if someone says they were miraculously healed, then hey, praise God!
I draw the line, however, at continued revelation. I do not believe that God still speaks apart from Scripture. The Canon is closed, and it is sufficient. To claim that we need a word from God that is not the Bible is to claim that the Bible is insufficient, which is blatantly contradictory to what the Bible itself teaches. This does not exclude God's providence, or say that he will not move people to certain actions at the right time sometimes, but he doesn't speak to them.
Finally, for more information and detail, feel free to read these creeds:
Footnotes
1 This is one of the most controversial phrases in the Apostles' Creed. The reason I include it here is because 1 Peter 3:18-20 says, "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water." I take this to mean that, in the time between his death and resurrection, Jesus went into hell to proclaim victory over death and sin to the demons.
2 This does not refer to the Roman Catholic Church. The word "catholic" here means "universal," which means all true believers.
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