Brief Definitions of Basic Bible Teachings

Brief Definitions of Basic Bible Teachings

Church (church of God)
The true church (church of God) is composed of those called by God the Father, who have accepted His Son Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, who have repented of their sins, been baptized and received the Holy Spirit of God.

Eternal Judgment
God's judgment of each individual begins when God opens his or her mind to understand God's way of life. God the Father holds each believer personally responsible to grow in the knowledge of His Word and in the spiritual maturity of His Son Jesus Christ. As the believer loves God with all the heart and is obedience to His Word, he or she has the righteousness of Jesus Christ imputed to them. All who remain in this imputed righteousness of faith will be in the first resurrection and will receive eternal life at the return of Jesus Christ.

Those individuals through the ages who have had no opportunity for salvation during their lifetime will be restored to physical life in the second resurrection, which will take place after the 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ. Everyone who is in the second resurrection will have the same opportunity for salvation as those who were in the first resurrection. All who knowingly reject their opportunity for salvation will be sentenced to the second death. The second death is God's total destruction of all the incorrigible wicked in the lake of fire, from which there is no resurrection.

Faith
The knowledge of and active belief in the existence and power of the living God and His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. Faith is the actual spiritual substance of God's Holy Spirit, which gives the believer the assurance and the confidence that what God has promised, He will perform.

Forgiveness
The free gift of God whereby, upon sincere repentance, the believer's sins are forgiven and he or she is put into right standing with God the Father. Through forgiveness the believer is without condemnation before God the Father.

Gospel
The word gospel, which means "good news," is the wonderful message of God's plan of salvation for all mankind through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. The gospel is also a message about the coming kingdom of God on earth. When Jesus Christ returns to the earth, He will set up the kingdom of God and will rule all nations.

Grace
The free and undeserved gift of God the Father through Jesus Christ. The grace of God is the greatest expression of God the Father's love and all-encompassing mercy. To be under grace means to continually be receiving God's divine love, favor, forgiveness, blessing, gracious care, help and gifts.

Healing
God the Father personally intervenes when He extends healing to those who call upon Him in times of sickness or injury. This divine intervention can be directed toward anyone at any time, as God wills, because Jesus Christ paid the price for healing from every sickness with the stripes of scourging that He received before His crucifixion. When we are healed by God our sins are forgiven. The Scriptures teach that one who desires to be healed by God should call for the spiritually mature Christians in the church to anoint him or her with oil in the name of Jesus Christ and to pray for God's healing and intervention. Trusting God in faith for healing is a personal matter between each individual and God.

Holy Spirit
The power by which God the Father and Jesus Christ accomplish Their will. The Holy Spirit is granted freely to each believer upon repentance of sins, baptism, and the laying on of hands. This begettal of the Holy Spirit is the earnest and assurance of the promise of eternal life through Jesus Christ. It enables the believer to be a partaker of the divine nature and imparts the ability to develop the love of God.

Justification
Justification is freely granted to the called and repentant believer by God the Father through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Justification takes place when the believer's sins are removed by the blood of Jesus Christ and he or she is put into right standing with God the Father. In order to receive God's gift of justification, a person must repent toward God, believe in the sacrifice and blood of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and be baptized.

Kingdom of God
The kingdom of God currently rules the universe. Although the kingdom of God is not now ruling the earth, all those who have the Spirit of God are under the rule of God the Father through the lordship of Jesus Christ. The kingdom of God will be reinstituted on the earth at the return of Jesus Christ.

Laying on of Hands
After coming out of the water of baptism, the believer has hands laid on his head by one or more mature Christians and a prayer is offered asking God to grant the gift of His Holy Spirit to person.

Repentance
Repentance is complete remorse and sorrow for one's sins, which are the transgression of the holy laws and commandments of God, whether in the letter or the spirit of the law.

Righteousness
The righteousness of faith is the gift of righteousness which the believer receives through the abundance of the Father's grace. It is called "the righteousness of faith" because only through faith in Jesus Christ is it possible to partake of this righteousness. This imputed righteousness is the gift of God through faith in Jesus Christ and cannot be earned by doing works of law.

Salvation
By the grace of God, the believer is saved from the penalty of sin, which is eternal death, and is granted the gift of eternal life through the begettal of the Holy Spirit from God the Father.

Sanctification
Sanctification is the act of setting apart someone or something for a holy purpose and use. Christians are in a continuing state of sanctification after repentance, baptism and the receiving of the Holy Spirit. In the Scriptures, Christians are referred to as saints, meaning those who have been made holy by the sanctification of God the Father.

Sin
The transgression of the holy laws and commandments of God, whether in the letter or the spirit of the law.