OK, now to rise to the challenge of Chris's post - foundational doctrine. If I maintain that laying on of hands isn't foundational doctine, then what is?
OK, how about this:
First, it's what's in the Nicene Creed, which I have pasted below.
Second, it's the Confession from Chalcedon - affirmation that Jesus was fully man, yet lived sinlessly, and fully God.
Third, that his victory over sin means we can have fulness of life in Him;
Finally, that God is living and active today - through His word, His Spirit, His people and His Church.
I agree that there are other issues that are important. But these are more to do with the "how" than the "what" - or, if you prefer, the processes of faith, rather than the objects of faith. So, "how" we worship is quite important; but finally, it is "whom" we worship that is foundational.
Nicene Creed
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son].
With the Father and the Son
he is worshipped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
OK, how about this:
First, it's what's in the Nicene Creed, which I have pasted below.
Second, it's the Confession from Chalcedon - affirmation that Jesus was fully man, yet lived sinlessly, and fully God.
Third, that his victory over sin means we can have fulness of life in Him;
Finally, that God is living and active today - through His word, His Spirit, His people and His Church.
I agree that there are other issues that are important. But these are more to do with the "how" than the "what" - or, if you prefer, the processes of faith, rather than the objects of faith. So, "how" we worship is quite important; but finally, it is "whom" we worship that is foundational.
Nicene Creed
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son].
With the Father and the Son
he is worshipped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
posted by HappyClappy at 12:37 pm
2 Comments:
Two questions:
1 Is ‘elementary truth or doctrine’ (Hebrews 6) the same as ‘foundational truth or doctrine’ (your post)? If so, laying on of hands is on the list.
2 I think a book was written once called ‘All truth is God’s truth’ making the point that either something was true (ie of God) or not true (ie not of God). In which case can we ignore the distinction between ‘elementary / foundational’ truth and other truth?
Over to the theologians/philosophers. I am just a kingdom loving economist / accountant.
Interesting point - again, it may come down to semantics. What I meant here was "foundational truth" as something on which we build, not something that's easily understood. If you get the foundations wrong, you get the whole building wrong. The Message calls the elementary teachings "preschool fingerpainting exercises on Christ" to be left behind so we "get on with the grand work of art"!!
To be fair, the KJV does, indeed, call these a "foundation". So, given that Chris is an avid reader of the KJV, I am happy to concede his point.
BUT - and it's a big but - I think it would be wrong to either:
a) assume that the laying on of hands here is talking about it in the sense I was originally talking about it (healing); or
b) lose sight of the fact that these simple truths were addressed by the apostle as things that should be "left" (i.e., not continually debated). I wonder if I should plead guilty to that one!
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