These are basic Christian faith affirmations reflected in the Christian life. They provide a summary of basic Christian theology. Most conservative evangelical churches have similar statements of faith. As an online church, we make provision for prayer and pastoral care online. We team with other physical churches for you to share in the church ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper or communion. These are most meaningful and important in the life of the believer. However, the essential is the spiritual relationship by accepting Christ as Lord and Savior, anywhere, anytime, which we encourage each person to do today. Sometimes we call that a "Profession of Faith," "Being Saved," or "Being Born Again." It is beginning the Christian life the moment one prays the prayer to the Lord and accepts Him as the Lord and Savior of his or her life. 3Streams allows you to make it public by placing your name and testimony on our online page as a proclamation to the globe that as for you and your life you belong to Jesus.
We allow people to be associate members even when they join a physical local church near them. 3Streams Church incorporates the basic truths that unite us as Christians.
I. THE SCRIPTURES
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is the record of Gods revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. It reveals the principles by which God judges us; and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ.[i]
II. GOD
There is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. To Him we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience. The eternal God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being.
A. God the Father
God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace. He is all-powerful, all loving, and all wise. God is Father in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. He is fatherly in His attitude toward all men.[ii]
B. God the Son
Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ, he was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself the demands and necessities of human nature and identifying Himself completely with humankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His death on the cross, He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, partaking of the nature of God and of man, and in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever presents Lord.[iii]
C. God the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination, He enables men to understand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts" by which they serve God through His church. He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the assurance of God to bring the believer into the fullness of the stature of Christ. . . . [iv]
III. MAN
Man was created by the special act of God, in His own image, and is the crowning work of His creation. In the beginning, man was innocent of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice. By his free choice, man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Christ died for man; therefore every man possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.[v]
IV. SALVATION
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense, salvation includes regeneration, sanctification, and glorification.
Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of God’s grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences of grace. Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior.[vi]
VII. EVANGELISM AND MISSIONS
It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations. The new birth of man’s spirit by Gods Holy Spirit means the birth of love for others. Missionary effort on the part of all rests thus upon a spiritual necessity of the regenerate life, and is expressly and repeatedly commanded in the teachings of Christ. It is the duty of every child of God to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by personal effort and by all other methods in harmony with the gospel of Christ. [vii]
VIII. Religious Liberty
God alone is Lord of the conscience, and He has left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men, which are contrary to His Word or not contained in it. Church and state should be separate.[viii]
IX. The Family
God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed of persons related to one another by marriage, blood, or adoption.
Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. It is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and His church and to provide for the man and the woman in marriage the framework for intimate companionship, the channel of sexual expression according to biblical standards, and the means for procreation of the human race.
The husband and wife are of equal worth before God, since both are created in God's image. The marriage relationship models the way God relates to His people. A husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the church. He has the God-given responsibility to provide for, to protect, and to lead his family. A wife is to submit herself graciously to the servant leadership of her husband even as the church willingly submits to the headship of Christ. She, being in the image of God as is her husband and thus equal to him, has the God-given responsibility to respect her husband and to serve as his helper in managing the household and nurturing the next generation.
Children, from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord. Parents are to demonstrate to their children God's pattern for marriage. Parents are to teach their children spiritual and moral values and to lead them, through consistent lifestyle example and loving discipline, to make choices based on biblical truth. Children are to honor and obey their parents.
b. Witness and Testimony Summary – A Sample of a Witness
Members and Associate members are encouraged to share their Christian Faith and testimony with family, friends, and others.
One of the examples often used is reaching out with a simple Faith encouragement. This can be done by sharing words such as, “I would like to share with you how the Bible answers that we can become a Christian and have a personal relationship with Christ. The Trusting Faith that gives assurance that in Him we have what it takes to have life abundantly now, forgiven of all our sins, and be assured that we would be with Him in heaven when our journey on earth is over. This illustration may be helpful.
F.A.I.T.H.” [ix]
F FORGIVENESS
-Ephesians 1:7a
A AVAILABLE
-John 3:16
-Matthew 7:21a
I IMPOSSIBLE
-Romans 3:23
T TURN (A travel illustration may be used.)
-Luke 13:26
- Corinthians 15b-4
H HEAVEN
Heaven is eternal life.
HERE: “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” – John 10:10b
HEREAFTER: “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself: that where I am, there you may be also” – John 14:3
HOW: How can a person have God’s forgiveness, heaven and eternal life, and Jesus as personal Savior and Lord? “Forsaking All I Trust Him.” Romans 10:9.
INVITATION
Inquire: “Would you like to trust in Christ as your personal Savior and Lord?” If so, we have prayer with them.
Response: “Yes.”
Then share a prayer that encourage one to share it with their family members and their friends. We help them connect by being an associate member or member of 3Streams.Today and encourage them to become a part of a local church. It is important for each one have a Christian friend to mentor them and provide them prayerful Christian coaching.
Response: “No”
Then hope you will be a follower on 3Streams.Today and listen to our “Bible Insights” and be encouraged to engage in Faith that encourages your life. It is the most important decision.
[i] Ex 24:4; De 4:1-2; 17:19; Jos 8:34; Psa 19:7-10; 119:11, 89, 105, 140; Isa 34:16; 40:8; Jer 15:16; 36:1-32; Mat 5:17-18; 22:29; Lu 21:33; 24:44-46; John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Ac 2:16; 17:11; Rom 15:4; 16:25-26; 2Ti 3:15-17; Heb 1:1-2; 4:12; 1Pe 1:25; 2Pe 1:19-21.
[ii] Gen 1:1; 2:7; Ex 3:14; 6:2-3; 15:11; 20:1; Lev 22:2; De 6:4; 32:6; 1Ch 29:10; Psa 19:1-3
Isa 43:3, 15; 64:8; Jer 10:10; 17:13; Mat 6:9; 7:11; 23:9; 28:19; Mark 1:9-11; John 4:24; 5:26; 14:6-13; 17:1-8; Acts 1:7; Rom 8:14-15; 1Co 8:6; Gal 4:6; Eph 4:6; Col 1:15; 1Ti 1:17; Heb 11:6; 12:9; 1Pe 1:17; 1 Jo 5:7.
[iii] Gen 18:1; Psalm 2:7; 110:1; Isa 7:14; 53:1-12; Mat 1:18-23; 3:17; 8:29; 11:27; 14:33; 16:16, 27; Mat 17:5; 27; 28:1-6, 19; Mark 1:1; 3:11;Luke 1:35; 4:41; 22:70; 24:46; John 1:1-18, 29; 10:30, 38; 11:25-27; 12:44-50
John 14:7-11, 16:15-16, 28; 17:1-5, 21-22; 20:1-20, 28; Acts 1:9; 2:22-24; 7:55-56; 9:4-5, 20; Rom 1; 3-4; 3:23-26; 5:6-21; 8:1-3, 34; 10:4; 1Co 1:30; 2:2; 8:6; 15:1-8, 24-28; 2Co 5:19-21; Gal 4:4-5; Eph 1:20; 3:11; 4:7-10; Php 2:5-11; Col 1:13-22; 2:9; 1Th 4:14-18; 1Ti 2:5-6; 3:16; Tit 2:13-14; Heb 1:1-3; 4:14-15; 7:14-28; Heb 9:12-15, 24-28; 12:2; 13:8; 1Pe 2:21-25; 3:22; 1Jo 1:7-9; 3:2; 4:14- 15; 5:9; 2Jo 7-9; Rev 1:13-16; 5:9-14; 12:10-11; 13:8; 19:16.
[iv] Gen 1:2; Jud 14:6; Job 26:13; Psa 51:11; 139:7; Isa 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-32; Mat 1:18; 3:16; 4:1; 12:28-32; 28:19; Mk 1:10, 12; Luke 1:35; 4:1, 18-19; 11:13; 12:12; 24:49; John 4:24; 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:7-14
Acts 1:8; 2:1-4, 38; 4:31; 5:3; 6:3; 7:55; 8:17, 39 Acts 10:44; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6; 19:1-6; Rom 8:9-11, 14-16, 26-27; 1Co 2:10-14; 3:16; 12:3-11; Gal 4:6; Eph 1:13-14; 4:30; 5:18; 1Th 5:19; 1Ti 3:16; 4:1; 2Ti 1:14; 3:16; Heb 9:8, 14; 2Pe 1:21; 1Jo 4:13; 5:6-7; Rev 1:10; 22:17.
[v] Gen 1:26-30; 2:5, 7, 18-22; 3; 9:6; Rom 1:19-32; 3:10-18, 23; 5:6, 12, 19; 6:6; Rom 7:14-25; 8:14-18, 29; 1Co 1:21-31; 15:19, 21-22; Eph 2:1-22; Col 1:21-22; 3:9-11.
[vi] John 1:11-14, 29; 3:3-21, 36; 5:24; 10:9, 28-29; John 15:1-16; 17:17; Acts 2:21; 4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31; Acts 17:30-31; 20:32; Rom 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25; 4:3l Rom 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18; 29-39; 10:9-10, 13; Rom 13:11-14; 1Cor 1:18, 30; 6:19-20; 15:10.
[vii] Gen 12:1-3; Ex 19:5-6; Isa 6:1-8; Mat 9:37-38; 10:5-15; 13:18-30, 37-43; 16:19
Mat 22:9-10; 24:14; 28:18-20; Luke 10:1-18; 24:46-53; John 14:11-12; 15:7-8, 16; 17:15; 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2; 8:26-40; 10:42-48; 13:2-3; Rom 10:13-15; Eph 3:1-11; 1Th 1:8; 2Ti 4:5; Heb 2:1-3; 11:39-12:2; 1Pe 2:4-10; Rev 22:17.
[viii] Genesis 1:27; 2:7; Matthew 6:6-7,24; 16:26; 22:21; John 8:36; Acts 4:19-20; Romans 6:1-2; 13:1-7; Galatians 5:1,13; Philippians 3:20; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; James 4:12; 1 Peter 2:12-17; 3:11-17; 4:12-19.
[ix] F.A.I.T.H is a witness outline provided by materials from LifeWay Church Resources, Nashville Tennessee, copyright 1998. The sample is for illustration only. Christians may use other plans. There are several excellent ways ones share Christ. This is a simple illustration of what Hope Renewed volunteers share.