Christianity - Beliefs and Teachings

Question 1

What are God’s believed qualities in Christianity?

Answer 1

There are 9 main qualities:
- eternal (without beginning or an end) “eternal king”
- atemporal (outside of time)
- omniscient (knows and sees everything)
- transcendent (above all created things)
- immanent (involved in the world and our lives) “comforts us in all our troubles”
- benevolent (loving and kind)
- omnipotent (all powerful) “the Almighty”
- forgiving (for those that seek it)
- fair and righteous (judges us after death) “He will judge the world in righteousness”

Question 2

Describe (denomninational) diverging views on God’s believed qualities in Christianity, resulting in different lifestyle choices.

Answer 2

• Plymouth Brethren focus on God’s purity, and believe only they understand the oneness of God, living in separate communities
• Amish believe salvation can be achieved through practicing a life in accordance with the bible, living in separate communities
• Hillsong church focuses on God’s grace and forgiving nature

Question 3

What is the Trinity?

Answer 3

• God has 3 distinct parts: The father, the Son, the Holy Spirit
• Each person is equal, distinct and they have the perfect, complete relationship.
• Each person fulfils a different role.

Question 4

What is the role of God the Father?

Answer 4

• creator of the universe
  “the Father almighty, creator of heaven and the Earth”

Question 5

What is the role of God the Son? Why did God come to Earth in the form of Jesus?

Answer 5

Jesus came to:
- reveal himself to people, showing his love and power, teaching how God wants people to live
- sacrifice himself on the cross, dying for human sin, so repentant people can be forgiven
- to rise from the dead, showing God’s power over death, and that Christians too may have an everlasting life in heaven after death

“Jesus Christ, God’s only son”

Question 6

What is the role of God the Holy Spirit?

Answer 6

• the part of God that is with Christians as their constant guide and comforter
• The Holy Spirit helps Christians live in the way God wants them to
  “the Spirit of truth… for he lives with you and will be in you”

Question 7

Describe any (denominational) diverging views on the Trinity.

Answer 7

• Christadelphians (Unitarians) do not believe in the Trinity, as they believe it challenges the monotheistic nature of Christianity

Question 8

State 3 beliefs from the Nicene Creed.

Answer 8

The belief in:
- God the Father, the creator of the heavens and Earth
- Jesus Christ, son of God, who died for our sins.
- Holy Spirit, which gives life.

Question 9

What does the account of creation in Genesis 1 reveal?

Answer 9

• God brings the world into creation, over 6 days, speaking things into existence
  “God said “let the lands produce vegetation”… and it was so”
  -everything in creation demonstrates God’s power and has a purpose
• humans are distinct
  “Let us make mankind in our image” - referring to trinity
• we are given a purpose; to act as stewards “to rule over”

Question 10

What does the account of creation in Genesis 2 reveal?

Answer 10

• Adam and Eve are created separate, showing the importance of humanity in creation
• God “breathes … life” showing more humanlike qualities
• first law of God is given; don’t eat from the tree of knowledge
• Adam is given free will; demonstrating God’s trust in us and love
• Eve is created as a “helper”

Question 11

Describe the account of creation in Genesis 3? What does it reveal and what are the implications?

Answer 11

• The fall, Adam and Eve are tempted by the crafty serpent to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil: causing Original sin, disobeying God, evil entered the world
  “sin entered the world… death through sin”
• neither Adam or Eve took responsibility for their actions
  -> “pains in childbearing very severe” “dust you will return” “through painful toil you will eat food”
• broke the perfect relationship between God and humanity
• all humans are born of the original sin; we all need his salvation to bring us back into the perfect relationship
• we need to redeem ourselves in hope of having an eternal life with God in heaven

Question 12

What are the different interpretations of the Genesis creation story?

Answer 12

All Christians agree:
-God created the universe
- God acted out of love and goodness
- God cares from his creation even in its broken sinful state
- Humans are made in God’s image, but are sinful, lacking his perfection

Literalists:
- The Bible is God’s actual words
- creationist approach
- that Genesis is an accurate historical account
- God’s word is infallible; absolute truth

Others:
- Genesis is a myth; conveying important truths, not literal
- differences in the style and order of accounts in Genesis 1 and 2
- scientific evidence contradicts how old the Earth is
- Theistic evolution; evolution which God started
- God’s time is different to ours; dont compare with science

Question 13

What is Evil and suffering in Christianity?

Answer 13

• suffering caused by death is a direct result of the original sin
• Evil is the opposite of good, some see it as ‘good gone wrong’ or the absence of goodness
• Some people have personified evil as a force that works against everything good, as Satan: who attempts to tempt humans to disobey God; a dangerous enemy to Christians, destroyer and leader of a host of demons; causing suffering to test your faith

Question 14

What are the types of evil in Christianity?

Answer 14

• natural evil – suffering created through no direct fault of humans (natural disasters, innocent loss) ;
• moral evil – suffering caused by the actions of human beings

Question 15

What is the problem of evil?

Answer 15

The problem of evil: if God is omnibenevolent, omnipotent, then why does evil exist? (Mackie’s inconsistent triad)

Question 16

What is the Irenaean theodicy?

Answer 16

• God allows suffering and evil to exist, so that humans can choose and learn what is good.
• Soul making theodicy – through suffering, we learn and develop spiritually, our souls
• God’s interference would take our free will away

Question 17

Describe the Augustinian theodicy.

Answer 17

• God didn’t create evil – absence of goodness, good things corrupted, lacking perfectness
• Through the original sin, evil entered God’s perfect creations
• Through human free will, evil comes into existence
• Interference would take our free will away

Question 18

What are modern Christian views on the problem of evil?

Answer 18

• conservative Christians see suffering as a result of sinful nature of humans
• Others see the world as a test, suffering allows us to see and turn towards Jesus
• Others say God is transcendent, and we cannot understand everything he does

Question 19

What do Christians believe about Jesus?

Answer 19

• Jesus’ life was an example, a pattern for Christians to follow
• concieved by the Holy Spirit
• His sacrifice allowed humans to be brough back into the relationship with God.
• Not conceived naturally
• reffered to as the ‘Messiah’
• sent by God to be saviour of humanity; Jesus as the saviour
• came to take punishment of death to die for human sins, allowing God to forgive us and restore relationship

Question 20

What are the implications of Jesus’ teachings on Christians today:

Answer 20

• Jesus (God) values all people, and a relationship with God is possible for anyone
• Jesus often helped people in need, miraculous things, inspiring Christians to strive for social justice and service
• Jesus taught ‘sacrificial love’ – agape , loving others above yourself
• Jesus’ life and way of living inspires Evangelism – sharing Jesus’ message, persuading others

Question 21

What are the different beliefs surrounding Jesus’ life?

Answer 21

Liberal -> looking for meaning behind Jesus’ miracles; they aren’t necessarily true
Conservative -> Bible is Word of God, literal, God is all powerful, so anything is possible

Question 22

What sections can the Sermon on the Mount be divided into?

Answer 22

1 - The Beatitudes
2 - Jesus and the law
3 - True discipleship
4 - True righteousness
5 - The narrow gateway
6 - Building on solid foundations

Question 23

What does Jesus teach in the first section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 23

The Beatitudes (blessing)
- Jesus describes the qualities/ attitudes God wants his followers to develop, that he will bless.
- He focusses on meekness “blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”
- mercy “blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”
- peacefulness “blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”
- righteous “blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”

Question 24

What does Jesus teach in the second section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 24

Jesus and the Law
- Jesus teaches that obedience to the law must come from a person’s heart
- He teaches what a person is thinking is as bad as the actual actions, as God knows both (omniscient)
- (e.g. anger that is about hate from someone else is as unacceptable as murder).
- (e.g. lust is the act of ‘committing adultery of the heart’)
- you should not just love your neighbours, but also love your enemies., don’t bear grudges

Question 25

What does Jesus teach in the third section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 25

True discipleship - a true disciple is sincere in all they do, keeping fasting and charity private, to serve and please God - he dismisses outwards acts of religion that are done for show - He gave a pattern of prayer where people are straight to the point (Lord’s prayer) Lord Prayer -> starts with the worship of God, then the requesting of God for daily needs to be met, asking for God’s forgiveness

Question 26

What does Jesus teach in the fourth section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 26

True righteousness - Jesus warns believers not to build up treasures on Earth or to worry about they earthly needs, as they should have faith that God will provide for them - true riches are spiritual ‘treasures’, which cannot be stolen or destroyed (e.g. the qualities in the Beatitudes represent some of the heavenly treasures.) - love for money is wrong, as you cannot worship both God and money **‘How can you say to your brother “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite’** - unless a person is perfect, they are in no state to judge the sins of someone else - instead they should focus on becoming closer to God (no one is perfect)

Question 27

What does Jesus teach in the fifth section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 27

The Narrow Gateway - Jesus warns the life of a believer is difficult He uses the analogy of a broad and narrow pathway. - The broad pathway leads to destruction, but is an easier way of living, not leading to God’s blessing or heaven - The narrow gateway is challenging, but leads to rewards in heaven which are eternal

Question 28

What does Jesus teach in the sixth section of the Sermon on the Mount?

Answer 28

Building on solid foundations - Jesus teaches a strong foundation is important, being steadfast in your practices **“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like wise man who built his house on the rock”**

Question 29

What was the Incarnation and its implications?

Answer 29

Incarnation means to take on flesh. Jesus is incarnated as God, or God incarnate. He is God made man. He is fully human but also fully God. (implications) -> He is not affected by the original sin all humans are a product of -> He can perform miracles, showing Christian’s glimpse of heaven

Question 30

What was the crucifixion and its implications?

Answer 30

- Jesus was nailed to a wooden cross and left to die there; it was a common form of execution used by Romans- death was slow and painful (implications) -> Jesus suffered the full pain of a human death; Jesus can understand human suffering -> atonement sacrifice

Question 31

What was the Resurrection and its implications?

Answer 31

- 3 days after crucifixion, Jesus rose from dead; Jesus has power over death as he is fully God - He is free from the original sin that leads to death, and so he can rise over it (implications) -> God was satisfied with his sacrifice to pay the debt of human sin -> perfect relationship between God and humans restored -> humans find hope in it, as they too will be raised to life after death to share eternity in heaven with God **“I am the resurrection, he who believes in me will live even if he dies.”**

Question 32

What was the ascension?

Answer 32

- 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus rose to heaven - Represents success of good over evil; Jesus was final sacrifice - now we are forgiven **“He was taken into heaven as the disciples watched him”**

Question 33

What are different views on Jesus’ life – incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension

Answer 33

- conservative -> historically accurate - others -> the ascension is metaphorical, some events are more emphasised than the others e.g. in all Protestant Churches the cross found emphasises the cross wasn’t the end, Jesus rose from death

Question 34

Explain the concept and need for salvation.

Answer 34

- Adam and Eve sinned causing the perfect relationship between humanity and God to break. - The broken relationship needed to be fixed. - God himself decided to incarnate in the form of Jesus on Earth - Jesus then died as a sacrifice, the final sacrifice (atonement).

Question 35

Explain the concept of atonement

Answer 35

atonement -> making amends or paying for something wrong - God provided a way of atonement for the Jewish people through regular atonement sacrifices (offerings) on the day of atonement, bringing reconciliation between humans and God on that day - Jesus was the final atonement sacrifice, above all other previous sacrifices, allowing humans to be forgiven despite being imperfect **“on this day shall atonement be made for you” “we will have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ"**

Question 36

What is God's grace?

Answer 36

- Through God’s grace, we have his blessing despite being flawed, if we have faith in Christ (his love and mercy). Paul - it isn’t through good deeds or following God’s laws that we can achieve eternal life in heaven; through Grace **“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith”**

Question 37

What do Christians believe about redemption?

Answer 37

- God has redeemed humans and offers to pay for our debt of sin through salvation. - In order to be saved, they need to repent for their sins and accept God’s help (through Holy Spirit) to live a good life.

Question 38

What are the different (denominational) divering views on salvation?

Answer 38

- Jesus was the final sacrifice that paid for human sin once and for all - Roman Catholics think baptism and belonging to the Church leads to salvation. - Evangelical Christians think faith in Jesus leads to salvation. - Others think good deeds and your actions lead to heaven and salvation.

Question 39

What are the apocalyptic ideas on life and Jesus?

Answer 39

- First Christian: Jesus will return to establish a new world order to replace the sinful evil world we live, Parousia - today, some Christians still believe in the Parousia, living expectantly

Question 40

What do Christians believe about resurrection after death? What happens, and what is the human body like?

Answer 40

- humans possess an immortal soul, distinct from the physical body (distinct to humans) - the human body is a temple for God, where his spirit can live “honour God with your body” - at the end of time, all of the dead will be raised to be judged by God

Question 41

Describe Christian beliefs on Hell.

Answer 41

Hell isn’t mentions much in the Bible, so there are lots of diverging views - a place of indescribable eternal torture and suffering (used by the Church to get people to follow religion) - annihilation, where the soul ceases to exist after physical death - eternal existence without God’s blessing, biblical descriptions are symbolic

Question 42

Describle Christian beliefs on Heaven.

Answer 42

- in eternal presence of God - no suffering or evil “ a rainbow encircling the throne of God” “no more death or mourning of crying or pain” It is a source of comfort for Christians, and also can be seen as a reward for the difficult life of a believer

Question 43

What is purgatory?

Answer 43

- if you die in a good spiritual state you go to heaven - otherwise, you undergo purification to achieve the holiness needed to enter heaven -> Catholics pray for the dead, prayers can help people in purgatory