Christian Terminology For New Christians
Often Christians who have been in church all their lives find it difficult to appreciate how confusing Christian words and phrases can be to those who have not been raised in a Christian environment. If you happen to be one who was not brought up with a Christian vocabulary, the following list of words and phrases with definitions may help. The list is certainly not comprehensive. It is very possible that as time passes I will think of new words and phrases to add. My definitions may need some improvement! If you spot an error, please feel free to let me know!
(You may also enjoy reading "Basic Bible Doctrine for Children," also on this website.)
Steve Hall, June 2005
Agnosticism is the belief that we cannot know for sure whether there is a God, or not. Maybe there is a God. Maybe there is not. (Back to Contents)
Antichrist is the popular name given to the man referred to in the Bible as the "Man of Sin" or the "Beast." He is a man, empowered by Satan, who will rise to power and severely persecute God's people near the end of the age during a time the Bible calls the Great Tribulation. When Jesus returns, he will destroy him, casting him into the lake of fire where he also casts Satan. You can read some things that the Bible teaches about this man on our web site. (Read more about the Antichrist.) . (Back to Contents)
Atheism is the belief that God does not exist. Atheists believe that there is no God. (See: “Theism”) (Back to Contents)
Atonement is the act of bringing man and God together. It is the same as “reconciliation.” When Jesus died on the cross, he made possible the Atonement of men with God. Therefore, He is called our “Atonement.” (See also: “Expiation”; "Substitutionary Atonement") (Back to Contents)
The word “baptism” refers to the act of being placed into or “immersed” into something. New Christians are “baptized” into water to symbolize the fact that we are dead and “buried” to an old way of life, that Jesus died and was buried in the tomb before He came back to life, and that our bodies will someday die and be buried before God raises us back up from the dead. All new Christians should be baptized as a testimony to the world of our commitment to Christ and as an act of obedience to our Lord. (See: “Ordinance”) (Back to Contents)
In general, Baptists believe the Bible is the God’s Word to man, absolutely true in all its parts and our source of authority (It tells us how to live.). Baptists believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, that He was buried, and that He rose again. Baptists believe that we can have eternal life only through trusting Jesus Christ for our salvation (see “salvation”). The name “Baptist” comes from the fact that while other denominations (see “denomination”) practice baptism by sprinkling or pouring, Baptists emphasize baptism (see “baptism”) by immersion following commitment to Jesus Christ. (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that when we receive Jesus Christ into our lives as Lord and Savior, our lives are changed so much and we are so different that we can be called “new creatures.” To emphasize this total change in our lives, Jesus called the experience being “born again.”
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3)
Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. (John 3:7)
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. (1 Peter 1:23)
His full name and title is the Lord Jesus Christ. The word “Christ” [Hebrew: “Messiah”] emphasizes that He is the anointed or specially chosen One of God. He is anointed, or specially chosen, to bring salvation to mankind by His death on the cross. (Back to Contents)
Communion is a special name for the “Lord’s Supper.” The word “communion” emphasizes the fellowship we have with the Lord Jesus Christ and with other Christians in this beautiful ordinance (see “ordinance”). (Back to Contents)
This word refers to the complete change that takes place when we receive the Lord Jesus Christ into our lives. (Back to Contents)
Someone who has received the Lord Jesus Christ into his or her life is said to be “converted.” It refers to the total and complete change that He makes in our lives. (Back to Contents)
The word conviction is commonly used in two ways. When we have done things that are wrong, and the Holy Spirit reminds us that we have sinned (see: "Promptings of the Holy Spirit") we say that we are "under conviction." People who have never received the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior sometimes fight conviction for a long time before they finally repent. Christians learn to repent quickly when the Holy Spirit brings conviction. The word "conviction" is also used to refer to our strong beliefs upon which we base our lives. As Christians we have many strong convictions that we are absolutely convinced to be true. For example, we have an absolute conviction that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. (Back to Contents)
A cult is a group of people who claim to believe the Bible and even claim to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. But their actual teachings are so far away from the Bible that they are not true Christians. Some examples would be those who do not believe that Jesus Christ is really God, or those who believe that salvation can be attained in some way besides faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. (See: “Heresy”) (Back to Contents)
Demons are fallen angels who chose to be on Satan's side when he rebelled against God. God uses them, just as He uses Satan, to give Christians the opportunity to learn spiritual warfare and how to overcome in our preparation for eternity. You can learn more about our spiritual enemies and how to overcome them in our web pages on Spiritual Warfare. (Go to Spiritual Warfare pages). (Back to Contents)
A denomination is a Christian group that believes things and practices things slightly differently from other Christian groups. Individual churches are often part of a larger denomination. (For example, Bethlehem Baptist Church in Monroe County, Tennessee, is part of a denomination called the “Southern Baptist Convention.”) However, all Christian denominations agree that the Lord Jesus Christ is God who became man in order to die for our sins, and that faith in Him is the only way to receive eternal life. (Back to Contents)
A Christian. Someone who believes in and follows (obeys) the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ is called His disciple. (Back to Contents)
Discipleship refers to the act or position of being a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. (See: “Disciple”) (Back to Contents)
Doctrine is a term that means the teachings and principles that are taught in the Bible. (Back to Contents)
Christians are called “the elect.” The term “elect” refers to the fact that God chose (or “elected”) us to be His children before He even created the world. (Back to Contents)
The Bible doctrine (see “doctrine”) that teaches that God chose who His children would be before the creation of the world. (Back to Contents)
The belief that once a person is truly saved, he is kept by God forever. True salvation cannot be lost. Of course, this does not mean that we can “go forward at invitation,” get “baptized,” or become a “church member,” then live a life of disobedience to God and have confidence of salvation anyway! One who is truly saved will be kept forever by God, but he will also live a life of obedience to God. (See: “Perseverance of the Saints” and “Security of the Believer”) (Back to Contents)
Christians who believe the Bible is God’s Word and who believe that the Gospel (“Good News”) of Jesus Christ should be shared with others are often called “evangelicals.” Christians from many different denominations are called evangelicals. (Back to Contents)
Evangelism basically means sharing the good news about Jesus Christ. This can be done one-on-one (person to person). It can also be done in large “evangelistic” meetings. Doing the work of evangelism means telling others about what Jesus has done for them, providing them an opportunity to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. (Back to Contents)
An evangelistic church or ministry or individual recognizes the importance of doing the work of evangelism and seeks to tell others about Jesus. (Back to Contents)
Expiation is what Jesus accomplished for our sins when He died on the cross. Jesus Himself took the just death penalty we deserved for sin instead of that penalty being given to us. Jesus removed the sin that had caused us to be separated from God and that had kept us from having a relationship with God. (See “Atonement” and “Reconciliation”) (Back to Contents)
Faith is more than “head knowledge” about the truth of Jesus Christ. Faith means putting out complete trust in Jesus Christ, and in Him alone, to save us from sin, death, and hell. (Back to Contents)
God created Adam and Eve as sinless, innocent people, but with the power to choose to disobey God (sin). When Adam chose to disobey God, bringing sin into God’s perfect creation, it led to an enormous change in the whole of creation, including the nature of man. This horribly catastrophic event in history is called the “fall of man.” (Back to Contents)
The word “fundamentalist” has several meanings. Usually most people use it to refer to people of any denomination who believe that the Bible is the Word of God, completely true in all of it’s parts and totally without error. Some Christians, who do believe the Bible is God’s Word and without error, prefer not to be called fundamentalists because they think the word means the same as “legalists” to many people. (Back to Contents)
Salvation has three aspects: Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification. Glorification will certainly one day take place for all Christians, but we do not experience it while we still live in these bodies of flesh and blood. When Jesus returns, all Christians will be given brand new bodies that will be wonderful and eternal. These bodies are called “glorified” bodies. It is at that moment that “glorification” takes place. (Back to Contents)
This word is used in two senses: God is said to be “glorified” when we honor Him, praise Him, live for Him, and give thanks to Him. People (Christians) will be glorified when Jesus returns to set up His kingdom. (see: “Glorification”) (Back to Contents)
See: Invitation (Back to Contents)
“Gospel” literally means “good news.” It refers to the good news that Jesus Christ, God the Son, became a man like us. He lived a perfect and sinless life. He died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin. He rose again and lives forever. He will forgive our sin and give us eternal life when we repent of our sin and put our faith in Him. (Back to Contents)
Grace is a gift that is given without our deserving it. The Bible teaches that all of us have sinned and deserve death and hell and that there is no way we can fix that problem on our own. But God offers us His Grace. He gives us the gifts of forgiveness, righteousness, eternal life, peace, joy, the privilege of being part of His family, and many other wonderful things, even though we could never deserve these things. (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that near the end of this age there will be a time of world-wide trouble on the earth that will be relatively brief (about 3 1/2 years), but more severe than the world will have ever experienced. God's people will experience great persecution during this time. Jesus referred to this time as the "Great Tribulation." A man we often call the antichrist will be the great world leader during this period of time. After the Great Tribulation, God will pour out His anger on the kingdom of the antichrist and Jesus will return to reign on the earth for 1000 years (see: "millennium"). While some Bible teachers believe that Christians will be taken out of the earth before this time of tribulation begins, others believe that Christians must be prepared to endure severe persecution under the antichrist, just as Christians have endured persecution in the past and continue to endure it in many places today. (Of course, when God pours out His wrath on the kingdom of the antichrist, God will supernaturally protect His people just as He protected Israel when He poured out His wrath on Pharaoh!) On this website, we believe that Christians must be prepared to endure the tribulation. (You can read why we believe that here.). (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that heaven is a wonderful place that exists in the spirit world. We cannot see it or experience it with our senses. It is the place where God and His Holy angels dwell. It is a place where continual, never-ending worship of God takes place. When Christians die, their spirits go there to await the resurrection. (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that those who refuse God's offer of Eternal Life through the Lord Jesus Christ will go to an awful place called hell. The Bible teaches that it was prepared for Satan and his angels. But those who choose to be on Satan's side and who reject Christ will go there as well. The Bible describes this place with words such as these: "outer darkness," "flame," "furnace of fire," "unquenchable fire," and "fire and brimstone." It is obviously a place of unspeakable horror. But the wonderful news is that God has provided a way for us to stay out of hell. When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, He gives to us the gift of eternal life. (Back to Contents)
Heresy refers to such serious errors in what people believe that the people who believe those things cannot really be Christians. For example, it is heresy to believe that Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit is not truly God. It is heresy to believe that there is some other way (for example, our own good works) to be saved from our sins other than faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is heresy to believe that Jesus did not really die for our sins, or that He did not rise from the dead. (Back to Contents)
The word “holiness” translates a Greek word that means “to be separate or set apart.” All Christians are holy, in the sense that God has set us all apart for His purposes and for His glory. Of course, God himself is holy. He is totally set apart from all creation because He is Perfect, He is Spirit, and He is Eternal. The words “holy” and “sanctified” come from the same Greek word. (See: “Sanctified”) (Back to Contents)
The Holy Spirit is God. He is the third person of the Trinity. As God, He is Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Omnipotent. He comes to live inside us when we repent of our sin and receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior. (See: "Indwelling of the Holy Spirit") He gives us direction and wisdom for making life's decisions as we learn to listen to His voice. (See: "Promptings of the Holy Spirit") . (Back to Contents)
Hypocrisy means “pretense.” People who claim to be living for Christ but who are really not living for Christ are guilt of hypocrisy. A person who condemns sins in others but excuses them in himself would be guilty of hypocrisy. (Back to Contents)
Someone who is guilty of hypocrisy. (See: “hypocrisy”) (Back to Contents)
The description of a person who is guilty of hypocrisy or of a particular deed of hypocrisy. (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that after we trust Christ, we are to live obediently (righteously). However, God knows that we cannot do this in our own power and ability. Therefore He enables us to live like we should by “imparting” His righteousness to us. This imparted righteousness has nothing to do with our justification but everything to do with our sanctification. (Back to Contents)
All of us are sinners by nature. None of us can be righteous (or good) on our own. But when we receive Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, He gives us the gift of His Righteousness. So God sees us as righteous, even though it is really not our righteousness, it is the Righteousness of Christ. This is called “imputed righteousness” because He “imputed” or “assigned” it to us. Christ's righteousness, imputed to us, has to everything to do with our justification . (Back to Contents)
The incarnation refers to the time when God (who is Spirit) became a man. This occurred when Jesus (God the Son) was conceived by God the Father by means of God the Holy Spirit (see: "Trinity") in Mary’s womb. (Back to Contents)
When we receive Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit of God comes to live inside us. He never leaves us again. To live somewhere is to “dwell” there. The Holy Spirit lives or dwells within us forever. (See: "Promptings of the Holy Spirit"). (Back to Contents)
The belief that God caused His Word, the Bible, to be written perfectly and without any errors at all. People who reject part of God’s Word (for example, the miracles) do not believe in inerrancy. (Back to Contents)
A description given to God’s Word by Christians who believe that the Bible contains no errors at all. (Back to Contents)
Infallible is a word often used with the word “inerrant.” It means that since the Bible is God’s Word, it cannot fail or mislead in any way. It is perfect. (Back to Contents)
Inspiration refers to the process that God uses to accomplish His purposes. He “inspired” His Word to be preserved inerrantly and infallibly. He inspires us to do His Work and accomplish His purposes. We are more likely to be inspired to do things for God if we are learning to listen to His voice speaking within us. (Back to Contents)
When we pray for other people besides ourselves, we are said to be “interceding” for them. Intercession, or praying for others, is a very important part of our pray life. (Back to Contents)
God invites everyone to repent of his or her sins and to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as his or her personal Lord and Savior. We call this "God's invitation." In many churches (including ours) most worship services have a time, near the end of the service, when an "invitation" is given. People are encouraged to examine their own hearts and say "yes" to God's invitation. Many pastors and evangelists encourage people to "come forward" during the time of invitation to let others know publicly that they have said "yes" to God's invitation. Many times Christians also "go forward" during the time of invitation in order to pray for special needs. Others go to let people know they are rededicating their lives to the Lord. (Back to Contents)
The description of one who has experienced justification. (See: “Justification”) (Back to Contents)
Legalism has two meanings. It can refer to the belief of some people who are not Christians that we can be saved by our own good works. It can also refer to Christians who cannot enjoy their freedom in Christ because they feel bound to do many things that God does not command us to do. (Or they feel bound not do things that God does not forbid us to do.) (Back to Contents)
One who practices legalism (See: “Legalism”) (Back to Contents)
A description of a person or a behavior that is brought about by legalism (see: “Legalism”) (Back to Contents)
The Lord’s Supper is one of two very sacred and special symbolic commands that Jesus told us to observe. We call these two sacred and special symbolic commands “ordinances.” The Lord’s Supper consists of eating a small piece of unleavened (flat, with no yeast) bread and drinking a small cup of unfermented grape juice, in the presence of other believers, as we think about what Jesus has done for us when He died on the cross. The bread represents His body. The juice represents His blood. The bread is unleavened and the juice is unfermented to represent the truth that Jesus body and blood were totally without sin. (Back to Contents)
“Lordship” refers to the fact that Jesus Christ is totally in command of our lives. He is the King. He gives us orders and commands that we obey. He is our Master. It does not make sense for anyone to claim that Jesus is his or her Savior and that He is God, but refuse to be willing to obey Him. When we receive Jesus Christ into our lives, we receive Him as Savior and as Lord. (Back to Contents)
Before we receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, we are said to be "lost." After we receive the Lord Jesus Christ we are "saved." Lost people do not have their sins forgiven until they repent and receive Christ. The Bible teaches that lost people are slaves to sin and to Satan. Lost people do not have the gift of eternal life. (Back to Contents)
Mercy refers to the fact that instead of giving us the punishment (death and hell) we deserve, God has forgiven us and shown us mercy. Mercy and Grace are two words that go together. Someone has said, “Grace is God giving us what we don’t deserve. Mercy is God not giving us what we do deserve!” (Back to Contents)
The word “Messiah” comes from the Hebrew word that is translated by the Greek word that means “Christ.” (Back to Contents)
The word "millennium" refers to the period of time lasting 1000 years during which the Lord Jesus Christ reigns over the earth after His return to the earth at His second coming. "Millennium" is a Latin word meaning "1000 years." (Back to Contents)
Omnipotent means “all powerful.” It is a word that describes God alone. He has perfect and total power in the entire universe. He has the power to do anything He chooses to do. (Back to Contents)
Omnipresent means that God can be everywhere at the same time. Wherever we go, whatever we do, God is there with us all the time. At the same time He is everywhere else with everyone else. Only God is Omnipresent. (It is important to remember that “omnipresence” is not the same as a pagan and nonchristian belief called “pantheism.” See: “Pantheism”) (Back to Contents)
Omniscience means that God knows everything there is to know. He has all knowledge. There is nothing hidden from Him. He knows every detail of information about you and me and everyone else on earth as well as every detail of the entire universe. (Back to Contents)
An “ordinance” is a very sacred and special symbolic command given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ. Baptists recognize two ordinances: Baptism and The Lord’s Supper. (See: “Baptism” and “Lord’s Supper”) (Back to Contents)
Pantheism is the belief that creation is God. Pantheists believe that the rocks, mountains, earth, stars, etc. are all part of God. Christians, on the other hand, believe that God made all these things. Even though Christians believe God is omnipresent (see: “Omnipresent”) we believe God is totally separate from His creation. (Back to Contents)
The belief that all who truly become Christians will, by God’s grace, live their lives faithfully for Him. In the past, more emphasis was given to the phrase, “perseverance of the saints” than to “once saved, always saved.” Our forefathers felt that this phrase helped keep people from thinking they could “get saved” and then live for themselves, instead of for Jesus, Who bought us. (See: “Security of the Believer”) (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaching that, from God’s perspective, we were chosen to be part of His family even before the foundation of the world. (Back to Contents)
“Predestined” is a word used to describe the fact that God determined what would happen and which people He would draw to Himself before the world began. (Back to Contents)
When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to live in our lives to give us wisdom and direction. (See: "Indwelling of the Holy Spirit") He speaks to us by giving us thoughts to do the right thing. We call these thoughts, given to us by the Holy Spirit, as "promptings of the Holy Spirit." His promptings will NEVER contradict or disagree with God's Word, the Bible. The best way new Christians can learn to recognize His voice is by getting to know God really well by studying the Bible. Of course, we often have our own thoughts. And some of our thoughts may be suggested to us by our enemy, Satan. As Christians grow, they learn to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit better and better. (Back to Contents)
Propitiation is a word with very deep meaning that is difficult to describe with only a few sentences. It refers to what happened at the “mercy seat” of the Holy of Holies. In the Old Testament, a high priest would offer a sacrifice for sins once a year on the Day of Atonement at the Mercy Seat. In the New Testament, Jesus is both our Great High Priest and our Sacrifice of Atonement. Serving as both Priest and Sacrifice, Jesus satisfied the requirements for justice of God, Who is perfect in holiness and justice (and cannot simply “overlook” or “excuse” sin). What Jesus did as Priest and Sacrifice is referred to as the “propitiation” for our sins. (See also: "Substitutionary Atonement." (Back to Contents)
Before we received the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, the Bible teaches that we were slaves to sin and to Satan. When Jesus died on the cross, He paid a price that, in effect, “bought us back” from Satan. In other words, He “ransomed” us. (See: “Redeemed”) (Back to Contents)
Rebirth (or “new birth”) means the same as being “born again.” (See: “Born Again”) (Back to Contents)
A person who has experienced reconciliation with God is said to be “reconciled” with God. (See: “Reconciliation”) (Back to Contents)
Since God is completely holy and since men are sinners, there is a separation between men and God. Sin separates us from God. The Lord Jesus Christ paid the death penalty for sin, making it possible for us to be forgiven and cleansed of sin. Being cleansed of sin makes it possible for us to be one with God again. The act of Jesus Christ of bringing man and God together by taking away man’s sin is called “Reconciliation.” (Back to Contents)
Sometimes Christians realize that they have not been walking in the Spirit as they should. When God convicts them that they have been making bad decisions, they should "rededicate" or renew their commitment to God. To rededicate is to say, "God, I know I haven't been living the way I should, and I am sorry. Would You please forgive me and help me to live like You want me to live." (see: "Invitation") (Back to Contents)
Slaves can be set free if someone with enough money pays the price for the slave. The free man essentially purchases the slave for himself and sets him free. Because of sin, we are slaves--slaves to sin and to Satan. When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the price for our sin. He purchased us from Satan. Therefore, we, who were once slaves, have been “redeemed.” (Back to Contents)
The act of redeeming a slave is called redemption. (See: “Redeemed”) (Back to Contents)
Regeneration means the same thing as being born again. (see: "Born Again"). (Back to Contents)
To repent means to change one’s mind and heart completely about anything. Usually, we use the word to mean to change one’s mind and heart completely about sin. Before we become Christians, we may have a tendency to excuse our sins as if they were no big deal. But God says that when we come to Christ we must repent. We must see sin as God sees sin—as horrible, destructive, deadly behavior that brings ruin and disaster into our lives and totally offends the loving God Who made us. (See: Salvation, How to Receive). (Back to Contents)
Repentance is the act of repenting from sin. (See: “Repent”) (Back to Contents)
Resurrection means to come back to life in such a way as to live forever and never die again. After His death and burial, the Lord Jesus Christ experienced resurrection. He came back to life and He lives forevermore. When Christians die, we also look forward to a resurrection. When the Lord Jesus Christ returns to earth, all the Christians who have died will be resurrected to life in new glorified bodies to be with Him forever. The Bible teaches that, after the resurrection, we will all have responsibilities, perfectly matched with the skills and gifts God has given us, that we will use to serve the Lord Jesus Christ in His exciting kingdom on earth. (See: “Glorification”) (Back to Contents)
Truth that men cannot figure out on their own, but which must be given to them by God, is called “revelation.” The whole Bible is the revelation of God and God’s truth to men. The last book in the Bible is often called “Revelation” because God is revealing things to us that teach us about His great final victory over Satan, sin, and death. (Back to Contents)
Righteousness refers to being morally pure and clean in God’s sight. Many people try very hard to be righteous. But, in truth, men cannot become righteous on their own. The only way we can become righteous is to admit to God that we have failed (and failed badly!) and, by faith, receive the Lord Jesus Christ into our lives. When we do that, He imputes (for our justification) and begins to impart (for our sanctification), His righteousness into our lives. (See: “Imputed Righteousness” and “Imparted Righteousness”) (Back to Contents)
Salvation refers to the fact that God has rescued, or saved, us from sin and from the consequences of sin (death). In the Bible, we see three aspects of salvation—justification, sanctification, and glorification. (see: “Justification, ”Sanctification,” and “Glorification”) (Back to Contents)
Salvation is a gift from God. Many people mistakenly think that we must be very good in order to earn our salvation. The Bible teaches that none of us is good enough to earn salvation. We must accept it as a gift from God. God freely gives this wonderful gift to all who will accept it on His terms. We receive salvation when we admit to God that we have sinned and are truly sorry for our sins (so sorry that our heart's desire is to stop sinning--the Bible calls this "repentance") and when we receive, by faith, the Lord Jesus Christ into our lives as our personal Lord and Savior. We simply trust Him ( instead of our good behavior or our family or our church) to forgive us our sins and to give us the gift of eternal life. (You can read more about how to receive salvation on this website.) (Back to Contents)
Sanctification is that process by which God sets all of us (who have received the Lord Jesus Christ) apart from the world and from sin in order to use us for His purpose. When we experience Christian growth and become more like Jesus, we are experiencing sanctification. The English word “sanctification” comes from the same Greek word as the word “holy.” (see: “Holiness”) (Back to Contents)
One who has been set apart from sin and the world for God’s purposes is said to be sanctified. There is a sense in which we have been sanctified already. God set us apart for Himself when we received the Lord Jesus Christ. There is another sense in which we continue to be sanctified as we continue through life, growing to be more and more like Christ. (Back to Contents)
Satan was once one of the greatest angels ever created by God. He was so great and so wonderful that he became full of pride and rebelled against God. God could have destroyed Satan immediately, but God chose to use Satan to give Christians an opportunity to learn to overcome by resisting and fighting against Satan. (See: "Spiritual Warfare") Satan knows that the only way he can hurt God now is by luring God's people away from God through by tempting them to sin against God. Christians know that Satan was ultimately defeated when Jesus died on the cross. When Jesus returns, Satan will be bound for 1000 years. After the millennium is over, he will be forever placed in the lake of fire. The word "Satan" is often used to refer to the kingdom of Satan (including Satan and all his demons). (Back to Contents)
One of the most common words that describe Christians is the word “saved.” When we received the Lord Jesus Christ, He saved us from slavery to sin, death, and hell. We will never really die—at least not the real person we are inside. And we have no more reason to ever be afraid of hell. Jesus has saved us from these things. (Back to Contents)
When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ, He promises to keep us forever. He promises that nothing can ever separate us from His love or take us out of His hand. We are secure forever in Him. No matter what happens to us in this life, we can be confident that Jesus will never leave us. We can be confident that when we die, we will be with Him forever. (See: “Perseverance of the Saints”) (Back to Contents)
The most common Bible word for sin means, “to miss the mark.” God has told us in His Word how we should live our lives. He has told us what to do and what not to do. But all of us have failed to obey Him. We have all sinned. When we act selfishly; when we rebel against God; when we tell lies; lose our temper; lust; get irritated at others; etc—we have sinned. Sin always leads to hurt and pain for ourselves and for others. Eventually sin leads to death and destruction. The more we live according to God's commands, the better life will be. But we cannot "fix" our sin problem by just trying really hard to be good. That's why our Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross--to pay the death penalty for our sins in our place. When we repent of our sin and place our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, He forgives and cleanses us. (see: "Salvation, How to Receive," "Substitutionary Atonement" and "Expiation") (Back to Contents)
Christians have an enemy--Satan and his demons. God commands us, as part of our preparation for eternity, to learn to resist and overcome them. In His Word, God has given us weapons which He commands us to use for that purpose. You can learn a great deal about effective spiritual warfare on these web pages. (Go to Spiritual Warfare pages). (Back to Contents)
Christ died in our place. He endured the awfulness of death by crucifixion so that we could be set free from death. On the cross, He was our substitute. We should have been the ones to die, but He died for us. The word Atonement refers to the fact that when He died, He made it possible for God and man to come together as one. (See: “Atonement”) (You may also wish to read an article on the Substitutionary Atonement on this web site.) (Back to Contents)
Temptation is the suggestion to our mind that it would be good to do something that God says is sin. Some people feel guilty because they are tempted to do sinful things. But temptation is nothing to feel guilty about. Even Jesus was tempted. Temptation simply means that we have a battle to fight. We can choose to do the right thing and win over temptation. Or we can choose to sin. One of the best ways to win battles with temptation is to memorize Bible verses. (Back to Contents)
Theism is the belief that there is One Supreme Creator God Who is actively involved in the things going on in the world. Of course, all Christians are “Theists.” We believe in God. There are also other people who say they believe in God and are Theists, but who are not Christians. (We Christians believe that they are confused about Who God really is.) (Back to Contents)
The Bible teaches that God reveals Himself as One God Who exists as three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The word “Trinity” combines the prefix “tri-“ (meaning “three” as in tricycle, triangle, or tripod) with the word “unity” meaning one. (Back to Contents)
Walking in the flesh means living our lives in such a way that we are continually giving in to temptations to sin. (Back to Contents)
Walking in the Spirit means that we are living our lives in a way that shows we are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Who lives inside all who trust the Lord Jesus Christ)(See: "Indwelling of the Holy Spirit"). (Back to Contents)
The word “washed,” of course, means to be cleaned up. The Blood refers to the fact that Jesus had to die on the cross, giving up His blood for us. When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ, he forgives us of our sins and declares us to be righteous on the basis of His precious blood that He gave for us when He died on the cross. To be washed in His Blood means that our sins have been forgiven because we have trusted in His sacrifice of Himself on the cross. (Back to Contents)
To worship is to give our highest devotion, love, service, and praise to something or someone. To worship someone or something means that we rank that person or thing as the most important thing in our life. What we worship is number one in our life. As Christians we believe that it is important to worship God alone. The Bible says that when we allow any other person or thing to become more important to us than God, we have become guilty of the terrible sin of idolatry. As Christians, we meet together frequently in order to worship God together. These meetings are not just for fellowship and learning. They are primarily so that we can personally express with others our praise and adoration of God through words and music. REMEMBER: Worship services exist so that you can actually worship with others! God has created us in such a way that worship is very important to the health of Christians. PLEASE DO NOT CONFUSE THE ACT OF WATCHING OTHERS WORSHIP WITH ACTUAL WORSHIP! WORSHIP IS NOT A SPECTATOR SPORT!. (Back to Contents)
