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103. We believe in the one living and true God, both holy and loving,
eternal, unlimited in power, wisdom, and goodness, the Creator and
Preserver of all things. Within this unity there are three persons of
one essential nature, power, and eternity - the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Spirit.
Gen. 1:1; Ex. 3:13-15; 33:20; Deut. 6:4; Ps. 90:2; Isa. 40:28-29;
Matt. 3:16-17; 28:19; John 1:1-2; 4:24; 16:13; 17:3; Acts 5:3-4;
17:24-25; I Cor. 8:4, 6; Eph. 2:18; Phil. 2:6; Col. 1:16-17; I Tim.
1:17; Heb. 1:8; 1 John 5:20.
104. We believe the Father is the source of all that exists, whether
of matter or spirit. With the Son and the Holy Spirit, He made man in
His image. By intention He relates to man as Father, thereby forever
declaring His goodwill toward man. In love, He both seeks and receives
penitent sinners.
Ps. 68:5; Isa. 64:8; Matt. 7:11; John 3:17; Rom. 8:15; I Peter 1:17.
105. We believe in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. He was
conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, truly God and
truly man. He died on the cross and was buried, to be a sacrifice both
for original sin and for all the transgressions of men, and to reconcile
us to God. Christ rose bodily from the dead, and ascended into heaven,
and there intercedes for us at the Father's right hand until He returns
to judge all men at the last day.
Ps. 16:8-10; Matt. 1:21, 23; 11:27; 16:28; 27:62-66; 28:5-9, 16-17;
Mark 10:45; 15; 16:6-7; Luke 1:27, 31, 35; 24:4-8, 23; John 1:1, 14, 18;
3:16-17; 20:26-29; 21; Acts 1:2-3; 2:24-31; 4:12; 10:40; Rom. 5:10, 18;
8:34; 14:9; I Cor. 15:3-8, 14; II Cor. 5:18-19; Gal. 1:4; 2:20; 4:4-5;
Eph. 5:2; I Tim. 1:15; Heb 2:17; 7:27; 9:14, 28; 10:12; 13:20; I Peter
2:24; I John 2:2; 4:14.
106. We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and
the Son, and is of the same essential nature, majesty, and glory, as the
Father and the Son, truly and eternally God. He is the Administrator of
grace to all mankind, and is particularly the effective Agent in
conviction for sin, in regeneration, in sanctification, and in
glorification. He is ever present, assuring, preserving, guiding, and
enabling the believer.
Job 33:4; Matt. 28:19; John 4:24; 14:16-17; 15:26; 16:13-15; Acts
5:3-4; Rom. 8:9; II Cor. 3:17; Gal. 4:6.
107. We believe that the books of the Old and New Testaments
constitute the Holy Scriptures. They are the inspired and infallibly
written Word of God, fully inerrant in their original manuscripts and
superior to all human authority, and have been transmitted to the
present without corruption of any essential doctrine. We believe that
they contain all things necessary to salvation; so that whatever is not
read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any
man that it should be believed as an article of faith, or be thought
requisite or necessary to salvation. Both in the Old and New Testaments
life is offered to mankind ultimately through Christ, who is the only
Mediator between God and man. The New Testament teaches Christians how
to fulfil the moral principles of the Old Testament, calling for loving
obedience to God made possible by the indwelling presence of His Holy
Spirit.
The canonical books of the Old Testament are:
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges,
Ruth, I Samuel, II Samuel, I Kings, II Kings, I Chronicles, II
Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes,
The Song of Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel,
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah,
Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
The canonical books of the New Testament are:
Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, I Corinthians, II
Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, I
Thessalonians, II Thessalonians, I Timothy, II Timothy, Titus, Philemon,
Hebrews, James, I Peter, II Peter, I John, II John, III John, Jude, and
Revelation.
Ps. 19:7; Matt. 5:17-19; 22:37-40; Luke 24:27, 44; John 1:45; 5:46;
17:17; Acts 17:2, 11; Rom. 1:2; 15:4, 8; 16:26; II Cor. 1:20; Gal.1:8;
Eph. 2:15-16; I Tim. 2:5; II Tim. 3:15-17; Heb. 4:12; 10:1; 11:39; James
1:21; I Peter 1:23; II Peter 1:19-21; 1John 2:3-7; Rev. 22:18-19.
108. We believe that the two great commandments which require us to
love the Lord our God with all the heart, and our neighbours as
ourselves, summarize the divine law as it is revealed in the Scriptures.
They are the perfect measure and norm of human duty, both for the
ordering and directing of families and nations, and all other social
bodies, and for individual acts, by which we are required to acknowledge
God as our only Supreme Ruler, and all men as created by Him, equal in
all natural rights. Therefore all men should so order all their
individual, social, and political acts as to give to God entire and
absolute obedience, and to assure to all men the enjoyment of every
natural right, as well as to promote the fulfilment of each in the
possession and exercise of such rights.
Lev. 19:18, 34; Deut. 1:16-17; Job 31:13-14; Jer 21:12; 22:3; Micah
6:8; Matt. 5:44-48; 7:12; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:27-29, 35; John
13:34-35; Acts 10:34-35; 17:26; Rom. 12:9; 13:1, 7-8, 10; Gal. 5:14;
6:10; Titus 3:1; James 2:8; I Peter 2:17; I John 2:5; 4:12-13; II John
6.
109. We believe that man is created in the image of God, that human
sexuality reflects that image in terms of intimate love, communication,
fellowship, subordination of the self to the larger whole, and
fulfilment. God's Word makes use of the marriage relationship as the
supreme metaphor for His relationship with His covenant people and for
revealing the truth that that relationship is of one God with one
people. Therefore God's plan for human sexuality is that it is to be
expressed only in a monogamous lifelong relationship between one man and
one woman within the framework of marriage. This is the only
relationship which is divinely designed for the birth and rearing of
children and is a covenant union made in the sight of God, taking
priority over every other human relationship.
Gen. 1:27-28; 2:18, 20, 23, 24; Isa. 54: 4-8; 62:5b; Jer. 3:14; Ezek.
16:3ff.; Hosea 2; Mal. 2:14; Matt. 19:4-6; Mark 10:9; John 2:1-2, 11; I
Tim. 5:14; I Cor. 9:5; Eph. 5:23-32; Heb. 13:4; Rev. 19:7-8.
110. We believe that man's creation in the image of God included
ability to choose between right and wrong. Thus man was made morally
responsible for his choices. But since the fall of Adam, man is unable
in his own strength to do the right. This is due to original sin, which
is not simply the following of Adam's example, but rather the corruption
of the nature of every man, and is reproduced naturally in Adam's
descendants. Because of it, man is very far gone from original
righteousness, and of his own nature is continually inclined to evil. He
cannot of himself even call upon God or exercise faith for salvation.
But through Jesus Christ the prevenient grace of God makes possible what
man in himself cannot do. It is bestowed freely upon all men, enabling
all who will to turn and be saved.
Gen. 6:5; 8:21; Deut. 30:19; Josh. 24:15; I Kings 20:40; Ps. 51:5;
Isa. 64:6; Jer. 17:9; Mark 7:21-23; Luke 16:15; John 7:17; Rom. 3:10-
12; 5:12-21; I Cor. 15:22; Eph. 2:1-3; I Tim. 2:5; Titus 3:5; Heb. 11:6;
Rev. 22:17.
111. We believe that Christ's offering of himself, once and for all,
through His sufferings and meritorious death on the cross, provides the
perfect redemption and atonement for the sins of the whole world, both
original and actual. There is no other ground of salvation from sin but
that alone. This atonement is sufficient for every individual of Adam's
race. It is unconditionally effective in the salvation of those mentally
incompetent from birth, of those converted persons who have become
mentally incompetent, and of children under the age of accountability.
But it is effective for the salvation of those who reach the age of
accountability only when they repent and exercise faith in Christ.
Isa. 52:13-53:12; Luke 24:46-47; John 3:16; Acts 3:18; 4:12; Rom.
3:20, 24-26; 5:8-11, 13, 18-20; 7:7; 8:34; I Cor. 6:11; 15:22; Gal.
2:16; 3:2-3; Eph. 1:7; 2:13, 16; I Tim. 2:5-6; Heb. 7:23-27; 9:11-15,
24-28; 10:14; I John 2:2; 4:10.
112. We believe that for man to appropriate what God's prevenient
grace has made possible, he must voluntarily respond in repentance and
faith. The ability comes from God, but the act is man's.
Repentance is prompted by the convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit.
It involves a wilful change of mind that renounces sin and longs for
righteousness, a godly sorrow for and a confession of past sins, proper
restitution for wrongdoings, and a resolution to reform the life.
Repentance is the precondition for saving faith, and without it saving
faith is impossible. Faith, in turn, is the only condition of salvation.
It begins in the agreement of the mind and the consent of the will to
the truth of the gospel, but issues in a complete reliance by the whole
person in the saving ability of Jesus Christ and a complete trusting of
oneself to Him as Saviour and Lord. Saving faith is expressed in a
public acknowledgment of His Lordship and an identification with His
church.
Mark 1:15; Luke 5:32; 13:3; 24:47; John 3:16; 17:20; 20:31; Acts
5:31; 10:43; 11:18; 16:31; 20:21; 26:20; Rom. 1:16; 2:4; 10:8-10, 17;
Gal. 3:26; Eph. 2:8; 4:4-6; Phil. 3:9; II Thess. 2:13; II Tim. 2:25;
Heb. 11:6; 12:2; I Peter 1:9; II Peter 3:9.
113. We believe that when man repents of his sin and believes on the
Lord Jesus Christ, he in the same moment is justified, regenerated,
adopted into the family of God, and assured of his salvation through the
witness of the Spirit.
We believe that we are accounted righteous before God only on the
basis of the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, being justified
by faith alone, and not on the basis of our own works.
We believe that regeneration is that work of the Holy Spirit by which
the pardoned sinner becomes a child of God. This new life is received
through faith in Jesus Christ, and by it the regenerate is delivered
from the power of sin which reigns over all the unregenerate, so that
they love God and through grace serve Him with the will and affections
of the heart, receiving the Spirit of Adoption.
Justification: Hab. 2:4; Acts 13:38-39; 15:11; 16:31; Rom. 1:17;
3:28; 4:2-5; 5:1-2; Gal. 3:6-14; Eph. 2:8-9; Phil 3:9; Heb. 10:38.
Regeneration: John 1:12-13; 3:3; 5-8; 11 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 3:26; Eph.
2:5, 10, 19; 4:24; Col. 3:10; Titus 3:5; James 1:18; I Peter 1:3-4; II
Peter 1:4; I John 3:1.
Adoption: Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:5, 7; Eph. 1:5.
Witness of the Spirit: Rom. 8:16-17; Gal. 4:6; John 2:3; 3:14; 18-19.
115. We believe that although good works cannot save us from our sins
or from God's judgment, they are the fruit of faith and follow after
regeneration. Therefore they are pleasing and acceptable to God in
Christ, and by them a living faith may be as evidently known as a tree
is discerned by its fruit.
Matt. 5:16; 7:16-20; John 15:8: Rom. 3:20; 4:2, 4:6; Gal. 2:16; 5:6;
Eph. 2:10; Phil. 1:11; Col. 1:10; I Thess. 1:3; Titus 2:14; 3:5; James
2:18, 22; I Peter 2:9, 12.
116. We believe that after we have experienced regeneration, it is
possible to fall into sin, for in this life there is no such height or
strength of holiness from which it is impossible to fall. But by the
grace of God one who has fallen into sin may by true repentance and
faith find forgiveness and restoration.
Mal. 3:7; Matt. 18:21-22; John 15:4-6; I Tim. 4:1, 16; Heb. 10:35-39;
I John 1:9; 2:1, 24-25.
117. We believe that sanctification is that work of the Holy Spirit
by which the child of God is separated from sin unto God and is enabled
to love God with all his heart and to walk in all His holy commandments
blameless. Sanctification is initiated at the moment of justification
and regeneration. From that moment there is a gradual or progressive
sanctification as the believer walks with God and daily grows in grace
and in a more perfect obedience to God. This prepares for the crisis of
entire sanctification which is wrought instantaneously when the believer
presents himself a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, through
faith in Jesus Christ, being effected by the baptism with the Holy
Spirit who cleanses the heart from all inbred sin. The crisis of entire
sanctification perfects the believer in love and empowers him for
effective service. It is followed by lifelong growth in grace and the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The life of holiness
continues through faith in the sanctifying blood of Christ and evidences
itself by loving obedience to God's revealed will.
Gen. 17:1; Deut. 30:6; Ps. 130:8; Isa. 6:1-6; Ezek. 36:25-29; Matt.
5:8, 48; Luke 1:74-75; 3:16-17; 24:49; John 17:1-26; Acts 1:4-5, 8;
2:1-4; 15:8-9; 26:18; Rom. 8:3-4; I Cor. 1:2; 6:11; II Cor. 7:1; Eph.
4:13, 24; 5:25-27; I Thess. 3:10, 12-13; 4:3, 7-8; 5:23-24; II Thess.
2:13; Titus 2:11-14; Heb. 10:14; 12:14; 13:12; James 3:17-18; 4:8; I
Peter 1:2; II Peter 1:4; I John 1:7, 9; 3:8-9; 4:17-18; Jude 24.
118. We believe that the Gift of the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit
himself, and He is to be desired more than the gifts of the Spirit which
He in His wise counsel bestows upon individual members of the Church to
enable them properly to fulfil their function as members of the body of
Christ. The gifts of the Spirit, although not always identifiable with
natural abilities, function through them for the edification of the
whole church. These gifts are to be exercised in love under the
administration of the Lord of the church, not through human volition.
The relative value of the gifts of the Spirit is to be tested by their
usefulness in the church and not by the ecstasy produced in the ones
receiving them.
Luke 11:13; 24:49; Acts 1:4; 2:38-39; 8:19-20; 10:45; 11:17; Rom.
12:4-8; I Cor. 12:1-14:40; Eph. 4:7-8, 11-16; Heb. 2:4; 13:20-21; I
Peter 4:8-11.
119. We believe that the Christian church is the entire body of
believers in Jesus Christ, who is the founder and only Head of the
church. The church includes both those believers who have gone to be
with the Lord and those who remain on the earth, having renounced the
world, the flesh, and the devil, and having dedicated themselves to the
work which Christ committed unto His church until He comes. The church
on earth is to preach the pure Word of God, properly administer the
sacraments according to Christ's instructions, and live in obedience to
all that Christ commands. A local church is a body of believers formally
organized on gospel principles, meeting regularly for the purposes of
evangelism, nurture, fellowship, and worship. The Wesleyan Methodist
Church is a denomination consisting of those members within district
conferences and local churches who, as members of the body of Christ,
hold the faith set forth in these Articles of Religion and acknowledge
the ecclesiastical authority of its governing bodies.
Matt. 16:18; 18:17; Acts 2:41-47; 9:31; 11:22; 12:5; 14:23; 15:22;
20:28; I Cor. 1:2; 12:28; 16:1; II Cor. 1:1; Gal. 1:2; Eph. 1:22-23;
2:19-22; 3:9-10, 21; 5:22-33; Col. 1:18, 24; I Thess. 1:1; II Thess.1:1;
I Tim. 3:15; Heb. 12:23; James 5:14.
120. We believe that water baptism and the Lord's Supper are the
sacraments of the church commanded by Christ and ordained as a means of
grace when received through faith. They are tokens of our profession of
Christian faith and signs of God's gracious ministry toward us. By them,
He works within us to quicken, strengthen, and confirm our faith.
We believe that water baptism is a sacrament of the church, commanded
by our Lord and administered to believers. It is a symbol of the new
covenant of grace and signifies acceptance of the benefits of the
atonement of Jesus Christ. By means of this sacrament, believers declare
their faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour.
Matt. 3:13-17; 28:19; Mark 1:9-11; John 3:5, 22, 26; 4:1-2; Acts
2:38-39, 41; 8:12-17, 36-38; 9:18; 16:15, 33; 18:8; 19:5; 22:16; Rom
2:28-29; 4:11; 6:3-4; I Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:27-29; Col. 2:11-12; Titus
3:5.
We believe that the Lord's Supper is a sacrament of our redemption by
Christ's death and of our hope in His victorious return, as well as a
sign of the love that Christians have for each other. To such as receive
it humbly, with a proper spirit and by faith, the Lord's Supper is made
a means through which God communicates grace to the heart.
Matt. 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20; John 6:48-58; I Cor.
5:7-8; 10:3-4, 16-17; 11:23-29.
123. We believe that the certainty of the personal and imminent
return of Christ inspires holy living and zeal for the evangelisation of
the world. At His return He will fulfil all prophecies made concerning
His final and complete triumph over evil.
Job 19:25-27; Isa. 11:1-12; Zech. 14:1-11; Matt. 24:1-51; 25; 26:64;
Mark 13:1-37; Luke 17:22-37; 21:5-36; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:6-11; I Cor.
1:7-8; I Thess. 1:10; 2:19; 3:13; 4:13-18; 5:1-11, 23; II Thess.1:6-10;
2:1-12; Titus 2:11-14; Heb. 9:27-28; James 5:7-8; II Peter 3:1-14; I
John 3:2-3; Rev. 1:7; 19:11-16; 22:6-7, 12, 20.
124. We believe in the bodily resurrection from the dead of all
mankind - of the just unto the resurrection of life, and of the unjust
unto the resurrection of damnation. The resurrection of the righteous
dead will occur at Christ's Second Coming, and the resurrection of the
wicked will occur at a later time. The resurrection of Christ is the
guarantee of the resurrection of those who are in Christ. The raised
body will be a spiritual body, but the person will be whole and
identifiable.
Job 19:25-27; Dan. 12:2; Matt. 22:30-32; 28:1-20; Mark 16:1-8; Luke
14:14; 24:1-53; John 5:28-29; 11:21-27; 20:1-21:25; Acts 1:3; Rom. 8:11;
I Cor. 6:14; 15:1-58; II Cor. 4:14; 5:1-11; I Thess. 4:13-17; Rev.
20:4-6, 11-13.
125. We believe that the Scriptures reveal God as the Judge of all
mankind and the acts of His judgment are based on His omniscience and
eternal justice. His administration of judgment will culminate in the
final meeting of mankind before His throne of great majesty and power,
where records will be examined and final rewards and punishments will be
administered.
Eccl. 12:14; Matt. 10:15; 25:31-46; Luke 11:31-32; Acts 10:42; 17:31;
Rom. 2:16; 14:10-12; II Cor. 5:10; II Tim. 4:1; Heb. 9:27; II Peter 3:7;
Rev. 20:11-13.
126. We believe that the Scriptures clearly teach that there is a
conscious personal existence after death. The final destiny of man is
determined by God's grace and man's response, evidenced inevitably by
his moral character which results from his personal and volitional
choices and not from any arbitrary decree of God. Heaven with its
eternal glory and the blessedness of Christ's presence is the final
abode of those who choose the salvation which God provides through Jesus
Christ, but hell with its everlasting misery and separation from God is
the final abode of those who neglect this great salvation.
Dan. 12:2; Matt. 25:34-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 13:3; John 8:21-23;
14:2-3; II Cor. 5:6, 8, 10; Heb. 2:1-3; 9:27-28; 10:26-31; Rev.
20:14-15; 21:1-22:5, 14-15.
The Discipline of the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia
Contents of The Discipline may be copied without
permission provided no commercial purpose is involved.
Copyright © 1994 Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia
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