| ¶106. The Articles of Faith of the Global Methodist Church. | ¶ 106.1 The Articles of Religion of the Methodist Church | ¶ 106.2 The Confession of Faith of the Evangelical United Brethren Church |
| The Articles of Faith prescribe the normative doctrinal standards of the Global Methodist Church. To that end, they affirm the creedal tradition of the church universal, express our Protestant theological heritage of faith, and articulate our church’s particular Wesleyan-Methodist emphases and concerns. While the Articles of Faith articulate our commitment to Christian orthodoxy, we recognize that the original language of the Nicene Creed (381) stated that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father, and that many churches across the world and within the Global Methodist Church have not adopted the additional declaration that the Spirit also proceeds from the Son. Reflecting its worldwide nature, Global Methodists are already free to include or leave out the phrase “and the Son” in the use of the Nicene Creed both in worship and for instruction in the faith (¶105). In keeping with this practice regarding the Nicene Creed, Global Methodists may omit “and the Son” from the first sentence of Article III, “The Holy Spirit.” The Articles of Faith are affirmed by Scripture and shall be taught in our churches. They are constitutive standards that declare the “faith once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 3) and serve as a guard against false teaching by providing a basis for the praise and honor of God in faithful instruction that orients us toward a life of service to God’s kingdom. | THE ARTICLES OF RELIGION OF THE METHODIST CHURCH. Thirty- Nine Articles of the Church of England were ratified in their final form in 1571 during the reign of Elizabeth I. They reflect both the concerns of the English Reformation and the comprehensive nature of the established church. As the United States emerged as an independent nation, Wesley revised the Articles in 1784 for the Methodist work in America. His twenty-four Articles reflect both his theological commitments and his desire for doctrinal clarity, shortening some articles and deleting others if they could be easily misread. The Methodist Episcopal Church added an additional article dealing with the duty of Christians to civil authority. The Twenty-Five Articles were officially adopted by the General Conference of 1808, when the first Restrictive Rule was also implemented, and revised by the Uniting Conference of 1939 when three Methodist communions within America became one. The Twenty-Five Articles are as follows: | THE CONFESSION OF FAITH OF THE EVANGELICAL UNITED BRETHREN CHURCH. The Confession of Faith of the Evangelical United Brethren Church traces its roots from the doctrinal developments of the Evangelical Association and the United Brethren in Christ traditions. In 1809, two years after the death of Jacob Albright, the Evangelical Association adopted a German translation of the Methodist Episcopal Church’s Articles of Religion with the addition of an article on the last judgement from the Lutheran Augsburg Confession of 1530 and an essay on Christian perfection by George Miller. These were reduced to twenty-one in 1816, omitting polemical articles against Roman Catholics and Anabaptists. These were later condensed to nineteen, the number of articles maintained by the Evangelical Church when it was formed in 1923. In 1815, the first general conference of the United Brethren in Christ adopted a Confession of Faith with seven articles. A more comprehensive Confession of Faith was composed in 1889, with thirteen articles, including an article on sanctification. In 1946, when the Evangelical United Brethren Church was formed, it retained both the Confession of Faith of the United Brethren in Christ and the Articles of Faith of the Evangelical Church. In 1962, a new Confession of Faith was completed containing sixteen articles. This was adopted in the 1968 merger with the Methodist Church that resulted in the United Methodist Church. The sixteen articles are as follows: |
| I. THE HOLY TRINITY We believe in one holy and living God, everlasting, without body or parts, Creator of all things visible and invisible. He is infinite in power, wisdom, justice, goodness, and love, and rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of all, to the glory of his name. We believe the one God reveals himself as he is: three persons, distinct but inseparable, eternally one in being, majesty, power, and glory: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. | Article I – Of Faith in the Holy Trinity There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body or parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and good; the maker and preserver of all things, both visible and invisible. And in unity of this Godhead there are three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. | Article I – God We believe in the one true, holy and living God, Eternal Spirit, who is Creator, Sovereign and Preserver of all things visible and invisible. He is infinite in power, wisdom, justice, goodness and love, and rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of men, to the glory of his name. We believe the one God reveals himself as the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, distinct but inseparable, eternally one in essence and power. |
| II. JESUS CHRIST We believe in Jesus Christ, truly God and truly human, the eternal Word made flesh, in whom the divine and human natures are perfectly and inseparably united, without division, confusion, or change. As to his divine nature, he is of one and the same substance as the Father. As to his human nature, he is of one and the same substance as us, yet without sin. The only eternally begotten Son of the Father, he was born of the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. He truly suffered, was crucified, died for our sins, and was raised bodily from the dead. Having ascended to the throne of heaven, he is our eternal Savior and Mediator who reigns over all things and will return in glory to judge the living and the dead. We believe God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself. The offering of Christ, once made, is the perfect atonement, redemption, propitiation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world, both original and actual; and there is no other satisfaction for sin. | Article II – Of the Word, or Son of God, Who Was Made Very Man The Son, who is the Word of the Father, the very and eternal God, of one substance with the Father, took man’s nature in the womb of the blessed Virgin; so that two whole and perfect natures, that is to say, the Godhead and Manhood, were joined together in one person, never to be divided; whereof is one Christ, very God and very Man, who truly suffered, was crucified, dead, and buried, to reconcile his Father to us, and to be a sacrifice, not only for original guilt, but also for actual sins of men. Article XX – Of the One Oblation of Christ, Finished upon the Cross The offering of Christ, once made, is that perfect redemption, propitiation, and satisfaction for all the sins of the whole world, both original and actual; and there is none other satisfaction for sin but that alone. Wherefore the sacrifice of masses, in the which it is commonly said that the priest doth offer Christ for the quick and the dead, to have remission of pain or guilt, is a blasphemous fable and dangerous deceit. | Article II – Jesus Christ We believe in Jesus Christ, truly God and truly man, in whom the divine and human natures are perfectly and inseparably united. He is the eternal Word made flesh, the only begotten Son of the Father, born of the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. As ministering Servant he lived, suffered and died on the cross. He was buried, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven to be with the Father, from whence he shall return. He is eternal Savior and Mediator, who intercedes for us, and by him all men will be judged. Article VIII – Reconciliation Through Christ We believe God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself. The offering Christ freely made on the cross is the perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, redeeming man from all sin, so that no other satisfaction is required. |
| III. THE HOLY SPIRIT We believe in the Holy Spirit, who proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son. He is of the same substance as the Father and the Son and is coequal with them in majesty, power, and glory. As very and eternal God, he is worthy of our worship and praise. The Spirit convinces the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He testifies to Jesus Christ, leads us to faith in him, incorporates us into the Church, and sanctifies us through His indwelling presence. With the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit distributes gifts and empowers the Church with everything needed to fulfill God’s mission in the world. A deposit guaranteeing the glory to come, he comforts and sustains the faithful and guides us into all truth, bearing witness with our spirits that we are children of God. | Article IV – Of the Holy Ghost The Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, is of one substance, majesty, and glory with the Father and the Son, very and eternal God. | Article III – The Holy Spirit We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from and is one in being with the Father and the Son. He convinces the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He leads men through faithful response to the gospel into the fellowship of the Church. He comforts, sustains and empowers the faithful and guides them into all truth. |
| IV. CREATION AND PROVIDENCE We believe that the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—created all things out of nothing, and nothing has been made that was not created as an act of God’s will. All that the triune God creates is good, and he made all things as a free expression of his perfect love. God continuously upholds, governs, and sustains all creation by his power and wisdom. Human free will and responsibility operate within this providential framework. | | |
| V. HUMAN NATURE We believe that human beings were created in the image and likeness of God, and that human nature was created good and endowed with dignity. We were made to love and glorify God in his perfect goodness, to love others, and to desire and work for their good. God created us male and female and designed us for family, community, and the stewardship of his good creation. We are now fallen into the corruption of sin and are very far gone from the state of original righteousness. Yet we remain of inestimable worth to God. | | |
| VI. SIN AND FREE GRACE We believe that human beings are fallen from original righteousness and, apart from the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, are inclined to evil from birth. Original sin, which is the corruption of every person’s nature, is the condition into which we are all born. Sin corrupts every part of our humanity. Apart from prevenient grace, we cannot turn to God and are unable to do works pleasing to God. Any good will that we have comes through the grace of God in Christ and the Spirit at work in us. | Article VII – Of Original or Birth Sin Original sin standeth not in the following of Adam (as the Pelagians do vainly talk), but it is the corruption of the nature of every man, that naturally is engendered of the offspring of Adam, whereby man is very far gone from original righteousness, and of his own nature inclined to evil, and that continually. Article VIII – Of Free Will The condition of man after the fall of Adam is such that he cannot turn and prepare himself, by his own natural strength and works, to faith, and calling upon God; wherefore we have no power to do good works, pleasant and acceptable to God, without the grace of God by Christ preventing us, that we may have a good will, and working with us, when we have that good will. | Article VII – Sin and Free Will We believe man is fallen from righteousness and, apart from the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, is destitute of holiness and inclined to evil. Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. In his own strength, without divine grace, man cannot do good works pleasing and acceptable to God. We believe, however, man influenced and empowered by the Holy Spirit is responsible in freedom to exercise his will for good. |
| VII. THE CHURCH We believe that the visible Church is the communion of the faithful under the Lordship of Christ. The Church is one, holy, catholic and apostolic in nature and in calling. It is the redemptive fellowship in which the Word of God is preached and the sacraments duly administered according to Christ’s command. Qualified men and women are ordained for ministry in the Church by bishops through the laying on of hands. Under the discipline of the Holy Spirit, the Church exists for the worship and glorification of the Holy Trinity, the edification of believers, and the redemption of the world. | Article XIII – Of the Church The visible church of Christ is a congregation of faithful men in which the pure Word of God is preached, and the Sacraments duly administered according to Christ’s ordinance, in all those things that of necessity are requisite to the same. | Article V – The Church We believe the Christian Church is the community of all true believers under the Lordship of Christ. We believe it is one, holy, apostolic and catholic. It is the redemptive fellowship in which the Word of God is preached by men divinely called, and the sacraments are duly administered according to Christ’s own appointment. Under the discipline of the Holy Spirit the Church exists for the maintenance of worship, the edification of believers and the redemption of the world. |
| VIII. HOLY SCRIPTURE We believe in the divine inspiration and authority of the Old and New Testaments in their entirety. The Old Testament is not contrary to the New, for Christ offers us everlasting life in both. Scripture is true in all it affirms, entirely trustworthy, and the one infallible rule of faith and practice. It contains all things necessary to salvation. Whatever is not revealed in or established by the Holy Scriptures is not to be taught as essential to salvation. The same Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures continues to work through them, illumining the Church’s interpretation for the edification of the people of God. They are the basis for the Church’s proclamation and a vital means of grace for all who hear them. Through the proclamation of the Word, the Spirit awakens us to sin, calls us to repentance, draws us to faith in Christ, and renews us in the image of God. The canonical books of the Old Testament are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. The canonical books of the New Testament are: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, and Revelation. | Article V – Of the Sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures for Salvation The Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation; so that whatsoever 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. In the name of the Holy Scripture we do understand those canonical books of the Old and New Testaments of whose authority was never any doubt in the church. The names of the canonical books are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, The First Book of Samuel, The Second Book of Samuel, The First Book of Kings, The Second Book of Kings, The First Book of Chronicles, The Second Book of Chronicles, The Book of Ezra, The Book of Nehemiah, The Book of Esther, The Book of Job, The Psalms, The Proverbs, Ecclesiastes or the Preacher, Cantica or Songs of Solomon, Four Prophets the Greater, Twelve Prophets the Less. All the books of the New Testament, as they are commonly received, we do receive and account canonical. Article VI – Of the Old Testament The Old Testament is not contrary to the New; for both in the Old and New Testaments everlasting life is offered to mankind by Christ, who is the only Mediator between God and man, being both God and Man. Wherefore they are not to be heard who feign that the old fathers did look only for transitory promises. Although the law given from God by Moses as touching ceremonies and rites doth not bind Christians, nor ought the civil precepts thereof of necessity be received in any commonwealth; yet notwithstanding, no Christian whatsoever is free from the obedience of the commandments which are called moral. | Article IV – The Holy Bible We believe the Holy Bible, Old and New Testaments, reveals the Word of God so far as it is necessary for our salvation. It is to be received through the Holy Spirit as the true rule and guide for faith and practice. Whatever is not revealed in or established by the Holy Scriptures is not to be made an article of faith nor is it to be taught as essential to salvation. |
| IX. OF THE SACRAMENTS We believe the Sacraments, ordained by Christ, are outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace, and not only pledges or symbols of the Christian’s profession of faith, As such, they are expressions of God’s love toward us. They are a special means of grace by which God works in us to enliven, strengthen, and confirm our faith in him. We believe in only two Sacraments which are ordained by Christ our Lord: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. | Article XVI – Of the Sacraments Sacraments ordained of Christ are not only badges or tokens of Christian men’s profession, but rather they are certain signs of grace, and God’s good will toward us, by which he doth work invisibly in us, and doth not only quicken, but also strengthen and confirm, our faith in him. There are two Sacraments ordained of Christ our Lord in the Gospel; that is to say, Baptism and the Supper of the Lord. Those five commonly called sacraments, that is to say, confirmation, penance, orders, matrimony, and extreme unction, are not to be counted for Sacraments of the Gospel; being such as have partly grown out of the corrupt following of the apostles, and partly are states of life allowed in the Scriptures, but yet have not the like nature of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, because they have not any visible sign or ceremony ordained of God. The Sacraments were not ordained of Christ to be gazed upon, or to be carried about; but that we should duly use them. And in such only as worthily receive the same, they have a wholesome effect or operation; but they that receive them unworthily, purchase to themselves condemnation, as St. Paul saith. | Article VI – The Sacraments We believe the Sacraments, ordained by Christ, are symbols and pledges of the Christian’s profession and of God’s love toward us. They are means of grace by which God works invisibly in us, quickening, strengthening and confirming our faith in him. Two Sacraments are ordained by Christ our Lord, namely Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. |
| OF BAPTISM We believe in one Baptism, which marks entrance into the visible Church and the New Covenant in Christ. Baptism signifies repentance, cleansing from sin, and new birth in the power of the Holy Spirit. We believe that the promises of the New Covenant include the children of believers, making infants proper and acceptable subjects for Christian baptism, which should not be denied. It is the Church’s special responsibility to nurture and lead baptized children to the confirmation of their baptism as their public profession of faith and personal commitment to lifelong discipleship. | Article XVII – Of Baptism Baptism is not only a sign of profession and mark of difference whereby Christians are distinguished from others that are not baptized; but it is also a sign of regeneration or the new birth. The Baptism of young children is to be retained in the Church. | We believe Baptism signifies entrance into the household of faith, and is a symbol of repentance and inner cleansing from sin, a representation of the new birth in Christ Jesus and a mark of Christian discipleship. We believe children are under the atonement of Christ and as heirs of the Kingdom of God are acceptable subjects for Christian Baptism. Children of believing parents through Baptism become the special responsibility of the Church. They should be nurtured and led to personal acceptance of Christ, and by profession of faith confirm their Baptism. |
| OF THE LORD’S SUPPER We believe the Lord’s Supper is the Sacrament of our redemption through which we are made participants in God’s mighty acts of salvation. Holy Communion is both a memorial of the sufferings and death of Christ and a token of the love and union which Christians have with Christ and one another. While the elements themselves are not to be worshipped, the Holy Spirit mysteriously communicates the body and blood of Christ through the Sacrament as a means of grace, though the substance of each element remains unchanged. Those who receive this Sacrament reverently partake by faith in the body and blood of Christ until he comes again. | Article XVIII – Of the Lord’s Supper The Supper of the Lord is not only a sign of the love that Christians ought to have among themselves one to another, but rather is a sacrament of our redemption by Christ’s death; insomuch that, to such as rightly, worthily, and with faith receive the same, the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of Christ; and likewise the cup of blessing is a partaking of the blood of Christ. Transubstantiation, or the change of the substance of bread and wine in the Supper of our Lord, cannot be proved by Holy Writ, but is repugnant to the plain words of Scripture, overthroweth the nature of a sacrament, and hath given occasion to many superstitions. The body of Christ is given, taken, and eaten in the Supper, only after a heavenly and spiritual manner. And the mean whereby the body of Christ is received and eaten in the Supper is faith. The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper was not by Christ’s ordinance reserved, carried about, lifted up, or worshiped. Article XIX – Of Both Kinds The cup of the Lord is not to be denied to the lay people; for both the parts of the Lord’s Supper, by Christ’s ordinance and commandment, ought to be administered to all Christians alike. | We believe the Lord’s Supper is a representation of our redemption, a memorial of the sufferings and death of Christ, and a token of love and union which Christians have with Christ and with one another. Those who rightly, worthily and in faith eat the broken bread and drink the blessed cup partake of the body and blood of Christ in a spiritual manner until he comes. |
| X. PUBLIC WORSHIP AND THE LORD’S DAY We believe divine worship is essential to the life of the Church and the duty and privilege of all Christians. The Lord’s Day is divinely ordained for public worship and a commemoration of Christ’s resurrection. Gathering regularly with the people of God is necessary for spiritual growth and our sanctification. We believe the order of public worship may be modified by the church according to the needs of the worshipping community. Worship should always be held in a language and form understood by the gathered people, consistent with the Holy Scriptures, and in accordance with the order and discipline of the Church. | Article XV – Of Speaking in the Congregation in Such a Tongue as the People Understand It is a thing plainly repugnant to the Word of God, and the custom of the primitive church, to have public prayer in the church, or to minister the Sacraments, in a tongue not understood by the people. Article XXII – Of the Rites and Ceremonies of Churches It is not necessary that rites and ceremonies should in all places be the same, or exactly alike; for they have been always different, and may be changed according to the diversity of countries, times, and men’s manners, so that nothing be ordained against God’s Word. Whosoever, through his private judgment, willingly and purposely doth openly break the rites and ceremonies of the church to which he belongs, which are not repugnant to the Word of God, and are ordained and approved by common authority, ought to be rebuked openly, that others may fear to do the like, as one that offendeth against the common order of the church, and woundeth the consciences of weak brethren. Every particular church may ordain, change, or abolish rites and ceremonies, so that all things may be done to edification. | Article XIII – Public Worship We believe divine worship is the duty and privilege of man who, in the presence of God, bows in adoration, humility and dedication. We believe divine worship is essential to the life of the Church, and that the assembling of the people of God for such worship is necessary to Christian fellowship and spiritual growth. We believe the order of public worship need not be the same in all places but may be modified by the church according to circumstances and the needs of men. It should be in a language and form understood by the people, consistent with the Holy Scriptures to the edification of all, and in accordance with the order and Discipline of the Church. Article XIV – The Lord’s Day We believe the Lord’s Day is divinely ordained for private and public worship, for rest from unnecessary work, and should be devoted to spiritual improvement, Christian fellowship and service. It is commemorative of our Lord’s resurrection and is an emblem of our eternal rest. It is essential to the permanence and growth of the Christian Church, and important to the welfare of the civil community. |
| XI. REPENTANCE We believe the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin and enables us to turn from evil to faith in Christ. True repentance is expressed by our renunciation of evil and confession of sin and our turning to active participation in the means of grace and the pursuit of good works. It is a posture of humility, granted by God to unbelievers as a preparation for justification, and to believers as a continual grace through which we grow in holiness and enter deeper communion with Christ. | | |
| XII. JUSTIFICATION AND REGENERATION We believe that justification is the gracious declaration of God that our sins are forgiven and that we are accounted righteous in his sight on the basis of Christ’s merit. This declaration of God comes to us by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. Justification is not the result of our own good works or personal merit. For nothing can fulfill the demands of divine justice except the atoning sacrifice of Christ on the cross, and nothing can cleanse us from original or actual sin apart from him. Therefore, we are graciously invited to receive Christ by faith, placing our full trust and confidence in him as our personal Lord and Savior. Through Christ we are made children of God and heirs of eternal life. That we are justified by faith alone is a most wholesome doctrine and a great comfort. We believe regeneration is an inward renewal in righteousness through Jesus Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Unless we are born again, we cannot see the kingdom of God. Through the new birth we are reconciled to God, made partakers of the divine nature, experience new life in Christ, and are enabled to serve him with our will and affections. Regeneration is our initial sanctification, after which we are renewed in holiness by degrees as we seek to be made perfect in love. | Article IX – Of the Justification of Man We are accounted righteous before God only for the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, by faith, and not for our own works or deservings. Wherefore, that we are justified by faith, only, is a most wholesome doctrine, and very full of comfort. | Article IX – Justification and Regeneration We believe we are never accounted righteous before God through our works or merit, but that penitent sinners are justified or accounted righteous before God only by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. We believe regeneration is the renewal of man in righteousness through Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, whereby we are made partakers of the divine nature and experience newness of life. By this new birth the believer becomes reconciled to God and is enabled to serve him with the will and the affections. We believe, although we have experienced regeneration, it is possible to depart from grace and fall into sin; and we may even then, by the grace of God, be renewed in righteousness. |
| XIII. GOOD WORKS We believe good works are the necessary fruit of faith and follow regeneration, but they do not have the virtue to remove our sins or to avert divine judgment. We believe good works, pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ, spring from a true and living faith. Through and by good works our faith is made evident. There are no works that may be required of believers beyond those commanded in Scripture. Our good works do not obligate God’s favor to us or accrue merit for others. | Article X – Of Good Works Although good works, which are the fruits of faith, and follow after justification, cannot put away our sins, and endure the severity of God’s judgment; yet are they pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ, and spring out of a true and lively faith, insomuch that by them a lively faith may be as evidently known as a tree is discerned by its fruit. Article XI – Of Works of Supererogation Voluntary works—besides, over and above God’s commandments—which they call works of supererogation, cannot be taught without arrogancy and impiety. For by them men do declare that they do not only render unto God as much as they are bound to do, but that they do more for his sake than of bounden duty is required; whereas Christ saith plainly: When you have done all that is commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants. | Article X – Good Works We believe good works are the necessary fruits of faith and follow regeneration but they do not have the virtue to remove our sins or to avert divine judgment. We believe good works, pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ, spring from a true and living faith, for through and by them faith is made evident. |
| XIV. ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION We believe entire sanctification is a state of perfect love, righteousness, and true holiness. It is the work of God’s grace through Word and Spirit. Entire Sanctification is received through faith in Christ and should be sought earnestly by every child of God. Those who have been born of God are already set free from the power and dominion of sin. They are subsequently cleansed from original sin and washed from its pollution in thought, word, and deed. Such believers are now free to love God with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength, and to love their neighbors as themselves, walking blamelessly in God’s holy commandments. The process of sanctification prepares the way for the reception of entirely sanctifying grace, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. We believe that perfect love or Christian perfection does not deliver us from the infirmities, ignorance, or mistakes common to all, nor from the possibility of further sin. The pure in heart must guard against ongoing temptations, especially in the form of spiritual pride, by abiding in holiness through the grace and power of the Holy Spirit. | [The following Article from the Methodist Protestant Discipline was placed here by the Uniting Conference (1939). It was not one of the Articles of Religion voted upon by the three churches.] Of Sanctification (from the Methodist Protestant Discipline) Sanctification is that renewal of our fallen nature by the Holy Ghost, received through faith in Jesus Christ, whose blood of atonement cleanseth all from sin; whereby we are not only delivered from the guilt of sin, but are washed from its pollution, saved from its power, and enabled, through grace, to love God with all our hearts and to walk in his holy commandments blameless. | Article XI – Sanctification and Christian Perfection We believe sanctification is the work of God’s grace through the Word and the Spirit, by which those who have been born again are cleansed from sin in their thoughts, words and acts, and are enabled to live in accordance with God’s will, and to strive for holiness without which no one will see the Lord. Entire sanctification is a state of perfect love, righteousness and true holiness which every regenerate believer may obtain by being delivered from the power of sin, by loving God with all the heart, soul, mind and strength, and by loving one’s neighbor as one’s self. Through faith in Jesus Christ this gracious gift may be received in this life both gradually and instantaneously, and should be sought earnestly by every child of God. We believe this experience does not deliver us from the infirmities, ignorance, and mistakes common to man, nor from the possibilities of further sin. The Christian must continue on guard against spiritual pride and seek to gain victory over every temptation to sin. He must respond wholly to the will of God so that sin will lose its power over him; and the world, the flesh, and the devil are put under his feet. Thus he rules over these enemies with watchfulness through the power of the Holy Spirit. |
| XV. THE JUDGMENT AND THE FUTURE STATE We believe that Christ will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the wicked to eternal condemnation and the righteous to eternal life in God’s new creation. | Article III – Of the Resurrection of Christ Christ did truly rise again from the dead, and took again his body, with all things appertaining to the perfection of man’s nature, wherewith he ascended into heaven, and there sitteth until he return to judge all men at the last day. | Article XII – The Judgment and the Future State We believe all men stand under the righteous judgment of Jesus Christ, both now and in the last day. We believe in the resurrection of the dead; the righteous to life eternal and the wicked to endless condemnation. |
| | Article XII – Of Sin After Justification Not every sin willingly committed after justification is the sin against the Holy Ghost, and unpardonable. Wherefore, the grant of repentance is not to be denied to such as fall into sin after justification. After we have received the Holy Ghost, we may depart from grace given, and fall into sin, and, by the grace of God, rise again and amend our lives. And therefore they are to be condemned who say they can no more sin as long as they live here; or deny the place of forgiveness to such as truly repent. | |
| | Article XIV – Of Purgatory The Romish doctrine concerning purgatory, pardon, worshiping, and adoration, as well of images as of relics, and also invocation of saints, is a fond thing, vainly invented, and grounded upon no warrant of Scripture, but repugnant to the Word of God. | |
| | Article XXI – Of the Marriage of Ministers The ministers of Christ are not commanded by God’s law either to vow the estate of single life, or to abstain from marriage; therefore it is lawful for them, as for all other Christians, to marry at their own discretion, as they shall judge the same to serve best to godliness. | |
| | Article XXIII – Of the Rulers of the United States of America The President, the Congress, the general assemblies, the governors, and the councils of state, as the delegates of the people, are the rulers of the United States of America, according to the division of power made to them by the Constitution of the United States and by the constitutions of their respective states. And the said states are a sovereign and independent nation, and ought not to be subject to any foreign jurisdiction. | |
| | Article XXIV – Of Christian Men’s Goods The riches and goods of Christians are not common as touching the right, title, and possession of the same, as some do falsely boast. Notwithstanding, every man ought, of such things as he possesseth, liberally to give alms to the poor, according to his ability. | Article XV – The Christian and Property We believe God is the owner of all things and that the individual holding of property is lawful and is a sacred trust under God. Private property is to be used for the manifestation of Christian love and liberality, and to support the Church’s mission in the world. All forms of property, whether private, corporate or public, are to be held in solemn trust and used responsibly for human good under the sovereignty of God. |
| | Article XXV – Of a Christian Man’s Oath As we confess that vain and rash swearing is forbidden Christian men by our Lord Jesus Christ and James his apostle, so we judge that the Christian religion doth not prohibit, but that a man may swear when the magistrate requireth, in a cause of faith and charity, so it be done according to the prophet’s teaching, in justice, judgment, and truth. | |
| | [The following provision was adopted by the Uniting Conference (1939). Of the Duty of Christians to the Civil Authority It is the duty of all Christians, and especially of all Christian ministers, to observe and obey the laws and commands of the governing or supreme authority of the country of which are citizens or subjects or in which they reside, and to use all laudable means to encourage and enjoin obedience to the powers that be. | Article XVI – Civil Government We believe civil government derives its just powers from the sovereign God. As Christians we recognize the governments under whose protection we reside and believe such governments should be based on, and be responsible for, the recognition of human rights under God. We believe war and bloodshed are contrary to the gospel and spirit of Christ. We believe it is the duty of Christian citizens to give moral strength and purpose to their respective governments through sober, righteous and godly living. |