What Must I Believe?
Asking For a Friend • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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INTRO
INTRO
Tonight we begin our new series, “Asking For a Friend”
Last week you were given notecards to write down any questions you have about Christianity
can I just say, you guys had some really good questions
And over the next few weeks I will be answering those questions
I won’t be able to answer every question that was asked over the next 3 weeks but we will be doing this again in the spring
so i will try to get the ones i don’t this time then
and you have a chance to ask more question then too
How each night will look is like this:
I will answer one primary question
then answer a few more questions that follow that make sense in light of the primary question
TENSION
TENSION
That said, let me ask you this question:
Who is Jesus?
I could go around the room right now and have all you answer this question and we would get a different answer from everyone
We would get a lot of similar things
But we would also get a lot of different things
some that you might not agree with
some that you just forgot to mention
But why does this question matter?
This question matters because when we are thinking about what a person must believe to be saved or to be considered a Christian it all hinges on how they answer this question
on who they say Jesus is
See if i were to invite a JW, Mormon, and Muslim to come up here and tell us who Jesus is
JW would say that Jesus is
God’s first creation
Isn’t God
But lived a sinless life, died for their sins on the cross, and resurrected
Mormon would say that Jesus is
the result of heavenly father having sex with mary
lived the sinless life, died for their sins on the cross, and resurrection
He isn’t God but because of his obedience God the father made him a god just like how we can become a god after death if we are obedience enough
Muslim would say that Jesus is
a great prophet
born of the Virgin Mary
performed miracles
Yet don’t believe Jesus is god
that he died on the cross or resurrected
While the muslim would not claim to be a christian the JW and Mormon would
and we would say “wait wait wait no you are not”
Why?
because of who they say Jesus is?
So tonight we are going to quickly see what we must believe about Jesus to be a christian
and the some other things we as Christians would say are essentials or non-negoatables of the Christian Faith
TRUTH
TRUTH
So, What must I believe to be saved/a Christian?
To help you understand how a Christian should view their beliefs I want to use a pyramid
this pyramid has three different tier and each tier represent a category of Christian beliefs
First Tier: The Essentials
the non-negotiables
the hills to die on.
If you don’t believe these, you’re not a Christian, period.
What are they?
First, that Jesus is fully God and fully man
He’s not just a prophet
not just a wise teacher
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Jesus is God who came down to us
Second, that Jesus died for our sins and rose again
For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
Paul says that that this is the thing of first importance
Christ died for our sins
was buried,
and raised on the third day
If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith.
If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, there’s no Christianity.
Third, that salvation is by grace through faith
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.
Paul says that faith is a says it’s a gift
You don’t work for it
You don’t earn it
You don’t deserve it
You simply receive it by a gift from God
While there are other essentials of Christianity like the Trinity, Bible, The Fall, and Eternity
the primary essentials hinge on who Jesus is
This is why groups like Jehovah’s Witnesses or Mormons aren’t truly Christian
even though they use the same words
they have changed who Jesus is and what salvation means
What you believe about Jesus is the dividing line
Now, not everything is an essential
Second Tier: Church Issues
These are things that Christians can disagree on but don’t make you a non-Christian
but they do shape how we do church or where we go to church
Examples:
Baptism
Infant baptism or believer’s baptism / Immersion or sprinkling
Some churches baptize babies as a sign of the covenant and some churches only baptize those who have professed Christ as their lord and savior
Some churches do baptism by sprinkling while others by full immersion
Both love Jesus, but you’re probably not going to be in the same church because you practice it differently
Church Leadership
Elder led pr Congregational Led
Some churches are led by a group of elders, others have members vote on everything as a congregation
Both love Jesus, but you’re probably not going to be in the same church because you practice it differently
Spiritual Gifts
Continuationist or Cessationist
some believe spiritual gifts like speaking in tongues, prophecy, and healing are still for today while others believe those gifts serves to affirm the apostles and stopped with them
Both love Jesus, but you’re probably not going to be in the same church because you practice it differently
These are what we’d call second-tier issues
They don’t define whether you’re a Christian or not
but they often determine what kind of church you go to
That’s why we have denominations
We may differ here, but we still call each other brothers and sisters in Christ
Now, our last tier
Third Tier: Debatable Issues
These are things Christians can disagree on but they shouldn’t divide us
even at the church level
Examples:
End Times
Dispensationalist, Historic Pre-Mil, Amil, Post-Mil
But at the end of the day each view agrees that Jesus is coming back and that he still wins.
Creation
Old Earth vs. Young Earth
But at the end of the day each believes God is the creator of all things
Free Will
Calvinist or Arminianist
But at the end of the day each believes God is soveriegn and His ultimate plan will happen
Alcohol
Tattoos
Bible Translations
Music Styles
These are important conversations
but they don’t touch salvation and shouldn’t break fellowship
In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity
So, when someone asks, ‘Do my views on creation or the flood or end times affect my salvation?’
The answer is no
They matter, but they’re not salvation issues
They’re third-tier
When it comes to what you must believe it comes to the essentials
primarily who you say Jesus is
Which leads us to another important question
if salvation hinges on Jesus
How were the people in the Old Testament saved?
The short answer…
the same way we are
by faith
We see this in Genesis 15
God has just made a covenant with Abraham
He is going to give him land
Make him a great nation
and bless the whole world through his offspring
We living in 2025 understand that this blessing to the whole world that God promised Abraham is Jesus
With that in mind look at Abraham’s response
Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Abram believed the Lord, aka had faith
that God is who he said he is and was going to do what he said he was going to do
send a savior
Because of abraham’s faith God counted him as righteous or right with God
Paul thousands of years later recalls this moments and says…
He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do. Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness. Now it was credited to him was not written for Abraham alone, but also for us. It will be credited to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Paul is clear:
Abraham believed God’s promise, and it was counted to him as righteousness
And that account wasn’t written just for him but for for us too who believe in Jesus
Meaning:
Abraham was made right with God through faith
We are made right with God through faith
Both of us having faith in the same person
Jesus
just on two different sides of the cross
The Old Testament people were not saved through their yearly sacrifices, cleansing rituals, or how well they followed the law
they were saved through faith in the coming Messiah
We are not save through our good works, how often we read the bible, or how good of a disciple we are
we are saved through faith in the messiah who has come
Everyone is saved by faith in Jesus; some by looking forward to the cross, and the others by looking back to the cross
That said…
we have covered the essentials of the faith
seeing that it all comes down to who Jesus is
we have seen that the people in the Old Testament are saved by faith in Jesus just like us
But that brings us to our last question…
How are those who never hear about Jesus saved?
What about the indigiouness people all around the world, the people groups who have never heard the gospel or don’t have a bible in the language, the people in our schools who have never heard of Jesus
are they automaticly saved?
do they get a pass?
or are the automatically doomed for Hell?
To answer this question we are going to look at two places in book of Romans
For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse. For though they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became worthless, and their senseless hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles.
Romans 1 tells us that says God has made Himself known through creation
His invisible qualities
His eternal power
His divine nature
All are clearly seen in creation
So Paul says people are without excuse…
They know God exist but they’ve traded the one true God for idols and manmade gods
But here’s the hard truth:
while creation shows us there’s a God, it doesn’t tell the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection
How, then, can they call on him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. But not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our message? So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ.
Paul is clear:
Everyone is without excuse because of creation, but they cannot be saved unless they hear and believe the gospel
the message/the good news of Jesus
While that is a hard truth to swallow it reminds us of something
It reminds us of the importance missions and evangelism
People are dying all around the world without excuse
they need to hear the good news of Jesus to be save
And God has chosen to use us, His people, the church, to take that good news to the world
That’s why we share our faith
That’s why we go on mission trips
Because the answer to this question is urgent
it should set a fire under our feet to take the gospel to all who need to hear it
APPLICATION
APPLICATION
That said, what do we do with the answers to the questions?
other than simply knowing the answer to them
how do they apply to our lives?
I want to end with 5 application points:
Die on the Essentials
There are many beliefs within Christianity, but the essentials
especially who Jesus is are the hills we die on
Don’t let culture, friends, or even other religions blur that line
Jesus is the center of our faith
Don’t Divide Over Non-Essentials
Second- and third-tier issues are important
Study them, know where you stand, know why.
But don’t let them divide you from another believer
Unity in the essentials, charity in the rest
Beware of False Teaching
Some churches or groups take second- or third-tier issues and make them requirements for salvation
That’s heresy
it’s adding to the gospel and should be avoided
The gospel is Jesus plus nothing
God’s Way of Salvation Has Never Changed
From Abraham to today, God has always saved by grace through faith in Jesus
The Old Testament saints looked forward to Him; we look back
But the way of salvation has always been the same
Live on Mission
Romans 10 says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.”
The question about those who’ve never heard should move us to action
We need to be willing to go anywhere and do anything to bring the gospel to the lost
RESPONSE
RESPONSE
Tonight I hope I have brought some clarity to these questions
they are some important questions
But believers in the room
let’s not allow these answers to be solely stored in our head but lead us to action to application
Unbeliever
who do you say Jesus is?
do you agree with what i have said tonight?
if not, i’d love to talk to you about that tonight
You have seen that salvation is in Jesus alone, always has been and always will be, and as of right now without faith in him you are without excuse
Tonight would be a good night to become righteous in Christ
