Essentially True - Week 1 (Introduction)

Isn’t it interesting how the tone of voice can change everything?

For example, if you get home from school and you hear (nicely) “How was your day? We need to talk!”

That’s a lot different from getting home and hearing (angrily) “How was your day? We need to talk!”

Or if you’ve ever taken your spouse out for dinner, and you said “How does some Chinese food sound?”

There’s a big difference between (nicely) “Fine” and (angrily) “Fine!”

This is why communicating with text messages can be so dangerous.

Because you can’t hear tone of voice, and so an innocent message can be read with a tone of voice you never meant to communicate, and it can cause all sorts of issues.

And so, here is the title for our brand new sermon series that we are starting today.

And, depending on what tone of voice you hear when you read these words, you might come to a very different conclusion from someone else.

Because you might read this and think it’s (more or less) “essentially true”.

Kind of, more or less, give or take a little bit.

Or, you might read this and see it as saying (firmly) “essentially true”.

This is essential.

This is not optional.

And it is with that second tone of voice in mind that we are launching our brand new series.

Essentially True.

We are going to be talking about things that are absolutely essential for Christians to believe (and to be united on).

Because there are many optional things.

How will the world end?

Pre-trib, mid-trib, post-trib, something else entirely?

I dunno.

(And if you don’t know what any of those words mean, then God bless you for not getting weighed down in what some Christians debate that is very much NOT essential).

Was the world created in 6 literal, 24-hour days? Or was it over a longer period of time?

We can all have opinions on that, and our opinions don’t need to be the same.

Because it’s not essential.

How about this:

What political party should Christians vote for?

Should Christians even vote?

Should you send your kids to public school, private school, Catholic school, home school?

Not essential.

Not worth dividing over.

But, there are some things that need to be understood on a different level.

As being essential.

As being crucial.

As being necessary.

Now, let me pause here and clarify one thing (and my plan is to repeatedly clarify this throughout the series, because I need this point to be understood):

Life Centre is a safe place for everyone.

Regardless of what you believe or don’t believe.

Regardless of what you accept or deny.

What you follow or disavow.

If you are interested in wrestling with Jesus, taking a forward step in faith, asking questions, or maybe you just really like coming because there are snacks after the service...

Whatever the case might be, you are welcome here.

Throughout this series I am going to tell you what I believe are the essential beliefs of Christianity.

But here’s the thing:

You don’t have to agree with me.

You don’t have to believe it.

Because, I don’t know if you’ve figured this out yet or not, but I can’t actually force you to believe in anything.

We all have freedom of religion - freedom to choose (or not choose) whatever we want.

And so I am not saying that just because these are essential beliefs of Christianity that you HAVE TO believe in them.

But, what I am saying is that if you come to a different conclusion, for whatever reason, then please understand that what you belief is not Christianity.

And maybe this goes without saying, but there are plenty of people who walk around calling themselves Christians, saying that they are followers of Jesus, and then you ask them what they believe in, and what they believe does not resemble Christianity at all.

I’m not saying I’m right and they’re wrong.

I’m not saying they can’t believe what they’ve chosen to believe.

I am saying that it’s not accurate (it’s not true) to call it Christianity.

And we can all understand this.

Because if I started going around saying “I’m a really devoted Buddhist. Jesus is the only way to everlasting life.”

That should get you to look at me a little funny, because that’s not what Buddhists believe.

And it would be just flat-out wrong, if I believed whatever I wanted to believe in, and called it Buddhism.

And so this is what this series is about.

Essential, crucial, non-negotiable beliefs, for all followers of Jesus.

We’re not going to dive into random, obscure, difficult passages where we consider lots of different meanings and possible interpretations.

We are going to focus on the big, central, fundamental beliefs that all Christians are united on.

And I am excited for this series for several reasons.

First of all, because I hope and pray that it will be a good refresher for some of us.

A time for us to come together and remember the amazing God we serve and how good His Good News truly is.

Second of all, I hope and pray that God would use this to call some of us deeper.

Maybe we’re newer to following Jesus (or maybe we’ve been doing it for a while), and we have got 90% of these essentials down.

We understand them, we belief them.

But maybe there’s something we’re going to cover that is new, or at least that we haven’t fully wrestled with, and it will call us closer to Jesus.

And then third, I also hope that some of us don’t agree with everything.

Because that means that people are still coming (some of us are still coming) and feeling welcome.

You don’t call yourself a follower of Jesus, you haven’t made that decision to be a Christian, but you’re here (again, for whatever reason, whether it’s because you’re curious or because you like the snacks).

But if that’s you, then I hope and pray that this series would simply be a good explanation of what Christians believe.

And as you consider whether or not you want to follow Jesus, you can come at it with the understanding of what you are agreeing to beforehand.

Not a “I want to believe in Jesus” one day, and then a “I didn’t know believing in Jesus meant that...” the next day.

For example, if I decided to become a Muslim, then it would be really good for me to know the 5 pillars of Islam before I make that decision.

Rather than making the decision, and then finding out about the 5 pillars and not being sure if I really want to do them after all.

And so that’s where we’re going, and this is what we’re going to be focusing on for the next couple of months.

On what is “essentially” true.

And, as an outline for this series, we are going to go through the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada’s “Statement of Essential Truths”

This is a statement that is put out by our denomination as a whole, and it’s goal is to call Christians to unite over the essentials.

Here is how it begins:

“This version of the Statement of Essential Truths represents the result of an extensive collaborative process to rephrase and refresh what is most essential to us. As before, we make no claim that this statement covers all biblical truth, nor that the human phraseology employed here is inspired.”

And so let’s make note of a couple of things here.

This is not “all biblical truth”.

This is not every true thing we could say, every true Bible passage we could teach on and learn from.

But rather, its goal is to share what is “most essential”.

And also, this introduction clarifies that “the human phraseology empoloyed here is (not) inspired”

That means that there is nothing magical about the specific words or language used here.

In fact, the Statement of Essential Truths has regularly gone under some rewording and reworking.

It went through a very significant one a number of years ago, but even still there are times when the powers that be get together and decide that they could word things a little better.

And so they edit and ammend.

And they do that, not to change the essential belief, but to word it as clearly and accurately as possible in an ever-changing world.

The Bible never changes.

The Truth of God never changes.

It is inspired.

We don’t want to add to it, subtract from it, edit it, amend it.

We want to study it, understand it, apply it, and live according to it.

But, the way we do that does change, from time to time, from person to person, from situation to situation.

And so we don’t want to get too hung up on a certain word just because maybe there’s one that we like a little better.

We want to stay focused on the big picture, on what is most essential.

The introduction continues:

“We recognize as we did at the outset of our movement that there is some diversity of theological thought among us, but we remain committed as a Pentecostal community to the historic creeds of the church, to evangelical convictions of faith, and to the Full Gospel that Christ is Saviour, Healer, Spirit-Baptizer, and Soon Coming King.”

Once again, this emphasizes that we don’t have to agree on absolutely everything.

There can be “some diversity of theological thought among us”.

But, in certain areas (in essential areas) we want to “remain committed” to a few things.

“To the historic creeds of the church”

These arethe legendary statements of belief that have been passed down to us by the early church.

When Christianity was young, leaders came together to declare what was good theology and what was not.

What was an accurate understanding of the teachings of Jesus, and what was incorrect.

We also remain committed “to evangelical convictions of faith”

Now, that word “evangelical” is not a political word, it does not represent a certain voting preference.

This is a word that means “one who carries good news”

The Gospel (the euangelion), is the Good News of Jesus (the message that Jesus came, lived, died, rose again, and offers us life… a message that you can be sure this series will cover).

That’s the Gospel (the euangelion in Greek), and so evangelical is simply one who carries that Good News.

Who shares that message about Jesus.

Evangelicals are simply people who believe they have a calling (a responsibility, a command from God) to share their faith.

Not to argue it, not to force it, not to shame or guilt anyone into anything.

But, if the message of Jesus really is the Good News that it claims to be, then those who believe it (evangelicals) believe there is simply no other response rather than to share it.

In my other life as a certified personal trainer, I took many certifications, and because of the knowledge I’ve learned, I have some pretty strong opinions about exercise and the best ways to do it for health and longevity.

And so sometimes, someone is sharing with me about their workout routine, about how they structure and program their workouts (or how the AI creation on their Instagram structures their workouts), and I just can’t help myself...

I just have to say something...

Because I have strong feelings.

Because I think I have some knowledge that might actually help this person.

Because I care.

(And so, let the record show that if I ever tell you that your workout is trash, I only do it because I love you. And also I’d love to program a workout for you that isn’t trash and I’ll do it for free because that’s how much I care!)

And so, followers of Jesus, evangelicals, carriers of Good News, sometimes we just can’t help ourselves.

We have strong feelings.

We have knowledge that we believe might actually help the person we are talking to.

And we care.

And so we share about Jesus (again, there are less effective, and even hurtful and wrong ways to share, and that’s not ok).

But that’s what it means to be evangelical.

To be a carrier, a messenger, of the Good News of Jesus.

One more thing that this introduction to the statement of essential truths says that we are committed to, is that we are committed to the “Full Gospel”.

Evangelicals are committed to the euangelion.

What is the full Gospel?

It clarifies: “that Christ (Jesus) is Saviour, Healer, Spirit-Baptizer, and Soon Coming King.”

And those are some of the things that different weeks of this series will take more time to explain.

One final point to make about application.

Even when it comes to the “essentials”, we need to always make room for differences in application.

In how we each apply these truths to our lives.

The way you live out your faith at work will be different than the way I do.

The way you choose to put these into practice in your families will be different (or even whether or not you have a family).

In a simple example, we could say “Jesus teaches us to show love for others”, and one person might buy groceries for a neighbour who just lost their job.

Another person might volunteer to serve soup and buns at Knox Hall.

Which one is right?

They both are (as long as they are being obedient to what they feel God calling them to do).

Application looks different, because we look different.

Our lives are different.

And so, even as we prepare to dive deep into the essentials next week, I simply want us to appreciate that we are different.

And, in fact, it is in our differences, that we are strong.

Because you will be able to help people who I will never meet.

God’s given you your personality, your natural giftings, your conversational style, so that some people will listen to you and receive something from you, who couldn’t care less about what I have to say.

And so, let me end this message by once again trying to encourage all of us, no matter where we are coming at this from.

First, if you are not a follower of Jesus, if you don’t believe in the essentials, if you aren’t sure what to make of the idea that some things can even be considered “essential” by one religion (which in turn would mean that anyone who disagrees is wrong)...

Let me once again say that I am glad you’re here (I am glad your’e watching online).

You are welcome to continue to wrestle with those things, consider those things, and ask important questions about those things (and if I can be of any help in that journey, I would love to get together with you).

Second, if you are a follower of Jesus, but maybe there’s an area or two (an essential area or two) where you aren’t living according to what Jesus says.

Let me try to be as loving and gentle as I can, but I do need to remind all of us (I need to remind myself), that if Jesus is the Christ (the anointed King, the Saviour of the world), then when He tells us to do something, He is not giving us one of many possible options that He hopes we will consider.

He is giving us a command that He expects us to follow.

So let’s follow.

Let’s obey.

Let’s surrender our entire lives to Him, in all of these essentials, and follow Him as He helps us apply them to our lives.

And, if we just don’t want to, if we just don’t think we can do some of them for any number of reasons...

Then let me humbly suggest that we not call ourselves followers of Jesus, if we aren’t truly following Jesus (and again, anyone who isn’t following Jesus but just curious or taking steps in His general direction are absolutely welcome here).

But, just like it would be wrong for me to call myself a Buddhist when I don’t believe every essential Buddhist belief, we don’t do ourselves (or anyone) any favours by changing the definition of what a Christian is because we want to be one but we want to be one on our own terms.

If and when the day comes when we want to say “I am a Christian, I am a follower of Jesus”, let’s have it mean something (not because we have everything figured out, but at least we are on the same page about the essentials of what it actually means to follow Jesus”.

And finally, for those who are already sold on all of the essentials.

You haven’t even heard the sermon series yet, but you know “I’m on board! I already agree with everything you’re going to say Matt!”

But if you’re following Jesus, and nothing that I say over the next two months is going to be new to you...

Then I hope and pray that this series calls you deeper by calling you back to the basics.

Because one of the things I was taught once that I really love is this definition of spiritual maturity.

Spiritual maturity is when we believe in less things, but the things we believe in we believe in even more strongly.

Because there are a lot of things that can knock Christians off the right path.

Lots of distractions.

Lots of debates.

Lots of non-essential things that take up way too much time and energy.

If I think back to some of the papers I wrote in Bible college and seminary, some of them I felt so passionately about.

And now, I think of the entire subject matter, and I think “who cares?”

Let’s not get lost in the non-essentials.

But let’s plant our feet firmly on the essentials.

Let’s not be carriers of way too much news - way too many opinions, way too many hot takes on irrelevant theological minutia that makes no difference in anyone’s life whatsoever.

Let’s instead be carriers of Good News - evangelicals.