Essential and Non-Essential Doctrines

Essential Doctrines

Essential doctrines unify all protestants and have major impact on identifying genuine believers, i.e., calling them to be baptized and join the local congregations.

Essential doctrines are divided into three kinds, (1) salvation essentials, (2) a revelational essential, and (3) an interpretation essential.[1] These essential doctrines are of paramount importance that any deviation from which is unbiblical and may be considered heresy.

[1] Norman Geisler and Ron Rhodes. Conviction without Compromise – Standing Strong in the Care Beliefs of the Christian Faith (Eugene Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2008), 9-13.

1. Salvation essentials

The following essential doctrines make salvation possible in three stages. The first stage is “salvation from the penalty of sin.”[2] It is related to a believer’s justification which includes eleven essential doctrines:

1. God’s unity
2. God’s Tri-unity
3. Christ’s deity
4. Christ’s humanity
5. Human depravity
6. Christ’s virgin birth
7. Christ’s sinlessness
8. Christ’s atoning death
9. Christ’s bodily resurrection
10. The necessity of grace
11. The necessity of faith

The second stage is “salvation from the power of sin.”[3] It is related to a believer’s sanctification which includes two essential doctrines:

1. Christ’s bodily ascension
2. Christ’s priestly intercession

The third stage is “salvation from the presence of sin.”[4] It is related to a believer’s glorification which includes one essential doctrine pertaining to Christ’s bodily second coming.
If any self-proclaimed Christian group’s beliefs contradict or reject any of the above fourteen essential doctrines, such group should be considered heretical.

2. A revelational essential

The second kind of essential is a revelational essential which deals with the source of the knowledge that makes believers aware of salvation. Though inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture are not part of God’s plan of salvation one must believe to be saved, “it is the necessary God-ordained source for our knowing about the salvation essentials one must believe to be saved.”[5]

3. An interpretation essential

The third kind of essential is an interpretation essential. Literal and historical-grammatical interpretation of Scripture is “the essential method that makes all the doctrinal essentials possible.”[6] Non-literal interpretations of Scripture “historically and logically lead to heresy and unorthodoxy.”[7]

4. Unity in essentials

Ever since the first century, all orthodox Christians and all major sections of Christendom have accepted salvation essentials explicitly, and have expressed and implied in their teachings for the revelational essential and the interpretation essential, respectively.[8] “All orthodox Christians have in common is one Bible, two Testaments, three confessions, four councils, and five centuries.”[9] If a self-proclaimed Christian group denies one or more of the essential doctrines, especially the salvation essentials, noted above, regardless of its Christian origin such a group should be considered as a cult of Christianity.

[2] Ibid., 9.

[3] Ibid., 10.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid., 12.

[6] Ibid., 13.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid., 17.

[9] Ibid.

Non-Essential Doctrines

Non-essential doctrines are mainly secondary doctrines and denominational traditions and practices that has no direct bearing on a believer’s salvation.

Many Christian churches and denominations depending on their respective church traditions have differences of positions over issues such as the type of church government, the proper mode of baptism, the role of women, the order of Christ’s second-coming events, the day of worship, the nature of spiritual gifts, and the nature and function of Communion, etc.

The above are seven of the twelve non-essential doctrines, listed by Geisler and Rhodes, over which genuine Christians can freely disagree.[1] They are doctrines that have no salvific implication on a believer one way or the other. Only the denial of one or more of the essential doctrines which makes a group cultic. In terms of doctrinal essentials, how do CAG’s doctrinal beliefs compare to evangelical doctrines? Do CAG’s doctrines contradict any of the essential doctrines of evangelical Christianity? (See Evangelical Christianity defined below)

[1] Norman Geisler and Ron Rhodes. Conviction without Compromise – Standing Strong in the Care Beliefs of the Christian Faith (Eugene Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2008), 9-13.

Today the word “cult” gives rise to either sociological or theological meaning. Ron Rhodes states that sociological cult’s characteristics include such things as authoritarianism, exclusivism, isolationism, fear of disfellowshipping, and threats of satanic attack.[2] In the case of CAG, it certainly has exhibited some cult like sociological characteristics even though it is often identified as a religious cult of Christianity. According to Rhodes, cults of Christianity often manifest one or more of the following characteristics: (1) a new revelation from God, (2) a denial of the sole authority of the Bible, (3) a distorted view of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, (4) a distorted view of humankind, (5) redefinitions of biblical terms, and/or (6) a denial of salvation by grace through faith.[3] If a group originated from the parent religion of Christianity but denies one or more of the essential doctrines of Christianity, this group should be identified as a Christian cult.[4]

[2] Ron Rhodes. Find It Quick – Handbook on Cults & New Religions (Eugene Oregon: Harvest House, 2005), 7-13.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid., 9.

Evangelical Christianity Defined

Most Christians today are self-identified as evangelicals. Evangelical Christianity is gospel centered which means “whatever is contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ is to be rejected as heresy.”[5] However, evangelical Protestants also believe that the Bible alone is the inspired Word of God as the only infallible standard for faith and practices in all church matters. Furthermore, evangelicals embrace the orthodox teaching with respect to the Trinity and the incarnation of Jesus Christ and reject any doctrine that contradicts what the church as a whole has regarded as essential to the Christian faith.

[5] Rob M. Bowman, Jr. Orthodoxy and Heresy – A Biblical Guide to Doctrinal Discernment (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1993), 59-67.

Clear Thinking Exercises

Besides self-identifying as Christians and having a house church background in China, what, if any, other essential beliefs and doctrines does the Church of Almighty God have in common with evangelical Christianity?
It seems changing or abandoning essential doctrines would create many questions about the changing of God’s characters. Did God change His characters since 1991? (See God does not change)
In the Old Testament (OT), though the Law of Moses were put in place to guard and guide the Israelites, the salvation of God’s people was unequivocally by grace through faith beginning in the Book of Genesis as revealed in God’s covenant made with Abraham. In the New Testament (NT), God became flesh (as revealed in Jesus Christ) to pay the ultimate sacrifice as the atonement and redemption once for all. Those who repent and put their faith (total trust) in The Lord Jesus Christ are saved eternally. Why would the same God change the means by which for all people to get saved (from faith to works) in the last days (since 1991)?
Since there are so many doctrinal differences (as documented on this website) between the Church of Almighty God and evangelical Christianity especially on the essentials, is the God of the Church of Almighty God the same God as the OT and NT Scriptures? (See God does not change)