TEXTS:

2 Tim 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20; Gal 1:11; Heb 1:1,2; 2 Sam 23:1,2 Mat 24:35; Rev 22:18,19

The Only, the Highest God and the Ruler of the Universe, Jesus Christ and mankind's Father, the Creator of all beings in heaven and on the earth. He is a spiritual being. God the Father is revealed in the Holy Scriptures as well as his power and greatness in the nature and human consciousness. Not until the eternity begins, will He be completely comprehended by the saved ones. God has given no right as to make His image in any form. He is an omniscient being, full of love and justice.

TEXTS:

Gen 1:1; Isa 40:26; Eph 4:6; Mat 6:9; John 20:17; 1 Tim 1:17; Rom 1:20; 1 Cor 13:12,13; 2 Sam 2:3; 1 John 4:8; 2 Cor 8:6.

Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God and He is the Saviour of the world. Through Him and for Him has God created all things. He is a spiritual being - born of the Father, He inherits God's nature so He is called God. Subordinated to the Father, to whom he will be sumitted forever, to satisfy God's justice with His sacrifice, to redeem mankind from eternal death and to reconciliate man with God. After the resurection, he sat on God's right and took kingly power. He serves God's Church (spiritual Sanctuary) as the Highest priest in the order of Melchizedek

TEXTS:

John 3:16, 18; Col 1:15,16; John 1:1-3; 20:17; Hebr 1:8,9; Rom 6:23; 1 Pet 2:24; Rom 5:10-11; 1 Cor 15:28; Hebr 1;3; 8:12; Dan 7:13; Mat 28:18; Hebr 4:14-16; 1 Cor 8:6.

The Holy Spirit is the power of the Highest One. It flows from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The pouring of the whole of the Holy Spirit took place at Pentacost. God and Christ through all the ages of the human race existence have been in contact with people first of all by the Holy Spirit. Through that very Spirit, God maintains and developes His work, teaches His people and delivers them from temptation. God seals His people with the Spirit so sin against the Spirit is mortal.

All definitions of God's Spirit in the Bible are: of God, of the Lord, of Christ, Holy, of the Father; they all concern the Spirit itself. God through the Holy Spirit sends all His great and saving gifts for the Church. Those gifts serve to build the Church of God. A believer is the dwelling of the Holy Spirit and his christianhood manifests itself through 'the fruits of the Holy Spirit'. A christian who does not draw upon the gifts of the Spirit and bears no 'fruits of the Holy Spirit' does not grow spiritually nor contributes to the building of God's Church.

TEXTS:

Luk 24:49; Acts 1:8; John 15;26; 16:7-13; 14;16,17,26; Acts 2:1-4; Isa 63:7-14; Rom 8;9; 2 Pet 1:21; Eph 1:13; 4:30; Gal 5:22,23; 1 Tes 4:8; 2 Cor 3:17,18; 1 Cor 2:12; ch.12; Eph 4:7,17; 1 Tes 5:19.

Love is a crucial feature of God's character and the basis of His plan of salvation. It is the greatest commandment and thus the biblical way of life now and forever - in earthly life as well as in the eternity, it is and will be based on God's principle of love. The proof of God's love is, among others, the love towards neighbour. The rule of equality and liberty of all people, with no respect to social or national background, appears from love. A great example of God's love for man is life, service and the sacrifice of God's Son. A person following Jesus understands that love is action and service for others. Love is the recognition signal of Jesus Christ's disciples; it is the epitomy of God's Law, it comprises strangers and enemies.

TEXTS:

1 John 4;8-10; John 3:16; Mat 22:34-40; Rom 13:8-10; John 15:12; 13:35; 1 Cor 13:-8, 13; Mat 5;43-48; Gal 3:28; Acts 17;26.

All God's action towards man is grounded on grace. Grace is love showed to an unworthy being. It takes pity on those who deserve wrath and punishment. The grace of God manifested itself in Christ Jesus for all people. A man without God's grace is a sinful rebel against God's Holy Law as he lives under the desires of the flesh. What the grace of God offers to man is: forgiving sins, justification, reconciliation with God, salvation and the power to live in faith. Thanks to God's grace, a sinner is able to become a God's child. God's grace teaches how to renounce any evil, how to change one's life or live in obedience and eagerness to follow good deeds. A man who wittingly rejects God's grace prevents himself from entering God's Kingdom.

TEXTS:

Mat 18:21-27; Eph 1:3,4; Rom 3:22,23; Gal 5:19-21; Eph 1:6-8; 2:8,9; Tit 3:7; Kol 1:20-22; John 1:12; Tit 2:11-14; Eph 2:8-10; Heb 10 26-31.

Faith is being sure of what we hope for - conviction of a real existence of the unseen. Faith is a great privilege of God's children, An essential condition of approsaching God, justification and pleasing God. Uncredulity and false belief affests the faith of God's child and puts him or her to trial. A victor in this trial is a christian whose faith is grounded on the unshakeable foundation of God's infallible Word. True, perfect faith of God's children must be living, this is to say, effective through love, being manifested in observing God's Law and doing good deeds; it must grow and develope by God's Word, prayer and testing, through active service in the Church.

TEXTS;

Heb ch. 11; Rom3:3; 1 Cor 2:5; Heb 12:2; 1 John 5:4; 1 Tim 3:9; Heb 10:22; Rom 10:17; Luke 17:5; John 2:19-26; Gal 5:6; 1 Pet 1:3-9; 1 Cor 13:13.

Obedience to God is the basic condition of a harmonious and happy existence not only for man but for the whole Universe too. The cause of the mankinds' tragedy and failures lies in the disobedience to God's Law. Disobedience is a rebellion and sin against the Creator and it leads to temporal and eternal destruction. Jesus is a perfect example of obedience to God even until death. He is 'the source of eternal salvation' for those who are obedient to Him. The Scriptures show many examples of obedience and the results of it. Without obedience, atonement and conversion, sacred life and salvation are impossible. Obedience cannot be replaced by any sacrifice made by people.

TEXTS:

Job ch. 38; Rom 5:19; Ps 119:89-91; Phil 2:5-9; Heb 5:8,9; Gen 26:5; 1 Pet 1 13-16; 1 Sam 15:22.

The basis of wielding power in a just manner is a just law. The first Lawgiver is God. His wiil has been expresed in commandments, acts and regulations directing the relations of man to God and to his neighbour. God's Law is always holy, just and good as it is the rule of a believer's life. The biblical expression "God's Law" (Law - Torra, Nomos) refers both to God's moral Law (mainly Decalogue - The Ten Commandments) and to the Ceremonial Law. God's law is unchangeable in its essence. When Jesus died on the cross as its perfect sacrifice, He fulfilled the Ceremonial Law of symbols whereas the Moral Law still remains to christians the basic rule os life and godliness. The Moral Law comprises two commandments of love(God and man), Decalogue and other commandments concerning morality.

The Moral Law has no power of justification but a believer can recognize his sin through it, he feels the necessity of atonment , a great need of grace; as he observes it, he gives the proof of the obedience to God and the love to Him.

God's Law has been in the history of mankind the object of the attacs of satan, his aids and servants.

TEXTS

Ps 111; Ps 19:8,9; Ex 20:1-17; Heb 9:1-10; 10:1-20; Mat 5:17-19; 5:21,22. 27,28; 19:16-19; Jam 2:10-12; rom 7:7,12; 1 John 2:3-7; 3,4; Eph 2:14,15; Col 2:13-17; Heb 7:15-19; Rev 14:12; 12:17.

In compliance with the fourth Commandment of the holy and unchangeable Decalogue, the Lord's day is the seventh day of the week - Saturday. It was established at the creation of the world and it is the reminder of the creation. God himself rested on that day, blessed it and made it holy. Jesus confirmed the holiness of God's day, pointed to its true meaning and its greatness through corroborating the fourth Commandment and his own pronauncement, 'the Sabbath was made for man. That truth was supported by his daily life. True children of God have kept Saturday as the Lord's day through the ages. Almighty God have forseen the trespassing against that Commandment and eventual changing it; He has begun the commandment with the word 'remember!' That day has been a token between God and his people. The Lord's day - Saturday - lasts from the evening (sunset) on Friday to the evening (sunset) on Saturday.

TEXTS:

Gen 2:1-3; Ex 16:14-30; Mark 2:27,28; Isa 58:13,14; Luke 4;16-19; 23:50-56; Mat 24,20; Acts 13:13, 14, 42, 44; 16:12-15; Lev 23:32; Rev 1:10; Heb 4:9; Jam 2:10-12.

The conversion, or being newly born, is a deep and total change made in man's heart by God. It is a once-happening and decisive for man's life event. It is preceded by longer or shorter preparatory period. The change is made by God through the Holy Spirit with a consciouss cooperation of man. It is the resultof God's grace. The conversion comprises a complete change of previous thinking, speech and acting. It concerns the whole man, his spirit, soul and life. An essential feature of it is repentance and confessing of sins, and the decision of living a life that is just and compatible with God's will. An external sign of the conversion is the baptism. A converted man has tocare of the perfection and purity of his christian life and to overcome sin daily. Bible calls it "being renewed day by day".

TEXTS:

John 3:1-6; Joel2:12,13; Acts 2:38; 3:19; John 1:9; 2 Cor 7:10; Eph 4:22,32; 4:13-15; 2 Cor 4:16.

A Christian differs from the environment in a conspicuous way and with many specific external features. By his behaviour and appearance, he presents the highest degree of culture and biblical morality. Those features , among the others, are: modesty, humility, mildness, balance, goodness and bodily purity. They are also revealed by speech, skill of listening, appearent patience; through a proper attire, covering heads by women in prayer. A Christian strives to an internal beautybut he he also recognizes a natural external beauty. A Christian should be characterized by self- restraint and negation towards negative aspects of the world. He objects to the companionship or forms of entertainment that do not take high demands of The Holy Scriptures into account and are permeated with indecency or licenciousness. The Scriptures recommend proper using such God's gifts as contact with the nature, the sun, air and water; benefiting from good music and the literature that can enrich us; attending christian meetings.

TEXTS:

Eph 5:17; 5:3,4; 1 Tim 2:8,9; Tit 2:1-5; 1 Pet 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; Jam 3:1-12; 2 Tim 2:22; 1 Cor 6:9,10; 11:14,15.

The best doctor of man is God. He enclosed very important orders concerning our psychical and physical heath in the scriptures. To maintain good psychical health, it is essentially important to accept and care for a proper biblical view on life, so very crucial it is to eliminate sin and fight against its causes. To keep physical health, one has to take care of bodily hygiene (cleanness, movement, rest, contact with nature), to keep from unclean food( pork for example), to nourish properly (avoiding gluttony), not to get into habits like alcoholism, using nicotine nor drugs.

TEXTS:

1 Tes 5:23; Ex 15:26; Ps 103:3; Mat 11:28-30; 2 Tim 1:7-12; 1 Tim 4:12; Ex 20:8-11; Ps 127:2,3; Lev 11:1-47; Isa 56:15-17; Acts 15:29; 1 Cor 6:10; 10:3; 1 Pet 4:3; Luke 21:34.

The task of God's Church is testifying about God's Truth and Salvation in Jesus Christ. Every member of the Church, according as he posesses a gift of the Spirit, feels responsible for the world heading for the destruction. That responsibility is apparent from engaging oneself in the missionary work of the Church. The testifying is possible in many ways: by word of mouth, through the Bible, missionary letters, literature and daily christian life. Verbal testifying is making missionary contacts with people, keeping in touch with them and inviting them, to listen to God's word at a local Church. We also proclaim the Gospel through propagating the Bible, sending missionary letters to the interested, and by the literature published by the Church to convert people. An important aspect of testifying is conducting good, christian life, by which many can come to a knowledge of the truth. The effectiveness of word of mouth depends on the testimony of life.

TEXTS

Mat 24:24; Acts 8:4; 2 Tim 2:2; 2:15; Mat 5:16; 2 Cor 5:11; Prov 24:11; 1 Cor 5:9; Col 4:16; 2 Pet 3:6; 2 Cor 3:2; 1 Pet 2:12.

Prayer is a direct and reliable means of contact with God. In compliance with what the Scriptures tell us, the Church of God needs a persistent and humble prayer as the graetest internal need of God's children. The Church and each of its members prayers in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The result of prayer depends on God's will, faith, patience and obedience. We differentiate the following kinds of prayer: glorious, thankful, expressing requests and atonmental invocations, prayer in the congregation and a personal one. We pray at all circumstances of life and times of the day, for example at worship meetings, welcomes, farewells, meals, disease, sorrow, in danger, at missionary work, in the morning, evening. God's People pray in various places, for example in the house of prayer, at private homes, in nature or journey. At special situations, God's Word recommends prayer combined with fasting. God's child must be properly disposed in his spirit. We recognize all biblical forms of prayer.

TEXTS:

John 14:13; Eph 5:20; Mat 26:41; 6:6; Heb 10:25; Jam 5:16; 1 Tim 2:1; Luke 18:1; Jam 5:13; 1 Tes 5:17,18; Col 1:3; Acts 20:36; 28:8; Rom 15:30; acts 1:14; Luke 1:10; Prov 28:9.

Marriage and family are institutions established by God. Marriage, as a monogamous union, lifelong and permanent, is a close community of body and mind. Love and faithfulness are the basic features, decisive in the permanence of marriage and family. Husband and wife love each other but the head in the union is husband; wife is submissive to him. Marital separation can take place as a result of adultery. The Scriptures warn against believers' uniting themselves with unbelievers.

The essential purpose of marrriage is having children and upbringing them according to the spirit of christian principles. Parents' duty is to care about proper, versatile and biblical development of children, which is manifested in teaching them biblical principles - obedience relying on applying a thorough system of reprimend and discipline; parents should also care fortheir spiritual, psychical and material needs. Children's obedience and honour towards their parents through all their life control the value of a christian family. Marriage and family built on proper christian basis becomes a strong supprt of God's Church and a convincing evidence of faith.

TEXTS:

Gen 2:18-23; Mat 19:5,6; Prov 5:15-20; Ecc 9,9; Eph 5:22,23; Prov 19:18; 29:15; 1 Cor 7:10,11; 1 Tes 4:3-5; Deut 5;6-8; 6:6,7; Prov 1:8,9; 2 Cor 6:14-16;1 Cor 11:3-16; 1 Tim 5:4; 5:14; Eph 6:1-4.

An external expression of faith is baptism through total immersion. It may take place at the age of mental maturity. God's Church performs baptism by order of Jesus Christ. The baptism must be preceded by atonment, conversion, faith and anxiety for being reconciled to God. Then it is the sign of burying one's previous life, forgiving sins and the rising to the new life in God.

After the baptism, the Elders of the Church complete biblical laying hands, which is usually concerned with filling with the Holy Spirit. Due to a great need of the Holy Spirit's influence and the living and developement of the Church the hands laying on the newly-baptised has a great importance. The hands laying may also have a different meaning. We distinguish the hands laying for healing, blessing, and for devotion in the Lord's service.

Another important ceremony in christian life is The Lord's Supper (the bread breaking), preceded by a humility rite - the washing of feet. The Lord's Supper is the remembrance of the death and shedding of blood by our Lord Jesus Christ. The bread is the symbol of Christ's body and the wine is the symbol of HIs blood. A God's child must approach the Lord's Supper worthily and with a conscience that is clean to God and people.

In the Scriptures we can also see the ceremony of anointing an ill person along with prayer for healing.

Christian women obey biblical custom of covering their heads while praying or prophesying. The Church also practises wedding blessing for the newly-wed.

Apart from that, it also arranges funeral rites first of all for its believers.

TEXTS:

Mat 28:19,20; Mark 16:16; Acccts 2:38,39; Heb 6:1-3; Acts 8:14-17; 9:17; 13:2,3; 2 Tim 1:6,7; Mark 16:17,18; Mat 19:13-15; Gen 48:13,14; Mat 26:26-29; 1 Cor 11:23-29; John 13:3-17; Jam 5:14,15; 1 Con 5:14,15; 1 Cor 11:1-16.

Man was created 'in God's own image' as a good and perfect being. Because of sin, he has become sinful and mortal. Man is spirit, soul and flesh; none of them can constitute personality seperately nor are they able to exist seperately. Human soul is mortal; immortality will be given to it out of God's grace, through Jesus Christ and through its subduing to God's will - on the day of the resurrecting of the just.

The teachings about immortal soul, the hereafter and the purgatory are discordant with the Scriptures. The Bible warns people against calling up spirits and spiritism.

TEXTS:

Gen 1:31; Eccl 7:29; Rom 5:12; 6:23; 1 Thes 5:23; Ps 146:4; Eccl 9:5,6,10; Job 7:8-10; John 11:11; 1Thes 4:13-17; 2 Tim 4:8; 1 Tim 1:17; 6:16; Ezech 18:4; Mat 10:28; Lev 20:6,27; Deut 18:9-12; Isa 8:19,20.

God's Sanctuary was the only centre of God's Service In the Old Testament; the material Sanctuary of God was a meeting-place of God and people. It comprised of the Holy and the most Holy Place. It was qualified as 'the Tabernacle,' the Tent of the Testimony,' 'the Church,' the House of God.' The service in that sanctuary, first of all, consisted of giving sacrificies. The Sanctuary and its service were imperfect, they were the symbol and image of spiritual sanctuary and its service. At the moment of Jesus' death, the Old Teseament Sanctuary lost its importance. A new, Spiritual Sanctuary came into being ; the Builder of it is the Lord Himself. That new, spiritual sanctuary, called Heavenly one, was made through the gathering in Christ God's family on the earth with The Heavenly Family. In that Sanctuary a perfect, saving service of God is performed. The Only highest Priest of the Heavenly Sanctuary is Jesus Christ, who is, at the same time, the Foundation, the Corner Stone, Servant and the Lord of that Sanctuary. God's people is also called to serve in the Sanctuary. The service is based upon proclaiming the word of reconciliation and salvation, on the common priesthood of God's people. As they know that they are God's Sanctuary, God's people care for its purity and holiness.

TEXTS:

Gen 25:8; Heb 6:7; Num 9:15; Acts 7:44-48; mat 27:51; 1 Tim 3:15; Heb 8:1,2; Zech 6:12,13; 1 Pet 2:5-9; Eph 2:6, 19-22; John 2:19-22; John 14:23; 1 Cor 3:16,17; Eph 5:27; Heb 3:6; John 15:19; 17:14; Eph 1:10; Heb 12:22-24; Eph 3:14,15.

According to God's will and to His just Law, a man who wants to live eternally should obey the principles given by the Creator. Disobedience causes man to be guilty of the trangresssion of the Law and is subject to Judgement. The wages of sin is death. God is an infallible being so His decisions made for the judgement are unfailing and just. All people have to give account of their lifes. The Bible differentiates several kinds of judgement. A man who wants to avoid the penal judgement of God must observe God's laws. A particular importance for man's salvation at the time of grace has the Gospel judgement. Under that term we understand a God-given possibility of accepting or rejecting the Gospel. A man is the one who can of his own volition judge himself, either to the eternal life or to condemnation. There is no rescue from the decision of the Final Judgement.

TEXTS:

Deut 5;29; Mat 19:16-19; Rom 5:12; 6:23; Rev 19:1-3; Eccl 12:13,14; 2 Cor 5:10; John 5:24; 12:48; Mat 25:31-45.

Hope is a joyful unticipating of a desirable good, expecting, trust and comfort; it is a sort of being sure of what shall be man's share. One of essential values of christian life is God's hope. It concerns two realities: the present and the future. We talk about the present hope when we put our earthly life in the Lord's hands with the hope of his leading us. The future one is mentioned when we wait for the fulfilment of God's blessed promises joyfully, patiently and with trust. The hope enables us to have a perfect, permanent and constant communion with God, Jesus Christ and God's people in one, spiritual Church. God's hope is the only one important and fundamental value for the life of God's people. Without it, despite posessing certain human hopes, man's life is worthless to God - man lives without hope.

TEXTS:

Rom 8:24,25; Eph 4:4; Rom 5:5; Ps 14:7; 1 Cor 15:19; Col 1:5; Eph 2:12; Heb 6:18-20.

The basis of christian's faith and life is the famous coming of Jesus Christ. It will be the greatest event of the future and the reason of the greatest joy of God's children. The promise of the second coming of Christ was known and proclaimed even in the Old Testament times. Christians set all their hopes of the eternal life on that event. At the moment of the Lord's coming, the resurection, transformation and taking the just to 'the Father's House' will take their place. The day of Jesus Christ's coming is a mistery to all people. However, God calls to vigilance, careful watching the signs of the times and preparing for that great day.

Christ's coming will be a visible occurance. He will come in the glory of the Father along with tholy angels. It will be a tragic moment for some people and a happy one for others. At the Lord's coming, the eternal future of the just and the unjust will be ultimately resolved.

TEXTS;

Jude 14; Rev 22:12; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:10,11; Tit 2:11-14; Mat 24:27-30; 1 Tes 4:16,17; 1 Cor 15:50-54; Phil 3:20,21; Mat 24:32-36.

The second coming of Christ and the resurection of the just, which is linked with it, will usher in a period of a thousand-year rule of the saved with Christ in heaven. The earth will be a wilderness at the time.

God's people will participate in the judgement held over satan, his angels and the ungodly world.

After the period of the Millenium, there will be the resurection of the unjust and the Final Judgement, on which God's sentence on any unjustice will be announced. Satan, his fallen angels and all unjust people will be thrown into the lake of burning sulphre. That is the second death, the ultimate annihilation of all evil. Our earth will than be destroyed and the saved people of God will posess the New Earth for everlasting dwelling.

TEXTS:

2 Pet3:13; Rev 6:14; 20:1-3; Jer 4:23-27; Rev 20:4-15; Isa 65:17; Rev 21:1-5.

God endowed every man with a free will. The elementary, personal right to freedom of conscience and belief as the basis of the functioning of every society issue out of that fact. A Christian is a free man but under the disguise of freedom he cannnot praise and commit evil. Everyone has the right to live up to his conscience. There is, however, a great, personal responsibility to God, which resultsout of that essential principle of freedom. All peopleare equal in relation to God and God's nation, with no regard to social and national origin. Civil authority Comes from God. Its purpose should always be defending personal, religious, social and citizen rights of people, keeping order and care for the whole society.

The Scriptures order to respect civil authority with regard to the rule 'to obey God rather than men' /Acts 4:19/; it entails veneration, respect, obedience, awe, financial duties and prayers for the sake of our peaceful life.

TEXTS:

Rom 12:1,2; 1 Cor 2:12; Deut 10:17; Dan 2:20-22; Rom 13:1-4; Mat 22:21; Acts 4:19; 5:29; Deut 30:19.