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Doctrinal
Statement of the "Continual Reformation Church"
THE DOCTRINAL "NEW DEAL"
We believe in the apostolic creeds to
which Bible-believing Protestant churches in general adhere to.
This is basically what our doctrinal statement is. It is not in adding or
subtracting from these that we want to establish specificness. The
doctrinal specifics of theContinual Reformation Church (CRC) lies not in
the content, but the administration, defense and contextualization of
Christian dogma.
Our vision is to re-establish the apostolic teaching of Christianity by a
rigorous re-implantation of the doctrine of Christ as
it had been fought for and established in the first four centuries after
Christ. We believe that this has to be done and can be done. We believe
that all doctrinal weaknesses, of churches that have departed from sound
apostolic doctrine as well as all weaknesses of defense of sound doctrine,
found in churches that officially adhere to apostolic doctrine but in
practice have become wavering, lukewarm and irrelevant, can be met by a
redefining of apostolic doctrine taking for each and every theological
discipline a correct appreciation of the double-nature of Christ as
well as of the Christian's identity in Christ , i.e.
the doctrine of the incarnation, as a starting point
from which these are to be developed. So while CRC strives for an existence
rooted in the apostolic and universal church of old, it also wants to
instigate a doctrinal "new deal", i.e. stimulate
towards the reformulation of everything in Christian doctrine that is
currently generally accepted in mainstream
Evangelicalism/Protestantism.
Besides of CRS's strategic considerations
concerning the doctrine of Christ (Point I.), here are 6 more
theological disciplines we are aiming at and reformulating in this sense:
II. Hermeneutics. CRC strives towards a
hermeneutic guide based on a doctrine of inspiration and canonicity that is
based on the double-nature of Christ and therefore is neither
rationalistically anti-supernaturalistic (arianistic) nor
gnostic-manichaeistic (apollonarianistic). Once the Bible is re-established
in this way, it will be like a bomb whose trigger had been lost or had
become wet and has now been found again resp. newly installed and which now
can produce society-changing "explosions". A hermeneutic that is
re-united with systematic theology, not shrinking away from the formulation
of dogmatic creeds, will give the church again the spiritual authority for
which it has been designed. CRC stands for dynamic, non-static
dogmatism as salutary alternative to both naive clinging to past
reformation dogmas on one hand and sloppy theology, dogmatic indifference
and ambiguousity on the other hand.
III. An ecclesiology based on Old
Testament prophecy. CRC believes in covenant theology, i.e. in that teaching
according to which the New Testament Church is the spiritual heir of the
Old Testament Israel-remnant. We are snatching Bible-verses which
dispensationalism has thrown into the throat of a political Israel away
from the former, giving them back to the church. Thus the church will gain
its true identity again. In opposition to an ecumenical movement based on
horizontal unity and clerical-political schemes CRC wants to establish
networks of christians that humbly seek after truth first and unity second.
IV. Soteriology and anthropology. Only a correct appreciation of the
incarnation of Christ can lead to a correct appreciation of the creation of
man and vice versa. The heresies of Arianus and Apollonarianus affect
not only christology itself but also the doctrines of creation, salvation
and sanctification.
V. Pneumatology. An incarnational doctrine
of inspiration and canonicity has to consequently lead to a redefinition of
who the Holy Spirit is and how he works resp. does not work. A full
application of the doctrine of the Christian's identity in Christ is only
possible when that teaching is rejected, according to which certain
spiritual gifts are operative during Christ's or the apostles' time only.
For this would mean that one could only be "IN CHRIST", while
Christ Himself was still physically on earth (or at least His
eye-witnesses). Pneumatology has been tossed to and fro between the two
heretical extremes of arianism and apollonarianism. This has to be ended
and it can be ended by a redefinition of pneumatology within the
incarnational-doctrine-frame.
VI. Missiology. A missions philosophy
rooted in the Christian's dying in and for the world similar to Christ's
dying for mankind. A differentiated biblical definition of the term
"world". Overcoming of both ghetto-mentality and worldliness.
VII. End-time
eschatology. There are two extremes in common contemporary
end-time eschatology which in their basic structures are either arianistic
or apollonarianistic. CRC offers a search towards an alternative to these
two extremes. Following a critical analysis of the reconstructionist
"Kingdom-Now" view on one hand and that kind of gnostic pietism
leading to ghettoism (and those turning away from it into the open arms of
reconstructionism) on the other hand, biblical support is raised in favor
of alternative outlooks in eschatology avoiding both extremes.
You may now navigate to each one of the above by clicking on the
respective title-text of the doctrinal points which for that purpose are
listed up again here:
I. Strategic considerations concerning the doctrine
of Christ
II. Hermeneutics (Doctrine of the Bible)
III. Ecclesiology (Doctrine of the Church)
IV. Soteriology and Anthropology (Salvation through
Christ's Work and the doctrine of man)
V. Pneumatology (Doctrine of the Holy Spirit)
VI. Missions philosophy
VII.
Towards new paradigms in biblical eschatology
VIII. Miscellaneous
(Trinity, Tithing, Integrity; Ethical issues)
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