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Authority of Scripture
1942 conference decesion
4. Reaffirming the Eighteen Articles of Faith
We hold as our confession of faith, the Eighteen Articles of General Christian Faith as found in the Martyrs Mirror, as agreed upon by the United Churches at Dordrecht, Holland, on the 21st day of April, 1632, as well as the Thirty-three Articles of Faith also found in the Martyrs Mirror.
18 articles of faith
V. THE LAW OF CHRIST, i.e., THE HOLY GOSPEL OR THE NEW TESTAMENT
We also believe and confess that before His ascension He instituted His New Testament, and, since it was to be and remain an eternal Testament, that He confirmed and sealed the same with His precious blood, and gave and left it to His disciples, yea, charged them so highly with it, that neither angel nor man may alter it, nor add to it nor take away from it; and that He caused the same, as containing the whole counsel and will of His heavenly Father, as far as is necessary for salvation to be proclaimed in His name by His beloved apostles, messengers, and ministers-whom He called, chose, and sent into all the world for that purpose-among all peoples, nations, and tongues; and repentance and remission of sins to be preached and testified of; and that He accordingly has therein declared all men without distinction, who throughfaith, as obedient children, heed, follow, and practice what the same contains, to be His children and lawful heirs; thus excluding no one from the precious inheritance of eternal salvation, except the unbelieving and disobedient, the stiffnecked and obdurate, who despise it, and incur this through their own sins, thus making themselves unworthy of eternal life. Jer. 31:31; Heb. 9:15-17; Matt. 26:28; Gal. 1:8; I Tim. 6:3; John 15:15; Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47; Rom. 8:17; Acts 13:46.
33 articles of faith # 11
The Old Testament is to be expounded by and reconciled with the New Testament and must be distinctively taught among the people of God
Moses with his stern, threatening, punishing law over all impenitent sinners as still under the law; but Christ with His new, glad tidings of the holy Gospel over all believing, penitent sinners as not under the law, but under grace.
To this new law of Jesus Christ all decrees, councils and ordinances made contrary to it by men in the world, must give place; but all Christians must necessarily, as far as the faith is concerned, regulate and conduct themselves only in accordance with this blessed Gospel of Christ. And as the outward man lives outwardly by the nourishment of bread; so the inward man of the soul lives by every word proceeding from the mouth of the Lord. Therefore the Word of God must be purely and sincerely preached, heard, received and kept, by all believers.
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Convened at the Lone Tree Church, Moundridge, Kansas
November 23-26,1896
Moderator: John Holdeman
May God's blessings rest upon this our labor.
The articles of confession are:
10 The scriptural Guide
We believe that the Holy Scripture is the guide whereby all doctrines and oracles must be governed; for they are given of God unto us as a guide for the way we should live.
We believe that the Church of God is the supreme judge which God has here on earth for gospel matters; therefore, all elders, ministers, and lay members who at any time conceive anything different from the Church should place this before the Church of God that it may be proved before they labor therewith. We should walk in the same rule; and when anyone apprehends anything else, let the Lord reveal whether it will stand or not. A spirit that labors in division is a sectarian spirit; and after they are thus proven by the Church with the Word of God, they should be dealt with according to the Holy Scriptures, as is written in our article of confession of excommunication. John 5:39; Rom. 16:17; 2 Tim. 3:16-17. (Refer to Art. 13, 1959 Conference.)
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