General Statement of Faith

The Bellator Christi website welcomes views from across the spectrum of what is considered to be found within universally accepted Christian orthodoxy (that is, beliefs that abide by the Apostle’s Creed which adhere to the core fundamentals of Christianity). However, the ministry of Bellator Christi is devoted to a particular methodology and subsection of Christianity. Before a person can join the Bellator Christi team, he or she must sign an agreement that their theological system is found within the essential spirit of the Bellator Christi Statement of Faith, which is posted below.

Bellator Christi Statement of Faith (SoF)

The following document outlines the essential beliefs and core values of Bellator Christi Ministries. Please read over the core beliefs and values of Bellator Christi Ministries. Then, you are asked to sign and return the accompanying document toward the end of the file that notes your agreement with the Bellator Christi Statement of Faith.

I. God

We affirm our belief in one God, infinite Spirit, creator, and sustainer of all things, who exists eternally in three persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three are one in essence but distinct in person and function.

A. God the Father

We affirm that the Father is the first person of the Trinity and the source of all that God is and does. He is the designer of creation, the speaker of revelation, the author of redemption, and the sovereign of history. He is an intelligent, spiritual, personal Being who is the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe.

B. God the Son

We affirm that the Lord Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity, eternally begotten from the Father. He is God incarnate. He was conceived by the virgin Mary through a miracle of the Holy Spirit. He lives forever as perfect God and perfect man: two distinct natures inseparably united in one person.

C. God the Holy Spirit

We affirm that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, proceeding from the Father and the Son and equal in deity. He is the giver of all life, active in the creating and ordering of the universe; he is the agent of inspiration and the new birth; he restrains sin and Satan; and he indwells and sanctifies all believers.

II. Creation

We affirm that all things were created by God. Angels were created as ministering agents, though some, under the leadership of Satan, fell from their sinless state to become agents of evil. The universe was created in six days[1] and is continuously sustained by God. Therefore, creation both reflects God’s glory and reveals God’s truth. Human beings were directly created, not evolved, in the very image of God. As reasoning moral agents, human beings are responsible under God for understanding and governing themselves and the world.

III. Marriage and Sexuality

We recognize that part of God’s good design is the way God created male and female in his image to flourish in community. In the beginning, God designed marriage as a covenantal bond between one man and one woman, which is affirmed by Jesus in the New Testament. It is in this marriage union that God blessed a special spiritual, emotional, and sexual intimacy for joy, satisfaction, and procreation. Further, we believe God’s intent for sexual intimacy is to occur only in the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman.

IV. Bible

We affirm that the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, though written by men, was supernaturally inspired by God so that all its words are the written true revelation of God; it is therefore inerrant in the originals and authoritative in all matters. It is to be understood by all through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, its meaning determined by the historical, grammatical, and literary use of the author’s language, comparing Scripture with Scripture.

V. Sin

We affirm that Adam, the first man, willfully disobeyed God, bringing sin and death into the world. As a result, all persons are sinners from conception, which is evidenced in their willful acts of sin; and they are therefore subject to eternal punishment, under the just condemnation of a holy God.

VI. Atonement

We affirm that Jesus Christ offered himself as a sacrifice by the appointment of the Father. He fulfilled the demands of God by his obedient life, died on the cross in full substitution and payment for the sins of all, was buried, and on the third day he arose from the dead.

VII. Resurrection

We affirm that Jesus arose physically and bodily from the dead on the third day. After 40 days on the earth after his resurrection, Jesus ascended into heaven where he now intercedes for all believers until the time that he returns to judge the living and the dead.

VIII. Salvation

We affirm that each person can be saved only through the work of Jesus Christ, through repentance of sin and by faith alone in Christ as Savior. The believer is declared righteous, born again by the Holy Spirit, turned from sin, and assured of heaven.

A. Soteriological Stance.

Please note that Bellator Christi affirms the non-Calvinist approach to soteriology,[2] meaning that we hold that Jesus’s death was sufficient for all to be saved, but efficient for only those who are repentant and respond to God’s grace. Furthermore, we hold that it is not God’s will (or desire) that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

B. Indwelling and Salvific Plan.

We affirm that the Holy Spirit indwells all who are born again, conforming them to the likeness of Jesus Christ. This is a process completed only in Heaven. This process includes three elements:

1. Justification. This means that God accounts us righteous upon our acceptance of him upon our repentance and belief. Justification enters the believer into a relationship with God.

2. Sanctification. Sanctification is the ongoing process that God uses to transform us into the image of Christ. This is ultimately completed in heaven. Every believer is responsible unto God to live in obedience to the Word of God and to separate themselves from a sinful lifestyle.

3. Glorification. This is final stage of salvation. People are glorified when they enter their final and abiding state of redemption as found upon their entrance into heaven and culminating in the final resurrection of their bodies.

IX. The Church

We affirm that the Church is a universal family of redeemed individuals spanning the globe and transcending time. The local church is an assembly of baptized believers, under the discipline of the Word of God and the lordship of Christ, organized to carry out the commission to evangelize, to teach, and to administer the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s table. It functions through the ministry of gifts given by the Holy Spirit to each believer.

X. Eschatology[3]

In fulfillment of God’s historical purpose for humanity to rule and establish God’s kingdom on earth (Gen. 1:28; Ps. 8:4-8; Matt. 6:10; Heb. 2:6-9), the Scriptures teach a millennial reign of Christ with His saints on earth following His literal return. The nation of Israel, having been redeemed, will play a central role in bringing the blessings of salvation to all nations during the millennium in fulfillment of biblical prophecies (e.g., Is. 2:1-4; 11:1-12; Jer. 23:5-6; Ezek. 37; Amos 9:9-15; Zech. 14; Matt. 19:28; Acts 1:6; 3:19-21; Rev. 20:4-6). Following the millennium, this kingdom will be merged into the eternal kingdom (I Cor. 15:22-28). See footnote three for further details.

XI. Apologetic Methodologies

Bellator Christi Ministries employs the use of classical and/or evidential apologetic methodologies. While other concepts can be included in one’s cumulative methodology, the primary focus of the ministry has always been on the classical and evidential apologetic methodologies. The classical and evidential approach includes the use of the Bible, science, history, philosophy, and other avenues to defend the faith. All truth is God’s truth.

XII. The Three “Non’s” of Bellator Christi

To maintain a focus on the core mission of Bellator Christi, the ministry has adopted what is called the three “non’s.”

Nondenominational. While we appreciate the distinctions between our different denominational traditions, we aim to focus on the larger, unified body of Christ and what C. S. Lewis calls “mere Christianity.” Thus, we do not identify with any one denomination.
Non-political. Undoubtedly, politics is critically important. We hold that our role as citizens includes our involvement with the political process. But in striving to focus primarily on the mission of the ministry, we do not publish political innuendo that favors any political party. We do engage philosophical and ethical issues, even those that may cross over into the political spectrum, but do not sponsor any political campaign, party, or candidate.
Non-Calvinist. Bellator Christi Ministries strives to offer a voice to those who do not hold the Calvinist approach. While Bellator Christi officially adopts the Molinist perspective, our contributors may include those who are classical Arminian/Remonstrant, Thomist, Provisionist/Traditional Baptist, Wesleyan, and any other soteriological position that does not affirm or endorse the five points of Calvinism.[4] However, Pelagian and Open Theist positions are not acceptable.[5]

XIII. Bellator Christi’s Mission.

The mission of Bellator Christi Ministries is to advance the gospel into the world by taking up the sword of theology and the shield of apologetics.

Notes

[1] Bellator Christi Ministries is open to both Old Earth Creationist and Young Earth Creationist interpretations but does not accept evolutionary concepts.

[2] “Non-Calvinist” notes our opposition to the classic five-point Calvinist stance. Lighter versions of Calvinism including “moderate Calvinism,” Amyraldism, infralapsarianism, and sublapsarianism are acceptable.

[3] While this is the official position of Bellator Christi, various eschatological interpretations are accepted. However, those views may be subject to review. The essential nature of one’s eschatology must include the literal return of Christ, an acceptance of the intermediate state, and the existence of a real heaven and hell.

[4] Aka., TULIP (Total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints). An exception is made for those who are free-will Baptists that hold to eternal security, which is sometimes linked with the perseverance of the saints.

[5] Pelagian views hold that a person chooses God without God being the first mover. Non-Calvinist Christian interpretations all hold that God is the first mover and that people respond to God’s grace, either by accepting God’s grace or rejecting God’s grace. Open Theist viewpoints largely contend that God does not know future contingent events as the future has not occurred.

First Draft Completed: April 7, 2016.

Revised: October 22, 2021.