Magyar Egyház, 1982 (61. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1982-05-01 / 5-6. szám

MAGYAR ecyfffiZ 1. God is not a part of the world. God existed before He created the world. — These teachings exclude all pantheistic speculations. The World, or Universe, moves and proceeds by the forces which God created to rule, direct, and control all movements and advances everywhere. God created a moral sensitive soul in every human being which can lead man to God. 2. God is an Absolute Eternal Being (Entity). The world is a relative creation which has a beginning and an end. — The world is an object to God. Matter and life were also created by God. 3. God purposely created the world to bring into being the Kingdom of God. — The world is suitable for the realization of God’s purpose; furthermore, the world is suitable for establishing the universal brotherhood of mankind which complements God’s purpose to establish His Kingdom. We accept the teaching of Jesus that God is a loving Father; we learned and know that the created world obeys the laws God created for its existence. — Every change in the universe speaks of God’s love and purpose. We learned and know that immense forces work in the universe in accord with God’s purpose. — God gave man intelligence: freedom of choice to know what is good or bad. This innate gift urges man to seek immor­tality: that man should endeavor in his earthly life to build the Kingdom of God as a co-worker of God. God did not mechanize ‘good’ and ‘man’. — We can choose to be a co-worker of God, or we can destroy our­selves; it is man’s privilege to do good or step aside. The physical world is not bad. We can live as Christians by following the faith and teachings of Jesus. The human life is good; we have excellent qualities to do good. In the physical world we may see natural catas­trophes, earthquakes, vulcanic eruptions, floods, etc., but these are signs to guide us for better living. The evolution is evident in the created things which are under the God-given natural laws. They stimulated and spur us to cultural progress and betterment. The family is the nucleus in the building of the Kingdom of God, and it is an excellent means to establish the universal brotherhood of mankind. EVIL AND SIN IN THE WORLD 1. We know physical pain and suffering. These are signs that our body and health have wants and need to be taken care of. 2. Sin is willful disobedience of God’s command­ments, in addition to breaking a personal and filial re­lationship with God. Sin is a moral evil and produces anguish and fear. — These are signs that our spiritual life must be improved. Jesus said that God is a Father to all of us. A loving father does not foreordain doom for his children. — Jesus taught that consciousness of guilt and sin urges us to seek salvation. We are all frail and imperfect beings —sinners. In spite of this, God loves every one of us impartially. “Re­pent and believe in the Gospel" is the first step to attain salvation. *** Beliefs, convictions, and commitments are deter-11. oldal mining factors to our way of life and they are as real as soldiers, planes, ships, and guns in the long range out­come of life and world issues. Only the faith and teachings of Jesus possess and offer the possibility of re­shaping the thinking of mankind toward universal brotherhood and world peace. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE To be the follower of Jesus Christ, our Savior, it is not enough to profess and confess our Christian faith; in addition to that, we have to do the will of God by living and discharging gladly and faithfully all the obligations pertaining to our faith, because our religion is not only faith, but also a way of life. — Jesus definitely warned the Pharisees, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me\ in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men!” (Mt. 15:8-9.) The Rules of Christian Life are written by God into every sincere heart from the beginning: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Accordingly, there are three distinct obligations for the followers of Jesus Christ: 1. Toward God; our Church, worship, etc. 2. Toward ourselves; mind and body 3. Toward all men; even to our enemies. We worship God in spirit and in truth, as the first Christian did. Our worship service is simple and pure as it was in the Apostolic Age. They praise God, prayed to Him, read the Word of God and explained it, con­tributed to helping the poor, and administered the two sacraments: the Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. It is a great blessing and privileges to be a follower of the faith and teachings of Jesus Christ and to be a member of our Magyar Reformed Church. THE ORGANIZATION OF OUR CHURCH We believe in the universal priesthood of the be­lievers. Each one of us is a trusted steward of God and an ambassador of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. — We share our faith with our brothers and sisters. The church offices are open to all members. Our church is governed by the Presbyterian System. Our church takes great care that those who preach the Word of God and administer the two sacraments, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, be adequately prepared to discharge their sacred office. Such preparatory education is necessary to proclaim, explain, and keep the Word of God — the Gospel — in its simple purity. The congregation elects elders or presbyters to ma­nage the affairs of the church and they are co-workers of the elected minister. They work together for the well being and growth of the congregation. The presbyters and trusted officers of the congregation and by their faithfulness they are the pillars of the church and should be examples of the Christian life in the building of the Kingdom of God. Holding the office of presbyter is the greatest honor of a church member. New members are received by the ministers of the church, who instruct them in our faith. They proclaim,

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