What should christians believe

From its beginning with a tiny group of Jesus' followers, Christianity has spread all over the world. Today, it is practiced by two billion people. As with any large group, Christianity has experienced many different interpretations, disagreements and struggles for power over the centuries. These have led to the growth of many different branches of Christianity interpreting the life, death and resurrection of Jesus in different ways. Christianity: Basic Beliefs How did Christianity begin?

What do Christians believe? The essence of Jesus' teaching comes from his summary of the Jewish law he grew up with: Love God with all your heart, soul and mind. Love your neighbor as yourself. Christians also seek to follow the ten commandments God gave Moses to give the Israelites: Worship no other God but me. Do not make images to worship. Do not misuse the name of God. Observe the Sabbath Day Sunday, for Christians. Keep it Holy. Honor and respect your father and mother.

Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Rather, God revealed himself in a way suitable for the first audience in the ancient middle east, leaving out information that would not make sense to them. Passages like Genesis 1, John 1, and Colossians 1 clearly speak of God as the Creator of all things, with no exception. We can conclude these passages speak not only of the Earth but of the entire cosmos, including intelligent life beyond Earth.

God is the Creator of all the worlds and whatever life is in them. If we find intelligent life on another planet, would that change how we see ourselves?

Christians have offered multiple answers to this. Some make a case from Christian theology that humans must be the only intelligent species in the universe. Humans have a unique, special relationship with God that is not shared by other species on Earth. This can be extended to say that humans are unique in the universe as well. Humans have an exclusive relationship with God. Others make a case from Christian theology that humans could be one of many intelligent species.

Scripture shows that God is generous, even extravagant, in creating an Earth that is fruitful in producing many life forms. This can be extended to say that God has created a fruitful universe with many intelligent beings. Theologian and astronomer David Wilkinson in his excellent book Science, Religion, and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence points out that humans can be exceptional even if not exclusive in our relationship with God.

This is not an appeal to human superiority. It is about exceptional relationship but not exclusive relationship. These have shown over and over our exceptional relationship with God. God created humans in his image.

God continued to love us after we rebelled, then came to live among us and ultimately died to save us. God has crowned us with glory and honor and given us responsibility to care for the Earth Psalm 8. Central to Christianity is the incarnation of Jesus Christ as fully God and fully human. If God created intelligent species on other planets, would Christ have been incarnate in those species too?

Or is the incarnation unique to Earth? Some Christians see Christ as becoming incarnate in multiple races. Lewis uses this picture in his Narnia series. In The Last Battle, he portrays Aslan as parallel to Jesus on Earth, the same person incarnate in different species on different planets. Other Christians see Christ as incarnate only in humans.

Christianity emphasizes the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ and describes his ascension and current heavenly reign in bodily form. Supporters of this view argue that the incarnation has cosmic implications and thus can only occur once. Moreover, a single person cannot become incarnate as multiple individuals without contradiction; which nature would Christ have in heaven? God would still love other intelligent life, but would relate to aliens in ways different than he relates to humans.

God could use other means to reveal himself and demonstrate his self-giving love. At the core of Christianity is the death of the incarnate Christ on a Roman cross, bringing redemption for humans. Is redemption unique to Earth?

Again, Christians hold multiple views. Perhaps other worlds have the situation we would have had on Earth if Adam and Eve had chosen to obey God. This could be similar to the situation of angels in Scripture. Angels were created by God and some chose to fall into disobedience, yet we do not read of a redemption plan for them.

Speculation about this goes back to the s, when scholar Bernard de Fontenelle argued aliens are not not part of the human economy of salvation. They reject the idea that the second person of the Trinity is dying over and over on millions of worlds. The resurrection has cosmic implications, with all things reconciled to Christ in the new creation. The planet Earth was chosen by God to be the place of redemption for the whole cosmos, just as the Jewish people were chosen by God among human peoples.

What would the path to God look like for aliens? Perhaps they receive some special revelation from God about the redemption paid by Christ on Earth, or perhaps they know Christ in some other way and refer to him by a different name. It may even be our responsibility as humans to bring the gospel to them across cosmic distances. In this view, Christ was not only incarnate on other planets, but died on those worlds for the sins of alien creatures.

In Scripture we see a God of holiness and self-giving love, and that same character would be at work with aliens in the same way it is with us. Must you become a better person so that God will accept you? Learn how you can know God personally. Take the next step in your faith journey with resources on prayer, devotionals and other tools for personal and spiritual growth.

Learn to develop your skills, desire and ability to join others on their spiritual journeys and take them closer to Jesus. Because ethnicity is part of the good of creation, we seek to honor and celebrate the ethnic identity of those with whom we serve as well as those we seek to reach. What is Christianity? Learn the basics of what Christians believe. Dealing with Life's Questions Explore answers to life's biggest questions. Read about individuals who have been transformed by faith.

Spiritual Growth Take the next step in your faith journey with resources on prayer, devotionals and other tools for personal and spiritual growth. Bible Studies Find resources for personal or group Bible study. Share the Gospel Learn to develop your skills, desire and ability to join others on their spiritual journeys and take them closer to Jesus.

Help Others Grow Help others in their faith journey through discipleship and mentoring. Leadership Training Develop your leadership skills and learn how to launch a ministry wherever you are. Language Resources View our top Cru resources in more than 20 languages. Mission Trips Partner with Cru on a short-term missions trip.

Careers Latest job openings at Cru. Go International Live in another country building relationships and ministries with eternal impact.