(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

Hello everybody, it's Phaistotol 23 back with another video. In this video I want to talk about the foundations of the faith, or those things which are fundamental to Christianity based on what the Bible says is the foundation or the main principles of the doctrines of Christ. And it talks about this in Hebrews chapter 6 in the first two verses. It says therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. So the Bible lists these six things and it tells us that these are the foundations. It says that these are the first principles of the doctrines of Christ. These are the main things when it comes to Christianity. And when you examine any false religion or any false denomination or cult out there that isn't following the Bible, usually they deny one or several or even all of these foundational doctrines which the Bible clearly tells us about in other places. So I want to talk about these six things that the Bible lists that says are foundations of the faith here in this scripture. I want to talk about these things and look at the scriptures and see what they have to say about these six things. So the first thing that the Bible says as one of the foundations or one of the main principles of the doctrines of Christ is repentance from dead works. Now a lot of people believe that you have to repent of your sins to be saved, but the Bible makes it very clear that repenting from your sins itself is works. It says in Jonah 3.10, and God saw their works that they turned from their evil ways and God repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them and he did it not. So God looks at Nineveh turning from their evil ways and the Bible says that's God seeing their works. But the Bible tells us very clearly that we're not saved by our works. It says not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. The Bible says for by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast. Not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his, I already quoted that verse, but to him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness the Bible says in Romans 4.5. So it tells us in many places that we're not saved by works, we're not justified by works, we're not justified by the works of the law, but rather by faith in Christ. The Bible says believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. So in order for somebody to be saved they cannot trust in their works because the Bible makes it very clear that salvation is a gift, that it's not by your works but it's rather by your faith in Jesus. And so repentance from dead works means turning from trusting in your works to trusting in Jesus Christ. We'll see this in several places. The Bible defines what repentance is because we'll let the Bible be its own dictionary and not the commentaries of this world and the doctrines of this world who say that you have to turn from your sins, give up your sins to be saved. Which is not what the Bible teaches but rather the foundation of what the Bible teaches, what John the Baptist preached, what Jesus preached, what the Apostle Paul preached is that we're not saved by works. Because what does he say in Acts chapter 19 verse 4? Paul says, So Paul says the thing that John preached when he preached the baptism of repentance was that they should believe on Jesus Christ, right? Because repentance is repenting from your dead works, right? You're not trusting in your works which are dead, which are filthy rags as the Bible says, our righteousness is filthy rags, but rather turning from trusting those things and believing the gospel. That's why Jesus went around saying, What does that mean? It means stop trusting in your works, repent from your dead works and rather believe the gospel which is the death, the resurrection of Jesus. Jesus also tells us about the concept of repentance in Matthew chapter 21. Matthew chapter 21 verse 31, it says, So Jesus Christ says to the Pharisees that the harlots and the publicans are going to enter the kingdom of God before you, right? So even somebody who's a harley, he says they're going to enter the kingdom of God. Why? Because when John came in the way of righteousness, they believed what he said. Not because they got the sin out of their life but because they believed what he said. And he said to the Pharisees, He, when he had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him, right? So repentance is turning from your dead works, not trying to obtain righteousness by your own righteousness, by the law, but rather believing in the testimony, the gospel, putting your faith in Jesus Christ, right? So that's the foundation of repentance from dead works, that your works can't save you so you have to stop trusting your works and rather, number two, put your faith in God, right? And I would say for this foundation, you know, the teaching that the Bible teaches, that it's by faith alone but also that the faith is supposed to be in God, right? You can't just believe whatever you want but it has to be the God of the Bible. And the Bible makes it very clear who this God is. It says in 1 John chapter 5 verse 7 for example, So if somebody doesn't believe the trinity, they're not believing the God of the Bible. And that's why Jesus even said in John 8 24, And I talked about that in the video I made a few days ago about the I Am statements of Jesus where, that's a quote from Isaiah chapter 43, where in Isaiah 43 God says, I am he, there is no God before me, neither shall there be any out for me. And he says, I even I am the Lord and beside me there is no Savior. So by Jesus saying that I am he, he is declaring himself to be the one true God and the one and only Savior, right? So you have to believe in the right God and put your faith in the right God, in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to be saved, right? The Bible says, The Bible says, So the first foundation is repentance from dead works, meaning your works can't save you, you can't trust in your works. And the second foundation is that instead of putting your faith in your own works, you turn from that and you put your faith in God, which the true God is the God of the Bible, the Lord, who is manifest in the flesh as Jesus Christ, right? He is the son of God, right? So the only true God is the Trinity of the Father, the Son, the Holy Ghost. It's not some other, you know, false God, right? So those are the first two foundations of the faith. The second, or I mean, sorry, the third is the doctrine of baptisms. Now, I believe the reason why it says baptisms plural is because it's not just talking about water baptism, but it's also telling us that what the Bible calls the baptism of the Holy Ghost, that that is also a foundation of the faith, right? Because when it comes to water baptism, the Bible makes it very clear in Ephesians chapter 4 that there's only one baptism, right? Now, there's all these different churches that practice different types of baptism. You got the Roman Catholics who baptize babies. You got people who baptize people before they even believe in Jesus. You have people who baptize through sprinkling, who baptize through pouring water on people's heads. But the Bible tells us very clearly that there is one body and one spirit, even as you're called and one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all, right? So when it comes to water baptism, there's only one type of baptism, right? It's not like, well, if you want to, you can get sprinkled. If you want to, you can have water poured on your head or if you want to, you can get immersed. The Bible makes it very clear that biblical baptism is by immersion and it's in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost and it's only for believers. That's the right water baptism, right? I'll show you this in several scriptures. Matthew chapter 28, when Jesus gave the command to his disciples to go and to teach all nations, he also said in verse 19, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, right? So the Jesus only baptism people who baptize people only in the name of Jesus, they're not doing what Jesus commanded, right? That's not the right baptism. You have to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. And also baptism is something that is by immersion. Matthew chapter 3, when Jesus got baptized, and of course, you know, Jesus of course is, you know, perfect. He's without sin, so if we want to know how to do something, we should look to Jesus Christ and not, you know, the doctrines of, you know, the church and just tradition and things like that. Let's see what Jesus did, right? In Matthew chapter 3 and John the Baptist, who's literally called John the Baptist because he baptized people, right? It says in Matthew chapter 3 verse 14, But John forbade him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered him. So that's one thing that the Bible tells us that baptism is a work of righteousness, which also shows us that baptism is a one saves you, because we already talked about how it's not by righteousness that we're saved, but rather the righteousness was just a faith, it's by believing in Jesus, right? And it says in Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water, and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him, and lo, a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. So when Jesus was baptized, he was down in the water and he went up out of the water. We see in John chapter 3 that it says that John was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim because there was much water there. In the case of the Ethiopia and Eunuch, it also tells us that they went down into the water when he got baptized, which shows us that baptism is something that's by immersion, it's not just sprinkling or pouring water on somebody's head, but it's burying, you know the Bible says buried with him in baptism, which I'll get to in a moment, but Acts chapter 8 shows us that it has to be much water because you're immersed in water, but it also shows us that only believers should be baptized, right? It's not just you baptize infants, you don't have that choice yet. It says in Acts chapter 8 verse 36, And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water, and the eunuch said, See, here is water, what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believeth with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still, and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him, right? So the Bible tells us that the prerequisite for being baptized is you have to believe with all your heart first, right? So the Roman Catholics, the Methodists, the Lutherans, the Presbyterians, anybody who's baptizing babies, they're not doing the biblical form of baptism, right? So they're not following the foundation of the faith, the doctrine of baptism. We also see in Romans chapter 6 it talks about baptism, and the fact that baptism symbolizes the death, birth, and resurrection of Jesus. It says, Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so, we also should walk in newness of life. So again, that's another place where the Bible tells us that we're buried with him with baptism, and then when you come up out of the water, that's being raised up to walk in newness of life, okay? So again, it's by immersion in water. It's not just pouring or sprinkling on your head. Another verse, you know, the Bible talks about 1 Corinthians 12, how that we're all baptized by one spirit into one body, which the Bible defines the body of Christ as the church, right? So one thing that baptism does is it adds you to the church of the body of Christ, right? If somebody is a believer but they haven't gotten baptized and don't attend a physical congregation, then they're not part of the church, okay? So that's, you know, basically the doctrine of water baptism. But then, as I mentioned, on top of that there's also what the Bible talks about as the baptism of the spirit, right? Jesus talked about this, and so did John the Baptist when he was foretelling the coming of Jesus in Matthew chapter 3. He said in Matthew chapter 3 verse 11, and you'll find a similar statement in both Mark and Luke and John as well. So it's not just in Matthew, but I'm just going to read the one in Matthew just for sake of time. John the Baptist says, I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire, right? So he's saying that the one that comes after him, which is Jesus, is going to baptize you with the Holy Ghost. And then when Jesus rose from the dead, he told his disciples this as well, right? Now, understand that as soon as Jesus rose from the dead, the believers in Jesus all received the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. You know, the Bible says, Jesus said in John chapter 7, He that believeth in me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. This spakey of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive. But the Holy Ghost was not yet given because that Jesus was not yet glorified. But after Jesus was glorified, when he rose from the dead, in John chapter 20, he came to his disciples and it says that he breathed on them and said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost, right? So the disciples received the Holy Ghost when Jesus came unto them on the same day that he rose from the dead, right? But they had not yet been baptized by the Holy Ghost, because being baptized by the Holy Ghost is the same thing as having the Holy Spirit upon you or being filled with the Spirit as the Bible talks about in other places as well. So in Acts chapter 1, Jesus talks about this. He says in Acts chapter 1 verse 5, For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost, not many days hence. And he gives more information down in verse 8, he says, But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. So Jesus tells us that the disciples being baptized with the Holy Ghost is the Holy Ghost coming upon them and giving them the power and boldness to be able to preach the gospel. And we see that in Acts chapter 2, that's when that's fulfilled, when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and then they preach the word of God and they're given the power to speak with other tongues to the people in Jerusalem who are from all kinds of nations under heaven. And then it happens again in Acts chapter 4 verse 31, And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. And there's several other places where the Bible talks about people being filled with the Holy Ghost or the Holy Ghost coming upon them. So that's another type of baptism. There's the water baptism of being baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. By immersion, only for believers, right? And that is water baptism, right? And then there's the baptism of the Holy Ghost, which takes place after salvation, after you've been baptized by water, and is basically being filled with the Spirit, where you get filled with the Spirit and then you have the power and boldness to go out and preach the gospel, right? So that is associated, as I just read in Acts chapter 1 and 4, with preaching the gospel. So, again, the churches that don't believe that they have the power of God to go and speak the word of God with boldness, people who are not speaking boldly, preaching boldly, people who are not witnessing Jesus Christ unto the uttermost part of the earth, they're, again, not following the foundations of the faith, because baptism of the Holy Ghost is associated in the Bible with preaching the gospel to every creature, right? So, number four, the next foundation of the faith that the Bible talks about is laying on of hands. And that's not something we really think about that much in terms of, like, basic doctrines of the faith, but that's what the Bible tells us is a foundation, right? And I don't think it's something I've really discussed or talked about very much on this channel at all. But it is a biblical doctrine of the laying on of hands, which is basically biblical ordination, that people have to have this ceremony of having people who are in positions of authority and church leadership lay hands upon people in order to ordain them to go out and to be deacons or to be pastors or evangelists or whatever, right? It talks about this in several places. One example is 1 Timothy chapter 4. So Paul, of course, is writing to Timothy, who is an elder. He says in 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 14, Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery, right? Now, the word presbytery means, like, elders or eldership. So he says, basically, that the elders laid hands on you and through that you were given the gift to basically do the ministry and to prophesy, right? So the power to, again, go out and to preach and to be able to be in this position of authority is by the laying on of hands. And it also talks about this in Acts chapter 6, when the seven, someone called them deacons, are ordained to do some of the other work within the church. It says in Acts chapter 6, verse 5, And the saying pleased the whole multitude, when they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicholas, a proselyte of Antioch, when they set before the apostles, and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. So when these people are ordained, again, they have their hands laid on them, right? Acts chapter 8 talks about this as well, right? It says in Acts chapter 8, verse 17, Then laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money. And again, this Holy Ghost being given is talking about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It's not talking about having the indwelling, but it's talking about being filled with the Spirit, right? Having the power to be able to go out and to preach. It also talks about this in Acts chapter 13 as well, when Paul and Barnabas are ordained to go out and to, you know, actually be apostles and evangelists and to go into all the world, right? Because originally they were in Antioch, and it talks about this starting in verse 1, Acts chapter 13. Now there was in the church, or there were in the church that was in Antioch certain prophets and teachers, as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Hera the Tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work whereinto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed into Seleucia, and from thence they sailed to Cyprus, right? So when the Holy Ghost wants Saul and Barnabas to go out, then the leaders in the church, they lay hands on Saul and Barnabas, and then they sent them out, right? Basically the laying on of hands is the teaching that for somebody to be sent out and to start a church, or to do the work of an evangelist or whatever, they have to have this laying on of hands, right? You can't just be self-willed or self-ordained, which is a big problem today, that people kind of just make themselves pastors, or make themselves deacons, or start their own church without being sent out by somebody, without actually being ordained. And don't get me wrong, or don't misunderstand at all, that ordination is definitely 100% a biblical doctrine. That's what it talks about in the book of Titus as well, that Paul says to Titus, you know, for this cause left eye of the increased, that that should have ordained elders in many cities, or in every city, right? So, laying on of hands is important. It is something that the Bible teaches as well, that somebody who is to go into the full-time work of the ministry should have a laying on of hands by the elders and the leaders of the church, right? Number five foundation is resurrection of the dead, which is again something that some churches and people unfortunately deny. And this of course is not just talking about the resurrection of Jesus, which of course is part of this, but it's also talking about the future resurrection of the dead, right? The Bible promises that not only did Jesus rise from the dead, but we as believers who died before the coming of Christ, we will rise from the dead as well. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 tells us about the importance of believing this doctrine. It says, Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, this is verse 12, hell say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead. But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen? And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ, whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, that is not Christ raised, and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain, yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perish. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order, Christ the firstfruits, afterward they that are Christ's that is coming, then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father, when he shall put down all rule and all authority and power. So the Bible makes it very clear, that if you're denying the resurrection of the dead, then that means that you, whether you admit it or not, or denying that Jesus rose from the dead as well, because these things are so heavily connected. And it tells us that Jesus was the firstfruits, he already rose from the dead. But then there's others that are going to rise in the future. The Bible talks about the first resurrection in the book of Revelation. At Jesus's coming, when he comes in the clouds, the dead in Christ will rise first. It tells us that also in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. Let me read that. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 14. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so then also which sleep in Jesus, will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God. And the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. So shall we ever be with the Lord. So the Bible tells us that when Jesus comes back, first the dead in Christ will rise. Jesus promises that anybody that believes in him is one day going to be raised from the dead. He says, This is the will of him that sent me, that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on him, may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day. So it is a guarantee if you have everlasting life, if you have believed in Jesus, you will one day be raised from the dead. And that is again a foundational doctrine of the Bible. Of the Bible, of the faith. And so the last thing that it lists here in Hebrews chapter 6 as a foundation is the doctrine of eternal judgment. Okay, which some people again deny because they believe that judgment is temporary. Right? People believe that the punishment of hell is not everlasting when the Bible clearly tells us that it's everlasting. That it is eternal judgment and eternal punishment. Right? We read some scriptures about that. Matthew chapter 25. Matthew chapter 25. In verse 41. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me he cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. So he calls hell everlasting fire. And then in verse 46, And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal. Right? So the everlasting punishment is the everlasting fire of hell. Says in Mark chapter 9, Jesus says, If I hand-offend thee, cut it off, it is better for thee to enter into life maimed than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched, where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. Okay, and then he says it again in verse 45, cast into hell into the fire that never shall be quenched, where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. And again in verse 47 and 48, right? So Jesus says it three times, that hell is fire that never will be quenched, and the worm dieth not, right? Because it's an everlasting punishment, an everlasting fire. The Bible says in Revelation 14, those who were in the lake of fire, it says the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, right? So that is the punishment, that is the judgment for those who have not received Jesus Christ, right? The lake of fire to burn in hell for all of eternity. Revelation chapter 20 talks about the judgment of sinners who have not received Christ, and therefore will end up in hell. It says in verse 11, And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, this is Revelation 20 verse 11, I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the book, or in the books according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them, and they were judged, every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire, this is the second death, and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire, right? So those who are dead, they're judged before the great white throne of God, and they're judged on the basis of their works, right? Because the Bible talks about the greater damnation, right? Because certain people have done worse sins, and therefore will face more judgment, more punishment, but for every single person whose name is not in the book of life, and is cast in the lake of fire, every single one of them, they're going to face an everlasting punishment. That them going into hell, that's everlasting, the smoke of their torment will ascend up forever and ever, it will never end, right? That's what the Bible is clear about, right? So these six foundations of the faith are very important, it's very important for determining who should you listen to out there, the people that are teaching the Bible, Bible teachers, preachers, prophets, who should you listen to, right? What church should you go to, right? Well, there's a lot of churches and denominations and groups out there who are false teachers who teach things that are contrary to these foundations of the faith, who teach that you have to do dead works in order to be saved, you know? When the Bible says that the foundation is repentance from dead works, right? So anybody that teaches that you have to do works to go to heaven to be saved, they're denying the foundation of the faith. Again, putting your faith in God, the only true God is the God of the Bible, if they deny the God of the Bible or they believe that salvation is by anything else but faith in the Lord, then again, they're denying the foundation of the faith, right? Anybody who teaches against the biblical concept of water baptism, right? People who deny baptism at all, like the Salvation Army, or people who practice infant baptism, which is pretty much every Protestant in the Roman Catholic Church and Orthodoxy, pretty much everybody with the exception of Baptists and some non-denominational churches and some other small groups and denominations out there, but 90-something percent of people who claim to be Christians practice infant baptism. That's not what the Bible teaches, right? Or people who deny the power of the Holy Spirit to go out and preach the Gospel, or people who deny the laying on of hands, who start their own churches, who don't do biblical ordination, who are self-willed, or people who deny the resurrection of the dead, that there's going to be a future resurrection, right? Or people who deny that hell is eternal, that hell is just a temporary punishment, annihilationism or soul sleep, or some of these other false doctrines, like the Jehovah's Witnesses or the Seventh-day Adventists teach, right? All these are biblical doctrines and biblical concepts, so these are the foundations of the faith. These are just the basic principles, the most basic things, right? These are things that we should understand, that we should learn about and study in the Bible. These aren't hard things to understand. There's plenty of scriptures about them, so if you go to a church or you listen to some Bible teacher who doesn't teach these foundations of the faith, you should probably stop, because they don't even know the basics, right? They don't even know the principles. If they are even saved, which if they deny the first two, they're definitely not saved, but if they are saved, then they're definitely into false doctrine. They're definitely still a babe in Christ. They haven't learned the basics yet. They still have a lot to learn, right? So, that's it for this video. Thank you, buddy, for watching. God bless you and goodbye.