Christian Behavior

We believe that Christians are called to live holy lives, demonstrating the fruits of the Spirit and reflecting the character of Christ, and satisfying the law of the Third Commandment.

Galatians 5:22-25 — 1 Peter 1:15-16 — Exodus 20:7 ¹⁾

We believe that Christians are called to live holy lives, demonstrating the fruits of the Spirit and reflecting the character of Christ.

This means striving for holiness in thought, word, and deed, and expressing faith in Christ through devotion to God and godly interaction with others.

We believe that as a result — not a cause — of redemption, believers should:

• Develop a relationship with God through Bible reading and study, prayer, fasting, worship, and obedience.

• Relieve the physical and spiritual needs of humanity by compassionate social action and gospel witness.

• Oppose pride, envy, indolence, lust, covetousness, and other evils in the spirit.

• Refuse immoral amusements and practices such as pornography, sexual immorality, and homosexuality in the flesh.

• Give tithe and free will offerings for the support of the church and its gospel ministry.

• Avoid intermixing Christianity with extra-biblical practices.

• Maintain the body, in fitness and health and adornment, in a manner befitting a Child of God.

• Strive for a healthy lifestyle by:

• Consuming only the flesh described as clean in the Bible or adopting a vegetarian or plant-based diet.

• Avoiding harmful substances like tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs.

• Limiting the ingestion of unnatural foods.

We believe the Third Commandment (Exodus 20:7), which states “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain”, is about more than avoiding the misuse of God's literal name in speech. Perhaps more significantly, it is about the responsibility of living a life that properly reflects the image of God and does not – by word or action – misrepresent Him.

Ancient Judaism held the commandment to mean “bear” or “carry” or “adopt”, rather than “take” or “speak”, as most English scholars have done in translating this commandment. We prefer the Jewish people's interpretation: Do not bear/carry/adopt the name of God in vain. They understood the meaning to be something akin to “Don't claim to be one of God's when your life does not back it up.” Such an understanding suggests that believers should not claim to be followers of God if their words and deeds do not align with the values and teachings of the faith, as this would be “taking” (adopting) God's name (His identity) in vain. Such a taking is false and not only misrepresents God but breaks yet another Commandment. It presents to the world a false image of God Himself. It is no wonder the rest of the commandment declares a harsh sentence for violators!

A secular illustration of this can be seen in corrupt members of law enforcement and government. They take the name of an institution, and some even bear the symbols, but it is in vain as they do not uphold the tenets they represent. Their bad practices cast that which they claim to represent in a bad light, erode confidence in and respect for the organization, and history tells us the unchecked spread of such corruption can result in the destruction of individuals, organizations, communities, and even nations.

In summary, we believe it is incumbent on the Christian to behave in a way that accurately represents God.

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