Becker Bible Studies Library
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is a Protestant denomination with the tradition of Methodism and part of the Holiness bodies. The theological and the doctrinal foundation are in the preaching of the doctrines of the holiness and sanctification which was taught by John Wesley.
The Church of the Nazarene is a member of the World Methodist Council. The government of the Church of the Nazarene is similar to the Methodists. The local congregations of the Church of the Nazarene are more independent and are self governed.
They stress the importance of the Grace of God and its mission is to encourage the entire sanctification which allows a person to live a sinless life. They believe Grace comes because of conversion.
The headquarters of the Church of the Nazarene are in Kansas City Missouri along with their publishing house and their theological seminary.
The Church of the Nazarene came out of the Holiness movement. The Holiness movement was a Protestant fundamentalist religious movement from the 19th century. This movement goes back to John Wesley who is credited as the founder of Methodism.
John Wesley issued a call to join together Christians to go back to holiness. John Wesley taught God forgives sin and sinners become justified. God then transform sinners into saints, making them sanctified, which enables sinners to be free from outward sin, as well as the sin in thoughts and tempers allowing the sinner to attain a measure of holiness.
The Church of the Nazarene began in October 1895 as a part of the American holiness movement in Los Angeles, California. Phineas F. Bresee, an unemployed Methodist minister, was asked to be their pastor. They called their church the Church of the Nazarene.
The Association of Pentecostal Churches of America, from the eastern United States, was invited to join the group of churches in 1907. They agreed on a new name for the newly joined church; The Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. The Holiness Church of Christ, from the southern states was invited to join this new group in 1908 at Pilot Point, Texas. It wasn’t until 1919 that the church dropped Pentecostal from the church name. The name Pentecostal was dropped to separate any connection with any of the groups practicing speaking in tongues, which the Church of the Nazarene is against.
The Church of the Nazarene is committed to Christian holiness, and the ideology and beliefs of John Wesley.
The doctrine of the Church of the Nazarene is built around sanctification as a definition of the work of grace following regeneration. They believe in the complete doctrine of sanctification and explain it as the states that a person can come into a state of devotion to God where they are no longer under the influence of the inheritance of sin which originates with Adam.
The Church of the Nazarene believe in the existent of God who is manifested into three natures, the divinity of Jesus, baptism by either immersion, sprinkling or by pouring, the Lord’s Supper for all believers, the entire sanctification, and the return of Jesus Christ to raise the dead. The Lord’s Supper is believed to have been instituted by Christ. Members are admitted on confession of faith and on agreement to observe the rules and regulations of the Church of the Nazarene.
They believe the Scriptures contain all truth necessary to Christian faith and living, in the atonement of Christ for the whole of the human race, in justification, regeneration and adoption for all believers in Christ. They believe in the second coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the finial judgment.
The Church of the Nazarene believes in free Grace for all and the human freedom to choose Grace. They believe the Holy Spirit gives power to Christians to be obedient to God. The Church does not believe a Christian has to sin every day. They believe and teach sin should be very uncommon in a Christian’s life. The Holy Spirit is believed to change people so they are able to live a holy life for the glory of God.
The Church of the Nazarene believes in divine healing but does not not exclude medical agencies. The use of tobacco and alcoholic beverages is condemned.
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About the Author
Joanne B. Holstein is a Becker Bible Studies teacher and author of Guided Bible Studies for Hungry Christians. She has received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology/Christian Counseling with honors from Liberty University. She is well-known as a counsleor to Christian faithful who are struggling with tremendous burden in these difficult times. She is a leading authority on the history of development of the Christian churches and the practices and beliefs of world religions and cults.