Central/Peripheral Topics

Below are some topics upon which the Bible is CENTRAL, meaning the Bible IS clear about these topics and DOES give a solid yes or no, right or wrong. 

We have also included some Bible topics that are PERIPHERAL, meaning the Bible is NOT directly clear about a solid yes or no, right or wrong. 

A few things before reading this section - When it comes to matters of the faith, unity is more important than uniformity. In other words, if anyone disagrees about a topic, it is not grounds for ending community with that person. If you’re both saved, then it’s more important that you figure out how to get along despite your different stances. For example, if someone insists on using a KJV Bible, that should not give them the right to reject those who use ESV, HCSB, or others. We know unity is what is central, and that’s why we’re starting with it on this page…

Unity over uniformity: CENTRAL
This passage in Romans 14 is self-explanatory. There were groups of believers in the Bible that disagreed upon peripheral topics surrounding the faith. A sharp disagreement arose among them. The Apostle Paul chimed in. He essentially shared that unity is more important than uniformity. Here’s what he said…

“As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” Romans 14:1-4

Loving God: CENTRAL
There are dozens of verses about God’s love and about our ability and desire to reflect God’s love back to Him! HERE is a link to a bunch of great passages that talk about God’s love. We recommend reading them all!

Loving your neighbor: CENTRAL
We are commanded to love our neighbors. It’s actually the greatest commandment (Mark 12:31) Jesus did not give any loopholes when he shared about this great commandment (Luke 10:25-37). This means that every person you interact with throughout your entire life is a “neighbor.” People with whom you share the planet are all your neighbors. We are commanded to love them as we love ourselves. 

Further, love does no harm to a neighbor (Romans 13:10). We have to listen to this in the right context, because it is very easy to paint broad brush strokes when we hear the word “harm” here, which is massively misused in today’s culture. Paul is talking about the 10 commandments when he mentions this passage in Romans 13. Paul says that loving your neighbor means not killing them or stealing from them. Sharing truth won’t bring any harm, but fools despise wisdom (Proverbs 1:7). You must also be aware that if your neighbor does not follow the Bible, then expecting them to follow your Biblical values won’t get you anywhere with them. We have to remember that it’s God’s kindness that leads people to repentance (Romans 2:4). Setting a good example is Biblical (Matthew 5:16, 1 Timothy 4:12). Condemning those around you is not your job (Romans 12:19-21, Hebrews 10:30).

All of that to simply say that it’s way more important for them to see Christ in you than it is for you to highlight the lack of Christ in them. God has given Himself the task of refining that person on a private, individual level (Romans 14:22). In the meantime, pray in secret for them (Matthew 6:5-8). Being like Jesus means a life of servanthood (Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, John 13:1-17) While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). Someone had to come rescue US in our sin. Jesus came down from perfection in order to save us from OUR sin. Being Christlike is having the same heart toward all of your neighbors. 

Loving your enemies: CENTRAL
The Bible goes a step further than simply loving your neighbors. As believers, we are even called to love our enemies! It’s easy to like people who like you back. But it’s another level of faith to love those who are against you. NOTE: The below verses do not mean we are to live a live of completely defenseless pacifism, but that is another topic for another time.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?” Matthew 5:43-48

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,” Luke 16:27

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.” Romans 12:14

Speaking in tongues upon salvation: PERIPHERAL
Some Christians and certain faith groups believe that you are not truly “saved” until you have spoken in tongues. While there are compelling stories in the Bible in which a person speaks in tongues upon conversion to faith, it is actually pretty rare in the Bible. We know many thousands of people accepted Jesus as their Savior all throughout the New Testament, and yet we only have three instances where people spoke in tongues in the early church immediately upon salvation (Acts 2:4, Acts 10:44-46, Acts 19:6).

If speaking in tongues was a universal prerequisite to faith, then why is there not a single verse that requires it? Paul had a radical encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9), and was even baptized! Yet there is no record of Paul speaking in tongues. Jesus Himself was baptized in the Jordan river by John the Baptist, and never spoke in tongues (Matthew 3:13-17). The thief on the cross next to Jesus accepted Jesus as his savior, yet there was there ever any record of him speaking in tongues. However, we know even the thief went to heaven because Jesus himself said to the thief, “Today, you will join me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43). 

Further, Paul even speaks rhetorically to the church in Corinth, “ do all speak in tongues?” (1 Cor 12:30). Paul said this because he knew at the time it was common knowledge that not everyone had the gift of speaking in tongues. This is why we believe it’s peripheral, because it’s not definitively clear in the Bible one way or another, only that it was occasionally recorded as happening to a few people at the time.

The topic of life before birth: CENTRAL
This one is pretty self explanatory. The Bible is clear that God created us in our mother’s wombs.

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.” Psalm 139:13-16

The topic of homosexuality: CENTRAL.
We will address this in two parts. Please read both parts.

1. The Bible IS clear that homosexuality is at the very least unnatural (Romans 1:27). But let’s remove the Bible from the equation for a moment and look at homosexuality from a scientific standpoint (PBS shared about a massive study that there is no “gay” gene, click HERE for article), or a Biological standpoint (Homosexuals can’t procreate naturally), or an evolutionary standpoint (No procreation means they won’t join the ’survival of the fittest’ and ‘natural selection’ will phase out those who can’t reproduce). These are all various spheres of scholarly thought that most of the populace respect and herald, in the complete absence of any faith, and they all actually come to the same conclusions that the Bible shared thousands of years ago - Homosexuality is unnatural. Therefore, you have to throw out ALL spheres of scholarly thought to accept homosexuality as something that is natural. It goes against God’s biological design for humanity, a central Biblical truth (Matthew 19:5-6).

2. Homosexuals are also our neighbors. How do we treat homosexuals? As our neighbors. Refer to above section on loving neighbors for more info.

Water baptism as a prerequisite to salvation: PERIPHERAL
There are many instances in the Bible where a person will help someone else come to faith in Jesus, and then offer baptism to them as a natural “next step”. Does that mean that someone who is a Christian still goes to hell because they are not baptized? Here’s what the Bible says: 

“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:9-13)

Paul is very clear in this passage about what it takes to be “saved.” Paul doesn’t include anything about baptism as a prerequisite. If baptism was truly a prerequisite to salvation, Paul would have said so in this passage. 

That’s not to say that baptism isn’t important. You can certainly have a relationship with God that is life-giving, meaningful, and fulfilling. Baptism is a public declaration of your faith. If you really are born again, and are truly a new creation, then why hide that? The faith we share is a huge encouragement to others. Baptism is a cause for celebration, not something to keep a secret. Regardless, the reason we believe it to be peripheral is because the Bible is not definitely clear about it. It’s ultimately up to God to decide who goes to heaven and who doesn’t (Romans 14:10-12).

If you have a question about something Biblical and would like more info, feel free to email us at questions@simplegospelmovement.com. Thanks!