Theological Positions
About
Theological Positions
Christianity is more than a religious experience or a sense of the divine; it involves faith in the truth of Scripture and obedience that results from such faith. Truth is communicated to us in a variety of ways in the Bible, but the result is a body of teachings which provide the content of what we believe. The character of any institution of higher learning will be determined by its view of truth and authority, as well as the implications of both. The faculty publicly vows each year to be faithful to the inerrant Word of God and to the standards of Protestant orthodoxy.
City Seminary of Sacramento believes and affirms that the Word of God is inerrant, inspired, infallible, and God-breathed. As such, the Bible’s message is both knowable and teachable, requiring us to “search the Scriptures daily.” In other words, the Faith may (indeed must) be studied and taught both propositionally and systematically.
We place our trust and faith in Christ alone: in His person, work, and Word. The Bible and it alone, as the Word of Christ, is our final standard for all that we believe and do. It is inspired of God and therefore the absolute authority as truth, inerrant and infallible in all matters, including history and science. The whole counsel of God in Scripture is our standard in every area of life and thought. Because God’s Word is authoritative, our Christian walk can and must be founded upon Christian doctrine, to the end that what the Bible says will have consequences in the lives of believers, lighting their path in every area of life.
The perspective which defends this view of biblical authority was most ably presented by the late Dr. Cornelius Van Til. While other apologetical approaches will be studied, the student should be aware that the Van Til apologetic approach will characterize the course of instruction throughout. We do not begin with man, science, reason, geology, experience, etc. We begin with the presupposition that God is Who He says He is, and that His Word is Truth.
City Seminary of Sacramento, being committed to the historic doctrines of the Reformation (specifically the Canons of Dordt, Belgic Confession and Heidelberg Catechism), also finds within those doctrines a necessity for increased catholicity (unity) among those who confess Christ in our own age. We must demand from one another adherence to things “most surely believed among us,” while recognizing that we do not have complete unity of practice in the modern Church.
Those of different theological emphases will find at City Seminary of Sacramento a classical education in Reformation theology that will serve as a firm foundation, irrespective of denominational differences. Students may enroll from any orthodox Protestant body (Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, non-denominational, etc.) provided they can attest to the following beliefs:
- The authority, infallibility, and inerrancy of Scripture
- The Trinity
- The full deity and humanity of Christ
- The fallen nature of man
- The substitutionary atonement and bodily resurrection of Christ
- Salvation by faith alone in Christ alone
- The future, physical return of Jesus Christ