What is the Salvation Army?
What is the Salvation Army? – William and Catherine Booth – Founders of the Salvation Army, practitioners of divine healing, products of Phoebe Palmer and the Holiness Movement. William Booth was a Methodist street preacher. Their organization, founded in 1865, would have lasting impact on Aimee Semple McPherson of the Foursquare Church.
Booth was dissatisfied with what he felt was an all too traditional approach to evangelism and he set out to form a group of evangelical street preachers with a focus to bring the poor, thieves, prostitutes, gamblers, and drunkards to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. He preached hope and salvation with an intent to connect them with a church where they could be discipled. A printer called his growing group a “volunteer army”. When Booth saw this in print, he crossed out “volunteer” and replaced it with “salvation”. This group is theologically akin to the Arminian Methodist movement of the day. It has grown to a worldwide membership and has become most well known for charitable work
What is the Salvation Army? Theology and Beliefs:
- The Salvation Army believes that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, and that they only constitute the Divine rule of Christian faith and practice.
- The Salvation Army believes that there is only one God, who is infinitely perfect, the Creator, Preserver, and Governor of all things, and who is the only proper object of religious worship.
- What is the Salvation Army belief about the nature of God? The Salvation Army believes that there are three persons in the Godhead – the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, undivided in essence and co-equal in power and glory. (The Triune Nature of God is fully Biblical and consistent with historical Christian orthodoxy)
- The Salvation Army believes that in the person of Jesus Christ the Divine and human natures are united, so that He is truly and properly God and truly and properly man. (This is a sound Biblical position of Christian orthodoxy)
- The Salvation Army believes that our first parents were created in a state of innocency, but by their disobedience they lost their purity and happiness, and that in consequence of their fall all men have become sinners, totally depraved, and as such are justly exposed to the wrath of God. (Literal creation account of Genesis which is fully Biblical)
- What is the Salvation Army belief about the atonement? The Salvation Army believes that the Lord Jesus Christ has by His suffering and death made an atonement for the whole world so that whosoever will may be saved. (This is consistent with the Historical Biblical position that Jesus’ atonement is available to all but not efficacious to all as most will reject His provision)
- The Salvation Army believes that repentance towards God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit, are necessary to salvation. (This is a consistent position with Scripture as turning “TO” Jesus in faith, is necessary for salvation which necessarily requires that the person turn “FROM” their sinful life – repentance goes hand-in-hand with salvation in the Biblical view)
- What is the Salvation Army belief about how we are saved? The Salvation Army believes that we are justified by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and that he that believeth hath the witness in himself. (This is in keeping with Ephesians 2:8-9 and in stark contrast with false religious systems like Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witness and Roman Catholicism)
- The Salvation Army believes that continuance in a state of salvation depends upon continued obedient faith in Christ. (This is decidedly Arminian and not Biblical – if maintaining our own salvation depended on us, no one would be saved)
- What is the Salvation Army belief about sanctification? The Salvation Army believes that it is the privilege of all believers to be wholly sanctified, and that their whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (This is John Wesley’s “Instant Sanctification” doctrine which is unbiblical as sanctification is a process which takes place over the course of the believer’s life)
- The Salvation Army believes in the immortality of the soul; in the resurrection of the body; in the general judgment at the end of the world; in the eternal happiness of the righteous; and in the endless punishment of the wicked. (This is a belief which is consistent with the Biblical historical view of hell which is the justified separation of unbelievers from the God they hate for all eternity)
No one receives eternal life and eternal presence with God (from Whom all good things come – James 1:17), by belonging to the right church, denomination, world religion, or by having a particular world view. Rather only those who trust in the Lord Jesus (preached by the Apostles in the Bible) for their own sin. We will not trust in a Savior for sins that we either don’t believe we have or that we think aren’t deserving of hell. But the Bible says that ALL have sin and the wages of that sin is eternal separation from God (death). The good news is that the Bible says that you can know that YOU have eternal life. Click the button below to see if you are genuinely saved from your sins according to the Bible: