What is baptism?

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for visiting today. We recently started an exciting series about the compelling research findings from Teleios!

Teleios completed a survey about baptism. We had 189 participants, of whom: 61% were <18 years; 74% evangelicals; and 50% from the southeast or Midwest USA. In total 86% believed that they were saved by grace alone and 40% believed they could not lose their salvation. 

We asked them if they had been baptized and the method. We also inquired as to what baptism signified. Although we have never seen data, in speaking with young people they often appear confused over the significance of baptism and what scripture says about it. 

When asked how they were baptized, here are the top 4 answers and some associated meanings:

• Immersed as an adult (32%) - Strong differences in the rite of baptism exist across denominations. Immersion baptism, which perhaps most closely represents the regenerative work of the Holy Spirit, is preferred strongly by Baptists. They believe generally the rite should be performed after salvation when the convert is old enough to make a responsible decision. Many Christians believe it symbolizes primarily a commitment to God by the new believer which was true also in or survey (20%).
• Sprinkled as a child (23%) - This form of baptism is preferred by several traditional denominations and is generally believed to convey either:  

• Forgiveness of the sin nature, and prior sins, allowing for a fresh start and working towards salvation, combined with grace (Catholic viewpoints) 
• Salvation in infants too young to make a decision for Christ. This protection lasts to the time of the age of responsibility (Presbyterian viewpoints). 
• Commitment by parents to raise a child in a Godly manner leaving the responsibility to the child to be saved and baptized as an adult (various individual churches).

• Never been baptized (19%) - Although this group might be seen as disobedient by Christians, the epistles, which contain the injunctions to the church, do not command water baptism. Water baptism is seen as an example at least once (Acts 8), and maybe more early in the book of Acts (speculative). In Scripture, it was performed in almost exclusively among early Jewish Christians early in the church. 

Of course, salvation itself is by grace alone with no added works required (Ephesians 2:8-9).

• Spiritually baptized by the Holy Spirit at Salvation (15%) - This choice is closest to the meaning of baptism in the Epistles.  The apostle Paul explained that spiritual baptism ‘identified’ us (βαπτιζω, baptizoo) in the death and life of our Lord, Jesus Christ. 

Baptism represents the regeneration by the spirit to a new person who can serve our Lord. This regeneration appears to occur at salvation accompanied by the sealing of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6: 2-9; Colossians 2:11-13; Ephesians 2:4-7). Indeed, 68% of the participants in our survey believed baptism represented the regeneration of the Holy Spirit in their lives (Titus 3:5).

The rite of baptism is a very controversial topic and often elicits strong emotions from people who believe one way or another. We have tried to comment in a scripturally-based and transcultural manner. Christians are free to water baptize out of faith in the method that they wish to demonstrate their commitment to our blessed Savior. 

Join us again next week as we continue to look at the fascinating results of Teleios research and what they tell us about the truth of scripture and our Christian culture.

For questions or to view more of our research…

Email     teleiosresearch@outlook.com

Website http://teleiosresearch.com/

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Church Influence on Wellbeing

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for visiting today. We have been reviewing the exciting research findings from Teleios! 

Teleios recently completed a survey of visitors to the Instagram account, Instapray, mostly all comprised of youth (<18 years) and millennials (18-34 years) and 77% self-identified evangelicals. We had 884 participants and asked them questions about their Christian lifestyle, and how church affected their wellbeing. 

Amazingly, the church’s influence on wellbeing did not differ between youth and millennials (P=0.09). 

What helped wellbeing the most? Participants could select up to 3 choices from a list of 12 items. Please find more complete results at https://teleiosresearch.com/influence-church-wellbeing/.

Well this is encouraging!

1. Prayer (59%) – Prayer is a cornerstone of our Christian walk allowing us to come directly before God, unafraid and give our petitions to him for ourselves and others. By prayer also we praise God and thank Him (Hebrews 10:20-22; Philippians 4:6). The assembled church might assist prayer by acting as a guide to our supplications to God, a more expansive prayer experience and promoting prayer in our lives.
2. Spiritual growth (56%) – Participants generally recognized the church helps them in their Christian lives and helps them become mature believers.
3. Praise and worship (54%) – Praise of our gracious God for His righteous character and actions is essential for a healthy Christian Life. Praise allows us to remind ourselves that God’s thoughts and goals are greater than ours. God deserves our praise (Hebrews 13:15; Psalms 147-150).

But there is still room for growth …

1. Emotional support (38%) – This finding is heartening in that young believers look to the church, perhaps specifically to the church leadership or their trusted Christian friends and colleagues, to help them through life with sympathy and advice. Access for young Christians, desiring support from believing peers, is an important function of the church.
2. Comfortable and pleasing worship surroundings (35%) – I suspect that this finding is important not just in young people but for many older congregants as well. Indeed, a beautiful church, often combined with stirring music and liturgy combine to create an awe inspiring and encouraging ambiance. 

Nonetheless, as Christians, we are commanded to take our Christian lifestyle beyond the mountaintop experience of a church service, or a faith-based conference, and practice our faith on a daily basis. Over time, scripture tells us that we should become confident in our relationship with God through knowledge and understanding; emotionally stable, making correct decisions between right and wrong, as well as teaching others (Hebrews 5:11-14; Colossians 1:27-2:3; Colossians 3:16-17; Ephesians 5:15-19). 

Our Christian walk comprises generally of: prayer, praise, bible-based fellowship, learning scripture and teaching others scripture and the gospel (Acts 2:42,47). These practices promote our growth by the power of the Spirit to the maturity God desires for us (Galatians 5:22; Ephesians 5:18).

The above list from our survey is encouraging in the emphasis of spiritual growth, prayer and praise in young church attendees. However, the amazing finding is that Christian youth have the same desires for their church experience as the millennial generation. It appears the Holy Spirit has used parents as well as church members, leaders and teachers to help form the next generation of believers to carry forth God's great work. Thanks be to God!

Please join me next week as we continue to explore the church and wellbeing. Thank you for reading my blog. 

Suffering from stress...Let Go...Let God

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for visiting today. We have been covering the exciting research findings from Teleios! 

Anxiety is a very common condition and is often defined as intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations (1). Anxiety is most unpleasant! Further, this condition is associated with a higher incidence of depression, suicide and substance abuse (2-4). 

Fortunately, pharmaceutical treatments exist to help reduce anxiety, as well as non-pharmaceutical based therapies such as: herbals, meditation, yoga, psychological counseling, exercise, and refraining from drugs/alcohol and healthy sleep habits (5-7).

In addition, religious-based activities have been shown to alleviate stress and anxiety (8-11) and might be an important adjunct to other therapies. We reviewed recently the medical literature to determine the effect of religious practice on anxiety.

We found, in almost every study, that: religion in general, religious training, spirituality, faith, prayer, and church-based social support were associated with reduced anxiety (stress). In many instances depression was helped as well. These effects were observed in both otherwise healthy individuals and in various patient populations. 

Importantly, the great majority of studies were performed in historically Christian countries. 

Why would religion, in this case in primarily Christian countries, assist anxiety? The reasons are not known specifically, however, we speculate the following: 

• The belief in the care of an almighty God taking a personal interest in a person’s psychological suffering (accessed through: prayer, worship, and religious training) might give comfort and hope.
• God’s direct intervention to assist the condition.
• The hope of an eternal life that surpasses the suffering on this earth might also give psychological comfort.
• Socialization with others of the same faith, inside or outside a place of worship, might provide a distraction from a person's anxiety as well as a reminder of their religion’s teachings.

Christianity is unique among religions in that it assures access to God by faith alone in Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross (grace). In contrast, non-Christian religions, non-Bible believing denominations, and Christian cults perceive access to God by a system of works or a works/grace mixture. Such differences might make an important difference in a person’s psychological health based on their perceived acceptance by God. 

The medical literature tends not to differentiate religions, or the extent of adherence to a particular religion, on the psychological impact of the individual. Future research should explore different religious tenants and their impact on mental health. 

Our review suggests that religious practice and belief, as shown primarily in Christian countries, may assist individuals suffering with anxiety. Further research will hopefully provide better understanding of religious practices across cultures to enhance how clinicians can use this important aspect of patients’ lives to help treat their patients.

Thanks be to our glorious God that He has made us in wisdom, cares for us and helps us with our infirmities. Thank you for joining me today and come again next week as we continue the fruitful exploration of how Scripture helps us.

For questions or to view more of our research…

Email     teleiosresearch@outlook.com

Website http://teleiosresearch.com/

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram  https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch 

Twitter  https://twitter.com/TeleiosResearch

1. Anxiety, Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anxiety/basics/definition/con-20026282
2. Beesdo K et al. Incidence of social anxiety disorder and the consistent risk for secondary depression in the first three decades of life. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2007;64:903-12. 
3. Gould MS, et al. Psychopathology associated with suicidal ideation and attempts among children and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 1998;37:915-23. 
4. Smith JP, Book SW. Anxiety and substance use disorders: A review. Psychiatr Times 2008; 25:19-23. 
5. Sarris J, et al.  Complementary medicine, exercise, meditation, diet, and lifestyle modification for anxiety disorders: A review of current evidence. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2012; 809653. 
6. Bystritsky A, et al. Current diagnosis and treatment of anxiety disorders. P T 2013;38:30-8,41-4,57. 
7. Anxiety Treatment, Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/generalized-anxiety-disorder/basics/lifestyle-home-remedies/con-20024562 
8. Hamilton JB, et al. Reading The Bible for guidance, comfort, and strength during stressful life events. Nurs Res 2013;62:178-84. 
9. Krause N. Gratitude toward God, stress, and health in late life. Res Aging, 2006;28:163-83. 
10. Paukert AL, et al. Integration of religion into cognitive-behavioral therapy for geriatric anxiety and depression. J Psychiatr Pract 2009;15:103-12. 
11. Berry D. Does religious psychotherapy improve anxiety and depression in religious adults? A review of randomized controlled studies. Int J Psychiatr Nurs Res 2002;8:875-90. 

Following the Bible is a great decision!

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for taking time to read it. 

We have been covering the exciting research findings from Teleios! We recently performed a survey evaluating how Christians make decisions, and how they decide is associated with personal wellbeing as well as adherence to the Christian walk. In total, 858 people participated; of whom 51% were students, 67% female, 77% evangelical and 20% ex-US nationals. The average age was 23 ± 10 years.

How Christians make decisions

The respondents indicated they most often make spiritual and secular based decisions by taking a step of faith based on the Bible, although less so with secular decisions (63 and 51% respectively), waiting for guidance from the Holy Spirit (58 and 45% respectively) or asking someone with experience on the topic (37 and 40% respectively).

Once a decision has been determined, 87% of participants pray for reassurance from God, while 59% took an action based on faith. However, 30% participants struggle with their decision, not being sure if it was correct. 

Most believed their decision-making was either pleasing to God, or to the Spirit, or made in faith (about 55% for each selection) while about 20% for indicated their choices might be emotional or self-seeking. Participants thought God helped them make decisions by having a plan for their life (63%) while almost as many believed He led them based on the Bible (53%).

Effect on personal wellbeing

Personal wellbeing did not differ statistically among responses for spiritual decisions, but for secular decisions those who used wisdom from prior biblically based experience reported higher wellbeing (4.9) The rating scale was 0 - 6 with the higher number indicates the better score. 

After a decision had been made those who generally acted based on their faith, or knowledge of God’s Word, noted higher wellbeing (4.7). Further, those who believed that God uses prayer to guide their decisions indicated higher wellbeing (4.8).

Effect of adherence to the Christian life

For those who were adherent to the Christian lifestyle (prayer, praise, fellowship, outreach and Bible study) most relied on biblically based wisdom and experience in determining decisions (4.2). After they decided, they most often sought reassurance from a mentor, or believed their decision was biblically based (score of 4.2). They typically believed God uses the Bible to lead them (4.2). 

Summary

The findings of our survey suggest that Christians generally take decisions seriously basing their choices on what they perceive to be input from God, the Bible or the Spirit. However, those who most closely practiced their Christian walk and who based their decisions on God's word enjoy better wellbeing than other survey participants.

A fuller description of findings can be found on the website at https://teleiosresearch.com/how-millennial-christians-make-decisions/.

Thanks for joining me today and come again next week as we continue the fruitful exploration of how scripture helps us.

For questions or to view more of our research…

Email     teleiosresearch@outlook.com

Website http://teleiosresearch.com/

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram  https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch 

Twitter  https://twitter.com/TeleiosResearch

Be confident, you are saved by grace!

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for taking time to read it. 

We have started a series on discovering exciting research findings from Teleios! Today let’s look at the compelling findings of a recent survey Teleios performed that explored the incidence of tares in the church. 

A tare is a plant that resembles wheat, but cannot be correctly identified until harvest; so, Jesus’ term means those who appear as a Christian, but really are not true believers. Please read last week’s blog which discussed this fascinating topic.

To investigate the incidence of tares in the church, we performed a survey of users of the Instagram app, Instapray, often visited by young adult Christians. In total, 1526 individuals participated and 73% described themselves as evangelicals. Just over half had at least some college education and the average age was 23.

The key finding in the survey was that while 94% of participants, when prompted by the correct answer, indicated they were saved by grace, while only 16% (78% difference) had the confidence in the knowledge of their salvation to provide a correct answer without a written prompt. Was there a difference in the personal characteristics of this confident group of individuals who indicated without prompting they are saved by grace?

Participants who most confidently identified themselves as saved by grace:

• Adhered more closely to the practice of their faith (prayer, praise, fellowship, outreach, Bible study, sharing the gospel)
• Had greater confidence in the security of their salvation
• Indicated better personal general wellbeing but also specific measures of wellbeing such as: contentment, peace, joy and purpose
• Enjoyed reduced guilt levels

The Teleios survey reflects wonderfully how knowing and believing God's word can impact a person's wellbeing. Scripture indicates that our great salvation is by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9) and those who understand this well enough to confess it without prompting, as well as believing that it cannot be lost, on average enjoy better wellbeing. 

Participants who most confidently identified themselves as saved by grace also indicated they had less feelings of guilt. The reduced guilt levels might have resulted by this group’s better understanding of the complete sufficiency of Christ’s forgiveness and that there is no sin so horrendous for which Christ’s precious sacrifice did not atone. Indeed, what a great Savior we have who provides for us every benefit not only to salvation but also a mentally healthy life!

Summary, this survey suggests that if a young adult who identifies themselves as evangelical can express confidently that they are saved by grace, and actively practice their faith, they may possess higher levels of wellbeing than those who do not. More results from this survey can be found here http://teleiosresearch.com/index.php/gospel-survey/. 

Thanks for visiting my blog today. I’ll look for you again next week.

For questions or to view more of our research…

Email     teleiosresearch@outlook.com

Website http://teleiosresearch.com/

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram  https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch 

Twitter  https://twitter.com/TeleiosResearch