As I stated in the first chapter, there are generally three categories of convictions, guidelines, or rules for people to live by-Biblical, Denominational or Church, and Personal.

Biblical convictions are things God has explicitly stated in the Bible. Some examples would be:

The Great Commission(Matthew 28:19-20): Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Requirements for Bishops(Preachers): (1 Timothy 3:1) A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)

Requirements for Deacons or Elders: (1 Timothy 3: 8) Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

Righteous Living: (1 Corinthians 6:9) Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

Biblical requirements apply to all. If you call yourself a Christian, then you are responsible to God for obeying His commands, no matter who you are or what your Pastor or denominations allows. If God says that something is wrong, then it is wrong; no ifs and buts about it.

Denominational or Church convictions are things required to be a member of a certain church or denomination. Just like your place of business has certain standards for their employees, most churches or denominations have certain standards for their members.

I am a member of the Church of God. Now, I could still attend a Church of God without being a member and not be required to follow all of their guidelines, but since I am a member, I have agreed to follow these standards so long as my membership stands. I can withdraw my membership at any time I wish.

Some standards of the Church of God are:

Movies and Visual Entertainment "A Christian is not to attend (or watch on television) movies or theatrical performances of a demoralizing nature (Romans 13:14; Philippians 4:8)"

General Entertainment "...a Christian must not be part of any other types of entertainment which appeal to the fleshly nature and/or bring discredit to the Christian testimony (2 Corinthians 6:17; 1 Thessalonian 5:21, 22; 1 John 2:15-17)"

Oaths "A Christian should be trustworthy, dependable, and a person of his word )Matthew 5:37; 1 Peter 2:11, 12). Therefore, the swearing of oaths is contrary to a Christian's trustworthiness and should be avoided (Matthew 5:34-37; James 5:12)."

Sanctity of Marriage "Sexual involvement either before marriage or with someon other than the marriage partner is strictly forbidden in Scripture (1 Corinthians 6:15-18). Understanding the sanctity of marriage, partners should strive to maintain a happy, harmonious, and holy relationship." Homosexual or same sex relationships are not recognized as marriage.

Drugs and Alcohol, Food, and Gambling "...a Christian must totally abstain from all alcoholic beverages and other habit-forming and mood-altering chemical substances and refrain from the use of tobacco in any form, marijuana, and all other addictive substances and, further, must refrain from any activity (such as gambling and gluttony[A/N: personally, I think the rule on gluttony should be observed a bit more strictly than it is]) which defiles the body as the temple of God or which dominates and enslaves the spirit that has been made free in Christ"

Sanctity of Life "Since God alone confers life, God alone must decide when it is to be ended (Psalm 31:14, 15)...It is our firm conviction that abortion, and euthanasia of the aged, mentally incompetent, terminally ill and otherwise handicapped, for reasons of personal convenience, social adjustment, or economic advantage, are morally wrong. Furthermore, we believe it is our Christian responsibility to care for the earth and its resources."

So there you are, a few of the standards that I, as a member of the International Church of God, must follow. Some of these are actually Biblical standards and some are interpretations of Biblical standards. All direct quotes are taken from the Church of God Statements of Faith. To learn more, visit www.churchofgod.org.

Now, onto personal convictions.

Personal Standards are beliefs that you hold as an individual that are not commanded in the Bible, your denomination, or your church. Some examples could be skirts, hair, and clean secular entertainement, or entertainment that doesn't glorify sin or worldliness, but doesn't contain an underlying Christian message.

The Church of God as an organization does not actually require women to wear skirts or dresses. COG, and the Bible, do require modest dress, which means different things to different people.

One example is my mom and I. My mother is significantly shorter than I am and we have different body types. We share clothing and have discovered that something that is modest for her may not be appropriate for me, and vice versa. A skirt that come to her knee may look like a miniskirt on me. A reasonably-fitting top for me might be too tight on her.

Generally speaking, I prefer to be more covered up than my mother. That isn't to say that this makes me "holier" or "more of a Christian" than she is-it's just that I feel uncomfortable showing certain parts of my body. For instance, I don't like wearing very short sleeves; it makes me self-conscious.

Hair: Pentecostals are generally know for their long hair, and in some cases not even trimming their hair. This is either a denominational, or a personal choice-as it isn't expressly forbidden in scripture. The Church of God does not have a teaching on how long or short your hair should be. Personally, I wear my hair long and keep it neatly trimmed. God has blessed me with thick, straight hair that can be worn long and I frequently get compliments from both within the church and outside of the church on my hair. 1 Corinthians 11:5 says "If a woman has long hair, it is a glory unto her"

On the other hand, I know that there are women who cannot wear long hair due to health reasons such as cancer or an autoimmune disease that causes their hair to break and fall out. I know girls and women who choose to cut their hair shorter and, to me, seem to be much more Christlike than others I know who won't even trim their hair.

The bottom line?

Your hair length does not determine your holiness.

Entertainment: Now, I'm talking about clean secular entertainment here, not Fifty Shades, or an EXPLICIT song, or something obviously promoting sin or worldly living, but that doesn't contain nudity, glorification of drugs, alcohol, promiscuity, self-harm, suicide, violence, or foul language. This could mean, say, the Happy song by Pharrell Williams, some secular movie or tv show, or a non-Christian novel.

Disclaimer: Even some "Christian" entertainment by "Christian" authors can be pretty ungodly.

My general stance on this issue? I view it like spiritual food.

Christian entertainment like stories about the life of Biblical characters, Gospel music, and spiritually-uplifting novels would be comparable to chicken, kale, broccoli, steak-something good for you that helps you stay healthy.

Entertainment that might be "Technically" Christian-e.g. that Christian rapper that's always down in the dumps and rarely mentions God, that over-dramatic romance novel by a Christian author that throws God's name in every few chapters, or those weekend Hallmark binges-would be comparable to homemade biscuits and gravy; something that's fairly decent but you still need the healthy, clean food or you won't do very well.

Secular entertainment that's fairly clean like Happy, a fairly decent YA novel, or an action movie that has only one or two mild curse words. This would be the McDonald's fries, cake, cookies, and candy-okay for most people in small and rare doses, but will make you unhealthy if eaten regularly. And, just like junk food, some people need to avoid these entirely because it can trigger old habits, cravings, and can lead to other, more unhealthy practices. For instance, if you and your buddies used to smoke pot and get drunk to Pharrell Williams, then listening to Happy can bring back some of those old memories and thoughts, leaving you craving a drink or a marijuana joint.

Explicit-labeled songs, erotica novels, and movies like Fifty Shades of Grey? Do you really need to ask? I don't promote even trying that, but let's just assign them a group anyway. Let's say Fugu-a fish that can kill you if not properly prepared-Heroine, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, and an entire bottle of Vodka. This stuff will do you absolutely no good whatsoever and can seriously hurt your spiritual life. Yes, it feels good-because it appeals heavily to your flesh, but it can cause all kinds of problems.

Anyway, that's an example of personal beliefs.

Can you think of some Biblical convictions that are often disregarded by todays church? What about some personal beliefs that some attempt to impose on others? I'd love to hear from you!