The Truth Index
Browse every major doctrine, find the key scriptures, and follow the links to go deeper. Truth is not complicated, but it has to come from the Word.
This index is organized by category. Each topic includes the key scriptures you need, a plain explanation of what those scriptures teach, and links to where you can study it further on this site. Every reference is NKJV.
Category 01
What must a person do to be saved? The Bible gives a specific answer, not a vague call to "just believe." These scriptures define the apostolic plan of salvation in the words of those who walked with Jesus and carried the Gospel to the world.
"Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
This is Peter's direct answer when the crowd asked "What shall we do?" Three steps: repentance (turning from sin), baptism in the name of Jesus Christ (water baptism, not titles), and receiving the Holy Spirit. This is not one option among many, it is the apostolic answer given six times in Acts across different cities and people groups.
Study more →"That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Paul wrote this to people in Rome who were already believers, "beloved of God, called to be saints" (Romans 1:7). This verse describes the starting point of faith, not the complete process of salvation. The same Paul who wrote Romans 10:9 also wrote Romans 6:3-4 (baptism as death, burial, and resurrection with Christ) and was himself baptized and received the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17-18, Acts 22:16). Belief opens the door, but the door leads to Acts 2:38.
Study more →"Jesus answered, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.'"
Jesus told Nicodemus, a religious leader, not an unbeliever, that entry into God's kingdom requires being born of BOTH water and the Spirit. Water = baptism in Jesus' name (Romans 6:3-4). Spirit = the Holy Spirit received as in Acts 2:4. This is the new birth Jesus described: not merely mental faith, but a complete transformation through water and Spirit.
Study more →"Unless you repent you will all likewise perish."
Repentance is not simply feeling sorry for sin, it is a complete change of direction. The Greek word metanoia means a change of mind that leads to a change of life. It is the first step in Acts 2:38 and the starting point of the entire Christian walk. Without genuine repentance, there is no salvation, not because God withholds it, but because repentance is the act of turning toward Him.
"And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord."
Romans 10:13 says "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." Acts 22:16 shows what "calling on the name" looks like in practice: Paul himself was told to arise and be baptized, and THAT act was described as calling on the name. The name of the LORD in Romans 10:13 is JESUS, the name Peter commanded for baptism in Acts 2:38.
Category 02
Water baptism is not a ceremony performed after salvation, it is part of the new birth itself. And the name matters. Every baptism in the book of Acts was performed in the name of Jesus Christ, not in titles.
"And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord."
Every water baptism recorded in the book of Acts was performed in the name of Jesus Christ, not in the titles "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." Matthew 28:19 says to baptize in "the name" (singular) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that name is Jesus (Colossians 2:9, John 5:43). The apostles understood this and acted accordingly in every case: Acts 2:38, 8:16, 10:48, 19:5, 22:16.
Study more →"Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."
Paul does not treat baptism as a symbol or optional ceremony performed after salvation. He treats it as the spiritual moment of death, burial, and resurrection with Christ. This language mirrors Acts 2:38 exactly: repent (die to sin), be baptized in Jesus' name (buried with Him), receive the Holy Spirit (raised to newness of life). Baptism IS the new birth experience, not a public declaration of something that already happened.
Study more →"When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus."
Paul found twelve disciples in Ephesus who had been baptized with John's baptism but had not received the Holy Spirit. He did not say their baptism was close enough. He commanded them to be rebaptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then he laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues. The name and the Spirit are both non-negotiable.
Study more →Category 03
The promise of the Father is for every believer. The Holy Spirit is not an optional upgrade or a second-tier experience, it is the third step in the plan of salvation, and it comes with a sign that Scripture never varies on.
"And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."
The promise of the Father (Acts 1:4) was the gift of the Holy Spirit. When it came at Pentecost, every one of the 120 was filled, and they ALL spoke in other tongues. This was not a special gift for special people, it was the universal experience of the new birth. Acts 2:39 declares the promise is for all who are afar off, meaning every generation including ours.
Study more →"For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God."
In every recorded instance in Acts where the Holy Spirit was received, speaking in tongues was the outward evidence. At Pentecost (Acts 2:4), in Caesarea with Cornelius (Acts 10:46), and in Ephesus (Acts 19:6), tongues was the sign that confirmed the Spirit had come. This is not merely one possible sign, it is the consistent biblical evidence the apostles used to confirm someone had received the promise.
"For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call."
When Peter was asked "What shall we do?" and gave the Acts 2:38 answer, he immediately followed it with this declaration. The promise of the Holy Spirit, the same experience that fell at Pentecost with tongues, is not limited to the first century, to Jewish believers, or to any specific group. It is for children. For those far off. For as many as God calls. That includes every person alive today.
Category 04
God is not a Trinity of three co-equal persons. He is ONE. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not three separate divine beings, they are three manifestations of the one God whose name is Jesus. This is the most foundational doctrine of the Apostolic faith.
"For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."
Paul did not say a third of the Godhead dwells in Jesus, or that Jesus represents one person of a Trinity. He said ALL the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him — bodily. The entirety of what God is lives in the person of Jesus Christ. This is the cornerstone of Oneness theology: Jesus is not a division of God; He IS God fully and completely manifested in human flesh.
Study more →"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!"
The foundational confession of Scripture. God is not a Trinity of three co-equal persons, He is ONE. The Old Testament declares it repeatedly (Isaiah 44:6, Isaiah 45:5). Jesus affirmed it (John 10:30). The New Testament confirms it (1 Corinthians 8:6). Oneness Pentecostals do not deny the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, they deny that these are three separate divine persons. They are three manifestations of the ONE God whose name is Jesus.
Study more →"God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory."
The text does not say "the Son of God was manifested in flesh." It says GOD was manifested. God Himself, not a second person subordinate to the Father, but God Almighty, became a human being in the person of Jesus Christ. This is the mystery of godliness: the invisible God became visible, the eternal God became a man, so that He could be our Savior.
Study more →"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
Jesus said "the NAME", singular. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not three names; they are titles describing the one God in three roles. The apostles understood this and carried out the Great Commission by baptizing in the ONE name: Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38, 8:16, 10:48, 19:5). The NAME of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is JESUS, because in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9).
The Oneness of God is the most misunderstood doctrine of the Apostolic faith. Our full study walks through the scriptural case from Genesis to Revelation, showing that the Apostles never baptized in titles, and that the earliest church confessed one God, one Lord, one name.
Read the full study →Category 05
These are the passages and topics that answer the hardest questions, and open up the rest of the Bible. Start here if you want to understand the full story.
In Acts 10, God pours out the Holy Spirit on a Roman centurion and his household — and they speak in tongues exactly as the Jewish believers did at Pentecost. Peter's response settles the question: the same experience, the same name, for everyone.
Study more → Book StudyThe book of Acts is the operating manual of the early church. It shows us what the apostles preached, how people responded, what happened when the Holy Spirit fell, and how the Gospel spread from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. Acts 2 is the blueprint.
Study Acts → Church HistoryIf Acts 2:38 is the apostolic pattern, why do most churches today practice something different? This study traces the historical departure from apostolic doctrine, from the council of Nicaea to the creeds to the modern church, and why the Apostolic Pentecostal movement represents a return to the original.
Read the history →More Coming Soon
We're adding new studies regularly. If you're looking for a specific doctrine, passage, or question and don't see it here yet, check back soon. Or start with the salvation page, which covers the foundation everything else is built on.