The Christian Foundation
Section 1: Our Foundation
Thronos is founded upon the Christian faith.
We believe in one Supreme and Eternal God, who has revealed Himself to humanity and has made Himself known to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, according to the testimony of the Holy Scriptures.
We believe that the Christian faith is not merely a set of moral principles or religious practices, but the revelation of God and His purposes for humanity.
Our understanding of God, humanity, truth, responsibility, service, community, and the future is therefore ultimately subject to the Scriptures and to the person and teachings of Jesus Christ. This is the foundation upon which Thronos is built.
Section 2: The Holy Scriptures
We believe the Holy Bible is the Word of God, revealed through human authors and preserved for the instruction, correction, formation, and guidance of His people.
We therefore regard the Scriptures as the highest written authority governing the beliefs and moral foundations of Thronos.
Where Thronos speaks concerning matters of Christian doctrine, morality, human dignity, responsibility, leadership, service, or the ordering of community life, it shall seek to remain faithful to the teaching of Scripture.
We believe in truth as revealed through the Scriptures and reject the idea that truth may be established merely by preference, popularity, power, or convenience.
Section 3: Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the supreme revelation of God's character and purposes to humanity.
We believe there is no greater model for human life than Jesus Christ.
His life teaches us how to love God, serve others, exercise authority, endure suffering, pursue truth, show mercy, confront injustice, forgive, sacrifice, and remain faithful to the will of God.
Thronos therefore seeks not merely to build capable people, but people whose capability is governed by character, and whose character is increasingly shaped by the way of Christ.
We recognize that capability without righteousness can become destructive, knowledge without wisdom can become foolishness, authority without service can become oppression, and ambition without submission to God can become idolatry.
The formation of the person is therefore inseparable from the work they undertake.
Section 4: Humanity and Human Dignity
We believe that every human being possesses dignity and worth before God.
No person's ethnicity, nationality, social position, wealth, occupation, education, or circumstances make them inherently more valuable than another.
In Christ, there is no distinction by which one class of humanity may claim greater standing before God than another:
“There is neither Greek nor Jew...”
Galatians 3:28
Thronos therefore rejects ethnic, racial, or national superiority and seeks to cultivate a community in which people are treated with dignity, fairness, and love.
We believe that every person has the capacity to learn, develop, contribute, serve, and exercise meaningful stewardship, though the abilities, responsibilities, circumstances, and opportunities of individuals will differ.
Section 5: Responsibility, Fruitfulness, and Stewardship
We believe that human beings are not created merely to exist, consume, and pass through the world without responsibility.
People are capable of creating, cultivating, learning, serving, building, protecting, teaching, governing, and caring for what has been entrusted to them. We therefore believe that fruitfulness matters.
Fruitfulness does not mean that every person must become wealthy, famous, powerful, or historically significant. Nor does it mean that a person's worth is determined by their measurable achievements.
Rather, fruitfulness means faithfully developing and using what has been entrusted to a person for the good of others and in accordance with the will of God.
This conviction is central to Thronos.
The development of capability is therefore not pursued merely for personal advancement. Capability is valuable because it increases a person's ability to carry responsibility and serve faithfully.
Section 6: Work and the Renewal of What Is Broken
We believe that worthwhile work can be an expression of stewardship.
Building a business, raising children, learning a profession, creating something beautiful, solving a problem, teaching others, strengthening a community, caring for the vulnerable, pursuing knowledge, or repairing something that is broken may all constitute meaningful work when undertaken faithfully.
We therefore reject the idea that meaningful contribution belongs only to those with extraordinary positions or public influence.
The ordinary person has responsibilities worth carrying. The small work of one person may become the foundation upon which another person's life is built.
Thronos seeks to help people become capable of doing such work well.
Section 7: Ambition and Submission
Thronos recognizes ambition as a natural part of human aspiration. People desire to build, accomplish, create, improve, discover, lead, provide, and leave something behind.
We do not believe that such desire is inherently wrong. But human ambition is not the highest authority.
A person's desire to build something does not make that thing good. A person's ability to accomplish something does not make its accomplishment righteous. And the fact that something can be built does not mean that it ought to be built.
Our ambitions must therefore remain subject to truth, righteousness, responsibility, and the will of God.
In this, Thronos takes seriously the posture of Jesus in Gethsemane:
“Not my will, but yours be done.”
Luke 22:42
The Christian calling is therefore not simply:
Build what you want.
But
Become capable of building what God calls you to build, and faithfully carry what He entrusts to you.
Section 8: Community
We believe that human beings were not designed to pursue life entirely alone. People require one another for instruction, encouragement, correction, friendship, cooperation, service, and mutual care.
The Christian life itself is lived in relationship with others.
We therefore believe in building communities where people are known, supported, challenged, appreciated, and given opportunities to contribute.
This conviction gives rise to The Third Place, the community of Thronos.
Within this community, members are encouraged not merely to receive from others but also to become people capable of giving to others.
We believe that a healthy community should produce mutual strength rather than dependency.
Section 9: The Nations and the Common Good
We believe that God is concerned not only with individuals but also with families, communities, peoples, and nations.
The transformation of a person's life can affect a family. A transformed family can affect a community. Transformed communities can affect nations.
We therefore believe that meaningful change does not require every person to pursue grand or famous causes.
A better person can build a better family. A better family can strengthen a community. A stronger community can contribute to a stronger nation. And nations are capable of affecting the world.
Thronos therefore seeks to cultivate people who understand that their personal development and their responsibility toward others are not necessarily separate pursuits.
Section 10: The Hope Beyond This Era
Thronos does not regard the present world as the final horizon of human existence.
We believe in the hope revealed in Scripture: that God's purposes extend beyond this present age and that His people look toward a city and kingdom whose foundations are established by God.
As Scripture says of Abraham:
“For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
Hebrews 11:10
Our eyes therefore remain fixed beyond the achievements of this present age.
We may build, work, learn, create, serve, and pursue worthwhile purposes in this life, but none of these things is our ultimate hope.
Our ultimate hope is in God, His Kingdom, and Jesus Christ, through whom we have hope for this life and the life to come.
Section 11: The Foundation of Thronos
These convictions establish the foundation upon which Thronos operates:
God is our highest authority.
Scripture is our written foundation for truth and doctrine.
Jesus Christ is our supreme model for life, leadership, service, and character.
Human beings possess dignity and responsibility before God.
Capability is to be developed for faithful stewardship, not merely self-elevation.
Ambition must remain subject to righteousness and the will of God.
People are strengthened through community and mutual service.
Our work in this present age is meaningful, but our ultimate hope lies beyond it.
This is the Christian foundation of Thronos.