Through the teaching of John Thomas and the need in the American civil war for a name, the Christadelphians emerged as a denomination, but they were formed into a lasting structure through a passionate follower of his interpretation of the Bible, Robert Roberts.

Christadelphians state that their beliefs are based wholly on the Bible, and they do not see other works as inspired by God.

Based on this, Christadelphians teach what they believe to be true Bible teaching.

There is a strong emphasis on personal Bible reading and study and many Christadelphians use the Bible Companion to help them systematically read the Bible each year

In other Christian beliefs ( e. g. the beliefs of the Christadelphians ) the word " satan " in the Bible is not regarded as referring to a supernatural, personal being but to any " adversary " and figuratively refers to human sin and temptation.

Present-day defenders of mortalism include many Anglicans, such as N. T. Wright and Nicky Gumbel, some Lutherans, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Advent Christian Church, the non denominational group Afterlife Christadelphians, the Church of God ( Seventh Day ), Church of God ( 7th day )-Salem Conference, the Church of God Abrahamic Faith, and various other Church of God organizations including most Related Denominations which adhered to the older teachings of Herbert W. Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God and the Bible Student movement.

Annihilationist proponents include the Seventh-day Adventists, Bible Students, Jehovah's Witnesses, Christadelphians, and some other Protestant Christians.

Anthony Buzzard of Atlanta Bible College has debated Christadelphians and written defending the traditional view of the devil.

The Gathering receives a large contingent of both Unamended Christadelphians and Amended Christadelphians each year, and likewise many CGAF members attend Christadelphian events such as the annual Great Lakes Christadelphian Bible School.

This is seen by many Christadelphians as evidence that Thomas had a broadly correct understanding of the main thrust of Bible prophecy.

The majority of Christadelphians believe that the judgment will include anyone who had sufficient knowledge of the gospel message, and is not limited to baptized believers.

Christadelphians believe that God is the creator of all things and the father of true believers, that he is a separate being from his son, Jesus Christ, and that the Holy Spirit is the power of God used in creation and for salvation.

Christadelphians believe that sexual relationships are limited to heterosexual marriage, ideally between baptised believers.

One consequence of objection to military service was the adoption of the name Christadelphians to distinguish this small community of believers and to be granted exemption from military service in the American Civil War.

Early Christadelphians, notably John Thomas ( 1870 ) and C. C. Walker ( 1929 ) integrated angelic theophanies and God as revealed in his various divine names into a doctrine of God Manifestation which carries on into a Unitarian understanding of God's theophany in Christ and God being manifested in resurrected believers.

Whilst the word church is used to refer to a Christian place of worship by some Christian denominations including Anglicans and Roman Catholics, other Christian denominations, including the Religious Society of Friends, Mennonites, Christadelphians, and some unitarians, object to the use of the word church to refer to a building, as they argue that this word should be reserved for the body of believers who worship there.

* Christadelphians, Church of God General Conference and other " Biblical Unitarians " are typically Socinian in their Christology, not Arian.

Although no official membership figures are published, the Columbia Encyclopedia gives an estimated figure of 50, 000 Christadelphians, who are spread across approximately 120 countries ; there are established churches ( or ecclesias, as they are often called ) in many of those countries, along with isolated members.

Despite success in reuniting large sections of the wider Christadelphian community and periodic efforts at reuniting smaller offshoots, there are still a number of groups who remain separate from other bodies of Christadelphians.

This functional definition still holds true in North America, where two other sizeable groups, Unamended Christadelphians and the CGAF, are not received by most North American Amended ecclesias.

Some Christadelphian groups which are separated to a greater or lesser degree from the main body of Christadelphians use statements of faith which differ in some regard from the BASF and from each other.

Due to the way the Christadelphian body is organised there is no central authority to establish and maintain a standardised set of beliefs and it depends what statement of faith is adhered to and how liberal the ecclesia is, but there are core doctrines most Christadelphians would accept.

Christadelphians believe that people are separated from God because of their sins, but can be reconciled to him by becoming disciples of Jesus Christ.

According to Christadelphians, these terms are used in reference to specific political systems or individuals in opposition or conflict.

Christadelphians are organised into local congregations, that commonly call themselves ecclesias, which is taken from usage in the New Testament and is Greek for gathering of those summoned.

Christadelphians refuse to participate in any military ( and Police forces ) because they are conscientious objectors.

Christadelphians are a non-liturgical denomination.

* Fred Pearce, Who are the Christadelphians?

" Jehovah's Witnesses, Christadelphians, and others have taught that the dead are unconscious ( or even nonexistent ), awaiting their destiny on Judgment Day.

This is particularly true of Christian denominations such as the Christadelphians, although there are differing opinions on this among their members.

Modern Socinians ( in Christological terms ) include the small number of " Biblical Unitarian " churches such as Christadelphians and the Church of the Blessed Hope, though these churches are not direct descendants of the Polish Brethren.

These CGAF churches are theologically much closer to the Christadelphians than they are to the Church of God General Conference ( CoGGC ), and have made moves in recent years to strengthen their ties.

The Christadelphians are one of only a small number of churches whose identity as a denomination is directly linked to the issue of Christian pacifism.

This view is also held in a modified form by groups such as the Latter Day Saints, Christadelphians and Adventist splinter groups such as the Branch Davidians.

Christadelphians believe that the Kingdom will be centred upon Israel, but Jesus Christ will also reign over all the other nations on the earth.

Christadelphians reject a number of doctrines held by many other Christians, notably the immortality of the soul ( see also mortalism ; conditionalism ), trinitarianism, the personal pre-existence of Christ, the baptism of infants, the personhood of the Holy Spirit the divinity of Jesus and the present-day possession of the gifts of the Holy Spirit ( see cessationism ).

Infant baptism is also excluded by Iglesia ni Cristo ( Church of Christ ), Jehovah's Witnesses, Christadelphians, and Latter Day Saints.

Several nontrinitarian religious groups also oppose infant baptism, including Christadelphians, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and the Community of Christ.

Modern Christadelphians generally believe he was right and adhere to the positions he established as defined within the Christadelphian statements of faith ; Christadelphians feel, too, that Thomas ' example of an inquiring attitude is also an important legacy.

Some groups, Christadelphians in particular, consider that it is not a universal resurrection, and that at this time of resurrection that the Last Judgment will take place.

Since the reunions in the UK and Australia in 1957, two generations of Christadelphians have grown up with little awareness of the existence of the minority " fellowships ", or awareness that the main group is called " Central " by the minority groups.

The Dawn Christadelphians use a statement of faith which is based on the original 1886 statement of faith, but has four additions addressing issues that have arisen since that time.

Christadelphians believe that Jesus is the promised Jewish Messiah, in whom the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament find their fulfilment.

For Christadelphians, this is the focal point of the gospel taught by Jesus and the apostles.

The Christadelphian distinction between representation and substitution has been noted in the relevant scholarly literature, and representative participation ( an interpretation long held by Christadelphians ) is widely considered the original Biblical teaching on the atonement.

Some Christian groups such as Catholics, Churches of Christ, and Christadelphians believe baptism is essential to salvation.

The main distinguishing doctrinal difference between Church of God General Conference ( CoGGC ) and Christadelphians and Church of the Blessed Hope ( CGAF ) is that the majority of CoGGC members believe that Satan is a literal fallen angel, although a minority do not.