Our Statement of Faith
THE HOLY SCRIPTURES
We affirm that the Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, is alone the only infallible, inspired Word of God, and that its authority is ultimate, final, and eternal. It cannot be added to, subtracted from, or superseded in any regard. The Bible is the source of all doctrine, instruction, correction, and reproof. It contains all that is needed for guidance in godliness and practical Christian conduct.2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21
THE TRINITY
It is the testimony of both the Old and New Testaments and of the Christian Church that God is both One and Triune. The biblical revelation testifies that there is only one God and that He is eternally existent in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
1. God the Father
God the Father is the creator and sustainer of all things, and He created the universe in love. He created man in His own image for fellowship and called man back to Himself through Christ after the rebellion and fall of man.
2. The Son Jesus Christ is eternally God. He was together with the Father and the Holy Spirit from the beginning, and through Him all things were made. For man’s redemption, He left heaven and became incarnate by the Holy Spirit through the virgin Mary; henceforth, He is forever one Christ with two natures—God and man—in one person.
3. The Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is God, the Lord and giver of life, who was active in the Old Testament and given to the Church in fullness at Pentecost. He empowers the saints for service and witness, cleanses man from the old nature and conforms us to the image of Christ. The baptism in the Holy Spirit, subsequent to conversion, releases the fullness of the Spirit and is evidenced by the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit. Matt 4:17; Luke 15:2; and Acts 3:19; Acts 2:38; Luke 11:13Deuteronomy 6:4; Genesis 1:26; Matthew 28:19
2. The Son Jesus Christ is eternally God. He was together with the Father and the Holy Spirit from the beginning, and through Him all things were made. For man’s redemption, He left heaven and became incarnate by the Holy Spirit through the virgin Mary; henceforth, He is forever one Christ with two natures—God and man—in one person.
3. The Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is God, the Lord and giver of life, who was active in the Old Testament and given to the Church in fullness at Pentecost. He empowers the saints for service and witness, cleanses man from the old nature and conforms us to the image of Christ. The baptism in the Holy Spirit, subsequent to conversion, releases the fullness of the Spirit and is evidenced by the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit. Matt 4:17; Luke 15:2; and Acts 3:19; Acts 2:38; Luke 11:13Deuteronomy 6:4; Genesis 1:26; Matthew 28:19
THE PERSON AND WORK OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, came into the world that He might manifest God to men, fulfill prophecy, and become the Redeemer of a lost world. To this end, He was born of the Virgin Mary, received a human body and a sinless human nature without ceasing to be God.Luke 1:30-35; John 1:1, 14, 18; Hebrews 4:15; Philippians 2:5-11
We believe that, in infinite love for the lost, He voluntarily accepted His Father’s will and became the divinely provided sacrificial Lamb and took away the sins of the world.Romans 3:25-31; 2 Corinthians 5:14; Hebrews 10:5-14
We believe He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He had lived and died and that His resurrected body is the pattern of the body which ultimately will be given to all believers.John 20:20; Philippians 3:20-21
We believe that on departing earth, He was accepted by His Father and that His acceptance is a final assurance to us that His redeeming work was perfectly accomplished.Hebrews 1:3
We believe that He became head over all things to the church, which is His body, and in this ministry He does not cease to intercede and to be an advocate for the saved.Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 15:1-3; Ephesians 1:23; Philippians 2:6-8; 2 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1-2
We believe that, in infinite love for the lost, He voluntarily accepted His Father’s will and became the divinely provided sacrificial Lamb and took away the sins of the world.Romans 3:25-31; 2 Corinthians 5:14; Hebrews 10:5-14
We believe He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He had lived and died and that His resurrected body is the pattern of the body which ultimately will be given to all believers.John 20:20; Philippians 3:20-21
We believe that on departing earth, He was accepted by His Father and that His acceptance is a final assurance to us that His redeeming work was perfectly accomplished.Hebrews 1:3
We believe that He became head over all things to the church, which is His body, and in this ministry He does not cease to intercede and to be an advocate for the saved.Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 15:1-3; Ephesians 1:23; Philippians 2:6-8; 2 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1-2
BAPTISM & tHE LORD'S SUPPER
The Word of God enjoins on the Church two perpetual ordinances of the Lord Jesus Christ. The first, baptism, is the outward sign of what God has already done in the individual’s life and is a testimony to all that the person now belongs to Jesus. It is identification with Jesus and is effected in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of the death of the Lord and is done in remembrance of Him until He comes again; it is a sign of our participation in Him. Both institutions are restricted to those who are believers.
Acts 22:16; 1 Corinthians 16:11; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Matthew 3:13-17; Acts 2:38; Acts 2:41; Acts 8:12; Acts 9:18; Romans 6:3-4
1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Matthew 26:26-28; John 6:53-58; Corinthians 10:16-17
THE PERSONALITY OF SATAN
We believe that Satan, the devil, is the prince of demons and the declared adversary of God and man. However, when the Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross, He limited the power of the devil and guaranteed the ultimate triumph of God.Ephesians 2:2; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 20:10; Colossians 2:13-15
SALVATION
We believe that no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again spiritually, and that the new birth of the believer comes only through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We believe, also, that our redemption has been accomplished by the grace of God, an unmerited gift, given in love by God and not the result of any human works.John 3:17-18; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13; Romans 4:4-5
We believe that the explicit message of our Lord Jesus Christ to those whom He has saved is to make Christ known to the whole world and that this is the purpose of the church through the individuals within it.Matthew 28:18-19; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
We believe that local churches gather together for practical instruction in the scriptures, for fellowship with God and with other believers, and for corporate witness to the unsaved world. Our common spiritual goal is to grow toward Christ’s likeness.Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:5; Ephesians 4:13-16
We believe that the explicit message of our Lord Jesus Christ to those whom He has saved is to make Christ known to the whole world and that this is the purpose of the church through the individuals within it.Matthew 28:18-19; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
We believe that local churches gather together for practical instruction in the scriptures, for fellowship with God and with other believers, and for corporate witness to the unsaved world. Our common spiritual goal is to grow toward Christ’s likeness.Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:5; Ephesians 4:13-16
THE RAPTURE AND THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST
We believe that a future period of great tribulation on the earth will be climaxed by the return of the Lord Jesus Christ to the earth as He went in person in the clouds with power and great glory to establish His millennial kingdom. But prior to this tribulation, we believe there will be the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in the air to receive to Himself into Heaven both His own who are alive and remain until His coming and also all who have died in Jesus Christ.1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 3:10
ETERNAL STATE
We believe that at death the spirits and souls of those who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation pass immediately into His presence and there remain in conscious bliss until the resurrection of the glorified body when Christ comes for His own, whereupon soul and body reunited shall be associated with Him forever in glory. All those who rejected Jesus Christ will eternally be separated from God to endure His eternal wrath forever.2 Corinthians 5:8; Revelation 20:11-15; 21:1-27
RESPONSIBILITY OF BELIEVERS
We believe that all believers should seek to walk by the Spirit, separating themselves from worldly practices and witnessing by life and by word the truths of the Holy Scripture.Romans 12:1; Galatians 5:16, 25; 2 Corinthians 5:9-17
We believe that all believers will be judged at the judgment seat of Christ and rewarded based on their faithful obedience to Him in this life.1 Corinthians 3:10-17
We believe that all believers will be judged at the judgment seat of Christ and rewarded based on their faithful obedience to Him in this life.1 Corinthians 3:10-17