|
STATEMENT OF FAITH
The following comprise the
Scriptural beliefs of this church and its members.
(A) The
Holy Scriptures.
We believe the
Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally
and plenary inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant,
infallible and God-breathed and, therefore, are the final
authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old
and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God
to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their
normal grammatical-historical meaning, and all issues of
interpretation and meaning shall be determined by the pastor.
The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and
only translation used by the church. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet.
1:20-21)
(B)
Dispensationalism.
We believe that
the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense
reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which
define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These
dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely
ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His
purpose. Three of these dispensations—the law, the church, and
the kingdom—are the subjects of detailed revelation in
Scripture. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25;
Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)
(C) The
Godhead.
We believe in one triune God, eternally existing
in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal
in being, co-identical in nature, coequal in power and glory,
and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut. 6:4;
Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26)
(D) The Person and Work of
Christ.
1. We
believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God,
became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived
by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order
that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14;
9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5;
Phil. 2:5-8)
2. We
believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our
redemption through His death on the cross as a
representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and,
that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical
resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; 1
Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
3. We
believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is
now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High
Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative,
Intercessor, and Advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25;
Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)
(E)
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit.
1. We
believe that the Holy Spirit is a person Who convicts the
world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that
He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all
believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing
them unto the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 1
Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
2.
We believe that He is the divine Teacher who assists
believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and
that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be
filled with the Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)
3.
We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of
spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses
evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the
assembly in order that they can do the work of the
ministry. (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12)
4.
We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as
speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were
temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or
necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit,
and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or
death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the
resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the
prayers of believers for physical healing. (1 Cor. 1:22;
13:8; 14:21-22)
(F)
The Total Depravity of Man.
We believe that
man was created in the image and likeness of God; but that in
Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and
became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, in and
of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Gen.
1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19)
(G)
Salvation.
We believe that salvation is the gift of God
brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for
the forgiveness of our sins, and not ours only, but for the sins
of the whole world. (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Pet.
1:18-19; 1 John 1:7-9; 2:1-2)
(H)
The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers.
1.
We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by
God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John
6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Pet.
1:4-5)
2.
We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice
in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of
God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of
Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Rom.
13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)
(I) The Church
1.
We believe that the Church, which is the body
and the espoused bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism
made up of all born-again persons of this present age (Eph.
1:22-23; 5:25,27; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2).
2. We
believe that a local church is a congregation of immersed
believers, associated by a covenant of faith and friendship
of the gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed
by His laws; and exercising the gifts, rights and privileges
invested in them by His Word; that its officers are pastors
and deacons whose qualifications, claims and duties are
clearly defined in the Scriptures (Acts 14:27; 20:17,28-32;
Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11; Rev. 2:1-3:22).
3.
We
believe the true mission of the church is found in the Great
Commission (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15, Acts 1:8);
 |
First, to make
individual disciples as we faithfully witness of
Christ to all men as we have opportunity;
|
|
|
Second, to
baptize those who are saved; |
|
|
Third, to teach
and instruct as He commanded thereby building up
the church. |
We believe that the local church
has the absolute right of self-government, free from
interference of an hierarchy of individuals or organizations;
and that the one and only superintendent is Christ, through the
Holy Spirit; that it is scriptural for true churches to
cooperate with each other in contending for the faith and for
the furtherance of the Gospel, that each local church is the
sole judge of the measure and method of its cooperation; on all
matters of membership, of policy, of government, of discipline,
of benevolence, the will of the local church is final. (Acts
2:41-42; Acts 20:17-28; I Tim. 3:15; Col. 1:18; Eph. 5-23-24;
Acts 26:13-18).
4. We
believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches
is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures.
(Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)
5. We
believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external
authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1,
4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)
6. We
recognize water baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural
ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. (Matt.
28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)
7. We
believe that Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in
water to show forth in solemn and beautiful emblem our faith in
the crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, with its effect in our
death to sin and resurrection to a new life; that it is
prerequisite to the privileges of a church relation. (Acts
8:36-39; John 3:23; Rom. 6:3-6; Matt.3:16; Col. 2:12)
8. We
believe that the Lord’s Supper is the commemoration of His death
until He comes, and should be preceded always by solemn
self-examination. (I Cor. 11:23-28).
(J)
Separation.
We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as
not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. God commands
His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly
and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations, and to
refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, piercings
(other than ear lobes on women), and bodily markings. (Rom.
12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2
John 9-11; Lev. 19:28; 1 Cor. 6:19-20)
(K) The
Second Advent of Christ.
We believe in
that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of
Christ Who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year
tribulation period, also described as Daniel’s seventieth week.
At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and
visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly
Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel.
(Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45, 9:24-27; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thes. 1:10;
1 Thes. 4:13-18; 2 Thes. 2:1-12; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10;
19:11-16; 20:1-6)
(L) The Eternal State.
1.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved
to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting
punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev.
20:5-6, 12-13)
2.
We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death,
absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in
conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when
spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever
with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I
Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)
3. We
believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death,
in conscious punishment and torment until the second
resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall
appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast
into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer
everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matt.
25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude
6-7; Rev. 20:11-15)
(M) The
Personality of Satan.
We believe that
Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the Fall
of Man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man;
and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire.
(Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10)
(N)
Creation.
We believe that
God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We
reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and
Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin. (Gen.
1-2; Ex. 20:11)
(O)
Civil Government.
We believe that
God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three
basic institutions: 1) the family, 2) the church, and 3) the
state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all
(including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and
governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific
Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities
with the understanding that no institution has the right to
infringe upon the other. The family, the church, and the state
are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned
spheres of responsibility under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph.
5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14)
(P)
Human Sexuality.
1.
We believe that God has commanded that no
intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage
between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of
homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest,
fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful
perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God
disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender
by surgery or appearance. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen.
26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1: 26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1
Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)
2.
We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining
of one man and one woman. (Gen. 2:24; Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor.
7:10; Eph. 5:22-23)
(Q)
Family Relationships
1.
We believe that men and women are spiritually
equal in position before God but that God has ordained
distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women
in the home and the church. The husband is to be the leader
of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and
deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible
for licensure and ordination by the church. (Gal. 3:28;
Col. 3:18; 1 Tim. 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)
2.
We believe that God has ordained the family
as the foundational institution of human society. The
husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The
wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of
her husband as the church submits to the headship of
Christ. Children are an heritage from the Lord. Parents
are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and
moral values and leading them, through consistent lifestyle
example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural
corporal correction. (Gen. 1:26-28; Ex. 20:12; Deut. 6:4-9;
Ps. 127:3-5; Prov. 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mk. 10:6-12; I
Cor. 7:1-16; Eph. 5:21-33; 6:1-4, Col. 3:18-21; Heb. 13:4; I
Pet. 3:1-7)
(R)
Divorce and Remarriage.
We believe that
God disapproves of and forbids divorce and intends marriage to
last until one of the spouses dies. Divorce and remarriage is
regarded as adultery except on the grounds of fornication.
Although divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may
hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of
God for Christian service, they may not be considered for the
offices of pastor or deacon. (Mal. 2:14-17; Matt. 19:3-12; Rom.
7:1-3; 1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)
(S) Abortion.
We believe that
human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a
living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified,
unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We
reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape,
incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population
control, or the physical or mental well being of the mother are
acceptable. (Job 3:16; Ps. 51:5; 139:14-16; Isa. 44:24; 49:1, 5;
Jer. 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)
(T) Love.
We believe that we should demonstrate love for
others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward both
those who are not believers and those who oppose us. We are to
deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and
humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of
revenge, or the threat or the use of violence as a means of
resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice.
Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love
and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions.
(Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Rom.
12:9-10; 17-21; 13:8-10; Phil. 2:2-4; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:2;
1 John 3:17-18)
(U)
Lawsuits Between Believers.
We believe that
Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against
other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We
believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to
resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe,
however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries
from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim
is pursued without malice or slander. (1 Cor. 6:1-8; Eph.
4:31-32)
(V)
Missions.
We believe that God has given the church a great
commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there
might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic
group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
As ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go
to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us.
(Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts
1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20)
(W)
Giving.
We believe that every Christian, as a steward of
that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to
support his local church financially. We believe that God has
established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every
Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and
cheerfully to the support of the church, the relief of those in
need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian
relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or
offering once the gift has been made. (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10;
Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; 1
Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)
Adopted
December 1, 2004 |
