 WE BELIEVE
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We explicitly affirm our beliefs in these Bible Teachings:
God
There is one true God, eternally existing in three persons-
Father, Son and Holy Spirit- each of whom possess equally all the
attributes of Deity and the Characteristics of personality. (Matt.
28:10; John 10:30; Acts 5:3,4,; 2 Cor. 13:14)
God the Father
God the Father is the functional head of the Trinity
(Father, Son and Holy Spirit). He sent the Son to obtain
satisfaction for divine justice and to proclaim reconciliation. The
Spirit He sent to teach the truth. He is spoken of as the Father of
all creation, of angels, of Israel, of believers, and of Christ.
(John 14-17, 20:17; Job 1:6; Psalms 103:13)
Jesus
Jesus is God, the Living Word, who became flesh through His
miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth.
Hence, He is perfect Deity and true humanity united in one person
forever. He lived a sinless life, and voluntarily atoned for the
sins of men by dying on the cross as their substitution, thus
satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who
trusted in Him alone. He rose from the dead in the same body, though
glorified in which He lived and died. He ascended bodily into
heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, and there
He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes
intercession for His own. (Matt. 1:20; John 1:1-2, Luke 1:34-35;
Heb. 4:15; 1 Cor. 15; Acts 1:9-11; 1John 2:1).
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity,
has come into the world to reveal and glorify Christ and to apply
the saving work of Christ to men. He convicts and draws sinners to
Christ, imparts new life to them, continually indwells them from the
moment of spiritual birth, baptizes them in the body of Christ, and
seals them until the day of Redemption. (John 16:8-11; Titus 3:5; 1
Cor. 6:19; Romans 8:9b; 1 Cor. 12:13; Gal. 5:22-23).
Man: man was originally created in the image of God, both male and
female He created them. Man sinned by disobeying God; thus, he was
alienated from his Creator. The historic fall brought all mankind
under divine condemnation. Man's nature is corrupted, and he is thus
totally unable to please God. Every man is in need of regeneration
and renewal by the Holy Spirit. (Gen. 1:26-27; Eph. 2:1; Romans
1:8, 3:10-20, 23 5:12, 7:21-25).
Salvation
The salvation of man is wholly a work of God's free
grace, and is not the result, in whole or part, of human works or
goodness or religious ceremony. God imputes His righteousness in
those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and
thereby justifies them in His sight. (Rom. 6:23; Eph 2:8-9: John
3:16; Titus 3:5-8).
It is a privilege of all who are born again of the Spirit to be
assured of their salvation from the very moment in which they trust
Christ as their Savior. This assurance is not based upon any kind of
human merit, but is produced by the witness of the Holy Spirit, who
confirms in the believer the testimony of God in His written Word.
The Holy Spirit's fullness, power and guidance are appropriated in
the believer's life by faith. (Romans 5:9-10. 8:1, 29-30, 38-39;
John 5:24. 10:27-30; Phil 1:6; Heb. 7:25; Jude 24).
Christian Life
The Scriptures set out the principles and rules of
the Christian life.
Believers are called to live so in the power of the indwelling
Spirit that they will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh but will
bear fruit to the glory of God. (Rom. 12:1,2; Gal. 5:16-26; 1
Thes. 4:1-12, 5:12-24).
Believers are commanded to proclaim the gospel throughout the world
and disciple men of every nation. (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).
Believers are commanded to love God and love one another rather than
to pursue a life of worldly or selfish ambitions. (Matt. 22:37-40;
John 15:8-17; 1 Cor. 13; Gal. 2:20; 1 john 2:15-16 1 John 4:7-12).
The Church
Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, His Body, which
is composed of all men, living and dead, who have joined to Him
through saving faith. God admonishes His people to assemble together
regularly for worship, for participation in ordinances, for
edification throughout the Scriptures, and for mutual encouragement.
The two ordinances of the Church are water baptism and the Lord's
Supper. (1 Cor. 12:12-13; Col. 1:18; Acts 2:42-47; Hebrews 10:24-25)
Death
At physical death, the believer enters immediately into
eternal, conscious fellowship with the Lord and awaits the
resurrection of the body to everlasting glory and blessing. (1 Cor.
15:12; 2 Cor. 5:1010; Phil. 1:23; John 12:26).
At physical death, the unbeliever enters immediately into eternal,
conscious separation from the Lord and awaits the resurrection of
the body to everlasting judgment and condemnation. (Eph. 2:12; matt.
25:31-46; Luke 16:19-26; Rev. 20:11-15)
Jesus Christ will come again to the earth personally, visibly,
bodily-to consummate history and fulfill the plan of God. (Rev.
19:11-16; Zech. 14:4-11; 1Thess. 1:9-10)
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The final Authority of our beliefs is the Bible; God's infallible
written Word; the sixty-six books of the Old Testament and New
Testament. We believe that the Bible was uniquely, verbally, and fully
inspired by the Holy Spirit, and that it was without error in the
original manuscript. It is the supreme and final authority in all
matters on which it speaks. (2 Timothy 3:16, 17: 2Peter 1:21; 1 Cor
2:13, 10:11; John 10:35)
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