What We Believe
Doctrinal Statement
Proclaiming Christ …
For the Glory of God
We believe in and teach the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the inerrant, inspired word of God (1 Corinthians 2:13; II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:21).
We believe in and teach that there is one true living God, creator of all things, who is perfect, infinite, and eternal; and who co-exists in three persons (the Trinity), namely, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Genesis 1:1; Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 57:15; Matthew 28:19; John 1:3, 4:24; Colossians 1:16).
We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God who took upon himself human form by being born of the virgin Mary, in order to redeem us from sin through his substitutionary suffering and death on the cross. We believe that He was raised from the dead for our justification and is now at the right hand of God interceding for us (Matthew 28:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1, 14:3; Hebrews 2:14, 4:15; I Peter 2:24).
We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. His ministry is to convict of sin, regenerate the spirit, and indwell and empower the believer in order that he might be a witness of the glorious Gospel of Christ (Acts 5:3-4; Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 6:19, 12:11-13; Galatians 5:22-25). We believe that the Holy Spirit gives gifts of ministry to each believer to build up and assist the body, that is, the church (Romans 12:3-8). We further more believe that certain gifts of the Spirit, (i.e. sign gifts such as tongues, interpretations of tongues, healing) were foundational in purpose, and that consequently, such gifts, having filled their purpose, are no longer being given to the church (Hebrews 2:4; I Corinthians 13:8).
We believe that Satan (the devil) is a super-natural person, created by God but rebellious and opposed to God (Job 1:6-7; Luke 4:1-13). He was condemned at the cross (John 16:11; Hebrews 2:14) and his ultimate destiny is to be cast into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:7-10). We further more believe that the Scriptures teach that in this present age he hinders, tempts, and accuses believers, with the goal of destroying the work of God. He opposes God by causing many to fall into traps of unbelief or false religions.
We believe that man was directly created and given life by God, but since the sin of the first man, Adam, all men are born depraved, condemned to eternal punishment (Hell), and in need of a Divine Redeemer (Genesis 3:1-24; John 3:16-18; Romans 3:23, 5:12).
We believe that salvation is a free gift of God's grace, offered to us on the basis of Jesus Christ's substitutionary death on the cross. Each individual must receive this gift by repentance from sin and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The gift of salvation is in no way increased or obtained by human effort. This salvation, which renders a believer eternally secure (John 10:27-29), provides deliverance from the guilt and penalty of sin including escape from eternal hell, a perfectly righteous standing before God, the provisions for victory over the power of sin, and the promise of future glorification in God's presence (John 3:14-18; Acts 20:21; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 2:11-14).
Believing that salvation is entirely the work of God through Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-7), and that the new birth spoken of by Christ in John 3 accomplishes this to the very fullest extent (Hebrews 7:25), we therefore hold the following positions about the two ordinances of the Church:
We believe that the Lord's Supper (Communion) is a ceremony commanded by Christ. The bread is a symbol of Christ's body given to provide eternal life and the cup is a symbol of Christ's blood, poured out to put into effect the new covenant which guarantees that God will forgive us and give us his Holy Spirit (Mathew 26:27-28; I Corinthians 11:25; Jeremiah 31:31). The Lord's Supper is to be a reminder of the cost of our salvation, and a reminder that Jesus will return (I Corinthians 11:23-29; Luke 22:14-20).
We believe that water baptism was commanded by Christ (Matthew 28:19) as a symbol of the believer's death to sin and resurrection to new life with God (Romans 6:1-4). It is an outward sign of the changes God has made within a person. We believe that the grace of God cannot be augmented in any way by works (Ephesians 2:8-9), and that water baptism thus does not contribute to an individual's salvation. Baptism, as described in the Bible, involves the immersion of a person in water to symbolize burial and resurrection (Matthew 3:16; Acts 8:36-39; Romans 6:4).
We believe that the universal church is the body of believers which God has called to salvation through Jesus Christ. The local church is a portion of that universal church in a given location which is organized to provide teaching, spiritual protection, fellowship, mutual prayer and assistance for its members. The local church has the mission of leading its members to grow in Christ and to share the gospel with others. God has given each church leaders and servants and has given each member spiritual gifts to bring the church to maturity and to be active in works of service (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:42-47; Ephesians 2:19-22, 4:4-16; I Timothy 3; Titus 1:5-9).
We believe in church discipline based upon the Word of God in order to preserve the good name, purity, and power of the church, and with the purpose of restoring the erring member (I Corinthians 5:1-8, 12-13; II Corinthians 2:6-11; Matthew 18:15-17; Galatians 6:1).
We believe that civil government is a divinely instituted authority which should be respected and submitted to by all, and that it is an instrument of God for the good of those that do well and for punishment of evil-doers (Romans 13:1-7; I Peter 2:13-14).
We believe and teach that Christ will return at any time without warning in visible form to take both dead and living believers to his Father's house (Rapture). He will then begin to judge the earth (Tribulation) and prepare it for his Second Coming when he will reign as King over the earth for 1000 years (Millennium) (John 14:1-4; Acts 1:11; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 3:10, 19:11-18; 22:7, 12, 20).
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the dead, the everlasting joy of the saved, and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost (Revelation 20:6,11-15, 21:3-8; Matthew 25:31-46).