WHAT
WE BELIEVE
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We believe in the Holy Scriptures – that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God by which we understand the whole Bible to be inspired in the sense that holy men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. (2 Pet. 1: 20,21, 2 Tim. 3: 16, 17)ย
We believe in the Godhead – that it exists eternally in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.ย These three are one God, having the same nature and attributes and are worthy of the same homage, confidence, and obedience. (Matt. 3:16,17; 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14)
We believe in the Father – the creator of heaven andย earth, the Giver of the Law, to whom all things will be subjected, so that He may be all in all. (Gen. 1:1; 1 Cor. 15:28)
We believe in the Son – the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal and only begotten Son of the Father, is true God and true man (John 1:1,14; 10:30,17; Phil. 2:6,7; Heb. 1:8), conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, (Luke 1:26-35) and by His sinless life, miracles and teaching, gave full revelation of the Father (John 12:49; Acts 2:22; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 7:26). He died upon the cross, the Just for the unjust, as a substitution sacrifice (Rom. 5:6,8; 1Cor. 15:3; 1Pet. 3:18), rose from the dead (12 Matt. 28:6; 1 Cor. 15:4,20), and is now at the right hand of the Majesty on high as our great High Priest (Acts 1:9-11; 2:33; Heb. 8:1). He will come again to establish His kingdom in righteousness and peace (14 Matt.25:31).
We believe in the Holy Spirit – also God, performingย actions and possessing the attributes of the Deity (Acts 5:3,4). His personality is shown by the fact that He has personal characteristics and that individuals may relate to Him as a person (John 16:13-14) .
We believe in salvation and atonement through Christ –ย provided for all men through the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross (Isa. 53:3-6; John 12:32,33; 1 Pet. 2:24). In the atonement, divine healing was provided for all believers (Isa. 53:4,5; Matt. 8:16b,17).
We believe in repentance and faith – that man can be born again only through faith in Christ. Repentance, a vital part of believing, is a complete change of mind wrought by the Holy Spirit, (Isa. 55:7; Acts 17:30; Gal. 3:22,26; Eph. 2:8; 1 John 5:10-13) turning a person to God from sin.
We believe in regeneration – a creative workย of the Holy Spirit by which man is born again and receives spiritual life (John 3:3b,5b,7; 2 Cor. 5:17,18a; 1 Pet. 1:23).
We believe in justification – a judicialย act of God by which the sinner is declared righteous solely on the basis of his acceptance of Christ as Savior. (Rom. 3:24; 4:3-5; 5:1-2).
We believe in assurance as a Christian Experience –ย of salvation being the privilege of all who are born again by the Spirit through faith in Christ (John 10:27-29; Rom. 8:35-39), resulting in love, gratitude and obedience toward God.
We believe in sanctification –ย dedication to God and separation from evil (2 Cor. 6:14; 7:1). Inexperience it is both instantaneous (John 17:17,19; Heb. 10:10,14) and progressiveย (I Thess. 5:23; 2 Tim. 2:19-22; 1 Pet. 1:14-16).
We believe in baptism in the Holy Spirit – an experience in whichย the believer yields control of himself to the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Acts 1:5; Eph. 5:18). Through this he comes to know Christ in a more intimate way (John 16:13-15) and receives power to witness and grow spiritually (Acts 2:1-4; 9-17,39; 1 Cor. 14:18).ย The initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance. (2 Cor. 3:18; Acts 1:8) This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of the new birth. (Acts 8:12-17; 10:44-46)
We believe in the gifts of the Spirit – supernatural abilities given by God through the exercising of which believers are enabled to minister effectively and directly in particular situations. (1 Cor. 12:4-11) They serve the dual function of building up the church and of demonstrating the presence of God within His church. (1 Cor. 12:7; 14:12, 24-25)
We believe in divine healing – that it was providedย in the atonement of Christ (Matt. 8:16,17) is the privilege of all believers. Prayer for the sick and gifts of healing are encouraged and practicedย (1 Cor.12:28-30; James 5:14).
We believe in the universal church – that all who are born again are members of the universal church, which is the Body and Bride of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 5:25b; Col. 1:18; 1 Tim. 3:15)
We believe in the local church – a body of believersย in Christ who have joined together to function as a part of the universal church. (Acts 14:23; 1 Cor. 16:19)
We believe in marriage and the family – as aย provision of God wherein one man and one woman (and so inclined by birth only) to the exclusion of all others enter into a lifelong relationship (Genesis 2:24; Matt. 19:6) through a marriage ceremony that is recognized by the church and legally sanctioned by the state. It provides the biblical context for the procreation of children.
We believe in the Lord’s Supper – as a symbol,ย memorial and proclamation of the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. This ordinance of communion is to be participated in by believers until Christ’s return (Matt. 26:26-28; 1 Cor. 10:16-17; 11:23-26).
We believe in water baptism –ย the believer’s identification with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection and is practiced by immersion (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:38,41; 8:36-39; Rom. 6:3-5).
We believe in ministry – aย divinely called and ordained ministry is the provision of the Lord to give leadership to the church as it fulfills its purposes (Acts 6:2b-4c; 13:2-4a; 14:23; Eph. 4:8, 11-13).