WHAT WE BELIEVE

 
 

PURPOSE

This local New Testament church exists as an assembly of believers who share personal faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. This church has been organized for the following reasons:

 

  1. Worship

  2. Evangelism

  3. Discipleship

  4. Education

  5. Fellowship

Worship:  We seek to encourage and promote the worship of God both individually and corporately by establishing regular services, promoting systematic Bible study, encouraging daily devotion and prayer as individuals and families and practicing a biblical Christian lifestyle. (John 4:23)

Evangelism: We seek to encourage and promote the communication of the Gospel message of Jesus Christ as the only means of salvation locally, nationally, and internationally through evangelistic outreaches, media, home and foreign missions, and by systematic soul winning and visitation. (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8)

Descipleship: We seek to teach, edify and exhort the Body of Christ that all may become mature believers as evidenced in the giving of ourselves to living a life that is dedicated unto Christ and available for His service. (Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19-20; Ephesians 4:11-16)

Education: We seek to educate the whole man in mind, body and spirit by providing regular study of God’s Word. It is as the Word of God is applied that believers experience spiritual victory and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Timothy 2:15; 2 Peter 3:18)

Fellowship: We seek to provide a place of refuge and support for the family where they can be encouraged and strengthened through edification as a local body of believers. We seek to have unity with those of like precious faith to promote scriptural methods of worship, work and fellowship. 

We strongly oppose the ecumenical movement, liberalism and denominationalism as well as any other such forms of fellowship. (Galatians 1:10; Ephesians 4:13; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-16)

We desire to promote separated living in accordance with God’s Word and to practice true religion as taught in James 1:27.

 
 

DECLARATION OF FAITH AND FELLOWSHIP ACCORD

DECLARATION OF FAITH

(A) The Word of God. 

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, God-breathed and perfectly preserved. Therefore, they are the final authority for faith and life. 

The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments 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 at the pastor’s discretion. (Psalm 12:6-7; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:16-21)


(B) Dispensationalism.

We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal eight divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages (innocence, conscience, human government, promise, law, the church, messianic or kingdom and fullness of times). 

These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather 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. (Genesis 1:28; 1 Corinthians 9:17; 2 Corinthians 3:9-18; Galatians 3:13-25; Ephesians 1:10; 3:2-10; Colossians 1:24-27; Revelation 20:2-6)


(C) The Godhead.

We believe in one Triune God (Trinity), eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal, co-identical in nature, coequal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 3:16-17; 28:19; Mark 12:29; John 1:1-4; 14:10-26; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 John 5:7)

(D) The Person and Work of God the Father.

  1. a. We believe that God the Father is eternal; He is omniscient (all-knowing), omnipresent (present in all places at all times) and all-powerful. We believe that all things regarding the divine intervention of God toward mankind and the remainder of His creation are done by the will of the Father, through the work of the Son and by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Genesis 17:1; 35:11; John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; 1 John 3:20)

    b. We believe that God the Father is masculine in nature, that He is love and has extended His love toward mankind by the giving of His only Begotten Son as a sacrifice unto Himself to satisfy heavenly justice regarding sin and the punishment of sin. (Genesis 1:27; John 3:16; 6:27; Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 11:31; Galatians 1:1-3; Ephesians 1:3; 6:23; Philippians 2:11; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:2; Titus 1:4; 1 Peter 1:2-3; 2 Peter 1:17; 1 John 4:8, 16; 2 John 1:3; Jude 1)

  2. The Person and Work of Jesus Christ.

    a. 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 a virgin, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful humanity. (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21; Galatians 4:4-5; Philippians 2:5-8)

    b. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death and shedding of His blood upon the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and that our justification is made sure or certain by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Romans 3:24-25; 1 Peter 2:24; Ephesians 1:7;       1 Peter 1:3-5)

    c. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God the Father, where, as our High Priest, he fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor and Advocate.  (Acts 1:9-10; Hebrews 7:25; 9:24; Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)

  3. The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit.

    a. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Triune Godhead a person who convicts the world of sin, righteousness and of judgment, and that He is the Supernatural Agent through whom and by His power all things are done for God, three of the most critical and essential works being regeneration, baptizing all believers into the Body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 1:13-14)

    b. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Divine Teacher who assists believers in understanding and appropriating the Scriptures, and that it is the privilege and requirement of all who are saved to be filled with the Spirit on a continual basis. (Ephesians 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20-27)

    c. We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. Whereas the ministerial office of the apostle was used in the immediate years subsequent to the resurrection of the Lord, having required the visible witness of Jesus’ ministry and resurrection regarding those who held this office, God uniquely and presently uses prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to equip believers in the assembly that they may do the work of the ministry. (Acts 1:1-3, 21-26; Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 4:9; 9:1; 12:4-11,28; 14:29; 2 Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12).

    d. We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gifts of healing, though relevant for today, were more frequently bestowed upon believers within the first century AD due to the planting and establishing of the New Testament church whereby God, in His sovereignty, chose these gifts and the abundant outpouring of them to substantiate or ratify the ministry of Christ, the apostles, and other believers validating the Gospel that they preached. 

    Speaking in tongues, however, was never the common sign or necessary evidence of the baptism or infilling of the Holy Spirit. Whereas God uses believers in the sign gifts today, they are never to be the prominent substance of ministry. 

We believe that physical healing was made possible by, but not guaranteed in the atonement of Jesus Christ (God is not obligated to physically heal Christians upon their asking). Whether or not a believer is physically and divinely healed by God depends solely upon His sovereign will. 

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. 

We strongly reject and oppose the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements as having unscriptural origins, being major players in the prophesied end-time apostasy of the church and the ecumenical movement. (Mark 16:17-20; Acts 2:43; 4:29-30; 5:12; 8:13; 14:3; Romans 15:19; 1 Corinthians 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22; 2 Corinthians 12:12; Hebrews 2:4)

(D) The Angelic Creation. 

  1. We believe that all angels were created in eternity past, all are masculine in nature, that one-third of them joined in the rebellion of Lucifer and fell as he did. (Numbers 13:33; Deuteronomy 2:11, 20; 1 Samuel 17:4; Daniel 8:16; 9:21; 10:13, 21; 12:1; Luke 1:19, 26; John 20:12; Acts 1:10)

  2. We believe that angels are not demon spirits, but are beings that may take the form of men and manifest themselves upon the earth, whereas demon spirits (though their origin is not specifically mentioned in Scripture) most assuredly exist and require a physical body (whether human or beast) to inhabit in order that their evil propensities are carried out. (Matthew 8:28-31; Mark 5:1-13; John 20:12; Acts 1:10; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6, 9; Revelation 12:7)

(E) The Total Depravity of Man. 

We believe that man was created in the image, likeness and glory 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, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. Though dead in trespasses and sins, man remains a free moral agent enabling him to choose to accept or reject the Gospel message upon being drawn by the Father to the Lord Jesus Christ. 

We strongly reject and oppose the teachings of Five-Point Calvinism regarding this subject. We also strongly reject and oppose any form of Christian Psychology as being atheistic in its origin and deception and thereby declare all who claim to be Christian Psychologists as heretics and charlatans.  (Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 51:5; John 6:44; Romans 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; 1 Corinthians 11:7; Ephesians 2:1-2; 4:17-19)


(F) Salvation. 

We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace alone and received by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed upon Calvary’s cross both for the forgiveness of our sins and that sin may be taken away. 

We believe that all sins, with the exception of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit are forgivable. We believe all believers are indwelt and regenerated by the Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation. All believers will manifest the fruits of the Spirit, certain gifts of the Spirit (as the Lord wills), genuine repentance and a newness of life. (Matthew 12:31-32; John 1:12; 3:3-16; 1 Corinthians 11:12; Galatians 5:22-24; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; 5:9; 1 Peter 1:18-19; 1 John 1:9)

(G) The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers.  

1. We believe that all who are saved have eternal security only as the faith that is possessed by the believer is held fast until the end, whether that end is the resurrection (rapture) or at the moment the Lord chooses to call them home. 

As the sinner is saved by grace through faith, so must he walk and live by faith. We believe that those who have been saved continue to remain a free moral agent and because of this must choose to remain obedient in serving God. Rebellion and a failure to repent of sin hardens the heart of man, which brings forth unbelief and ultimate departure from truth and the living God. 

The loss of one’s soul, though a result of a failure to repent of sin and the hardening of the heart, is not determined upon a certain number of sins committed but the ultimate state of unbelief. (Ezekiel 33:13; Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 8:13; Romans 8:13; Galatians 5:4; 1 Timothy 1:19-20; 3:6; 4:1-2; 5:11-12; 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4; Hebrews 3:16-19; James 5:19-20; 2 Peter 2:20-22; Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8)


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. (Romans 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)

(H) The Church.

1. We believe that the local church, which is the body and espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. (1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:25-27)

2. 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 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)

3. 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; Romans 16:1-4; 1 Corinthians 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1-4)

4. We recognize water baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper for born again persons only as the scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)


(I) Separation. 

1. We believe that all who are 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. (Romans 12:1-2; 14:13; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; Ephesians 5:11; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11)


(J) Apparel and Conduct. 

1. We believe that all who are saved are to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, bodily markings and immodest piercings. 

2. We believe that a woman is to dress and conduct herself in a moral and modest fashion that is unrevealing, that she remains submissive, humble and adorns herself with a meek and quite spirit. 

3. We believe that the man is to conduct himself in a moral and modest fashion, that he is to remain humble, that he is to be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath and that the length of his hair is to fall above the base of the neck. (Leviticus 19:28; 1 Corinthians 11:13-15; 1 Timothy 2:8-15; James 1:19-20)


(K) The Second Advent of Christ.  

1. We believe in that “blessed hope”, the personal, imminent return of Christ, Who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. 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. (Psalm 89:3-4; Daniel 2:31-45; Zechariah 14:4-11; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Revelation 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. We strongly reject and oppose the doctrine of annihilation. (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Revelation 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. We strongly reject and oppose the doctrine of soul sleep. (Luke 23:43; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 20:4-6)

3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment in Hell until the second resurrection when, with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment and shall be formally sentenced and cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Revelation 20:11-15)


(M) The Personality of Satan.

1. We believe that Satan is a spirit being, the author of sin and was instrumental in The Fall of Man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and adversary of man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. He is a created angelic being originally called Lucifer, who fell and became known as Satan in the dateless past because of pride. He is the unholy god of this age, the prince of the power of the air, and the supreme leader of all powers and principalities of darkness. (Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:13-19; Matthew 4:2-11; 25:41; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2; Revelation 20:10)


(N) Creation.

1. We believe that God created the universe in the beginning or the dateless past according to Genesis 1:1; and that it became without form and void according to Genesis 1:2. God then restructured or formed the earth in six literal, 24-hour periods bringing it from a chaotic state, to that which was and remains habitable for mankind and all living creatures to exist. 

2. We believe that what is seen today regarding creation, though it has been marred from the fall and altered due to the flood in the days of Noah, continues to contain the undeniable evidence of the creator, which leaves the unbelieving without excuse. We strongly reject and oppose the Theory of Evolution, the Day-Age Theory, and the Theistic Evolution Theory as unscriptural theories of origin. (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11; Job 38:4-7; Psalm 19:1-2; 24:1-2; Isaiah 45:18; Jeremiah 51:15; John 1:1-3; Romans 1:19-20; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:1-3; 11:3)

(O) Civil Government. 

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: the home, the church and the state. Every person is subject to these three authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and are to be 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 home, the church and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 5:22-24; Hebrews 13:7, 17; 1 Peter 2:13-14)


(P) Human Sexuality.

1. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity may be engaged in, outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, adult-child intimacy, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex and are abominations in His sight. 

2. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance. (Genesis 2:24; 19:5, 13; 26:8-9; Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1:26-29; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4)

3. We believe that the only legitimate marriage recognized by God is the joining of one man and one woman. (Genesis 2:24; Romans 7:2; 1 Corinthians 7:10; Ephesians 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 in the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home and men are to be the leaders (pastors, elders, deacons, etc.) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 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 in all things as the church submits to the headship of Christ. 

Children are a 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. (Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalm 127:3-5; Proverbs 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mark 10:6-12; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-23; 6:1-4; Colossians 3:18-21; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 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 are regarded as adultery except on the grounds of fornication or desertion by the unbelieving spouse. 

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 office of pastor, elder or deacon. (Malachi 2:14-17; Matthew 5:31-32; 19:3-12; Romans 7:1-3l 1 Corinthians 7:12-16; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)

(S) Abortion. 

We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. 

We strongly reject and oppose 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; Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1-5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)


(T) Love. 

We believe that true God-like love is a gift of the Spirit and is given to and able to be demonstrated by those who have been born again. As members of the body of Christ, we should demonstrate that 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 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 sinful actions. (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 4:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Romans 12:9-10, 17-21; 13:8-10; Philippians 2:2-4; 2 Timothy 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; 1 John 3:17-18)


(U) Missions. 

We believe that God has given the church the Great Commission to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ 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 surrounding vicinities as well as foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us. (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:20)


(V) 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 established the tithe as a standard for giving under the Old Covenant, but that every Christian or believer under the New Covenant should give offerings regularly and cheerfully on the basis of the tithe standard as well as additional offerings which may be sacrificially as led by the Lord to the support of the church, the relief of those in need and the spread of the Gospel. (Genesis 14:18-20; Deuteronomy 14:22; Proverbs 3:9-10; Malachi 3:8-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; Galatians 6:6; Ephesians 4:28; 1 Timothy 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)