Our Beliefs
This Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe.
A. The Holy Scriptures:
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The original autographs of 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 Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning. (2 Timothy 3:16-l 7; 2 Peter 1:19-21)
B. The Godhead:
We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, equal in essence, while distinct in personality and function (Exodus 20:2-3; Matthew 28:19; I Corinthians 8:6).
C. Creation:
We believe in God's direct creation of the universe in six literal, 24 hour periods, without use of pre-existent material. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 11:3).
D. The Person and Work of Christ:
1. We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of Mary, a virgin, and is true God and true man without sin (John 1:14; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 7:14; Galatians 4:4-5; Hebrews 4:14-16).
2. We Believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His ascension into heaven, and in His present life there as High Priest and Advocate of true believers (Matthew 28:1-7; Acts 1:8-l l; 1 Corinthians 15:4-9).
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; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 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 (Ephesians 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 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 (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; Ephesians 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; being made unnecessary by God's gift of His word the Holy Scriptures. We believe that speaking in tongues and other physical bodily manifestations were 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 Corinthians 13:8; 14:21-22).
F. Man:
We believe that man was created in the image of God, that he willingly disobeyed God, and thereby incurred not only physical death but also that spiritual death which is separation from God, that all human beings are born with a sinful nature and are sinners in thought, word and deed (Genesis 1:26-27; 3:1-6; Romans 3:22,23; 6:23; 5:12,19; 3:10-13; Titus 1:15-16).
G. Salvation:
1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died as the substitutionary sacrifice for all men. The blood atonement He made was unlimited in its potential. It is limited only in its application, effectively saving those who are brought by the Holy Spirit to repentance and faith (Isaiah 53:4-11; 2 Corinthians 5:14-21; 1 John 2:1-2; John 3:5-8; 16:8-13).
2. We believe that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ are born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby become children of God (John 1:12-13; 3:3-16; Acts 16:31; Ephesians 2:8-9).
H. The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers:
We believe in the eternal security of the believer, that it is impossible for one born into the family of God ever to be lost because he is forever kept by the power of God (John 6:39, 49; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:35-39; 1 Peter 1:4-5).
I. The Second Advent of Christ:
We believe in "that blessed hope," the personal, pretribulational, premillennial, and imminent return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, when the Church will be "gathered together unto Him" (Titus 2:13, John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-13).
J. Israel:
We believe in the literal fulfillment of the prophecies and promises of the Scriptures which foretell and assure the future regeneration and restoration of Israel as a nation at their appointed times. (Genesis 13:14-17; Jeremiah 16:14-15; 30:6-11; Romans 11).
K. 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 at the appointed time (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 (Luke 3:43; 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 and separation from God for all eternity 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 (Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Revelation 20:11-15).
L. 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; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).
M. The Church:
1. We believe that the Church, which is the body and the espoused wife of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons in this New Testament dispensation (1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 11:2, Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:25-27).
2. We believe that the local Church is the visible manifestations of the body of Christ and that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Matthew 16:18; Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32).
3. We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control (Acts 13:1-4; Romans 16:1,4; 1 Corinthians 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13).
4. We recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the Church age, and are to be administered by the local church. That baptism by immersion, should be administered to believers only as a symbol of their belief in the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and as a testimony to the world of that belief and of their death, burial and resurrection with Him; and that the Lord's Supper should be partaken of by baptized believers to show forth His death “til He come" (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Colossians 2:12).
N. Separation:
We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and, that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God (Romans 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11).
O. Civil government:
We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home; 2) the church; 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 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; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet 2: 13-14).
P. Human Sexuality:
We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity should be engaged in outside of 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 (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).
Q. Divorce and Remarriage:
We believe that God hates divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the Church and be greatly used of God for Christian service, but they may not be considered for the offices of pastor or deacon (Matthew 19:3-12, Romans 7:1-3; 1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:6).
R. 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 mental well-being of the mother are acceptable (Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1,5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44).
S. 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 spread the Gospel at home and abroad (Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:20).
T. Lawsuits Between Believers:
We believe that Christians should refrain 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 Corinthians 6:1-8: Ephesians 4:3l-32).
U. 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; Provo 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; Galatians 6:6; Ephesians 4:28; 1 Timothy 5:17-18; l John 3:17).