Statement of Faith and Practices

Since we believe the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible to be our infallible rule of faith and practice, we present the following articles as a statement of those basic truths taught in the Bible:

 

  1. THE BIBLE. We believe:

  • The Bible is The Word of God (I Thess. 2:13).

  • The 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired in all parts, and therefore wholly without error as originally given of God (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

  • This record is final, infallible, authoritative, and unchanging (II Peter 1:19-21).

  • The Bible to be the all-sufficient rule for faith and conduct (separate from integration with any other discipline) through the power of the Holy Spirit to regenerate, sanctify, and equip the believer for life and service (John 17:17; Heb. 4:12; James 1:18-27).

  1. THE ONE TRUE GOD. We believe God:

  • Exists eternally as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Deut. 6:4; Isa. 44:6; Matt. 28:19; Luke 3:22; 2 Cor. 13:14).

  • Recently and directly created the heavens, the earth, and all their hosts, without pre-existing material, in six literal 24-hour days (Gen. 1:1-2, 25; Exod. 20:11; John 1:3; Col. 1:16; Heb. 11:3).

  1. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. We believe in His:

  • Eternal pre-existence and deity (John 1:1-3)

  • Identity as the Christ, the Son of the living God Matt. 16:16)

  • Incarnation by virgin birth (John 1:14; Matt. 1:18-23)

  • Sinless life (Heb. 4:15)

  • Substitutionary death (2 Cor. 5:21)

  • Burial (I Cor. 15:4; Acts 2:28-32)

  • Bodily resurrection (Luke 24:36-43)

  • Ascension into heaven and present ministry (Acts 1:9-11; Luke 24:51; Heb. 4:14-16), and

  • Coming again (Acts 1:11).

  1. THE HOLY SPIRIT. We believe in His:

  • Personality (John 16:7-15)

  • Deity (Acts 5:3-4)

  • Work in each believer at the moment of regeneration for:

    • Baptism (1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 4:5)

    • Indwelling (Rom. 8:9)

    • Sealing (Eph. 1:13-14, 4:30; II Cor. 1:32)

  • Filling (Eph. 5:18) to empower for Christian life and service (Eph. 3:16; Acts 1:8; Gal. 5:22- 23).

  • Provision:

    • To each believer of one or more spiritual gifts “for serving one another” (1 Peter 4:10)

    • To the Church of gifted men for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to building up of the body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-12).

  1. MAN. We believe in:

  • The direct creation of man in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-28),

  • Man’s subsequent fall into sin resulting in spiritual death (Gen. 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12)

  • The necessity of the new birth for man’s salvation (John 3:3-5).

  • The sanctity of human life (Gen. 9:6; Ps. 139:13-16)

  • The distinct function of men and women in the home and the church (Eph. 5:22-33; 1 Tim. 2:8-15).

  1. SIN. We believe that:

  • Because of the disobedience of one man sin came upon all men and by sin death entered as the just recompense for sin against a Holy God. (Rom. 5:12; 3:23; 6:23)

  • God has provided a remedy for man's bondage to sin and the curse of death through the substitutionary death of Christ. (2 Cor. 5:21)

  1. SALVATION. We believe that:

  • Salvation is complete and eternal by God’s grace alone, received as the gift of God through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

  • This free gift of God is available to all through simple faith in Christ, apart from any human effort, when accompanied by repentance from sin. (Acts 16:31; 2:38; Mark 6:12; Acts 26:20)

  • The salvation of the true believer is complete and secure in Christ though not all of its perfection is currently enjoyed. (John 10:28-29; Phil. 1:16)

  • Salvation will produce the fruit of the Spirit in the life of the true believer so that he will not continue in a life of sin. Good works cannot produce salvation but salvation will produce good works. (Gal. 5:22-23, Eph.2:10)

  1. THE CHURCH. We believe it is:

  • The one true Church, the body and bride of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-32),

  • The pillar and support of the Truth (1Tim. 3:15)

  • Composed of all true believers of the present age (1Cor. 12:12-13)

  • Manifested in local assemblies for:

    • Worship

    • Edification of believers

    • Fellowship

    • World-wide gospel witness

  • Autonomous but cooperating in fellowship and work (Eph. 4:11-16).

  1. CHRISTIAN LIFE. We believe that:

  • Salvation produces a life of righteousness, good works, and separation unto God from the evil ways of the world (Rom. 12:1-2), by means of the ministry of the word and the Holy Spirit (John 17:17; 1 Peter 1:2)

    • Manifested by speaking the truth (James 5:12),

    • Maintaining the sanctity of the home (Eph. 5:22-6:4),

    • Exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23),

    • Maintaining a life of prayer (Eph. 6:18; Phil. 4:6), including the privilege, when sick, of calling for the elders of the church to pray and to anoint with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5: 13-18).

    • Settling differences between Christians in accordance with the Word of God (1 Cor. 6:1-8).

  1. ORDINANCES. We believe that:

The Christian should observe the ordinances of our Lord Jesus Christ, which include:

  • Baptism of believers by immersion (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:38-41; Acts 8:35-38). Our practice is to baptize new believers by triune immersion.

  • Communion of the bread and the cup (Matt. 26:26-28; Mark. 14:22-24; Luke. 22:19-20; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

  1. OTHER PRACTICES. In addition to the ordinances of our Lord Jesus Christ and in light of their instructional value, we also practice:

  • The washing of the saints’ feet given as an example by the Lord Jesus Christ of our ongoing need to be cleansed from sin (John. 13:4-15)

  • Observance of the love (agape) feast practiced by the early church (1Cor. 11:20, 33-34; Jude 12)

  1. SATAN. We believe in:

  • Satan’s existence and personality as the great adversary of God and His people (Rev. 12:1-10), his judgment (John 12:31), and final doom (Rev. 20:10). His efforts are evident in his work in which:

    • As the god of this age, he blinds the unbeliever to the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)

    • As the dragon, he persecutes the believer (Revelation 12:7-9; 17)and

    • As the serpent, he attempts to deceive the believer (Revelation 12:9)

  • He presides over a kingdom of fallen angels, also known as demons, some of whom have already been judged (2Pet 2:4, Jude 6, Rev. 12:9, Matt 25:41)

  1. RETURN OF CHRIST. We believe that:

  • Christ will come for His Church before the Day of the Lord (1 Thess. 4:14-18; 2 Thess. 2:1-4)

  • Then, after the seventieth week of Daniel, (Dan. 9:27) He will usher in the Millennium, when Satan will be bound and Christ's rule will be supreme for 1,000 years. (Rev. 20:1-6)

  • The White Throne Judgment of sinners will follow the Millennium. (Rev. 20:7-15).

  1. FUTURE LIFE. We believe in the:

  • Conscious existence of the dead (Phil. 1:21-23; Luke 16:19-31),

  • Resurrection of the body (John 5:28-29, Acts 24:15, 1Cor. 15:42-44),

  • Judgment and reward of believers (Rom. 14:10-12; 2 Cor. 5:10),

  • Judgment and condemnation of unbelievers (Rev. 20:11-15),

  • Eternal life of the saved (John 3:16), and

  • Eternal punishment of the lost in a conscious state (Matt. 25:46; Rev. 20:15).