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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Click on
Topic
1. The Holy
Scriptures
13.
The Personality of Satan
2. Dispensationalism
14. Creation
3. The Godhead
15. Civil
Government
4. The Person and Work of Jesus Christ
16. Human
Sexuality
5.
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
17.
Family Relationships
6. The Total Depravity of Man
18.
Divorce and Marriage
7. Salvation
19. Abortion
8. Eternal Security
20. Euthanasia
9. The Church
21. Love
10. Separation
22.
Lawsuits Between Believers
11. The Second Advent of Christ
23. Missions
12. The Eternal State
24. Giving
The Holy Scriptures
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and
New Testament to be the verbally and plenarily inspired Word of God. 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
Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The King James Version of
the Bible is the official and only translation to be used. (2
Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21)
Dispensationalism
We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in
their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations or
rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These
dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are 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. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18;
Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)
The Godhead
We believe in there is one and only one true God, an infinite Spirit,
who has always existed, the maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth.
God is a one triune deity, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal
in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut.
6:4; Matt. 28:19; John 14:10, 26; 2 Cor. 13:14)
The Person and Work of Christ
1.
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 the virgin Mary, in order that He
might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John
1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)
2.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ
accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a
representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our
justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the
dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; Eph. 1:7; 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
3.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ
ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our
High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and
Advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Rom. 8:34; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; 1 John 2:1-2)
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; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 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.
(Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)
The Eternal Security and Assurance of
Believers
1.
We believe that all the redeemed, once truly
saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John
6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Pet. 1:4-5)
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. (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13;
Titus 2:11-15)
The Church
1.
We believe that the local church, which is
the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again
baptized believers. (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 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 Tim. 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; Rom. 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)
4.
We recognize water baptism and the Lord’s
Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in
this age. We reject the teaching Baptism is needed for salvation, but
embrace the preceding statement. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor.
11:23-26)
Separation
We believe that all the 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, and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate
appearances, piercings, and bodily markings. (Lev. 19:28; Rom. 12:1-2;
14:13; 1 Cor. 6:19-20; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John
9-11)
The Second Advent of Christ
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. (Ps. 89:3-4;
Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; 1 Thess. 1:10, 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10;
19:11-16; 20:1-6)
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. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev. 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 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8;
Phil. 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)
3.
We believe that the souls of unbelievers
remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment 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.
(Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev.
20:11-15)
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. His powers are limited yet destructive. (Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17;
Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10)
Civil Government
We believe that God has ordained and created
all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the
church, and 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. We reject modern teachings of
separation of church and state, which tend to exclude Christian beliefs from
government operation and hinders private / public worship. (Rom. 13:1-7;
Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14)
Human Sexuality
1.
We believe that God has commanded that no
intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between one
man and one 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. We believe that God
disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or
appearance. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen. 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1:
26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)
2.
We believe that the only Scriptural marriage
is the joining of one man and one woman. We reject the position of allowing
civil unions as well as such unions is a modified politically correct
non-biblical marriage (Gen. 2:24; Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor. 7:10; Eph. 5:22-23)
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 the church. The
husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders
(pastors and deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are
eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. Men are to lead
all forms of mixed worship services / committees. (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:18; 1
Tim. 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)
Lawsuits Between Believers
We believe that Christians are prohibited
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 Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)
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. Missions should not be limited
to those areas abroad but should also include home missions as well. As
ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go to the foreign
nations and those areas at home with little or no Christian presence. We
must not to wait for them to come to us. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke
24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20)
Giving
We believe that every Christian, as a steward
of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to
financially support his local church. We believe that God has established
the tithe (10% of gross income) 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 his tithe or offering once the gift has been made. (Gen. 14:20;
Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28;
1 Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)
AUTHORITY OF STATEMENT OF FAITH
The 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. We do believe, however, that the foregoing Statement of
Faith accurately represents the teaching of the Bible and, therefore, is
binding upon all members. All literature used on this website shall be in
complete agreement with the Statement of Faith.
1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ sent me not
to baptize, but to preach the
gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of
none effect.
1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching
of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved
it is the power of God.
Jude 1:3 …. exhort [you] that ye should
earnestly contend for the faith
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