WHAT WE BELIEVE

The Bible

We believe the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, to be the verbally inspired word of God as stated in II Peter 1:20, 21 and II Timothy 3:16, 17. They were God breathed to holy men of old. We further believe, based upon Luke 21:33 and other passages, that God has preserved His word for English speaking people in the King James Version.

God

We believe in the Triune God (Gen 1:26; 3:22; Isa 6:8).

A. God the Father is the Creator of all things (Gen 1:1), is all powerful (Nah 1:2-5), all present (Ps 139:7-12), and all knowing (Ps 147:4, 5). He is without beginning or end (Rev 1:8), is perfectly holy (I Peter 1:16), is great in grace and mercy (Titus 2:11), loves man supremely (Rom 5:8), and securely keeps all who come to Him in faith (John 10:29).

B. God the Son, Jesus Christ, was with the Father from the beginning (John 1:1, 2), and is equal with God (Phil 2:6). He willingly humbled Himself (Phil 2:7, 8), to be born of a virgin (Luke 1:27), conceived of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35). He was totally sinless in His life (II Cor. 5:21) and ever obedient to the Father (John 8:29). He made a vicarious atonement for our sins (Isa 53:5), rose again bodily the third day (Mt 28:6), and ascended into Heaven on the fortieth day (Acts 1:3). He serves as our High Priest making intercession for the saints (Heb. 4:14-16). His promised return to earth for His saints shall be glorious, premillennial, pretribulational and is imminent (I Thess. 4:13- 17).

C. God the Holy Spirit is co-equal with both the Father and Son. He was sent by Jesus Christ from God (John 15:26; 16:7). His ministry is to reprove the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment (John 16:7-11), and He regenerates all who put their faith in Christ (Titus 3:5). He indwells believers (I Cor. 3:16), guides and teaches them in the truth of God (John 16:13), empowers them to be victorious over sin, self, and Satan (Rom 8:13), and intercedes for them (Rom 8:26, 27).

Man

We believe that man did not evolve but was created by God, in the image of God (Gen 1:26). By an act of willful disobedience he plunged himself, and the whole human race into sin (Rom 5:12). Man is totally depraved and dead in trespasses and sin (Eph. 2:1). All men are sinners, both by nature and by choice before a holy God (Rom 3:10, 23). If one dies in this condition, he is eternally separated from God and punished forever in the lake of fire (Rom 6:23; Rev 20:14).

The Devil

We believe in a personal devil who was created perfect by an act of God until iniquity was found in him (Ezek. 28:15). He was willfully rebellious because of pride (Isa 14:12-14), and thus was cast out of heaven. He now rules as the prince of the power of the air and over the world system (Eph. 2:2). He was instrumental in the fall of mankind (Gen 3:1), and today appears as an angel of light (II Cor. 11:14), and looks for those he may devour (I Peter 5:8). He hates Christ and opposes the work of God but is limited in power by God (Job 1:12). He is already judged and shall be confined to hell for eternity (Rev 20:10).

Salvation

We believe that salvation is in Jesus Christ alone (Acts 4:12). It is offered freely to all (Rom 10:13), and is obtained by repenting of one's sin (Luke 13:3, 5), and receiving Christ as Savior in the heart by faith (Rom 10:10). Salvation is solely God's grace and not merited by works (Eph. 2:8, 9), and results in God's forgiveness of all our sins (Ps 103:12). It is made possible by Christ's blood willingly shed on the cross for us (Rom 3:25). Salvation imparts eternal life and one can never be lost again (John 10:28). The instrument of salvation is the word of God (I Pet 1:23), and the agent is the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5).

Heaven and Hell

We believe heaven and hell are literal places prepared by God. All men will reside in one of the two for all eternity. Heaven is the abode created by Christ for His bride (John 14:23), where all the saved will abide with God (Rev 22:1-5). Those who have rejected Jesus Christ will spend eternity in the lake of fire with the devil, antichrist, and false prophet eternally separated from God (Rev 20:14, 15).

The Church

We believe the institution of the church was started personally by the Lord Jesus Christ during His earthly ministry (Mt 16:18), and not at Pentecost. The church that Christ formed was both local and visible (Mt 18:17). We reject the concept of a universal, invisible church as it weakens the authority of local churches and is unscriptural. We believe the scripture uses this word in three ways: in reference to local assemblies (I Cor. 1:2, and other numerous examples), in an institutional or generic sense (like we use the word "family"), (Gal 1:13), of the church in prospect (Heb. 10:23). The church is to be made up of born-again baptized believers (Acts 2:41), who are organized to carry out the work of God. The church is the pillar and ground of the truth (I Tim 3:15). The Great Commission, and the ordinances (discussed below) are given to the church. It's officers are two: pastors (bishops, elders), who are under-shepherds, and deacons (I Tim 3:1-13), servants of the church. The church is to be independent and self-governing with Christ as its Head (Eph. 5:23). The church is to handle its own discipline in accordance to God's direction (Mt 18:15-17), and is financed through the tithes and offerings of that local assembly (I Cor. 16:2; Mal 3:10).

The Ordinances

We believe there are two ordinances committed to the church:

A. Baptism is for believers only and consists of immersion in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Mat 28:19). It is not a sacrament of salvation but symbolizes death, burial, and resurrection (Rom 6:4).

B. The Lord's Supper consists of unleavened bread, and fruit of the vine (non-alcoholic liquid), (Mt 26:26-28). These elements are symbolic only of Christ's body and blood, which were broken and shed on the cross for us. It serves as a memorial of Christ's sacrifice for us (I Cor. 11:24), and a declaration of faith in His promised return (I Cor. 11:26). It is to be observed by the saved, baptized members of a local assembly.

Separation

We believe in Bible separation from the world, sin, self, and Satan, as well as being separated unto the glory of Christ. We believe one should be born of the Spirit (I Pet 3:18), walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:16), be led by the Spirit (Gal 5:18; Rom 8:14), be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18), that by His power and grace we may show forth the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22, 23). We believe in living so as not to grieve the Holy Spirit of God by being separated from bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, evil speaking, malice, covetousness, and any other in of the flesh or spirit (Eph. 4:30-32). We believe in being separated from the world, the world's philosophy, and anything that would bring shame or dishonor to our Lord (I John 2:15-17), and that the male and female roles ought to be distinct and clearly defined by one's daily living (Deut. 22:5; Eph. 5:22, 23).

Witnessing

We believe that all believers are to be a witness to the lost for Christ (Mt 5:16), that each believer has a God-given gift or gifts (Rom 12:6; I Cor. 12:4), and are to be good stewards before God (I Peter 4:10). We believe that those who have rejected the Gospel or never heard the Gospel are eternally lost (Rom 12:11-12), and every believer is responsible to help get the Gospel to everyone (Mt 28:18-20; Rom 10:14-17).