Preamble
Since the time of the Apostles, Christians have laid out their beliefs in brief, definitive statements. We believe that it is necessary to set forth in succinct fashion the foundational truths of our church as guided by Scripture. Our statement of faith summarizes essential Christian beliefs necessary for the well-being of the church and calls us to hold fast the biblical truths we hold so dear.
We recognize that any doctrinal statement is but a fallible human attempt to summarize and systematize God's inexhaustible revelation. Though we hold that a statement of faith is both practical and biblical, it is not intended to supersede the Word of God; it derives its validity and authority solely from its agreement with the Word of God.
2 Thessalonians 2:15; 2 Timothy 1:13
The Scriptures
We believe that the Holy Bible consists of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, and is God's revelation of Himself to man. All Scripture is inspired by God and written by men carried along by the Holy Spirit, is inerrant in its original manuscripts, and is the infallible and supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. Under the enlightenment of the Spirit, men are able to understand the Scriptures.
Psalm 19:7-10; Proverbs 30:5-6; Isaiah 40:8; John 17:17; 1 Corinthians 2:12-14; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-21
God
We believe there is one, and only one, living and true God, an infinite spirit, perfect in all His attributes, one in essence (consubstantial), eternally existing in three Persons (coeternal) - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - each equally deserving of worship and obedience, equal in every divine perfection (coequal), and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation and redemption.
Genesis 1:1, 26; Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; Romans 1:20; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Colossians 1:15-20; Revelation 4:11
God the Father
We believe that God the Father orders and disposes all things according to His own purpose and grace. Perfect in holiness, He is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving, and all-wise. He has graciously chosen from eternity past those whom He would have as His own, saving from sin all who come to Him through Jesus Christ; His fatherhood involves both His designation within the Godhead and His relationship with mankind. As Creator, He is Father to all men, but He is spiritual Father only to believers.
Psalm 145:8-9; 147:4-5; Isaiah 64:8; Matthew 23:9; John 17:11; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:4-6, 11; 1 Peter 1:3
God the Son
We believe that Jesus Christ is God's only Son. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He took on a fully human nature, yet without sin, so that two, whole, perfect and distinct natures were inseparably joined together in one Person. Thus, the Person, Jesus Christ, was and is truly God and truly man, yet one Christ. He represents humanity and deity in indivisible oneness.
Matthew 1:18-23; Luke 1:34-35; John 1:14; 3:16; Galatians 4:4; Philippians 2:6-8; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 4:15
We believe that Jesus Christ lived a perfect life and died in the place of sinners as their substitutionary atonement for the forgiveness of sins. He was physically resurrected from the dead, ascended to the right hand of His Father, and intercedes for them as their Advocate and High Priest.
Isaiah 53:5; John 5:26-29; Romans 1:4; 3:24-25; 5:18-19; 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, 20; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 1:3; 2:17; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 2:1
We believe that Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly to receive the church, establish His millennial kingdom on earth, and judge all mankind - both believers and those who fail to place their trust in Him as Lord and Savior.
Psalm 2:12; John 5:22-23; Acts 1:9-11; 17:30-31; 1 Corinthians 3:10-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:1-6, 11-15
God the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit possesses all of the attributes of personality and deity. He was sent by the Father and the Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit indwells and seals believers at the moment of their salvation, and He is an abiding Helper, Teacher and Guide. Furthermore, He bestows spiritual gifts to believers for the edification and building up of the church. Tongues, prophecy, and the working of sign miracles during the foundation-laying process of the church were for the purpose of pointing to and authenticating the apostles as revealers of divine truth and were not intended to be characteristic in the life of the church.
Psalm 139:7-10; Isaiah 40:13-14; John 14:16-17, 26; 15:26-27; 16:8-14; Acts 5:3-4; Romans 8:9-11, 26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:10-13; 3:16; 12:4-11, 13; 13:8-10; 2 Corinthians 12:12; Galatians 5:22-26; Ephesians 1:13; 2:20; 4:30
Man
We believe that man is the crowning work of God's creation, directly made by God in His own image, both male and female. Man was created free of sin to glorify God. However, by the sinful disobedience of Adam, man lost his innocence, incurring the penalty of spiritual, physical, and eternal death. Man was placed under the just condemnation of God having become subject to His wrath. Because of Adam's sin, all men with the exception of Jesus Christ are thus sinners by nature, by choice, and by divine declaration, morally corrupt and enslaved to sin, both unwilling and unable to choose or do that which is acceptable to God apart from divine grace.
Genesis 1:26-27, 31; 2:7; 3; Psalm 8:3-5; 14:1-3; 51:5; Isaiah 43:7; Jeremiah 17:9; John 8:34; Romans 3:10-11, 23; 5:12, 19; 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-3; Hebrews 11:6; 1 John 1:8
Salvation
We believe that salvation is wholly of God by grace through faith. It is based on the redemptive work of Jesus Christ and the merit of His shed blood alone and not on any human merit or works.
Romans 3:23-25; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10
God's Sovereign Initiative in Salvation
We believe that God's sovereignty in salvation extends to before the foundation of the world, when He chose in Christ those whom He graciously regenerates, saves, and sanctifies. This is not dependent upon man's decision or will; it is completely of God and solely of His grace and mercy. Nevertheless, God's sovereignty does not contradict or negate man's responsibility to repent and believe in Christ as Savior and Lord. God's saving initiative is the glorious display of His sovereign goodness and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable, excluding boasting and promoting humility and praise.
John 3:16-19; 15:16; Romans 8:28-30; 9:10-24; Ephesians 1:3-12; 1 Peter 1:1-2
Man's Willing Response to Salvation
We believe that man responds to the full, free, and unrestricted offer of salvation as the Holy Spirit in connection with divine truth regenerates him. This willing response to the divine provision of salvation manifests itself in repentance from sin and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, relying on Him alone as the only and all-sufficient Savior. Man becomes a new creature with a new heart, a new mind, and new affections.
Isaiah 45:22; 55:7; Ezekiel 36:26-27; Matthew 11:28; Mark 1:15; John 3:3-7; Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:8; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:23
God's Justifying Act of Salvation
We believe that God justifies those who repent and believe in Christ through an act by which He pardons their sin and declares them righteous on account of the work of Christ. This righteousness is apart from any virtue or work of man and is solely through faith in Christ, involving the imputation of their sin to Christ and Christ's righteousness to them. Justification brings peace and favor with God, as well as every other blessing necessary for time and eternity.
Romans 3:28; 4:5-8; 5:1; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 2:16; 1 Peter 2:24
God's Continuous Grace in Salvation
We believe that God demonstrates his continuous grace in salvation through the process of sanctification in which a believer is conformed more and more into the image of Christ by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. This process begins at regeneration and extends until glorification, the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed. God's grace is also displayed in the perseverance of all true believers as they are kept by His power through faith unto salvation.
Psalm 37:28; John 6:37-40; 10:27-29; 17:17; Romans 8:30; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 3:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Peter 1:5
The Church
Its Institution
We believe in the universal Church, composed of all those who are chosen by the Father in Christ and united to Him through faith by the Spirit in one Body, with Christ Himself as the all-authoritative Head.
Ephesians 1:22; 3:6; 4:15-16; 5:23; Colossians 1:18
We believe that the purpose of the Church is to glorify God, united by faith and fellowship in the gospel, observing the ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, and exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges given to the Body by His Word. The commission of the Church is to make disciples of all nations, seeking to advance and communicate the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Matthew 28:18-20; John 14:15; 15:12; Acts 2:41-47; Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:14; 14:12; Galatians 6:2; Ephesians 3:21; 4:7; Philippians 1:27; Colossians 4:5-6; 3 John 7-8
We believe that the establishment and continuity of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament and that the members of the one spiritual Body are directed to associate themselves together in local assemblies.
Acts 14:23, 27; 1 Corinthians 11:18-20; Galatians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; Hebrews 10:25
We believe that the only scriptural officers serving under Christ are elders (also called overseers and pastors) and deacons whose qualifications, claims, and duties are defined in the New Testament.
Acts 6:1-6; 20:17, 28; Ephesians 4:11; Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-3
We believe that the purity of the Church is dependent upon discipleship, mutual accountability of all believers to each other, and the disciplining of sinning members of the congregation in accord with the standards of Scripture.
Matthew 18:15-22; 28:19-20; Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15; 1 Timothy 1:19-20; 2 Timothy 2:2; Titus 1:10-16
We believe that it is scriptural for local churches to cooperate with each other for the presentation and propagation of the faith. Nevertheless, the local church is autonomous, free from any external authority or control with the right of self-government in accord with the standards of Scripture.
Acts 15:19-31; Titus 1:5
Its Ordinances
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ committed two ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord's Supper.
Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38-42; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
We believe Christian baptism by immersion is a solemn and beautiful emblem of a believer showing forth his faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, and his union with Him in death to sin and resurrection to new life. It is also a sign of fellowship and identification with the visible Church of Christ.
Acts 8:36-39; Romans 6:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:13
We believe that the Lord's Supper is an ordinance in which gathered believers, by the sacred use of the elements, commemorate together the dying love of Christ. We do this in remembrance of the Lord, and thus proclaim His death until He comes. Participation in the Lord's Supper should always be preceded by solemn self-examination for though the elements are only representative of the flesh and blood of Christ, the Lord's Supper is nevertheless an actual communion with the risen Christ who is present in a unique way, fellowshipping with His people.
Matthew 26:26-30; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:23-30
The Family
We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed of persons related to one another by marriage, blood, or adoption. Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in a lifelong covenant commitment that provides the framework for intimate companionship, the channel of biblical sexual expression, and the means for procreation of the human race. The marriage relationship models the way that God relates to His people, picturing the loving, submissive, and exclusive relationship between Christ and His church. Children, from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord. Parents are to teach their children spiritual and moral values and to lead them, through consistent lifestyle example and loving discipline, to make choices based on biblical truth. Children are to honor and obey their parents.
Genesis 1:26-28; 2:18-24; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalms 127:3-5; Malachi 2:14-16; Matthew 19:3-9; Ephesians 5:22-33; 6:1-4
Last Things
We believe in the blessed hope that at the end of the age Jesus Christ will descend from heaven, visibly, physically, and suddenly in power and great glory. He will establish His kingdom and raise the dead from the grave to final retribution. A solemn separation will take place: the wicked will be consigned to everlasting conscious misery and the righteous will enter into the everlasting joy of their Master. This righteous judgment of God will fix forever the final state of men in heaven or hell.
Psalm 16:11; Daniel 12:2; Matthew 3:12; 24:23-31; 25:31-46; Mark 14:61-62; Luke 21:27; Acts 1:9-11; 24:15; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; 2 Timothy 4:1; Revelation 14:11