What We Believe
Our Statement of Faith
The Bible
We believe that both the Old and New Testament Scriptures are the verbally inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of God's will for salvation, the ultimate and final authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed, obeyed, and trusted in all that it teaches, requires, and promises.
God
We believe in one God, creator of all things, revealer, reconciler, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus was Israel's promised Messiah, conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified in the place of man, arose from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our Propitiator, High Priest, Advocate, and King.
The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit testifies of and glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ, convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, regenerates, baptizes, and adopts regenerated sinners into union with Christ as heirs into the family of God.
We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells, gifts, illuminates, guides, equips, and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.
The Spirit World
We believe that there is a domain that exists beyond the human world that consists of angels who did not rebel against God and who minister to humans.
We believe that there are angels who rebelled against God and are either in bondage or are free to corrupt the human world. These angels are called demons and have Satan as their leader. Satan's avowed purpose is to thwart the plan of God in every area and by every means possible.
We believe that angels and demons are organized and are involved in spiritual warfare for the souls of men.
Man
We believe that man was created in God's image with an intellect, emotion, and will and was given the responsibility of stewardship over God's creation. Man had the capacity to respond to God and mankind but because of rebellion against God's plan, when tempted by Satan, experienced a lost condition or state of total depravity. Adam's sinful nature was imputed to all mankind resulting in all mankind being under the condemnation of sin. The only way that man can be reconciled to God is through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit based on the propitiating work of Christ.
Sin
We believe that sin is both a nature and a choice of all mankind resulting in a state of being totally depraved and separated from God. This sinful nature created within man an eternal inner emptiness that longs for satisfaction and significance but settles for temporary values and covers up this emptiness by hiding and blaming both God and others for the condition. Since sin is an eternal problem, it has to be solved by the eternal God and not by temporary values, man-made solutions, or man's effort to appease God. Only the cross and total faith and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross can resolve the sin nature.
Salvation
We believe that everyone everywhere must first acknowledge their lost condition, believe the gospel message of God's grace and provision of deliverance, and turn to Christ in repentance to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their only hope of salvation.
We believe that God imputes His righteousness into the sinner's spiritually bankrupt account declaring him or her to be righteous and able to stand in the presence of a Holy God because of repentance and belief in the finished work of Jesus Christ.
We believe that salvation reconciles the believing sinner to God because of faith in the all-sufficient, atoning sacrificial death and victorious resurrection of Jesus Christ and this salvation will be experienced in three different ways or tenses:
- I have been saved from the punishment of sin through the work of Christ on the cross
- I am being saved from the power of sin through the work of the Holy Spirit in my life
- I will be saved from the presence of sin because I will be in the presence of the Father
Christian Living
We believe that the Christian life is a supernatural life that can only be lived by the power of the supernatural Holy Spirit living in the believer, providing the power to live out this supernatural faith so that the believer can love God supremely and others sacrificially, have compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed, combat the spiritual forces of evil, obey the Great Commission, and make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the Gospel in word and deed.
The Church
We believe that the Church is a universal entity composed of all who have been justified by God's grace through faith in Christ alone and are united by the Holy Spirit into the Body of Christ who is the Head.
We believe that the Church is both an organism and an organization composed of many different local congregations whose believing membership should decide the leadership and administration of its own affairs.
We believe that Acts 2:42-47 gives five characteristics of the early church and can be used as a present model: the teaching of God's Word; fellowshipping; worshipping (Breaking of bread and prayer); sharing of spiritual gifts and material possessions and evangelizing.
The Ordinances
We believe that the two ordinances of the Lord's Supper and Water Baptism are to be observed as outward rites and continual reminder of the cost of man's salvation.
We believe that the Lord's Supper is a remembrance of the life and death of Christ. The bread symbolizes His perfect life and the body in which He bore our sin on the cross. The wine represents Christ's blood which was shed for the remission of our sins.
We believe that water baptism symbolizes the believer's identification with the Body of Christ and the mode of baptism by immersion best illustrates this concept.
These ordinances are not to be regarded as a means of salvation but are to be seriously observed by believers according to the warning in 1 Corinthians 11:27. Therefore, children should not participate in the observance of these ordinances until they understand their true meaning.
The Last Days
- We believe in the personal, bodily, imminent return of our Lord Jesus Christ to receive His Bride, the Church.
- We believe that believers will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ and given rewards according to what was done while on earth.
- We believe that the blessed hope of Christ's soon return should motivate individual believers toward daily Bible reading, prayer, godly living, constant expectancy, sacrificial service, and energetic mission.
- We believe the Bible teaches that God has a future for ethnic Israel.
- We believe that Christ will return to the earth a second time to separate the unbeliever from the believer, and reign on the earth for one thousand years.
- We believe that God will raise the dead bodily, judge the unbelievers and condemn them to eternal conscious separation from Him.
- We believe that believers will be eternally blessed with the Lord in the New Heavens, on the New Earth, in the New Jerusalem.
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