What We Believe

 

The Bible

We believe that the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, is supernaturally inspired, so that it is inerrant in the original manuscripts and preserved by God in its verbal and plenary inspiration, so that is a divinely authoritative standard for every age and every life.  (Matthew 5:18; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21).

 

God
We believe in one God that eternally exists and reveals Himself in three persons - Father, Son, Holy Spirit - having each the same nature, attributes and perfections, worthy of the same worship and confidence.  (Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; John 1: 1-2, 14, 10:30, 14:15-17; 1 Corinthians 8:6; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

 

We believe in God as absolute and sole Creator and Sustainer of the universe, and that creation was by divine command, from nothing and not through an evolutionary process. (John 1: 3, 10; Acts 17:24-25; Genesis 1:1).

We believe that God, by His sovereign choice and out of love for men, sent Christ into the world to save sinners (John 3:16; 1 Timothy 1:15: 1 John 4:14). 

 

God The Son

We believe that Jesus Christ was fully God in the flesh and fully man, that He was born of a virgin and that He lived a sinless life, in which He taught and performed mighty works and wonders and signs exactly as revealed in the four gospels.  We believe that He was crucified, shed His blood, died to pay the penalty for our sins and was raised bodily from the dead on the third day.  Forty days later He ascended to the Father's right hand where is Head of the Church and intercedes for believers.  From there He is coming again personally, bodily and visibly to this earth to set up His millennial kingdom. (Isaiah 7:14, 9:6; Hebrews 1:1-2, 7:25; Luke 1:30-35; Ephesians 4:8; John 1:1-5, 10-14, 14:3; Colossians 2:9; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Acts 1:3, 11; Revelation 20:4).

 

God The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person and is God, possessing all the divine attributes.  He convicts of sin, regenerates, indwells, baptizes and seals all believers at the moment of their salvation, filling them in response to yieldedness with the goal of conforming them to the image of Christ.  (John 3:5, 16:7-11; Acts 5:3-4; Ephesians 1:13, 4:30, 5:18; 1 Corinthians 6:19, 12:13).

 

Man
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam's sin the race fell, inherited a sinful nature and became alienated from God.  We believe that all men are morally corrupt, and of themselves utterly unable to remedy their lost condition.  (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 1:18, 3:23, 5:12; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12).

 

Salvation
We believe that salvation is a gift of God and is received by man through personal faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for sin.  We believe that man is justified by grace through faith apart from works and that all true believers, once saved, are kept secure in Christ forever.  (Acts 13:38-39; Romans 4:5, 6:23, 8:1,38-39; John 10:27-29; Ephesians 2:8-9).

 

The Church

We believe that the true Church is composed of all persons who are regenerated by the Holy Spirit through saving faith in Jesus Christ; that they are united together in the body of Christ; of which He is Lord and Head; and are commissioned for the God-given tasks of worshiping, fellowshipping, teaching, evangelizing and exercising the spiritual gifts.  (Acts 2:42,47; Romans 12:5; Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:23-24; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 11:2).

We believe that the establishment and continuance of the local church is clearly taught in the New Testament Scriptures.  (Acts 14:27, 20:17, 28-32; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11).

We believe that the local church is autonomous and free of any external authority of control.  (Acts 13:1-4, 20:28; Romans 16:1,4; 1 Corinthians 3:9,16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1-4).