We Believe

We Believe the Bible to Be the Word of God

We believe that the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the certain, sufficient and infallible rule of faith and practice for all mankind, representing the whole counsel of God concerning everything  necessary for His glory and man’s salvation; and all things pertaining to godliness and Christian conduct.¹  They constitute the verbally inspired Word of God, written by men as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, free of error in the original manuscripts. Because the Bible is infallible and internally consistent, Scripture is to be interpreted by the whole of Scripture. And, though there may be several applications for any particular passage, there is only one true meaning and it is to be ascertained by means of the grammatico-historical method of interpretation and through the illumination of the Holy Spirit.²

¹2 Timothy 3:15-17; Isaiah 8:20; Luke 16:29, 31; Ephesians 2:20; Romans 1:19-21; Romans 2:14, 15; Psalms 19:1-3
²2 Peter 1:20, 21; John 7:17; John 16:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:7-15; 2 Timothy 2:15

We Believe In God

We believe that there is one true and living God¹, eternally existing in three persons; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. There are not three Gods, but one, with each person having the whole of the divine essence, yet distinct from one another, not confusing the persons nor dividing the substance². God, in His nature, is spirit³. He is self existent⁴, incomprehensible⁵, invisible⁶, everywhere present⁷, all powerful⁸, all knowing⁹, immutable¹⁰, holy¹¹, righteous¹², just¹³, merciful¹⁴, loving¹⁵ and kind¹⁶. God is ultimately sovereign, ruling the universe according to His own will for the good of His creation and the praise of His glory¹⁷.

¹Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; 1 Corinthians 8:4
²1 John 5:7; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14
³John 4:24
⁴Job 22:2, 3
⁵Isaiah 55:8, 9
⁶Colossians 1;15
⁷1 Kings 8:27; Jeremiah 23:23, 24
⁸Genesis 17:1
⁹Acts 15:18; Psalm 5 147;5; Matthew 10:30; 1 John 15:10
¹⁰Numbers 23:19; Psalms 33:11; Malachi 3:6; James 1:17
¹¹Isaiah 6:3
¹²Psalms 119:68
¹³Nehemiah 9:32, 33
¹⁴Psalms 103:6-14; Luke 6:36
¹⁵1 John 4:7-11
¹⁶Exodus 34:6, 7; Hebrews 11:6
¹⁷1 Chronicles 29:11; Psalms 103:19; Daniel 4:25, 34, 35

We believe in God the Father, uncreated and unbegotten, existing from all eternity. The Father is the sovereign ruler of the universe, ordering, directing, and sustaining all things according to His own will¹. The Father saves all those who come to Him through Jesus Christ from the penalty of sin and makes them His sons and daughters through the spirit of adoption².

¹1 Chronicles 29:11; Psalms 103:19l; Daniel 4:25, 34, 35; 1 Corinthians 8:6
²John 1:12; Romans 8:14, 15; Galatians 4:4, 5; Ephesians 1:5

We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternally begotten Son of the Father¹. Jesus Christ is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, possessing all of the divine attributes². Jesus, while on earth, was God incarnate, being born of a virgin and laying aside the prerogatives of deity, but retaining the divine essence³. We believe in His sinless life, His teachings and miracles, and His atonement through His voluntary, substitutionary, propitiatory, and redemptive death on the cross⁴. We believe in the literal, bodily resurrection of Jesus and His Ascension to heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father as our advocate⁵. We believe that His glorious, visible and bodily return is imminent⁶.

¹John 1:1, 14, 18
²John 1:1, 8:38-42; 8:56-58; 9:10:30; 14:9; Colossians 2:9
³Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:25; Luke 1:26-35; John 1:1-18; Philippians 2:5-8; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 1:1-3
⁴John 10:17; Romans 3:24, 25; 5:8; 1 Peter 2:24; 3:18; Hebrews 9:14; 10:5-10
⁵Mark 16:19; Luke 24:38, 39, 51; John 25:25, 27; Acts 1:9, 10; 2:22-24; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15;3, 4; Ephesians 4:8-10; Hebrews 9:24
⁶Mark 13:35-37; Luke 12:35-40; Acts 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 5:1-6; Revelation 22:20

We believe in the Holy Spirit, Who proceeds from the Father¹. The Holy Spirit is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Son, possessing all of the attributes and perfections of God. His work includes convicting the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment². He is the sovereign agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the Body of Christ³, and indwelling, sanctifying, instructing, gifting, filling, and empowering them for His service⁴.

¹John 15:26
² John 16:8-11
³ 1 Corinthians 12:13; Acts 1:5
⁴John 14:16, 17; Romans 8:9; 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 2 Corinthians 3:17, 18; Ephesians 1:13; 2:19-22; 5:18-21; 1 Peter 4:10

We Believe That God Created The Heavens and Earth

We believe that God spoke the heavens and the earth into existence, creating them from nothing, in six literal, twenty-four hour days¹. God created everything, visible or invisible, which does exist and continues to uphold His creation by His own power².

¹Genesis 1
²Colossians 1:16, 17

We Believe That God Created Man In His Own Image

Man and woman were directly and immediately created by God and in the image of God, endowed with intellect, emotion, and a free will¹. In their original condition, Adam and Eve enjoyed fellowship with God, as well as a moral responsibility to obey His commands².

¹Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15-25
²Genesis 2:15-17; 3:2, 3

We Believe That Man Fell, Resulting In Death

Adam and Eve sinned by violating the clear command of God not to eat of the forbidden fruit, resulting in the penalty of spiritual and physical death¹. The effect of sin upon Adam was such that he became totally depraved and incapable of choosing or doing anything pleasing to God, apart from divine grace². Through Adam, all mankind receives the consequences of Adam’s sin and his corrupt nature, with the exception of Jesus Christ through the Virgin Birth³.

¹Genesis 3:1-19; Romans 6:23
²Acts 15:11; Romans 5:12-19; 8:7; Ephesians 2:1-10; Titus 3:1-7
³ Genesis 6:5; Job 14:1-4; Psalms 51:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-18; 3:23; 5:12-19; 8:7 1 Corinthians 15:21, 22; Ephesians 2:3

We Believe That God Provided Redemption For Man

Through the shed blood of Christ, God provided redemption from sin and death for all those whom He has chosen before the foundation of the world¹. All men are to be exhorted and commanded to repent and believe the Gospel and those who do so will be justified before God by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness². This salvation cannot be obtained on the basis of any human merit or work, but it is by God’s grace alone, through faith³. Those whom God saves are sanctified and empowered by the Holy Spirit to live fruitful lives and to ultimately enjoy eternal bliss in His presence⁴.

¹Ephesians 1:3-12; Romans 8:28-30; 1 Peter 1:1, 2
²Matthew 11:28-30; Acts 17:30, 31
³John 1:12; Romans 3:20, 28; 4:3-5; Ephesians 2:8,9; Colossians 2:13, 14; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:18, 19
⁴ John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 6:1-22; 8:31-39; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8; 6:11; 2 Corinthians 3:5, 6, 18; Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 4:30; Philippians 1:6; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 John 2:19; Jude 24, 25

We Believe That Christ Jesus Is The Head Of His Church

All those who trust in Jesus Christ as their Savior are immediately baptized into one spiritual body, the Church, by the Holy Spirit¹. Jesus is the Head of His Body and the believers are His members². We believe that the universal Church consists of all Christians throughout the world. Although the Church is universal, members of the Body of Christ are to come together regularly in local congregations³ for worship and instruction⁴; ministry and edification through each member’s gifts⁵; and fellowship⁶. Each local congregation is autonomous, functioning under Christ’s sovereign direction. The Lord has committed the oversight of the local Church to His undershepherds, the elders, and the congregation is to submit to their leadership⁷. The Church is His espoused Bride, eagerly awaiting the return of the Bridegroom⁸.

¹1 Corinthians 12:12, 13
²Romans 12:4, 5; 1 Corinthians 6:15; 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:22, 23; 4:14-16; Colossians 1:18
³Acts 14:23; Romans 3:21-24, 29, 30; 16:5; Galatians 3:28, 29; Philippians 1:1; Hebrews 10:23-25
⁴Acts 2:42; 1 Corinthians 4:17; Ephesians 5:18-21; Colossians 3:15, 16; Titus 1:7-9
⁵Romans 12:4-21; 1 Corinthians 12:13, 14;14:12; 1 Peter 4:7-11
Acts 1:14; 2:42-47; 20:7; 1 John 1:1-7
⁶Acts 14:23; 20:17, 28-32; Ephesians 1:22, 23; Colossians 1:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 13;
⁷1 Timothy 3:1-7; 5:17, 18; Hebrews 13:7, 17; 1 Peter 2:25; 5:1-4
⁸ 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:23-32; Revelation 19:7, 8; 21:1-9

We Believe In Being Baptized And Celebrating The Lord’s Supper

We believe that Jesus committed two ordinances to the local church; Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Christian Baptism is by immersion in water, symbolizing the believer’s death, burial, and resurrection in Christ¹. The Lord’s Supper is the commemoration and proclamation of Christ’s death until He returns².

¹Acts 2:38-41; 8:36-39; 10:47, 48; 22:16; Romans 6:1-11; Colossians 2:12; 1 Peter 3:21
²Matthew 14:22-25; 26:26-29; Luke 22:14-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

We Believe That The Lord Jesus Will Return

We believe in the imminent, visible, personal, and bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ¹, when He will judge both the living and the dead².

¹Matthew 24:27-31, 37-44; Mark 13:24-27; Luke 21:27, 28; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:9-11;
²1 Corinthians 1:7; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 4:13-17; 5:1-6; Titus 2:11-13; James 5:7, 8; 1 Peter 3:1-10

We Believe That Man Will Live On In Eternity

Upon death, the souls of the redeemed pass immediately into the presence of Christ, where they experience conscious bliss until the resurrection of their bodies¹ and the souls of the unsaved pass into conscious torment until the resurrection of their bodies². All human beings will be resurrected bodily; the unbeliever will be raised to everlasting, conscious punishment in Hell³ and the saints of God to conscious joy and fellowship with one another and with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in eternity⁴. Amen.

¹John 5:21-23, 27; Acts 10:42; 17:30, 31; 1 Corinthians 5:10; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10
²Luke 16:19-31; 23:39-43; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:23, 24
³Isaiah 14:4-17; Luke :19-31
⁴Daniel 12:2; Matthew 25:41-46; John 5:28, 29; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9; Revelation 20:11-15; 21:8
Daniel 12:12; Matthew 25:46; John 5:28, 29; Revelation 21:1-7; 22:1-5