Statement of Faith
God | The Bible | Man's Creation and Fall | Election | The Person and Work of Christ | The Holy Spirit and Salvation | The Church | Christ's Return & the Eternal State
God
1) We believe that there is but one true and living Goda, eternally existent in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spiritb, all having the same attributes and qualities, yet so as there are not three gods, but onec--each having the whole of the divine essence, yet distinct from one another so that the persons are not to be confused nor the substance divided; and that this God is invisibled, personale, omnipresentf, eternalg, dependent on noneh, unchangingi, truthfulj, trustworthyk, almightyl, sovereignm, omniscientn, righteouso, holyp, goodq, lovingr, mercifuls, long-sufferingt, and graciousu.
|
a) Isa. 44: 6ff.; Jer. 10:10; 1 Cor. 8:4-6. |
k) Deut. 32:4; 1 Cor. 1:9. |
The Bible
2) We believe that God has revealeda all that is necessary to life and salvationb in the sixty-six books of Holy Scripture which are the written word of Godc; that all Scripture was given by the inspiration of Godd, is infallible and inerrant in the original autographs as represented by the best Greek & Hebrew manuscriptse, and is the final arbiter in all disputesf -- its authority being derived from its Authorg and not from the opinions of menh.
|
a) Deut. 29:29. b) Rom. 15:4; 2 Tim. 3:15-17. c) Ps. 119. d) 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:19-21. |
e) Ps. 19:7-11; Jhn. 17:17. f) Isa. 8:20. g) Isa. 45:23. h) 2 Pet. 3:16, which the untaught and unstable distort. |
Man's Creation and Fall
3) We believe that God, by His powerful worda, freely created the universeb out of nothingc in six daysd and continues to sustaine and rule over it even nowf; that as the pinnacle of His creationg, He made our first father Adam in His own imageh, sinless, and uprighti; that He appointed Adam head and representative of the whole human racej; and that He thereby made all Adam's offspring liable to the effects of Adam's obedience or disobedience to His commandmentk.
|
a) Gen 1:3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26; Jhn. 1:1-3. b) Gen. 1:31; Isa. 45:12; Jer. 10:12-13, 16, the Maker of all is He; Col. 1:16. c) Rom. 4:17; Heb. 11:3. d) Gen. 2:2; Ex. 20:11; 31:17. e) Ps. 119:90-91; Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3. |
f) Ps. 115:3; Isa. 45:7; 46:10; Dan. 4:25, the Most High is ruler over
the realm of mankind. g) Ps. 8:5-6. h) Gen. 1:27; 5:1. i) Gen. 1:31, And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good; Ecc. 7:29. j) Rom. 5:12. k) Rom. 5:18; 1 Cor. 15:21. |
4) We believe that Adam disobeyed God's commandmenta, fell from his original righteousness into sin, and brought upon himself and all his offspring deathb, condemnationc, and corruptiond.
|
a) Gen. 3:1-7; Hos. 6:7. b) Gen. 2:17, cf. 3:8-12; Rom. 5:12-17, by the transgression of the one the many died; 1 Cor. 15:22, cf. Eph. 2:1; Col. 2:13. |
c) Rom. 5:16, 18, through one transgression there resulted condemnation
to all men. d) Eph. 4:17, they walk, in the futility of their mind; Tit. 1:15. |
5) We believe that it is, therefore, utterly beyond the power and the desire of fallen man to understand the things of Goda, to seek Himb, to keep His commandmentsc, to embrace the Gospeld, to repent of sine, or to trust in Christf; and that these are, nevertheless, the very things God justly requires of himg.
|
a) Jhn. 8:43; 1 Cor. 2:14; Eph. 4:18, being darkened in their
understanding. b) Jhn. 5:40; Rom. 3:10ff. c) Rom. 8:7. d) 1 Cor. 1:18. |
e) Jhn. 8:34; Rom. 6:20; 7:23, a prisoner of the law of sin. f) Luke 16: 27-31; Matt. 12:34, how can you, being evil, speak what is good?, cf. Jer. 13:23. g) Luke 13:1-5; Jhn. 3:19; Acts 17:30. |
Election
6) We believe that God, in Christa, before the foundation of the worldb and for His own gloryc, did elect an innumerable host of men and womend to eternal life as an act of His gracee and an expression of His lovef; and that this election was in no way dependent upon His foresight of their faithg, decisionh, worksi, or meritj.
|
a) Eph. 1:4, 6. b) Eph. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13, God has chosen you from the beginning. c) Eph. 1:6, 12, 14, to the praise of His glory. d) Gen. 15:5; cf. Gal. 3:16, 29; Rev. 5:9, from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. e) 2 Tim. 1:9, according to His own purpose and grace. |
f) Eph. 1:4-5, in love He predestined us; 2:4, because of His great
love with which He loved us; 1 Jhn. 4:19. g) Acts 13:48. h) Jhn 1:13, nor of the will of the flesh; Rom. 9:16. i) Eph. 2:8-9; 2 Tim. 1:9; Tit. 3:5. j) Rom. 9:10-13; Eph. 1:6, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. |
The Person and Work of Christ
7) We believe that Christ was sent into the world by His heavenly Fathera; that He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spiritb in the womb of the virgin Maryc, and born of her, yet without sind; that He lived a sinless lifee, perfectly fulfilling the law of Godf; that He was and is both fully mang and fully Godh in two distinct naturesi, and one Person foreverj; that as man, he is our elder brotherk and High Priestl before Godm, representing us to God the Fathern; and that as God, He is the visible image of the invisible Fathero, representing God to usp.
|
a) Jhn. 17:18; 20:21. b) Luke 1:35. c) Matt. 1:16. d) 2 Cor. 5:21, Him who knew no sin; 1 Pet. 1:19, unblemished and spotless. e) Heb. 4:15; 7:26. f) Phil. 2:8; Jhn. 17:4, cf. Heb. 10:5-9. g) Rom. 1:3; Heb. 2:14, 17. h) Jhn. 1:1-2, 14; 20:28; Phil. 2:6; Heb. 1:3. |
i) Col. 2:9. j) Heb. 7:24; 13:8. k) Heb. 2:11-12, 17. l) Heb. 2:17-18. m) 1 Pet 3:22. n) Heb. 7:25; 1 Jhn 2:1, we have an Advocate with the Father. o) Jhn 1:18; Col. 1:15; 2:9. p) Jhn. 14:9. |
8) We believe that as Prophet and Teachera, Christ reveals to the electb, by His Word and Spirit, the will of God for their salvationc.
|
a) Acts 3:22; Jhn. 3:34. b) Matt. 11:27, nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. |
c) Jhn. 14:26; 16:12-14. |
9) We believe that as High Priest, Christ once offered Himself up to Goda on the cross as a substitutionary sacrificeb for the electc, thereby propitiating God's wrath which was upon themd, procuring their reconciliation with Gode, and redeeming them from the curse of the Lawf; and that He continually intercedes for themg in the presence of His Father in Heavenh, thereby assuring their perseverance in holiness unto the endi.
|
a) Heb. 7:27. b) Heb. 10:12; Isa. 53:5; 2 Cor. 5:21. c) Matt. 1:21, He who will save His people from their sins. d) Rom. 3:25; Heb. 2:17. |
e) Rom. 5:10; Eph. 2:16, reconcile them both . . . to God; Col.
1:21-22. f) Gal. 3:13; Eph. 1:7; Col. 2:14. g) Heb. 7:25. h) Rom. 8:34. i) 1 Cor. 1:8; Jude 24f. |
10) We believe that as King, Christ was declared the Son of God with power by His bodily resurrection from the dead on the third daya; that, having in this way conquered His enemiesb, He ascended to the right hand of the Father and was enthroned in glory, thus inaugurating His Heavenly Kingdomc; that He poured out His Spirit on the day of Pentecost to carry forward His work on earthd; that He rules in the hearts of His peoplee, subduing their sinf and enabling them to love and obey Himg; and that He rules over all creation, visible and invisibleh, for their sakei.
|
a) Rom. 1:4. b) Col. 2:15; Luke 11:20-22; 1 Pet. 3:21c-22; Rev. 12:1-12. c) Acts 2:30-35; Rom. 8:34, Christ Jesus . . . who is at the right hand of God. d) Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8, cf. 2:33. e) Gen. 49:10, to him shall be the obedience of the peoples; Ezek. 36:27; Jer. 31:33, cf. Heb. 8:10. |
f) Tit. 2:11-12, instructing us to deny ungodliness. g) Phil. 4:13; Col. 1:11. h) Col. 1:17. i) Rom. 8:28; Eph. 1:22, He...gave Him as head over all things to the church. |
The Holy Spirit and Salvation
11) We believe that God the Son has sent forth the Holy Spirita to apply the sacrifice of Christ to the electb by convincing them of their sin and miseryc, enlightening their minds in the knowledge of Christd, and renewing their willse, thus persuading and enabling them to embrace Jesus Christ salvifically through faith alonef, whom has been freely offered to them in the Gospelg; and that this work of the Spirit, variously called regenerationh, renewali, or rebirthj is equivalent in this New Covenant economy with that work of the Spirit designated in the Scriptures as baptism "with the Holy Spirit"k and is thus the common experience of all believersl.
|
a) Jhn. 16:7, I will send Him to you. b) Tit. 3:4-7. c) Jhn. 16:8. d) Jhn. 16:13-14; Acts 16:14, the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken; 1 Cor. 2:10. e) Ezek. 36:26; Phil. 2:13. f) Gen 15:6; Jn. 1:12-13; 3:15-18,36; 5:24; 6:28-29; 6:35,47; Acts 16:30-31; Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 3:28; 4:5; 5:1-2; 10:4; 10:9-10; 11:6; Phil: 3:9; Titus 3:5; 2 Tim. 1:12. |
g) Ps. 110:3.
h) Tit. 3:5, the washing of regeneration. i) 2 Cor. 5:17, a new creature. j)John 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:3. k)Mark 1:8; Acts 1:5; Eph. 4:5. l) 1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:13. |
12) We believe that the elect, having been brought to faith by the ministry of the Spirita, are justifiedb (that is, pardoned of all their sinsc and declared righteous in the sight of Godd) on the sole basis of Christ's righteousness imputed to theme; that, although sin may interrupt the joy of their fellowship with Godf and bring upon them the loving discipline of their Heavenly Fatherg, they are never more nor less justified than when they first believedh; and that all the elect, both those before Christ's first advent and those after, are justified in the same manneri.
|
a) Acts 18:27; Gal. 4:6, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into
our hearts; Phil. 1:29. b) Rom. 3:24. c) Eph. 1:7. d) Rom. 4:5; 2 Cor. 5:21. e) Rom. 5:18-19; Phil. 3:9. |
f) Ps. 51:12; 2 Cor. 7:9. g) 1 Cor. 11:29-32; Heb. 12:7-10. h) Rom. 8:1. i) Gen. 15:6, cf. Gal. 3:9; Hab. 2:4, cf. Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11. |
13) We believe that those who are thus justified are also adopted as God's own childrena and made joint heirs with Christb; that they are given the Holy Spirit as the guarantee of their redemptionc through Whom they cry out, "Abba! Father!"d; and that they shall, therefore, bear the fruit of the Spirite throughout the remainder of their livesf.
|
a) Gal. 4:5-6. b) Rom. 8:17. c) Eph. 1:13-14. |
d) Rom. 8:15. e) Ezek. 36:27; Gal. 5:22-23; Eph. 2:10. f) Rom. 8:35-37, in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer; 2 Cor. 2:14. |
14) We believe that the Spirit indwells all true believersa and works in them, by means of the Scripturesb, that which is pleasing in His sightc; that, having freed them from the power of sind, He conforms them into the image of Christe and enables them more and more to die unto sin and live unto righteousnessf; and that, nevertheless, due to their remaining corruption, this process is never perfected in this life but rather gives rise to a continual war (the flesh striving against the Spirit and the Spirit striving against the fleshg), which shall continue until Christ takes them home in glory and frees them from the presence of sinh.
|
a) Rom. 8:14. b) Acts 20:32; 1 Pet. 1:23. c) Rom. 7:4, that we might bear fruit for God. d) Rom. 6:17-18. |
e) Rom. 8:29. f) Rom. 8:13, by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body. g) Gal. 5:17; 1 Pet. 2:11. h) Rom. 8:23. |
15) We believe that those who profess faitha yet exhibit a pattern of life governed by sin are self-deceivedb and are still in a lost conditionc.
|
a) e.g., Matt. 7:21. b) Jas. 2:20; 1 Jhn. 2:9, 11, is in the darkness. |
c) Gal. 5:19-21, those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God; Heb. 12:14; 1 Jhn. 2:4-6; 2 Pet. 2:22. |
The Church
16) We believe that the universal Church is the continuationa of the historical people of God whom, in Abrahamc, God chose to Himself from all peoplesd and to whom He bound Himself by making the covenants and the promisese; that it, therefore, consists only of those who have been justified by faithf; that it alone is rightfully designated the body of Christg, a chosen race, a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, and a people for God's own possessionh; and that it shall flourishi despite persecution and strife unto the end of the agej.
|
a) Rom. 4:22-24. c) Gal. 3:8. d) Rom. 4:9-12; Rev. 5:9, men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. e) Rom. 1:2f. |
f) Rom. 4:13, 24; 5:1; Gal. 3:7, 9; Jer. 31:34; Joel 3:17, So Jerusalem
shall be holy, and strangers will pass through it no more; Zech. 14:21. g) Eph. 1:22-23; Col. 1:18, 24. h) Tit. 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:9. i) Eph. 1:11-12; 2 Tim. 2:9, the word of God is not imprisoned; Isa. 11:9. j) Matt. 16:18; Heb. 12:28, a kingdom which cannot be shaken; Dan. 2:44. |
17) We believe that the local church is ultimately under the authority of Christ alonea; that its purpose is to glorify Godb and enjoy Him forever through the pure preaching of the Wordc, the proper administration of the gospel ordinancesd, and the diligent exercise of church disciplinee; that it has been commissioned by Christ to proclaim the Gospel to all menf, being assured that God will not cast out anyg who come to Him in true faith and repentanceh; that its membership is to be composed only of those who have professed faith in Christi and who live lives in accordance with that professionj; that it is to be governed by a plurality of eldersk (when possible) who share an equality of authorityl; and that it is, consistent with the communion of the saintsm, to recognize and fellowship with all members of Christ's Bodyn.
|
a) Eph. 1:22; 2:20. b) Eph. 5:12. c) 1 Tim. 4:6, constantly nourished on the words of the faith, 13. d) Acts 2:42. e) 1 Cor. 5:7, Clean out the old leaven; Tit. 3:10. f) Matt. 28:19-20. g) John 6:37. |
h) Rom. 10:13. i) 1 Cor. 1:2; Col. 1:2. j) 1 Cor. 5:11; 2 Cor. 6:14f.; 2 Thess. 3:6. k) note the plural elders in Acts 20:17; Tit. 1:5; and 1 Pet. 5:1. l) elders, and overseers - used interchangeably; Acts 20:17, 28 -- are all given the responsibility to shepherd, i.e., pastor, the church of God, Acts 20:28. m) 1 Cor. 10:17, we who are many are one body. n) Gal. 6:10; 1 Thess. 4:9; 1 Jhn. 3:14-18. |
18) We believe that, though there are many gifts in the Body of Christa, there is only one Spirit who bestows them allb, and that they are therefore to be used for the building up of the Churchc and not for personal gratificationd; that the Church, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophetse, is no longer dependent upon the miraculous and revelatory gifts which were present at its inceptionf; that, though God is capable of intervening today with a miraculous eventg, the miraculous gifts, as gifts, have passed awayh, their significancei having now ceased; that, with the completion of the New Testament canon, revelatory gifts have also ceasedj; and that, of these, tongues (known languages foreign to their speakerk) signaled the fulfillment of Old Testament propheciesl foretelling the divine judgment against Israelm in the transition from the Old era to the New.
|
a) 1 Cor. 12:4, there are varieties of gifts; 1 Pet. 4:10. b) 1 Cor. 12:11. c) 1 Cor. 14:5, 19, 26, let all things be done for edification, 1 Pet. 4:10. d) 1 Cor. 13:5, love does not seek its own. e) Eph. 2:20. f) 1 Cor. 13:11. g) Dan. 4:35. |
h) 1 Cor. 13:8. i) Acts 5:12; 14:3; Heb. 2:4. j) Dan. 9:24, to seal up vision and prophecy. k) Acts 2:8-11. l) Acts 2:16-21; cf. Joel 2:28-32. m) 1 Cor. 14:21-22; cf. Isa. 28:11-12; also Deut. 28:49; Jer. 5:15. |
19) We believe that baptism and the Lord's Supper are gospel ordinances to be observed by the Church during the present age; that they are external signs of internal, spiritual, and historical realities; that baptism signifies the recipient's cleansing from sina but that it neither guarantees nor accomplishes such cleansingb; and that the Lord's Supper is a memorialc, wherein the death of Christ for His people is proclaimed visually as a comfort to the elect until His return in gloryd.
|
a) Acts 22:16. b) 1 Cor. 1:17; see e.g., Acts 8:9-24; 1 Cor. 10:1-5. |
c) Luke 22:19; cf. 1 Cor. 11:24-25. d) 1 Cor. 11:26. |
Christ's Return & the Eternal State
We believe in the blessed hope,a that at the end of this age Jesus Christ will return to earth personally, b visibly c, physically d, and suddenly e, in power and great glory; f and that He will gather His elect, g raise the dead, h judge the nations, and establish His Kingdom. i We believe in the bodily resurrection of the dead; of the believer to everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord; j of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment k.
|
a) Titus 2:13 b) Acts 1:9-11 c) Mark 14:61-62 d) Philippians 3:20-21; Luke 4:39-43 e) 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 f) Luke 21:27 |
g) Matthew 24:31 h) 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 i) 1 Cor 15:22-24;2 Tim 4:1;Luke 22 28-30 j) Matt 13:43; 25:34, 46; John 5:29b k) Daniel 12:2; Matthew 3:12; 13:41-42; John 5:29c; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 14:10-11; 19:3; 20:10-15 |
