This We Believe

We believe that to carry on the religious mission of the church, to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons who associate with the church as members should abide by and agree to the following statements and conduct themselves in accordance with them.

     Since society is living in an age of great deception and various religious cults and philosophies abound, it is vitally important that the sincere seeker after Truth prove that which is of "the Spirit of Truth" and "the spirit of error." This can only be done by an appeal to the only infallible revelation God has given to mankind - the Word of God, the Holy Bible. The Scriptures alone are the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.

     While we realize that we cannot confine God to mere articles of faith, we also recognize the importance of doctrine in these days of no absolutes. We often hear the statement that "it doesn't matter what you believe as long as you are sincere." This assertion is totally contrary to what the Bible teaches. Doctrine must be sound, pure, scriptural, and obeyed. Sincerity alone has led many down the path of deception. To avoid being blown about by "every wind of doctrine" in these "last days" it is imperative that every believer have a firm grounding in the basic fundamental doctrines of the Scriptures. The following is offered as a brief summary:

Statement Of Faith

1. We believe the Bible is the inspired and only infallible and authoritative written Word of God (2Tim 3:16; 1Co 2:13).
2. We believe in the Eternal Godhead Who has revealed Himself as one God eternally existing in three persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit; distinguishable but indivisible (Mt 28:19; Lk 3:22; 2Co 13:14).
3. We believe in the creation, test and fall of man as recorded in Genesis; his total spiritual depravity and inability to attain to Divine righteousness (Rom 3:23; 5:12,18).
4. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of mankind, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, very God and very Man (Lk 1:26-35; Jn 1:18; Isa 7:14; 9:6).
5. We believe in His sinless life, in His miracles, and in His vicarious and atoning death. Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day, and personally appeared to His disciples (1Co 15:1-4; Rom 4:25; 1Pe 3:18).
6. We believe in the bodily resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His ascension to Heaven, His exaltation to the right hand of the Father, the Rapture of the Church, and in His bodily, personal, and literal future return to this earth in power and glory to rule for a thousand years (Jn 14:2-3; 1Th 4:13-18).
7. We believe that the only means of being cleansed from sin is by grace, through repentance and faith in the precious blood of Christ that was shed in the perfect and sufficient work of the cross of Calvary, by which we obtain remission of sins. We believe regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for personal salvation (Eph 2:8-9; Heb 9:12,22; Rom 5:11).
8. We believe in the Ordinance of Water Baptism by immersion in the name of the Eternal Godhead in order to fulfill the command of Christ (Mt 28:19; Act 2:37-41; 19:1-6).
9. We believe in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit as an experience subsequent to salvation, with the scriptural and initial evidence; namely, speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance. According to Acts 2:4, the Baptism is given to believers who ask for it (Act 2:1-4; 8:14-17; 10:44-46; Gal 3:14-15).
10. We believe in the operation of the gifts of the Spirit as enumerated in 1 Corinthians 12-14, as manifested in the Early Church.
11. We believe in the Spirit-filled life, in the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy life. A life of separation from the world and perfecting of holiness in the fear of God as an expression of Christian faith (Eph 5:18; 2Co 6:14; 7:1).
12. We believe in the healing of the body by Divine power, or Divine healing in its varied aspects as practiced in the Early Church. We believe the redemptive work of Christ on the cross provides healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer (Act 4:30; 1Co 12:9; Jam 5:14).
13. We believe in the Ordinance of the Table of the Lord, commonly called Communion, or the Lord's Supper, for all believers (1Co 11:28-32).
14. We believe in the resurrection of both the believers and the unbelievers; the believer to everlasting life and the unbeliever to everlasting damnation (Jn 5:24; 3:16) (Mk 9:43-50; 2Th 1:9; Rev 20:10-15).
15. We believe in the reality and personality of Satan and the eternal judgement of Satan and his angels (Mt 25:41; Rev 20:10-15).
16. We believe that there is one true universal Church, made of genuine believers. However, this one universal Church is also composed of many local "churches" in given localities.

This Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our beliefs. The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, is the sole and final source of all that we believe. We do believe, however, that the foregoing Tenants of Faith accurately represent the teaching of the Bible. The Bible is the sole and final source of all that we believe.