the holy scriptures
We believe the Old and New Testament Scriptures are the verbally and plenarily inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed and are, therefore, the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six (66) books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning, and all issues of interpretation and meaning shall be determined by the elders. We recognize and use these translations of the Bible: the King James Version, the New American Standard Bible, the New International Version, the New King James Version, and the English Standard Version.
the person and the work of the father
We believe the Father works all things after the counsel of his own will. The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. The Father sends the Holy Spirit to live in every truly regenerate man (person).
the person and work of christ
- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men.
- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead.
- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate.
the person and the work of the holy spirit
- We believe that the Holy Spirit is the person of the Godhead who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption.
- We believe that He is the divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit.
- We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. At the founding of the New Testament church in the book of Acts, God uniquely used apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers to equip believers in the church for the work of the ministry. While the gifts of apostle and prophet are no longer active today, God still uniquely uses evangelists, and pastor-teachers to equip believers in the church to do the work of the ministry.
- We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues, prophecy, and the gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit. Ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, although God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. We believe in praying for the sick in accordance with James 5:14-16.
the total depravity of man
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God; but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition.
Salvation
We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who shed His blood on the cross for the forgive- ness of our sins. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable. We understand the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit to be the continual rejection of Christ and the Holy Spirit’s convictions until physical death. No living man is without hope if he will repent and believe.
the eternal security and assurance of believers
- We believe, that once a person is regenerate (saved), he is kept by God’s power and remains secure in Christ forever.
- We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word. Scripture, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to indulge the flesh (sinful nature).
the church
- We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again (regenerate) believers.
- We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament.
- We believe in the autonomy of the local church, free of any external authority or controls. Any affiliations, societies, organizations, associations, or agencies this church affiliates with to further the objectives stated in the Purpose Statement are not authoritative in matters of church practice or belief.
- We recognize water baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age.
Separation
We believe that believers should maintain a godly testimony and live in such a way that their lives do not bring reproach upon their Savior. God instructs believers to pursue personal holiness and purity. To be holy is to be separated to God for his glory and purposes. Separation to God also implies separation from what is evil and from those activities and associations that lead us away from God. We stand against any and all worldly philosophies that seek to destroy or undermine the truth of Biblical Christianity.
The second coming of Christ
We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ, Who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom, which was promised to the nation of Israel.
the eternal state
- We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the un- saved to judgment and everlasting punishment.
- We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and pre- sent with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first (1st) resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord.
- We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second (2nd) resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment.
the personality of Satan
We believe that Satan is the person of the chief fallen angel, the author of sin and the cause of the Fall of Man. He is the open and declared enemy of God and man. He is a liar and the father of lies, a murderer from the beginning, and the accuser of the righteous. He shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire.
creation
We believe that the Genesis account of creation is neither allegory nor myth, but a literal, historical account of God’s creation of the universe in six (6) literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin.
civil government
We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three (3) basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God.
