The Bible

The Bible, comprised of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, is God’s written revelation of Himself and His will for man. It is without error in the original writings and “God-breathed” in that God superintended its writing by using individual writers’ personalities, styles and experiences (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21). The Bible is complete, and it is the final authority for life, godliness and the spiritual realm (Psalm 19:7-11; John 17:17; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12). We believe that the Bible is to be interpreted grammatically, contextually, literally and historically.

God

The Godhead

There is one, and only one, true God (Deuteronomy 4:35, 39 and 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; Ephesians 4:6), eternally existing in three Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14). Each Person of the Trinity possesses all of the same attributes and perfections (Jeremiah 31:31-34 with Hebrews 10:15-17; John 1:1-2, 10:30, 14:9-10; Acts 5:3-4).

God the Father

God the Father is the Creator of all things visible and invisible, and He is the sovereign Ruler over everything (Genesis 1:1-31; Psalm 103:19, 145:8-9; Romans 1:20, 11:36; Ephesians 3:9; Revelation 4:11). The title “Father” indicates His role within the Trinity. He is a personal Father to His adopted children, i.e., those who are heirs as a result of receiving His gift of salvation (John 1:12; Romans 8:14-17; 2 Corinthians 6:18; Galatians 4:5; Ephesians 1:4-6, 4:6; Hebrews 12:5-9).

God the Son

The ministry of God the Son is to glorify the Father. The Son is the means by which the Father created, and even now, He is the sustainer of all things (John 1:3; Colossians 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:2). The Son became the man Jesus without ceasing to be God (John 1:1-2, 14; Philippians 2:5-8; Colossians 2:9). He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23-25; Luke 1:26-35). Fully God and fully man, Jesus lived a sinless life, died as a ransom for the sins of the world to accomplish our redemption, resurrected from the dead and ascended into heaven (John 1:29; Acts 1:9; Hebrews 7:25-27; 1 Peter 1:18-19). His voluntary and substitutionary death satisfied the wrath of God brought on by sin and is the means of reconciliation between God and man (John 10:15; Romans 3:24-25; 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18). Jesus’ resurrection proved His deity, displayed His power over death and guaranteed the believer’s future resurrection (Matthew 28:6; Romans 1:4, 4:25; 6:4-10; 1 Corinthians 15:12-23). He is now in heaven interceding for believers, and He will return to judge the living and the dead (Matthew 25:31-46; Acts 17:30-31; Romans 8:34; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Hebrews 7:25;9:24; 1 John 2:1; Revelation 20:11-15).

God the Holy Spirit

The ministry of God the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Son. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16:8-15). He is the source of revelation and inspiration (2 Peter 1:20-21). He also baptizes the believer into the Body of Christ at the point of salvation (1 Corinthians 12:13). Furthermore, He comes alongside the believer to indwell, sanctify and transform him into the image of Christ (John 14:16-17,15:26-27; Romans 8:9; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 2:22). The Holy Spirit seals the believer until the day of redemption and gives spiritual gifts to each one for the purpose of building up the church (Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:11-12; 1 Peter 4:10).

Man

Man was created on the sixth day in the image of God (Genesis 2:7, 15-25). Man was given dominion over all of the earth and, therefore, is the steward of His creation (Genesis 1:26-31). Because of Adam’s sin, man is spiritually dead and separated from God (Genesis 2:16-17, 3:1-19; Romans 5:12, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:21). He is born a sinner, hopelessly lost and in need of salvation (John 3:36; Romans 3:18, 23).

Salvation

God provided a way for each individual to escape the consequences produced by sin. Salvation is a free gift from God offered to all. Through God’s grace, salvation is given to all who turn from their sin (1 Thessalonians 1:9), put their faith in Jesus and receive His gift of forgiveness (Romans 5:8-9; 6:23; Ephesians 1:7, 2:8-10). It is only through Jesus’ sacrifice that this gift can be offered to anyone, and only through faith and trust in Him can it be received (John 1:12; Romans 10:9-10). Good works are an evidence of faith (James 2:18-26) and salvation but are not a means to salvation (Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:10).

Security of the Believer

God’s gift of salvation, once given, cannot be revoked or lost (John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; Romans 8:31-39; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Jude 24). The Holy Spirit is the pledge God gives each believer (Ephesians 1:13-14,4:30). Eternal life begins at salvation (John 5:24).

The Church

The universal church is a spiritual organism consisting of all true believers in the world and throughout history (1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Ephesians 2:11-3:6). The local church gathers to worship, fellowship, receive instruction, observe ordinances, serve and evangelize (Matthew 28:19; Acts 1:8, 2:41-42 and 46-47; Ephesians 3:21, 4:13-16; 2 Timothy 2:2, 14-15; 1 Peter 4:10-11). Jesus is the Head of the universal church and the local church (Ephesians 1:22-23,5:23; Colossians 1:18). This local church is governed by elders.

Ordinances

Water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are observed by believers (Acts2:41-42; Romans 6:1-11; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26). They are symbols of spiritual truths and not requirements of salvation. They are observed out of obedience to God’s Word.

Future Events

We believe in the personal and imminent return of Jesus (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:13). There will be a bodily resurrection from the dead: the believer to everlasting joy with God in Heaven and the unbeliever to everlasting punishment and separation from God in the Lake of Fire (Daniel 12:2; John 5:28-29; Romans 8:10-11, 19-23; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57; Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:4-6, 11-15). The earth and heavens will be destroyed and replaced by a new heaven and earth created by God (2 Peter3:10; Revelation 21:1-22:5).

Angels and Demons

Angels are spirit beings created by God to serve Him (Hebrews 1:3-14). God has used angels to do His will in the affairs of men. They are not to be worshiped (1 Corinthians 6:3; Hebrews 2:6-7; Revelation 19:10, 22:8-9).

Satan was a created angel who rebelled against God, taking approximately one third of all angels with him in his rebellion (Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Revelation 12:1-11). He is the leader of the fallen angels, which are called demons. Satan and his demons oppose the work of God and are the ultimate source of all false doctrine. Satan and his demons will ultimately be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).