Having received the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, we bind ourselves together as a body of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and affirm the following statements of doctrine to guide the ministry of this church to glorify God by building up believers and winning unbelievers to Christ. (Eph. 2:10; Col. 3:17; Acts 2:42; Matt. 28:19,20)
Foundational Doctrine
Section 1. God.
There is but one true and Living God who is one is essence, existing eternally in three persons: revealed to us as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, equal in every divine perfection yet executing distinct but harmonious offices. (Gen. 1:1; John 10:30; John 4:24; Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14)
God the Father
The first person of the Trinity orders and disposes all things according to His own purpose and grace He is the Creator of all things and as the only absolute and omnipotent Rule in the universe. He is sovereign in creation providence and redemption. (Ps. 145:8,9; Eph. 3:9; Ps 103:19)
God the Son.
Jesus Christ, the second Person of the Trinity possesses all the divine excellencies and in these He is coequal, cosubstantial and coeternal with the Father. The Father created through His Son Jesus Christ by whom all things continue in existence and operation. The Lord Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, that He is God incarnate and that His purpose was reveal God, redeem men and rule over God's kingdom. He died physically on the cross, was bodily resurrected three days later, and thereafter bodily ascended to heaven. (John 10:30; John 1:3; Heb. 1:2; Is. 7:14 Matt. 1:23; John 1:1; Ps. 2:7-9; John 1:1;14,18, 5:18; Heb. 1:1-9,5:8; 1 John 5:20; 1 Tim. 2:5;! Cor. 15:1-5)
God the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the trinity. He regenerates, indwells, baptizes, and seals all believers in Christ at the point of faith in Christ, and empowers those yielded to God. (Matt28:19; John 3:3-7 Titus 3:5; 1 Cor. 6:19; Rom. 8:9, 1 Cor. 2:12, 12:13; Eph. 4:30; Col. 3:14)
Section 2. The Scriptures.
Every word in the original writings of the Holy Scriptures is inspired by God and without error. It is accurate in all matters to which it speaks, spiritual, historical and scientific.
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the foundation of the faith. (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21)
Section 3. Man.
Man is created in the image and likeness of God. In Adam, all mankind fell into sin with the result that all men are sinners. Men are justly condemned to eternal judgement and can do nothing to merit salvation. (Rom. 2:2, 3, 5; Eph. 2:8,9; Gen. 1:27, 9:6; Rom. 3:23, 5:12; Eph. 2:1)
Section 4. Salvation.
Salvation is received by faith alone in Christ. The only means to salvation is belief in Christ’s substitutionary death and resurrection, which satisfied the wrath of God against the sin of the individual. There is an eternal state of punishment for the unsaved and an eternal state of blessing for the saved. (Acts 4:12; 13:38-39; 16:31; 1 Cor. 15:1-4; Rom. 4:4-5; 8:28-29; 5:1; John 3:16; Eph. 2:8-9)
Structural Doctrine
Salvation is given to those men and women chosen (election and predestination) by God and drawn to Christ by the Holy Spirit. God’s election of those that will be saved was made without thought to any merit of the individual and was made prior to the creation of the world. We believe that, owing to universal death through sin, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again; and that no degree of reformation however great, no attainments in morality however high, no culture however attractive, no baptism or other ordinance however administered, can help the sinner to take even one step toward heaven; but a new nature imparted from above, a new life implanted by the Holy Spirit through the Word is absolutely essential to salvation. Thus it can be said that our justification is wrought solely by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross as He died in our place (John 6:44; Rom. 5:6-9, 9:10-29; Eph. 1:4-8; Phil. 3:4-9; Col. 1:13-14; Titus 3:5; James 1:18, 1 Pet. 1:18-21).
Sanctification.
Every believer is promised positional, progressive, and ultimate sanctification. (Heb. 10:10, 14; John 17:15-17; Eph. 5:26-27; 1 Thes. 4:3, 4; 1 John 3:2, 1 Cor. 6:11)
Assurance.
All who are born of the Spirit through faith in Christ can have assurance of salvation and are eternally secure in Christ. (Rom. 5:1; 1 John 5:13; John 10:27-29; 17:12; 2 Tim. 1:12; Eph. 4:30, John 6:37)
Church.
The church is composed of all believers. It is the body and bride of Christ, formed by the baptism of the Holy Spirit and existing in two aspects, universal and local. The universal church is an elect company of believers, baptized by the Holy Spirit into one body. Its mission is to witness to its Head, Jesus Christ, preaching the Gospel among all nations. It will be caught up to meet the Lord, after which He will return to set up His Kingdom. The local church is a group of believers voluntarily joined together in love to worship God with praise and thanksgiving, and to glorify Jesus Christ through an aggressive effort to disciple others by the preaching of the gospel, and the exercise of spiritual gifts. (Eph. 1:22, 23; 5:24-30; 1 Cor. 12:4-13, 27)
Gifts.
Spiritual gifts are God-given abilities for service, i.e., “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service to the building up of the body of Christ.” (Eph. 4:1-16, 1 Cor. 12:7, 11; 1 Pet. 4:10; Rom 12:1-6)
Christian Life.
Christians are called to a holy life of service and testimony in the power of the Holy Spirit, which service includes the propagation of the gospel message to the whole world. There is promised reward in heaven for faithfulness in such service. (1 Pet. 1:15, 16; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 3:12-17; John 14:1-3)
Ordinances.
The Bible sets forth two ordinances, the Lord’s Supper and Water Baptism. The Lord’s Supper is to be celebrated regularly in remembrance of Christ’s death on the cross, and in expectation of His return. Water Baptism is an outward testimony of a person’s belief in Christ. Immersion is the ideal means set forth in Scripture. (Matt. 28:19, 20; Mark 16:15, 16; Acts 8:12, 36-38, 9:18, 10:47; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)
Angels.
Angels were originally created holy, but now, because of Satan’s rebellion, there is also an unholy angelic kingdom. (Col. 1:16; Job 38:6, 7; Ps. 148:2-5; Jude 6; Matt. 25:41; Eph. 6:11; 12, 1 Tim. 5:21; Rev. 12:9)
Dispensations.
God has revealed different dispensations or stewardships with corresponding rules of life, of which the present dispensation is the stewardship of grace. (Eph. 3:2-6, 9-11; Col. 1:25-27; Rom. 6:14, Heb. 7:18-19)
Second Coming.
The blessed hope of the church is the imminent return of Christ. The events of the return of Christ take place in the following order: the rapture of the church, the tribulation, the seconds advent, the establishment of the reign of Christ on earth for one thousand years, and finally the eternal state of punishment for the unsaved and the eternal state of blessing for the saved. (Titus 2:13; 1 Thes. 1:10; 4:13-18; 5:4-10; John 14:1-3; Matt. 24:21, 29, 30, 25:31 - 46; Rev. 3:10, 20:1-6; 11-15)
