WHAT WE BELIEVE
The Scriptures
The Bible is our sole authority for faith and practice. The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God. It was given to us by divine authorship through human penmanship. We believe in verbal inspiration in the original writings, and God's preservation of His pure words to every generation. (II Timothy 3:16, Psalms 12:6-8) The Masoretic Text of the Old Testament and the Received Text of the New Testament (Textus Receptus) are those texts of the original languages that were used to translate the King James Version of the Bible, which is the Bible we study, teach, and preach from.
The Trinity
God is triune, eternally existing as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three form the Godhead.
(I John 5:7)
The Person and Work of Christ
The Lord Jesus Christ, the 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. (John 1:1-2, 14; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 9:6; 7:14; Philippians 2:5-8; Galatians 4:4-5)
The Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His finished work on the cross, and our justification was completed by His literal physical resurrection from the dead. (Romans 3:24-25; I Peter 2:24; Ephesians 1:7; I Peter 1:3-5)
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After His resurrection, the Lord ascended to Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God. As our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Hebrews 9:24, 7:25; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1-2)
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the person who reproves the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He is the supernatural agent in regeneration, indwelling, and sealing the saved unto the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; II Corinthians 3:6; I Corinthians 12:12-14; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14)
Man’s Lost Condition
Man was created in the image and likeness of God, but in Adam's sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man cannot save himself. (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12)
Salvation
The clear message of salvation is repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21). Salvation is by grace through faith. Men are justified by faith alone and are accounted righteous before God only through the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12; I Peter 1:18-19)
Eternal Security
All the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are secure in Christ forever. Eternal life is the present possession of every believer and cannot be lost. (John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; I Corinthians 1:4-8; I Peter 1:4-5; Jude 1, 2)
The Church
The church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of born-again believers. (Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; I Corinthians 12:12-14; II Corinthians 11:2)
The establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; I Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)
The autonomy of the local church dictates that it is free of any external authority or control and is separate from other churches. (Acts 13:1-4, 15:19-31, 20:28; Romans 16:1, 4; I Corinthians 3:9, 16, 5:4-7, 13; I Peter 5:1-4)
The Gospel and Evangelism
The Gospel, which is the good news of Jesus Christ, is the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church is commissioned to spread the Gospel to its Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth. (I Corinthians 15:1-4, Matthew 28:19-20)
Baptism
Baptism is by immersion in water and is not part of salvation. It is a step of obedience for a new believer and pictures the death, burial, and resurrection of our Saviour. (Romans 6:3-5)
The Lord’s Supper
The Lord’s Supper, a time of remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, is to be observed by the local church on a frequent basis. We observe open communion, which allows any believer present to partake of this time of spiritual reflection. (Luke 22:11-20, I Corinthians 11:20-34)
Biblical Separation and Holiness
God’s call to holiness is that His children should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach to the name of Christ. Separation from worldly and sinful practices is commanded by God. (II Timothy 3:1-5; Romans 12:1, 2, 14:13; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11; II Corinthians 6:14-7:1)
The Return of Christ
The Lord's return is imminent. He will rapture His church prior to the seven years of tribulation, and at the end of the tribulation Christ will return with His saints to establish His thousand-year reign on the earth. (I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; I Thessalonians 1:10; Revelation 3:10; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 19:11-16, 20:1-6; Psalm 89:3-4)
Man’s Eternal State
The saved will experience eternal life in the presence of God, and the unsaved will be sentenced to judgment and everlasting punishment. Where someone spends eternity is determined by whether a person accepts or rejects Christ’s gift of salvation during their life on earth. (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28, 29, 11:25-26; Revelation 20:5-6, 12-13)
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Marriage
In the beginning God created man and woman, and charged them to leave father and mother and cleave to one another through marriage. Marriage is a holy union between a man and woman and is ordained by God. (Genesis 1:26-27, 2:23-24, Matthew 19:5, Ephesians 5:31)