What We Believe

What We Believe

The Scriptures

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Bible, as it is in truth, the Word of God (I Thessalonions 2:13.) We believe in verbal, plenary inspiration in the original writings, and God's preservation of the 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 we accept, and the King James Version of the Bible is the only English version we accept and use. The Bible is our sole authority for faith and practice.

The Godhead

We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons—(Trinity) the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections (Deuteronomy 6:4; II Corinthians 13:14).

The Person and Work of Jesus Christ

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became man without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. (John 1:1-2, 14; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 9:6, 7:14; Philippians 2:5-8; Galatians 4:4-5).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His finished work on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead (Romans 3:24-25; I Peter 2:24; Ephesians 1:7; I Peter 1:3-5).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He, as our High Priest, 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 Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Person who reproves the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them 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

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God but, in Adam's sin, the race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. We believe that man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12).

The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in His own image and is mindful of him, and in that Christ died for man. Therefore, every individual possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love. (Psalm 8:4-9; Colossians 3:9-11).

The Way of Salvation

We believe that the clear message of salvation is “repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21). We believe that salvation is by grace alone. We believe that men are justified by faith 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).

We believe in the eternal security of all the redeemed, and that once saved are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (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

We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is an organized body of born again, baptized believers meeting in a specific location and united together by the Holy Spirit to fulfill the great commission, observe the ordinances and generally carry out all things whatsoever Christ commanded (Acts 2:47; I Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 4:12). The church was founded by Christ and fulfilled by the Holy Ghost at Pentecost and will be caught up to be with Christ at the rapture (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2; Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; I Corinthians 12:12-14; II Corinthians 11:2).

We believe that 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). We believe in the autonomy of the local church, free of any external authority or control (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 Two Ordinances of the Church

We recognize the two ordinances which are baptism by immersion in water and the Lord's Supper as a scriptural means of testimony for the church in this age (Matthew. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42, 18:18; I Corinthians 11:23-26).

Biblical Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord, and that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations is commanded of 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 Jesus Christ

We believe the Lord's return is literal, personal, visible, imminent, premillennial, and pretribulational. He will rapture His church prior to the seven years tribulation period, 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).