THE SCRIPTURES.
We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, the written record of
His supernatural revelation of Himself to man, absolute in its authority, complete
in its revelation, final in its content and without any error in its teaching
(IITimothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:21).
GOD.
We believe that God is One God, Who reveals Himself in three distinct Persons:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ, as the Scriptures affirm, is the
Son of God and Son of Man, was born of a virgin, and is Himself God. The Scriptures
also declare the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit (Genesis 1:1-3, 26;
Matthew. 3:12-17; John 1:1, 14; 10:30; 14:26; 15; Matthew. 28:19).
JESUS CHRIST.
We believe that Jesus is the Son of God, begotten by the Holy Spirit, born of
the Virgin Mary, shed His blood on Calvary as a vicarious substitute for us,
was buried, rose again, and ascended to the Father according to the Scriptures
(Luke 1:26-33).
HOLY SPIRIT.
We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity, God, coexistent
with theFather and the Son. The Holy Spirit is the chief agent in the regeneration
of the soul, the chief convictor of sin, and the chief comforter of the believer.
Simultaneous with regeneration, the Holy Spirit baptizes the believer into the
body of Christ, permanently indwells him and seals
him in salvation for all eternity (John 16:1-13).
MAN.
All men in their natural state are lost, alienated from God, spiritually dead:
"All have sinned And come short of the glory of God" Romans 3:23.
SALVATION.
We believe that all in faith receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior are
born again by the Holy Spirit and thus become the children of God (Romans 8:9b;
John 1:12-13). Salvation involves redemption, regeneration, sanctification,
and glorification (John 8:41-45; Romans 3:23, 6:23, 5:7-11,10:9-10; Colossians
1:13-14; John 17:16-22; II Corinthians 5:17; I Corinthians 6:19)
THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE BELIEVER.
We believe in the priesthood of all believers so that every Christian has direct
access to God in prayer through Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, and that
there is no mediator between pod and man other than Jesus Christ (I Peter 2:9-10;
Hebrews 4:14-15).
SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER.
We believe that salvation is not only a gift from the Lord, but is also sustained
by the Lord. Therefore, since salvation is wholly of the Lord, apart from the
works of man, we bold that the believer shall be kept by the power of God through
faith unto eternal salvation(Ephesians
2:8-10; Philippians. 1:6;John 3:16,10:27-29).
SATAN.
We believe that Satan was originally created a perfect being. He rebelled against
God. As a result, he became depraved and became the adversary of God and His
people. "He lead a host of angels who fell with "him. Satan has been
judged and defeated at the cross and awaits his ultimate doom at the Second
Coming of Jesus Christ (Ezekiel 28:11-19; Isaiab' 14:12-14;John 10:10; I Corinthians
15:51-58). o
ORDINANCES.
We believe that the local church observes two ordinances: Baptism and Communion
(or the- Lord's Supper). We believe that all who have received Christ as Savior
and Lord a hould be baptized by immersion into water- Baptism is symbolic of
Christ's death, burial andresurrection. Communion should be observed in remembrance
of Him to show forth His death for our sins until He comes again(Matthew 28:18-20;I
Corinthians 11:17-34).
TRINITY.
Trinity is the name given to the teaching about God, which says that there is
only one God, but God exists in three persons. So while there is only one God,
.eternal and immutable; God the Father is God, Jesus Christ is God, and the
Holy Spirit is God. They are 3 distinct persons. They are, however, ofthe same
substance, co-equal, co-existent, and unchangeable forever. Yet there is only
one God (1 John 5:1-10;John 1:1; John 10:30).
OPERATION OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS.
We believe that God is still pouring out His spirit upon all that believe and
trust in Him; and through His spirit we can propheci, give a word of wisdom
or knowledge (Ephesians 4; 1 Corinthians 12-13).