Statement of Faith
Our statement of faith is the Bible, which is God's Holy Word. A copy of the Bible is available at The Bible Gateway, http://www.biblegateway.com/, on The Blue Letter Bible site, http://www.blueletterbible.org/, and elsewhere. We encourage you to learn all of the Bible; please contact us if you need help reading it or if you do not have access to the Bible.
Core teachings of the Bible are given here:
- There is one true and eternal God, whom acts in three Persons, Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit but all of which are of the same divine essence and equal in the attributes of divinity. God is both loving and just.
(John 17:3; Deut. 6:4; Ps. 90:1-2; Matt. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 1 John 4:16; Deut. 32:4) - Evil is the absence of love and is in opposition to God's Law. Satan and his followers (including demons) exist. They are opposed to God and His followers (including righteous angels).
(1 John 3:4, 8; Mark 5:1-18; 2 Peter 2:4; Ps. 103:20-21; Rom. 8:38-39) - God created the universe in six days and it was good, not corrupt by evil. Both Heaven, a place where God dwells, and hell, a place of suffering, exist.
(Gen. 1; Isa. 66:1-2; Deut. 26:15; Matt. 10:28) - God created man and woman in His image and He gave them free will. By this free will we are able to experience love.
(Gen. 2) - We misused our free will to disobey God (we sinned). Since God is just, He will not allow sin to go unpunished.
(Gen. 3; Rom. 6:23) - We are separated from God because of our sin but God has a plan for our salvation. God revealed His will to us by giving His Law to the Israelites long ago. His plan for humanity was foretold by prophets.
(Isa. 53; Acts 7:2-53) - God the Father sent His Son Jesus, who became human by His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His birth by the virgin Mary. He was fully human while still being fully God. Jesus Christ fulfills the Law and the prophecies made in regard to Him.
(Col. 2:9-10; John 1:1-5, 14; Luke 1:34-35; Matt. 5:17) - Jesus lived a sinless life and He taught us how to live according to His will. He performed many miracles by His power during His ministry.
(1 Peter 2:21-25; John 2:23; Mark 1:29-31; John 5:1-18; Luke 14:1-6; John 11:38-44; Matt. 5-7) - Jesus voluntarily atoned for the sins of all people by dying on a cross as their substitute. He therefore satisfied divine justice and only by Him are we able to be saved from the condemnation that comes from our sin.
(Luke 23:26-49; John 3:16; John 10:14-18; John 14:6-7) - Jesus rose from the dead, for He has conquered death. He ascended into heaven and He now sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
(Luke 24; Rom. 5:6-11; Matt. 26:63-64) - Jesus commissioned His followers to tell the Gospel Message (contained in the Bible) to all people in all nations.
(Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15-16) - We are only saved by the grace of God though faith in Jesus. Good works do not earn salvation, salvation is a gift from God. Good works are a manifestation of our faith in Jesus Christ.
(Eph. 2:4-10; Rom. 5:15-17; John 14:6-7; James 2:14-26) - We must repent of our sin and we must be forgiving to those who have sinned against us to be saved. God will forgive those who sincerely repent, except for those who speak against the Holy Spirit.
(Matt. 6:14-15; Matt. 12:32; Acts 2:38-39) - Those who are saved are born again of the Holy Spirit. We should be baptized of both water and Spirit.
(John 3:1-8; Titus 3:4-8; 1 Cor. 12:3; Acts 2:38-39) - There is one Church, of which Jesus Christ is the Head. We each have been given gifts from God and we should use those gifts for His purposes.
(1 Cor. 12:7-31) - Jesus taught that we should regularly take part in a Communion meal of remembrance of His sacrifical death on a cross.
(1 Cor. 11:23-29; Matt. 26:26-28; John 6:35-58) - Those who stand firm in their faith in Jesus Christ can have certainty of their salvation.
(Mark 13:13; Rom. 8:28-30; John 10:27-28; Eph. 1:3-6) - Those who are descended of Adam, the first man who sinned, are sinful by nature. Sin can also be caused by our actions or failure to act. We must hate sin and Satan, but not the sinner.
(Rom. 5:12; Ps. 51:5; Rom. 8:7; Matt. 15:19; James 1:15; James 4:17; Rom. 12:9; Matt. 9:10-13) - We are to only pray to God and only worship Him.
(Prov. 15:29; Matt. 6:5-15; Rev. 19:9-10) - Although Satan is still able to attack this world, he and his followers will be thrown into the lake of burning sulfur at the end of this world.
(Rev. 20:7-10) - Jesus will return to this world and He will judge all people. Those who are saved will rise to life and will live in heaven with God forever. Those who do not accept God as their Lord and Savior will be given the just punishment for their sin: eternal suffering in hell.
(Rev. 20:12-15; 2 Tim. 4:1; 1 Cor. 15:51-52; 2 Cor. 5:4; John 17:3; Rom. 6:23)
- The 66 books of the Bible are God's Holy Word. The authors who wrote the Bible were inspired by God. The Bible is inerrant (without error).
(2 Tim. 3:16; Rom. 1:16; Luke 21:33; John 1:1-5) - The Bible is to be interpreted literally where the author has written it literally and interpreted figuratively where the author has written it figuratively. All figurative communication in the Bible represents truth in a metaphorical manner.
(John 16:25) - Teachings contrary to those of the Bible must be opposed in a non-violent manner. True unity and peace are brought about by actively standing against what is corrupt, not by agreement to ignore what is in contradiction to the Bible and even contradictory to itself.
(Matt. 26:52; Matt. 7:15; Gal. 5:22-26)