What I Believe

The following statements accurately reflect our understanding of the Bible.  If you have questions about a particular section, please let me know. 

God

There is one living and true God, the creator of the universe (Exodus 15:11; Isaiah 45:11; Jeremiah 27:5). He is revealed in the unity of the Godhead as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, who are equal in every divine perfection (Exodus 15:11; Matthew 28:19; II Corinthians 13:14).

God the Father - the supreme ruler of the universe. He providentially directs the affairs of history according to the purposes of His grace (Genesis 1; Psalm 19:1; 104; Hebrews 1:13).

God the Son - the Savior of the world. Born of the virgin Mary (Matthew 1:18; Luke 1:26-35). He declared His deity among men (John 1:14, 18; Matthew 9:6), died on the cross as the only sacrifice for sin (Philippians 2:6-11), arose bodily from the grave (Luke 24:6, 7, 24-26; I Corinthians 15:3-6), and ascended back to the Father (Acts 1:9-11; Mark 16:19). He is at the right hand of the Father, interceding for believers (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25) until He returns to rapture them from the world (Acts 1:11; I Thessalonians 4:16-18).

God the Holy Spirit - the manifest presence of deity. He convicts of sin (John 16:8-11), teaches spiritual truths according to the written Word (John 16:12-15), permanently indwells believers (Acts 5:32; John 14:16, 17, 20, 23), and confers on every believer at conversion the ability to render effective spiritual service (I Peter 4:10, 11).

The Scriptures

The Scriptures are God's inerrant revelation, complete in the Old and New Testaments, written by divinely inspired men as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:21). Those men wrote not in the words of human wisdom, but in words taught by the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 2:13).

The Scriptures provide the standard for the believer's faith and practice (II Timothy 3:16, 17), reveal the principles by which God will judge all (Hebrews 4:12; John 12:48), and express the true basis of Christian fellowship (Galatians 1:8, 9: II John 9-11).

Creation

The World - God created all things for His own pleasure and glory, as revealed in the Biblical account of creation (Genesis chapter 1; Revelation 4:11; John 1:2, 3; Colossians 1:16).

The Angels - God created an innumerable host of spirit beings called angels. Holy angels worship God and execute His will; while fallen angels serve Satan, seeking to hinder God's purposes (Colossians 1:16; Luke 20:35, 36; Matthew 22:29, 30; Psalm 103:20; Jude 1:6).

Man - God created man in His own image. As the crowning work of creation, every person is of dignity and worth and merits the respect of all person (Psalm 8; Genesis 1:27; 2:7; Matthew 10:28-31).

Satan

Satan is a person rather than a personification of evil (John 8:44), and he with his demons, opposes all that is true and godly by blinding the world to the gospel (II Corinthians 4:3, 4), tempting saints to do evil (Ephesians 6:11' I Peter 5:8), and warring against the Sons of God (Genesis 3:15; Revelation 20:1-10).

Depravity

Although man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26, 2:17), he fell through sin and that image was marred (Romans 5:12, James 3:9). In his unregenerate state, he is void of spiritual life, is under the influence of the devil, and lacks any power to save himself (Ephesians 2:1-3; John 1:13). The sin nature has been transmitted to every member of the human race, the man Jesus Christ alone being excepted (Romans 3:23, I Peter 2:22). Because of the sin nature, man possesses no divine life and is essentially and unchangeable depraved apart from divine grace (Romans 3:10-19; Jeremiah 17:9).

Salvation

The Meaning of Salvation - Salvation is the gracious work of God whereby He delivers undeserving sinners from sin and its results (Matthews 1:21, Ephesians 2:8, 9). In justification, He declares righteous all who put faith in Christ as Savior (Romans 3:20-22), giving them freedom from condemnation, peace with God, and full assurance of future glorification (Romans 3:24-26).

The Way of Salvation - Salvation is based wholly on the grace of God apart from works (Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:9). Anyone who will exercise repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will be saved (Acts 16:30-32; Luke 24:47; Romans 10:17).

The Provision of Salvation - Christ died for the sins of the whole world (John 1:29; 3:16; I John 2:1, 2). Through His blood, atonement is made without respect of persons (I Timothy 2:4-6). All sinners can be saved by this gracious provision (Hebrews 2:9; John 3:18).

The Purpose of Salvation - God's sovereignty and man's freedom are two inseparable factors in the salvation experience (Ephesians 2:4-6). The two Bible truths are in no way contradictory, but they are amazingly complementary in the great salvation so freely provided. God in His sovereignty purposed, planned, and executed salvation in eternity while a man's freedom enables him to make a personal choice of time, either to receive his salvation and be saved, or to reject it and be damned (Ephesians 1:9-12; 1:13, 14; John 1:12, 13).

Sanctification

All believers are set apart until God (Hebrews 10:12-14) at the time of their regeneration (I Corinthians 6:11). They should grow in grace (II Peter 1:5-8) by allowing the Holy Spirit to apply God's Word to their lives (I Peter 2:2), conforming them to the principles of divine righteousness (Romans 12:1, 2; I Thessalonians 4:3-7) and making them partakers of the holiness of God (II Corinthians 7:1; I Peter 1:15, 16).

Security

All believers are eternally secure in Jesus Christ (John 10:24-30; Romans 3:35-39). They are born again (John 3:3-5; I John 5:1; I Peter 1:23), made new creatures in Christ (II Corinthians 5:17, II Peter 1:4), and indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:28; I Corinthians 10:13), and they are kept by the power of God (Philippians 1:6; 2:12, 13; I peter 1:3-5; Hebrews 13:5).

Church

The Nature of the Church - A New Testament church is a local congregation (Acts 16:5; I Corinthians 4:7) of baptized believers in Jesus Christ (Acts 2:41) who are united by covenant in belief of what God has revealed and in obedience to what He has commanded (Act 2:31, 42).

The Autonomy of the Church - She acknowledges Jesus as her only Head (Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:18) and the Holy Bible as her only rule of faith and practice (Isaiah 8:20; II Timothy 3:16, 17), governing herself by democratic principles (Acts 6:1-6; I Corinthians 5:1-5) under the oversight of her pastors (Acts 20:28; Hebrews 13:17, 24).

The Perpetuity of the Church - Instituted by Jesus during His personal ministry on earth (Matthew 16:18; Mark 3:13-19; John 1:35-51), true churches have continued to the present and will continue until Jesus returns (Matthew 16:18; 28:20).

The Ordinances of the Church - Her two ordinances are baptism and the Lord's Supper. Baptism is the immersion in water of a believer as a confession of his faith in Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:4) and is prerequisite to church membership and participating in the Lord's Supper (Acts 2:41, 42). The Lord's Supper is the sacred sharing of the bread of communion and the cup of blessing by the assembled church (Acts 20:7) as a memorial to the crucified body and shed blood of Jesus Christ (Luke 22:19, 20; I Corinthians 11:23-26). Both ordinances must be administered by the authority of a New Testament church (Matthew 28:18-20; I Corinthians 11:23-26).

The Officers of the Church - Pastors and deacons are the permanent officers divinely ordained in a New Testament church (Philippians 1;1). Each church may select men of her choice to fill those offices under the leading of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:1-6; 20:17, 18) according to the divinely given qualifications (I Timothy 3:1-13).

Pastors - (including elders and bishops) are authorized to oversee and teach the churches under the Lordship of Jesus Christ (Acts 20:28; Hebrews 13:7, 17, 24; I Peter 5:1-4)i. Each church is responsible to follow them as they follow Christ (I Corinthians 11:1; I Thessalonians 1:6; Hebrews 13:17) and to provide a livelihood for them that they might fulfill their ministries (I Timothy 5:17, 18; Philippians 4:15-18). Pastors are equal in the service of God (Matthew 23:8-12).

Deacons - (including ministers and servants) are servants of the churches and assistants to the pastors, particularly in benevolent ministries. Each church may select her own deacons according to her needs, and no church is bound by the act of another church in that selection (Acts 6:1-6).

The Ministry of the Church - Her mission is evangelizing sinners by preaching the gospel (Matthew 28:19; Luke 24:45-47), baptizing those who believe (Acts 2:41; 8-12, 35-38), and maturing them by instruction (Matthew 28:20; Acts 2:42) and discipline (Matthew 18:17, 18; I Corinthians 5:1-5).

The Fellowship of the Church - She is free to associate with true churches in furthering the faith (II Corinthians 11:8; Philippians 4:10, 15, 16) but is responsible to keep herself from those who hold doctrines or practices contrary to Holy Scripture (Galatians 1:8, 19; I John 2:19). In association with other churches, each church is equal and is the sold judge of the measure and method of her cooperation (Matthew 20:25-28). In all matters of polity and practice, the will of each church ins final (Matthew 18:18).

Civil Authority

Human government was instituted by God to protect the innocent and punish the guilty. It is separate from the church, though both church and state exercise complementary ministries for the benefit of society (Matthew 22:21).

Christians should submit to the authority of the government under which they live, obeying all laws that do not contradict the laws of God, respecting officers of government, paying taxes, rendering military service, and praying for the welfare of the nation and its leaders (Romans 13:1-7; I Peter 2:13, 17; I Timothy 2:1, 2). They should vote, hold office, and exercise influence to direct the nation after the principles of Holy Scripture.

Civil authority is not to interfere in matters of conscience or disturb the institutions of religion (Acts 4:18-20), but it should preserve for every citizen the free exercise of his religious convictions.

Churches should receive no subsidy from the government, but they should be exempt from taxation on property and money used for the common good through worship, education of benevolence.

Last Things

Return - Our risen Lord will return personally in bodily form to receive His redeemed unto Himself. His return is imminent (I Thessalonians 4:13-17; Revelation 22:20).

Resurrections - After Jesus returns, all of the dead will be raised bodily, each in his own order: the righteous dead in "the resurrection of life: at Christ's coming and the wicked dead in the "resurrection of damnation" (John 5:24-19; I Corinthians 15:20-28).

Judgments - Prior to the eternal state, God will judge everyone to confer rewards or to consign to punishment (Matthew 24:31-46; II Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:11-5).

Eternal States - Heaven is the eternal home of the redeemed (John 14:1-3), who, in their glorified bodies (I Corinthians 15:51-58), will lie in the presence of God forever (I Thessalonians 4:17) in ultimate blessing (Revelation chapters 21, 22).

Hell is the place of eternal punishment and suffering (Luke 16:19-31) for the devil, his angels (Matthew 25:41), and the unredeemed (Revelation 20:10-15).

We believe in the pre-millennial return of Christ to earth, after which He shall reign in peace upon the earth for a thousand years (Revelation 20:4-6).

We believe the Scriptures to teach two resurrections: the first of the righteous at Christ's coming; the second of the wicked at the close of the thousand year reign (I Thessalonians 4:13-17; Revelation 20:6, 12-15).