DOCTRINE OF THE SCRIPTURES
We believe that all the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament were verbally inspired of God, infallible and inerrant in the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and that they are our supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21)
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DOCTRINE OF GOD
- We believe that God is a sovereign, living, intelligent, rational being and that He has a plan for man and for the universe.
- We believe He has the authority, will, power and is actively engaged in carrying out that plan to its predetermined completion. (Genesis 18:25; Isaiah 57:15; Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 8:28-29)
- We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Deuteronomy 6:4-5; Matthew 3:16-17; 28:19-20; 1 Corinthians 8:6; 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 John 5:7)
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DOCTRINE OF CHRIST
- We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten by the Holy Spirit and born of Mary, a virgin, and is both fully God and fully man. (Matthew 1:18-20; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:1-2,14,18; 14:7-11; 20:28; Galatians 4:4-5)
- We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His ascension into heaven, and in His present work there as High Priest and Advocate. (1 Corinthians 15:1-20; John 20:24-29; Acts 1:10-11; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:3; 4:14-16; 7:25)
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DOCTRINE OF SALVATION
- We believe in the literal Genesis account of creation. We believe that man was created in the image of God, that he sinned and thereby incurred not only physical death but also spiritual death which is separation from God; that all human beings are born with a sinful nature; and therefore are sinners in thought, word, and deed. (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:23; 5:12)
- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who believe in Him are justified on the grounds of His shed blood. (1 corinthians 15:1-4; Romans 3:24; Hebrews 10:9-12)
- We believe that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ are born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby become the children of God. (John 1:12; 3:5; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
- We believe in this church age that the Holy Spirit indwells each and every believer from the moment he receives Jesus Christ as Savior. We believe this indwelling alone makes it possible to live a victorious Christian life through the power of God.
We believe the Spirit-filled life is to be the normal experience of every born-again Christian; and regardless of one's occupation or profession, he or she is filled with the Spirit when he is occupied with Jesus Christ and His Word for the purpose of reaching others for Christ. (John 14:15-18; 16:7-14; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Ephesians 5:18; 6:17; Hebrews 4:12)
- We believe in the "soul liberty" of every individual. Soul liberty is the implementation of the truth that "we must obey God rather than men." Every man must give answer to God individually; and therefore no other man and no church can act as his conscience now. He has the right to interpret the Scriptures for himself and the responsibility to answer to God for the way in which he does so. He has, as a believer, the Holy Spirit to guide and enable him apart from any other ministry of man or the church. (Romans 14:5; 1 Corinthians 2:9-14; 2 Timothy 2:15; 1 John 2:27)
- We believe in the priesthood of all believers, that all believers have immediate access into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, that we need no human agency to intercede for us before the throne of grace, and that Jesus Christ is our only mediator before God. (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 10:19; 13:15-16; 1 Peter 2:1-10)
- We believe in the "eternal security" of the believer; that it is impossible for one born into the family of God ever to be lost. (John 1:12; 10:27-28; Romans 6:1-23; Philippians 1:6; Hebrews 7:25)
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DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH
- We believe that the true church is the local manifestation of the body of Christ, of which He is the living head; and the regenerate believers, Jews and Gentiles, are the members. (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2; Ephesians 5:23-32; Colossians 3:11)
- We believe that the scriptural ordinances of the church are baptism (immersions) and the Lord's Supper; that baptism should be administered to believers only as a symbol of their belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and as a testimony to the world of that and of their death, burial and resurrection with him. We further believe that the Lord's Supper should be observed by baptized believers only, to show forth His death, until He returns. (Matthew 3:16; Acts 8:26-40; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 11:23-28; Colossians 2:12)
- We believe that the local church is a body of baptized believers, organized to meet together for the purpose of observing the ordinances and to carry out principles, precepts, and commission of Christ. (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:14-47; 14:23; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Timothy 3:15)
- We believe in the sovereignty and independence of the local church from any centralized power, whether from other churches, denominations, or the State. We believe in the separation of Church and State. We believe in obeying the "powers that be" of government, except where they violate the commands of God's Word. (Acts 5:29; 13:1-5; 15:19-31; Romans 13:1-7)
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DOCTRINE OF ESCHATOLOGY
- We believe in "that blessed hope", the personal, premillennial, pretribulational, and imminent return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ when the church will be "gathered together unto Him." (Acts 1:10-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:13)
- We believe in the literal fulfillment of prophecies and promises of the Scriptures, which foretell and assure the regeneration of Israel as a nation. (Ezekiel 37:11-14, 21-28; Romans 11:26-27)
- We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and unjust, the everlasting blessedness of the saved, and the everlasting punishment of the lost. (Daniel 12:2-3; John 5:21-29; 14:1-6; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:4-6, 11-15; 21:8)
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