ARTICLES OF FAITH

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SCRIPTURE

We believe that the 66 books of the Bible were given by God through verbal, plenary inspiration to human authors as God’s complete and inerrant revelation to mankind. Therefore the Bible comprises the only authoritative and infallible rule for salvation and a life pleasing to God, and is an entirely accurate and sufficient communication of God to mankind, and is the measure against which all men will be judged on the last day.

John 12:48 | John 12:17 | 2 Tim 3:16-17 | 2 Pet 1:19-21 | Rev 22:18-19

GOD

There is but one living and true God, an infinite, all-knowing Spirit, perfect in all His attributes, One in essence, eternally existing in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each equally deserving worship and obedience. God is sovereign in all His works, from initial creation to salvation of mankind to final judgment.

Gen 1:1 | Deut 6:4 | Psa 103:19 | Matt 28:19 | Rom 11:33-36

JESUS

Jesus Christ is the unique and eternal Son of God who willingly took on humanity, was born supernaturally of the virgin, lived a sinless life, taught God’s truth, performed miracles, and then was rejected by men, physically crucified, buried for three days, and bodily resurrected to provide the only means of salvation for mankind. Forty days after His resurrection He ascended to heaven as universal Sovereign, the Head of the Church, and the only Mediator between God and man. His return to the earth to judge mankind and physically rule as King is imminent.

Gal 4:4 | Heb 1:1-3 | Eph 1:20-23 | Phil 2:5-11 | Matt 1:1, 18-25 | Luke 5:20-26 | Luke 24:19-24, 46-48 | 1 Cor 15:3-4 | Acts 1:3, 9 | Eph 1:20-23 | 1 Tim 2:5 | Luke 1:31-33 | Rev 22:12

THE HOLY SPIRIT

God Himself is personally at work through the Holy Spirit convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, regenerating and transforming believers into the image of Christ, directing the lives of individual believers as He personally indwells them, and guiding the Church through the sovereign bestowal of spiritual gifts to all believers.

John 16:7-11 | Eph 1:13-14 | Rom 8:5-17 | 1 Cor 12:4-11

MAN

Man was directly created in the image and likeness of God to glorify Him, enjoy His fellowship forever, dependently live in obedience to Him, and thereby accomplish the purpose for which he was created.

Gen 2:7 | Gen 2:15-25 | Isa 43:7 | Col 1:16 | Rev 4:11

SIN

The first man, Adam, disobeyed God by acting independently of His revealed will, bringing the condemnation of physical, spiritual, and eternal death upon all mankind. Man’s very nature was corrupted, making each person totally unable to please God or escape His wrath, except by divine intervention.

Gen 3:1-24 | Mark 7:20-23 | John 3:1-21 | Rom 3:9-23 | Rom 5:12-21 | 1 Cor 15:20-21 |  Heb 11:6

MEANS OF SALVATION

Because of God’s great mercy, He graciously saves individuals apart from human works or merit, solely on the basis of Jesus Christ’s death on their behalf. God bestows this gift of salvation on all those whom He has chosen from before the foundation of the world to humbly respond to the gospel message by repenting of their sins, placing their faith totally and solely in Jesus Christ, and acknowledging Him as Lord.

Psa 103:8-14 | John 6:40 | Acts 16:31 | Rom 2:4 | Rom 10:9-10 | 2 Cor 5:14-19 |  Eph 1:3-12 | 1 Jn 1:9-2:2

RESULT OF SALVATION

At the moment of salvation, God puts him in a right standing with God by transferring the sinner’s guilt to Christ and Christ’s righteousness to the sinner, and sends the Holy Spirit to permanently indwell the new believer, empowering him to fulfill his duty to live a life of increasing righteousness and decreasing sin as he yields to the Spirit’s control.

Isa 53:4-6 | Rom 8:5-17 | Rom 8:28-34 |  2 Co 5:21 | Gal 5:16 | Eph 2:4-10 | Col 1:13-14

SECURITY IN SALVATION

Because salvation is wholly a work of God, it is the privilege of every believer to be able to trust in the eternal security of his salvation, and know with certainty the reality of that salvation by the combination of three things – the objective testimony of Scripture, the supernatural testimony of the Spirit, and the increasing fruit of righteousness observed in one’s own life.

John 5:24 | John 6:37-40 | John 10:27-30 | John 15:1-11 | Rom 8:1, 16 | 1 Pet 1:3-5 | 1 Jn 2:3 | 1 Jn 5:9-13

RESURRECTION

God will finally culminate His work of salvation on the last day as the physical body of each believer (dead and alive) will be raised and transformed into an incorruptible body fit for heaven, and all believers will live forever in the presence and glory of God Almighty.

Rom 8:17 | 1 Cor 15:50-52 | Phil 3:20-21 |  1 Jn 3:2-3

THE CHURCH – Universal and Local

The Church consists of all who place their faith in Jesus Christ, being immediately baptized by the Holy Spirit into one united spiritual Body of which Christ is the head. This universal Church is established and propagated through the agency of local churches, and all the members of this one spiritual Body are directed to associate themselves together in various local assemblies that conform to Scripture.

Acts 14:21-27 | 1 Cor 12:12-13 | Phil 1:1 | Col 1:18 |  Heb 10:23-25

UNIQUENESS

The Church is a unique spiritual organism originated by Christ through His apostles under the guidance of the Holy Spirit as God’s means of managing His affairs with mankind in this present age, and in this is distinct from Israel, a mystery not revealed until this age.

Rom 11:25-32 | 1 Cor 10:32 | Eph 2:11-3:6 | Eph 5:32

PURPOSE

The primary purpose of the church is to glorify God by gathering corporately for worship of God, by building itself up in the faith, by making disciples through the proclamation of the gospel and the Word, by fellowship with one another, and by keeping the ordinances.

Eph 3:21 | Eph 4:13-16 | Matt 28:19 | 2 Tim 3:16-4:2 | Acts 2:47 | 1 Jn 1:3 | Acts 2:38-42 | 1 Cor 11:23-26

LEADERSHIP

The Holy Spirit leads the church objectively through the Scriptures, humanly through qualified elders and deacons, and supernaturally by the personal indwelling and granting of unique spiritual gifts to each believer.

John 16:12-15 | 1 Tim 3:1-15 | 1 Cor 12:4-7

CHRIST’S RETURN

The personal, bodily return of the Lord Jesus is imminent, in which He will remove His Church from the earth, pour out righteous judgments upon an unbelieving world, and come in glory with His saints to rule on the throne of David.

1 Th 4:13-8 | 1 Th 5:9-11 | Rev 6-9 | Rev 16 | Rev 19 | Rev 20:1-6 | Ezek 37:21-28

FINAL JUDGMENT

Jesus Christ will resurrect and judge the unsaved dead, and they will be committed to eternal, conscious punishment in the lake of fire.

Matt 25:41 | Rom 14:10-12 | Rev 20:11-15

OUR ETERNAL STATE

Ultimately, God will destroy the present heavens and earth and will make a new heaven and a new earth in which all the people of God will dwell gloriously in His presence for eternity.

2 Pet 3:10 |  Rev 21-22