I believe in the verbal and plenary inspiration of the Holy Bible. The scriptures consist of the 66 books of the Old Testament and the New Testament and were composed as men were moved and controlled by the Holy Spirit. The original manuscripts are truth without error, and are therefore inerrant and infallible in faith, doctrine, and all other matters of which they speak.
I believe that God has providentially preserved for us an accurate and authoritative record of the text. The Bible is the true center of Christian unity and the only rule of which human conduct, creeds, and opinion will be tried. (Jn. 16:13; 1 Cor. 2:10-14; 14:37; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
I believe the scriptures must be interpreted in literally, grammatically, contextually, historically and by comparing scripture with scripture. The Holy Spirit's ministry of illumination is essential to properly understanding the written Word. Furthermore, I believe that the word of God is living and active, capable of judging the heart and mind, bringing conviction and change, and revealing the entire man before our living God. (1 Cor. 2:10-14; 1 Jn. 2:20; Heb. 4:12-13)
I believe that God has providentially preserved for us an accurate and authoritative record of the text. The Bible is the true center of Christian unity and the only rule of which human conduct, creeds, and opinion will be tried. (Jn. 16:13; 1 Cor. 2:10-14; 14:37; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
I believe the scriptures must be interpreted in literally, grammatically, contextually, historically and by comparing scripture with scripture. The Holy Spirit's ministry of illumination is essential to properly understanding the written Word. Furthermore, I believe that the word of God is living and active, capable of judging the heart and mind, bringing conviction and change, and revealing the entire man before our living God. (1 Cor. 2:10-14; 1 Jn. 2:20; Heb. 4:12-13)
I believe that there is one and only one living and true God, the infinite, uncaused, and necessary Spirit, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, worthy of all possible honor, confidence and love.
I believe God to be perfect in essence, possessing distinguishable attributes such as life, immutability , sovereignty, infinity, omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence, holiness, love, and truth. (Dt. 6:4; 2 Cor. 8:6; Jn. 17:3; Rev. 4:11; Jn 4:24; 1 Kings 8:27; Js. 1:17; Ps. 135:6; Ps. 139; Jer. 23:23; Rev. 19:6; Is. 6:3; Dt. 32:4; Gen 18:25; 1 Jn. 4:8; Ex. 34:6)
I believe there are within the unity of the God-head, three co-equal and co-eternal persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one is essence and each possessing the same attributes of deity. (Mt. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4, Jn. 1:1, 8:58)
I believe the Holy Spirit is a divine person, equal in every way with God the Father and God the Son. The Spirit was active in creation and is the preserver of the universe. In relation to the unbelieving world, he restrains the evil one until God's purposes are fulfilled, and He reproves of sin, righteousness, and judgment. In relation to believers, He is the agent of new birth, regeneration, baptizing, indwelling, sealing, sanctifying, filling, and illumination. The spirit is the giver of gifts, both the church universally (Eph. 3:11-12) and to believers individually (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Cor. 12). The Holy Spirit is the Author and Interpreter of the written Word, and gave the early church revelatory gifts as were necessary (apostles, prophecy, tongues, miracles, healing) until the perfect revelation of the God's Word was come. In relation to Christ, the Spirit ministered in his conception and empowered him for his earthly ministry and mission. (Gen. 1:2; Acts 5:3-4; Ps. 104:10-14, 30; Jn. 16:8; 14:16; Titus 3:5; Jn. 3:5; Gal 3:27-28; 1 Cor. 12:13; Rom. 8:9-11; Eph. 1:13; 4:30; Rom 15:16; Eph. 5:18; 2 Cor. 1:21-22; 1 Jn. 1:20; 1 Cor. 12:11; 2 Pt. 1:21-22; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 1 Cor. 12-14; Lk 1:35; Acts. 10:38; Heb 9:14)
I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that is God the Son. I believe in the virgin birth of Christ, through which the eternal Second person of the Godhead incarnated Himself in human flesh, at once fully God and fully man in one person. I believe Christ humbled himself by taking upon the form of a servant and veiling the expression of his pre-incarnate glory. I believe that the impeccable person of Jesus Christ came to save his people from their sins, and become the Lamb of God who, through the shedding of his blood on Calvary, takes away the sin of the world, that he died, was buried, and rose again on the third day from the grave and ascended to the right hand of God the Father in Heaven where He lives today interceding on our behalf. I believe that Christ's death is sufficient to save every man from their sin should God had chosen to do so; I believe that His sacrifice was the actual vicarious substitution for those whom He chose before the foundation of the world; I also believe that this in no way limits the power or sufficiency of his sacrifice. This substitutionary sacrifice made full and complete satisfaction to God for their sins and perfectly secured the salvation of the redeemed by grace through faith in Him. This faith is a direct result of God's choice, not the cause of God's choice, and is produced by the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Word of God. I believe in the imminent, personal, pre-millennial, pre-tribulational, return of Jesus Christ to rapture all the saints who are the Bride of Christ. I believe in the post-tribulational return of Christ with His saints when He shall come in glory to establish the millennial kingdom and to ascend to the throne of David to reign for one thousand years upon the earth. (Mt. 16:16-17; Jn. 1:1-5; Jn. 8:58; Col. 1:15-19; Mt. 1:18-25; Jn. 1:14; 1 Tim. 2:5; Phil. 2:5-8; Jn. 17:5; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15; Mt. 1:21; Lk. 19:10; Jn. 1:29; Eph. 1:7; 1 Pt. 1:19; 3:18; Titus 2:14; 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Lk 24:37-39; Rm. 8:34; Rom. 5:10; 8:32-34; 1 Pt. 2:24; 1 Th. 4:16-17; 1 Th. 1:10; 5:9; Rev. 19:11-16)
I believe that man was created on the sixth day from the dust of the ground without any evolutionary processes. Man was created in the image of God, possessing all of the elements of personality in perfect righteousness and holiness. Man was created for the purpose of giving worship and honor to God. (Ex. 20:3-4; Jn. 4:24; Rm. 12:1-2; Ph. 2:1-11) By disobeying God's command, Adam fell from his perfect created state and became a sinner by choice, condemned to spiritual and physical death. As a result of Adam's sin, all mankind are sinners at birth, totally depraved, spiritually dead, possessing neither the ability nor inclination to seek God, and being sinful by nature and by choice are condemned to Hell prepared for Satan and his angels. (Gen. 1:27; 2:7; Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10; Gen. 3; Rom.5; Ps. 51:5; Rom. 1:19-32; 3:10-12; Eph. 2:1-10; 1 Cor. 12:3; Rev. 20:10)
I believe that sin is anything contrary to the character of God. It is a failure to meet the standard of holiness and godliness. It is a perversion of God's truth and a departure from it. It is disobedience to His commands and a transgression of his righteousness and a rebellion against his character and person. Within His decree, God is not the originator of sin nor capable of committing sin. Sin entered through Satan and into the human race through the disobedience of Adam. All men are sinners by nature and by birth. Unless delivered by the new birth that Jesus Christ shed his blood and died for, mankind is under the penalty and power of sin. The penalty for sin is death and eternal separation from God, and the eternal torment of Hell. (Ecc. 7:20; Rm. 3:23; 6:23; Jer. 3:25; Rom. 5:12; 6:23; 7:14; Js. 1:13; 4:17; 1 Jn. 3:4; Matt. 5:22,29; 23:33; Rev. 20:11-15)
I believe that salvation is only by the grace of God through personal faith in Jesus Christ and the blood He shed on Calvary's cross to cleanse us from our sins. (Jn. 1:12; Rm. 3:20; 5:12-21; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10). I believe that all men are totally depraved without any ability or inclination to come to God, but God in His grace and apart from any human consideration of for-seen merit or response, chose some before the foundation of the world to be recipients of His grace in Christ. As the gospel is preached (we are commanded as His children to plant the seed of God's word into the hearts of unsaved men), the elect are caused to hear it and the Holy Spirit causes them to believe and accept, freely, the gift of forgiveness and redemption offered through Jesus Christ and they accept the Him as their personal Lord and Savior; thus becoming children of God. (Jn. 6:44; Acts 13:48; Rm. 8:29-30; 10:13; Eph. 1:4-6; 2:1-10) I believe the Holy Spirit regenerates, imparting spiritual life and the fruits of faith and repentance in an instantaneous work, uniting the believer with Christ and the benefits of His propitiation, being justified, adopted, and given eternal life. (Jn. 3:5; Titus 3:5; Eph. 2:1-5; 1 Pt. 1:23; Js. 1:18; Jn. 14:20; Rm 3:25; 8:1; 1 Cor. 1:30; Rm 8:14-17; Gal 4:5; Rm. 6:23) I believe the Holy Spirit positionally sanctifies every believer at the point of regeneration, removing him from Satan's family and dominion and the penalty of sin, and placing him in the family of God. The Spirit continues to sanctify believers throughout their lives and ministry freeing them from the power and influence of sin and of the old nature. He works to conform believers into the image of Christ until we reach Heaven and receive our glorified bodies in the presence of God and be totally free from the presence of sin. (1 Cor. 1:1-2; 6:11; 1 Pt. 1:2; Rm. 8:1; 2 Cor. 3:18; 1 Th. 5:23; 1 Jn. 3:2; 1 Cor. 15:42-28) I believe that all those who are truly born again are secure eternally, preserved and protected by God the Father through the ministry and power of the Holy Spirit. (Jn. 10:28-29; Rm. 8:35-39; Eph. 4:30; 1 Pt. 1:3-5; Jude 1)
I believe the New Testament reveals the church in two distinct ways; the universal church and the local church. The universal church is all believers from the beginning of the church at Pentecost until the rapture. This church is the bride of Christ, a mystery in the Old Testament, and based on the baptizing ministry of the Holy Spirit, unique to this dispensation. The local church is a gathering of believers in a certain place who meet together to worship God is spirit and in truth. The local church consists of two offices (pastors and deacons), is independent of polity, engages in edification, worship, and observations of the ordinances (baptism and the Lord's supper), and the spread of the gospel. I believe that the church is to be governed by congregational rule. The Bible demands believers separate from worldly institutions, apostasy, and brothers walking in disorder. (Jn. 4:23-24; 1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:22-23; 3:1-6; Lk. 3:16; Mt. 16:18; Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-5; 41-47; 8:12; 10:48; Mt. 28:19; 1 Cor. 1:2; 11:23-24; 2 Cor. 6:14-18; Eph. 5:11; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11; Acts. 20:24-29; Rm. 16:17; 2 Th. 3:6) I believe that the bible teaches what has become known as the Baptist Distinctives in theological jargon of the day. The Baptist Distinctives include: Born again, baptized church membership, Autonomy of the local church, Priesthood of all believers, Ordinances (baptism by immersion which signifies our commitment to following Jesus and represents His death, burial, and resurrection on our behalf and the Lord's supper which is a solemn reminder to us of His sacrifice and allows for a time of solemn self-examination before the Lord.), Individual soul liberty, the separation of church and state, and the to church offices of pastor and deacon. (Acts. 2:37-47; Rm. 6:1-4; Mt 18:15-17; Acts :1-7; 13:1-4; 1 Pt. 2:5-9; Acts 20:7; 1 Co. 11:2; 17-26)
I believe in the existence of angels (created beings in spirit essence in holiness from which state some have fallen and now serve Satan) that have different functions, positions, and roles and are in countless numbers. They do not marry. They are servants of God and messengers for Him. They ministered at the birth, temptation, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They are now God's servants to minister to believers who will judge them one day. (Heb. 1:4; 1 Pt. 1:12; Lk. 2:13; Neh. 9:6; Jn. 1:3; Ez. 28:15; Mt. 25:31; Jude 6; Is. 6:1-3; Dan. 12:1; Mt. 22:30; Ps. 103:20; Job 38:4; Lk. 1:26-33; Mk. 4:11; Mt. 28:2,6; Ps. 91:11; 1 Cor. 6:3)
I believe in the personal existence of the devil, Satan, who as the angel, Lucifer, was created holy and perfect but through pride fell into sin and drew a multitude of angels with him. He is now the prince of the power of the air and controller of this world. He is the tempter and accuser of the saints, the chief of the rulers of darkness. I believe in the personal existence of demons, who with Satan, are judged to the eternal torment of the
I believe in the imminent, personal, pre-tribulational, pre-millennial return of Christ in the air to rapture His bride, the church, who in glorified bodies will appear before the Judgement seat of Christ to receive reward for service and will then participate in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. (1 Cor. 15:42-53; 1 Th. 1:10; 4:13-18; 5:9; 1 Cor. 3:9-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 9:7-8)
Following the rapture, the seventieth week of Daniel's prophesy concerning
