STATEMENT OF FAITH:

Of the Scriptures

We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men supernaturally inspired; that it is truth without any admixture of error for its matter; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the age, the only complete and final Revelation of God to man; the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.

1. By “the Holy Bible” we mean that collection of sixty-six books, from Genesis to Revelation, which as originally written and as found in the Authorized King James Version (A. V. 1611), does not only contain and convey the word of God, but IS the very word of God.
2. By “inspired” we mean that the books of the Holy Bible are the preserved words of holy men of old, spoken or written as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, in such a definite way that these writings are supernaturally and verbally inspired and preserved of God, and free from error, as no other writings have ever been or ever will be inspired and preserved.

 (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21)

Dispensationalism

We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life that define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Three of these dispensations—the law, the church, and the kingdom—are the subjects of detailed revelation in Scripture.

(Genesis 1:28; 1 Corinthians 9:17; 2 Corinthians 3:9–18; Galatians 3:13–25; Ephesians 1:10; 3:2–10; Colossians 1:24–25, 27; Revelation 20:2–6)

The Godhead.

We believe that there is one, and only one, living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit, the maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth; inexpressibly glorious in holiness and worthy of all possible honor, confidence, and love; that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption.

(Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 14:10; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; etc.)

The Person and Work of Christ.

1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men.

(Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1–2, 14; 2 Corinthians 5:19–21; Galatians 4:4–5; Philippians 2:5–8)

 2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead.

(Acts 2:18–36; Romans 3:24–25; Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 Peter 1:3–5)

 3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate.

(Acts 1:9–10; Romans 8:34; Hebrews 9:24; 7:25; 1 John 2:1–2)

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirt.

 1. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Holy Ghost and is a divine person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption.

(John 16:8–11; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:12– 14; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 1:13–14)

 2. We believe that He is the divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit.

(Ephesians 1:17–18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)

 3. We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the church to do the work of the ministry.

(Romans 12:3–8; 1 Corinthians 12:4–11, 28; Ephesians 4:7–12)

 4. We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit. Ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, although God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing.

(1 Corinthians 1:22; 13:8; 14:21–22)

The Personality of Satan.

We believe that Satan was once holy and enjoyed heavenly honors; but through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, fell, and drew after him a host of angels; that he is now the malignant prince of the power of the air, and the unholy god of this world. We hold him to be man’s great tempter, the enemy of God and his Christ, the accuser of the saints, the author of all false religions, the chief power behind the present apostasy; the lord of the antichrist, and the author of all the powers of darkness – destined however to final defeat at the hands of God’s own Son, and to the judgment of an eternal justice in hell, a place prepared for him and his angels.

(Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Job 1:6-7; Matthew 4:2-11; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:1-3; Revelation 20:10)

Creation

We believe in the Genesis account of creation, and that it is to be accepted literally, and not allegorically or figuratively; that man was created directly in God’s own image and after his own likeness; that man’s creation was not a matter of evolution or evolutionary change of species, or development through interminable periods of time from lower to higher forms; that all animal and vegetable life was made directly, and God’s established law was that they should bring forth only “after their kind.” We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin.

(Genesis 1:1-2; Exodus 20:11)

The Total Depravity of Man.

We believe that man was created in innocence under the law of his Maker, but by voluntary transgression fell from his sinless and happy state, in consequence of which all mankind are now sinners, not only by constraint, but of choice, and therefore under just condemnation without defense or excuse. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition.

(Genesis 1:26–27; Romans 3:22–23; 5:12; 6:23; Ephesians 2:1–3; 4:17–19)

Salvation 

We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable.

(Matthew 12:31–32; John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8–10; 1 Peter 1:18–19; 1 John 1:9)

The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers.

1. We believe that once a person is saved, he is kept by God’s power and remains secure in Christ forever.

(John 6:37–40; 10:27–30; Romans 8:1, 38–39; 1 Corinthians 1:4–8; 1 Peter 1:4–5)

2. We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh.

(Romans 13:13–14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11–15)

The Church.

1. We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again believers.

(1 Corinthians 12:12–14; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:22–23; 5:25–27)

2. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament.

(Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28–32; 1 Timothy 3:1–13; Titus 1:5–11)

3. We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or controls, and any affiliations, societies, organizations, associations, or agencies this church affiliates with to further the objectives stated in the Purpose Statement are not authoritative in matters of church practice or belief.

(Acts 13:1–4; 15:19–31; 20:28; Romans 16:1, 4; 1 Corinthians 3:9, 16; 5:4–7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1–4)

4. We believe that scriptural baptism is the immersion in water of a believer, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, performed with the authority of the local church, to show forth in a solemn and beautiful emblem our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, with its effect in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life; that it is a pre-requisite to the privileges of church membership and the Lord’s Supper; in which the members of the church, by the sacred use of bread and the fruit of the vine, are to commemorate together the Lord’s death and his promised return, preceded always by solemn self-examination. We believe that by baptism is a believer added to the church; that neither baptism or the Lord’s supper have any saving or redeeming grace but are commanded ordinances of Jesus Christ for the church only to fulfill.

(Matthew 28:19–20; Acts 2:41–42; 8:36–38; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26; Ephesians 2:8-10)

Separation 

We believe that believers should maintain a godly testimony and live in such a way that their lives do not bring reproach upon their Savior. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations, and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances. We stand against all worldly philosophies that seek to destroy or undermine the truth of Biblical Christianity.

(Leviticus 19:28; Romans 12:1–2; 14:13; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20; 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1–5; 1 John 2:15–17; 2 John 9–11)

The Second Coming of Christ.

We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ, Who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom, which was promised to the nation of Israel.

(Psalm 89:3–4; Daniel 2:31–45; Zechariah 14:4– 11; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 4:13–18; Titus 2:13; Revelation 3:10; 19:11–16; 20:1–6)

The Eternal State.

1. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment.

(Matthew 25:46; John 5:28–29; 11:25–26; Revelation 20:5–6, 12–13)

2. We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord.

(Luke 23:43; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17; Revelation 20:4-6)

3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment.

(Matthew 25:41–46; Mark 9:43–48; Luke 16:19–26; 2 Thessalonians 1:7–9; Jude 6–7; Revelation 20:11–15)

Civil Government.

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. We believe that we must obey the state unless it requires us to act contrary to our faith at which time we must obey God rather than the state.

(Matthew 22:15 22; Acts 5:29; Romans 13:1–7; Ephesians 5:22–24; Titus 3:1–2; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:13–14)

Sexual Immorality.

1. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between one naturally born man and one naturally born woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance.

(Genesis 2:24; Genesis 19:5, 13; Genesis 26:8–9; Leviticus 18:1–30; Romans 1: 26–29; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1–8; Hebrews 13:4)

2. We believe that the only Scriptural marriage is the joining of one naturally born man and one naturally born woman for life.

(Genesis 2:24; Romans 7:2; 1 Corinthians 7:10; Ephesians 5:22–23)

Family Relationships.

1. We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God, but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church.

(Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:8–15; 3:4–5, 12)

2. We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to the headship of Christ. Children are a heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values through consistent lifestyle examples and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction.

(Genesis 1:26–28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4–9; Psalm 127:3–5; Proverbs 19:18; 22:15; 23:13–14; Mark 10:6–12; 1 Corinthians 7:1–16; Ephesians 5:21–33; 6:1–4, Colossians 3:18–21; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1–7)

Divorce and Remarriage.

We believe that God hates divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Divorce and remarriage are regarded as adultery except on the grounds of fornication or abandonment.

(Malachi 2:14–17; Matthew 19:3–12; Romans 7:1–3; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)

Abortion 

We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the physical or mental well-being of the mother are acceptable.  

(Job 3:16; Psalm 51:5; Psalm 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; Isaiah 49:1,5; Jeremiah 1:5; Jeremiah 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)

Euthanasia

We believe that the direct taking of an innocent human life is a moral evil, regardless of the intention. Life is a gift of God and must be respected from conception until natural death. Thus, we believe that an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder contrary to the will of God. Discontinuing medical procedures that are extraordinary or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be a legitimate refusal of over-zealous treatment.

(Except in the case where a DNR is on their medical record)

(Exodus 20:13, 23:7; Matthew 5:21; Acts 17:28)

Love

We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward those who are not believers, those who oppose us, and those who engage in sinful actions. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions.

(Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 5:44–48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34–35; Romans 12:9–10; 17–21; 13:8–10; Philippians 2:2–4; 2 Timothy 2:24–26; Titus 3:2; 1 John 3:17–18)

Lawsuits Between Believers.

We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander.

(1 Corinthians 6:1–8; Ephesians 4:31–32; Matthew 18:15–17)

Missions

We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ, we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us.

(Matthew 28:19–20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46–48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:20)

Giving

We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to financially support his local church. We believe that God has established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of his tithe or offering once the gift has been made.

(Genesis 14:20; Proverbs 3:9–10; Acts 4:34–37; 1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 9:6–7; Galatians 6:6; Ephesians 4:28; 1 Timothy 5:17–18; 1 John 3:17)

Racial Nondiscrimination.

The church shall have a racially nondiscriminatory policy and therefore shall not discriminate against members, applicants, students, and others on the basis of race, color, or national or ethnic origin.