Statement of Faith

1. The Word of God: We believe that the Bible is the Word of God (Luke 24:44,45), fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts (2 Timothy 3:16,17), written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21), and that it has supreme authority in all matter of faith and conduct (Isaiah 8:20).

2. The Trinity: We believe that there is one living and true God -- and only one -- eternally existing in three persons (Isaiah 48:16), Father (Genesis 1:1), Son (John 1:1-14), and Holy Spirit (John 14:26); and that these are equal in ever divine perfection (Matthew 3:16,17; 2 Corinthians 13:14); and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation (Genesis 1:26), providence (John 14:13) and redemption (Titus 3:4).

3. God the Father: We believe in God the Father, an infinite personal Spirit (John 4:24); perfect in holiness (Isaiah 6:3), wisdom (James 1:5), power (Jeremiah 32:17), and love (1 John 4:5,16). We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of people (2 Corinthians 1:3,4), that He hears and answers prayer (Jeremiah 33:3), and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ (Hebrews 7:25).

4. Jesus Christ, God the Son: We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten son (John 3:16) who was conceived by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:20). We believe in His existence, His virgin birth (Matthew 1:23), His sinless life (1 Peter 2:22; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 3:2); His miracles and teachings (John 3:2); His bodily resurrection (Luke 24:46); His ascension into heaven (Luke 24:51); His perpetual intercession for His people (Hebrews 7:25); His return in the air to meet His raptured saints and His personal visible return to earth (John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Hebrews 9:26; 1 John 3:33).

5. The Holy Spirit, God the Spirit: We believe in the eternally existent Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16:8); and to regenerate (John 3:5,6), sanctify (2 Thessalonians 2:13), and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8). We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ (Romans 8:11), and that He is an abiding helper (Romans 8:26), teacher (John 14:26), and guide (John 16:23).

6. Regeneration: We believe that all men are sinners by nature (Romans 3:23) and by choice and are, therefore, under condemnation (John 3:19). We believe that those who repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior are regenerated by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The human means by which this result is secured is repentance and faith (Acts 20:21), whereby we turn unto God in sincere contrition and accept Jesus Christ as an all-sufficient Savior (Hebrews 7:25).

7. The Church: We believe the spiritual church to be a living body of which Christ is the Head (Colossians 1:18) and all regenerated persons are members (Ephesians 2:19,21). We believe the local church consists of a company of professing believers in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27), baptized on a credible profession of faith (Romans 10:9,10), and associated for worship (John 4:24), work (Acts 1:8), and fellowship (Philippians 1:4,5). We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of giving the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world (Matthew 28:18-20).

8. The Ordinances: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church - Baptism (Matthew 3:13-17) and the Lord's Supper (Matthew 26:26-29). We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water (Acts 8:36-39) into the Name of the triune God (Matthew 28:19,20) and symbolizes the fact of regeneration (Romans 6:3,4). We believe that the Lord's Supper was initiated by Christ for commemoration of and reflection upon His death in our behalf and symbolizes that the believer is spiritually fed and nourished in Christ (Luke 22:17-20; John 6:53-56). We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 11:23-29).

9. The Last Things: We believe in the rapture of the saints to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth (Acts 1:11) and the establishment of His kingdom (1 Corinthians 15:24-28). We believe in the resurrection of the body (1 Corinthians 15:15,52). We believe in the judgment of the saints before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10), the final great white throne judgment of the unbelieving dead (Revelation 20:11-15), the eternal joy of the righteous (John 14:1-3), and the endless suffering of the wicked (Mark 9:44,46,48).

10. Christian Conduct: We believe that Christians should live for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) and for the well-being of fellow Christians (Ephesians 4:32), that their conduct should be blameless before the world (Philippians 2:13-15), should be a faithful steward of their possessions (1 Peter 4:10; 2 Corinthians 9:7), and should seek to realize for themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ (Ephesians 4:13; 2 Corinthians 6:17,18).

11. Religious Liberty: We believe that every human being has direct relations with God, and is responsible to God alone in all matters of faith (John 3:36); that each church should be independent and must be free from interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority (Acts 5:29); that, therefore, Church and State must be kept separate as having different functions, each fulfilling its duties free from dictation or patronage of the other (Matthew 22:21). Civil government is of divine appointment for the interests and good order of human society (Romans 13:1-7); and magistrates are to be prayed for (1 Timothy 2:1,2), conscientiously honored and obeyed (1 Peter 2:13-17), except in things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 4:18-20).

12. The Lord's Day in the Church: New Testament study shows that the first day of the week is to be observed as a day of praise and worship (Acts 20:7) and stewardship in the church (1 Corinthians 16:1,2). An obligation is placed upon believers in regard to the faithful assembling of themselves together on this day (Hebrews 10:25). When met for worship on the Lord's Day, the believer may also exercise the privilege of Christian stewardship (Malachi 3:10). The Lord's Day is primarily a day of joyous worship and praise in commemoration of the resurrection triumph of our Savior (Mark 16:9).

13. Eternal Salvation: Nothing can separate true believers from the love of God (Romans 8:35-39). But they are kept by the power of God through Faith unto salvation (1 Peter 1:5), the sure proof (Ephesians 1:13,14; Philippians 1:6) of this being their patient continuance and progress in righteousness (1 John 2:28,29) and true holiness (1 Peter 1:15,16).