FOR ALL NATIONS TO LIVE AS FAMILY, LOVE AS SERVANTS AND LEAD AS MISSIONARIES, LIKE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

STATEMENT OF FAITH

Authority for Statement of Faith

The Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe. We do believe, however, that the Statement of Faith accurately represents the teachings of the Bible and, therefore, is binding upon all members, staff and volunteers. All literature, whether print or electronic, used in the church shall be in complete agreement with the Statement of Faith. All activities permitted or performed in any facilities owned, rented or leased by this church, or engaged in by any member of the church staff (volunteer or paid), and all decisions of the administration of this church shall not conflict with the Statement of Faith. In all conflicts regarding interpretation of the Statement of Faith, the Senior Pastor and Oversight Council, on behalf of the church, have the final authority. 

Section 1.  The Word of God

We believe the 66 books of the Holy Bible comprising the Old and New Testaments are the inspired Word of God, inerrant in the original writings, governed by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and the supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. (2 Timothy 3:14-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Hebrews 4:12; Matthew 15:6)

Section 2. The Trinity

We believe in one God, Creator and Sustainer of all things, and eternally existing in three persons Father, Son and Holy Spirit, equal in every attribute, one in substance and equal in divinity.  The Father, Son and Holy Spirit execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.  (Ephesians 4:4-6; Mark 12:29; Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Romans 1:19-20; Hebrews 1:3; Matthew 6:10; Romans 3:24)

Section 3.  God the Father

We believe in God the Father, the eternal and infinite Sovereign of the universe, a personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love.  We believe He hears and answers prayer.  (Genesis 1:1; Ephesians 1:19b-21; 1 Timothy 1:17; Revelation 1:8; John 4:24; Exodus 15:11; 1 Corinthians 2:5-7; Jude 21; Psalms 17:6)

Section 4.  Jesus Christ

We believe Jesus Christ is God the Father’s eternal Son, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe and the Word of the Father.  We believe He is true and fully God and true and fully human, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.  We believe the incarnate Jesus is the image of the invisible God.  We believe He lived a sinless life.  As our Redeemer, He provided the necessary atonement for our sins vicariously through His shed blood, by His own sacrifice of Himself.  We believe He died, was buried and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.  We believe He is ascended into Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God making perpetual intercession on behalf on His people.  We believe in His personal, visible return to earth.  (John 1:1, 3, 14; Colossians 1:15, 17; Philippians 2;5-8; Luke 1:30-35; Hebrews 4:15; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 15:3-7; Isaiah 53:4-6; John 20:26-28; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)

Section 5.  Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is God and indwells every believer, to sanctify and empower them.  We believe He fills or controls those who are yielded to Him.  We believe the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, of judgment and that He is active in the new birth.  We believe the Holy Spirit empowers the believer for godly living and service.  (1 Corinthians 6:19; Romans 8:9, 14-16; Ephesians 5:18; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; John 14:16-17, 26; John 16:7-8, 13; John 3:5-6; Galatians 5:22-23)

Section 6.  Humanity

We believe God created the entire universe, including the earth, and everything in it, in accordance with the Genesis account.  We believe God created humanity, male and female, in the image of God with the purpose of glorifying God and enjoying fellowship with Him.  We believe God created man in innocence, but by willful disobedience man sinned.  Because of this, everyone is a sinner with an inherited sinful nature.  Therefore, man is under just condemnation without defense or excuse.  We believe the only way of salvation from this state of guilt and condemnation is solely and wholly by the grace of God through the righteousness and atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

We believe in the sanctity of human life which begins in the mother’s womb at conception.

We believe that children are a heritage from the Lord and must be absolutely protected within the church from any form of abuse or molestation. The church has zero tolerance for any person, whether paid staff, volunteer, member, or visitor, who abuses or molests a child. (Genesis 1:1-2, 11, 21-27; Psalms 33:6,9; Genesis 3:6, 16-19, 24; Romans 5:12, 16-21; Romans 3:10, 23-26; Psalms 51:5, John 3:19; Psalms 139:13; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; Psalms 127:3-5; Matt. 18:6; Matt. 19:14; Mark 10:14) 

Section 7.  Salvation

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died and shed His blood to make atonement for the sins of mankind.  On the basis of His substitutionary death and resurrection, all who exercise salvation through faith receive God’s forgiveness and the assurance of eternal life.  Salvation through faith includes believing the facts of the Gospel, repenting (having a change of mind) of one’s own sin, agreeing with the Lord Jesus Christ and trusting in His atoning work.  We further believe this salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God, whereby He delivers undeserving sinners, who believe the good news of John 3:16, from the guilt, punishment, ruin and bondage of their sins, brings the sinner into a personal relationship with Himself and gives them new life.  We believe salvation is the gift of God, exclusive of all works of righteousness in the life of the believer.  Because salvation is given wholly by the grace of God, the believer’s salvation is eternally secure.  We believe those who are in the Lord shall rise again to a glorious immortality.  We further believe salvation results in righteous living, good works, repentance, and proper social concern for the glory of God.  We believe at the moment of salvation the believer is fully indwelled by the Holy Spirit.  (1 John 2:2, Acts 20:21; John 6:47; Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 52-54; Acts 20:21; Acts 16:31; Romans 9:16, 18; Ephesians 1:3-7, 11-12; I Peter 3:18; Titus 3:5-7; John 10:28; Ephesians 4:30; 2 Peter 1:3-10) 

Section 8.  Church

We believe Christ is the Supreme Authority of the Church as the head.  The Church, as the bride of Christ, is composed of all persons who, through saving faith in Jesus Christ, are regenerated by the Holy Spirit and born again to a living hope.  We believe that this body expresses itself in local assemblies who gather to worship God in a public manner by offering up prayers and thanksgiving, by attending to the preaching of the Word and observing the ordinances of the church.  Additionally, by exercising the gifts and privileges of His Word for mutual edification of the whole body, and by the spreading of the Gospel throughout the world.  We believe in the mutual submission of believers to each other in love.  We also believe in the interdependence of local churches. (Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:23; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:3-4; Romans 12:4-5; 1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 4:15-16; Hebrews 10:25; 1 Timothy 2:8; John 4:23,24; Revelation 14:6,7; Romans 12:6-13; 1 Corinthians 12:4-8; Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 8:24; Colossians 1:18)

Section 9.  Ordinances

We believe baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper are gospel ordinances only applicable for regenerated believers.  The ordinances have no saving merit for they are emblems and types of spiritual realities, not the realities themselves.  Baptism is a responsibility of each believer to declare one’s allegiance to Christ.  The Lord’s Table is an expression of our communion with Christ and with one another, to be continued until his second coming.  (Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:41-42; 1Corinthians 11:23-26; Romans 6:1-5)

Section 10.  Matters of Church and State

We believe each local church is autonomous (free from any external authority or control), self- governing and free from interference of any hierarchy of individuals, organizations or governments.  The local church is to determine matters of membership, policy, discipline, benevolence and its own governance.  This church shall not be drawn into any other church or group which permits apostasy or undermines the fundamental tenets of the Gospel by what it teaches or denies.  (Matthew 22:21, Romans 13:1-7; Acts 13:1-4; Acts 5:29; John 16:7-15; Acts 15:1-2, 11&20; Ephesians 1:22-23; 2 Timothy 3:12-17)

Section 11.  Christian Conduct

We believe we have received positional righteousness by the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, to maintain and grow our fellowship with Christ we must quickly confess our sins and ask to be empowered by the Holy Spirit thus allowing us to walk in the Spirit.  We will glorify God by obedience to Him, study of God’s Word, prayer, caring for one another and sharing the Gospel.  We further believe our conduct should be blameless before the world; we should be faithful stewards of the time, talents and treasures with which we have been entrusted.  We should be set apart unto God through sanctification and should continue to grow to become more like Christ.  
We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits within the Church. 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. (John 1:12; Romans 6:10-14; 1 Corinthians 2:12-13; Ephesians 5:18; John 15:10; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Philippians 4:6,7; Galatians 6:2; Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 Peter 2:11-12; 2 Corinthians 9:6-8; 1 Corinthians 6:11; Romans 8:1-27; Hebrews 10:10, 14; Hebrews 12:10; 1 Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)

Section 12.  Last Things

We believe in the imminent return of Jesus Christ for His bride, the Church.  The just will be raised incorruptible, together with the righteous who are alive, they shall be changed in a moment, then rewarded according to the deeds done in the body and received into Christ’s kingdom and glory, and shall they ever be with the Lord.  We believe in a literal 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth as King after the tribulation period.  We believe there will be a bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust.  The unjust shall awake to shame and everlasting punishment.  (Hebrews 9:27,28; 1 Corinthians 15:52-53; 1 Thessalonians 1:10 & 4:13-18; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 1 Corinthians 3:11-15; Revelation 20:6, 11-15; Acts 24:15; Daniel 12:2)

Section 13.  The Family

1.  Marriage and Sexuality

We believe that the term “marriage” has only one, legitimate meaning, and that is marriage sanctioned by God, which joins one man and one woman in a single, covenantal union, as delineated by Scripture. Marriage ceremonies performed in any facility owned, leased or rented by this church will be only those ceremonies sanctioned by God, joining one man with one woman as their genders were determined at birth. Whenever there is a conflict between the church’s position and any new legal standard for marriage, the church’s statement of faith, doctrines and biblical positions will govern. (Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:22-23; Mark 10:6-9; I Corinthians 7:1-9)

We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of marriage as defined in (a) above. We believe that any other type of sexual activity, identity or expression that lies outside of this definition of marriage, including those that are becoming more accepted in the culture and the courts, are contradictory to God’s natural design and purpose for sexual activity. (Genesis 2:24; Genesis 19:5; Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1: 26-29; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4)

We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two-distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God and the rejection of one's biological gender is a rejection of the image of God within that person. (Genesis 1:26-27)

2.  Family Relationships

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 elders) of the church. (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)

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 wonderful gift and heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate training and discipline. (Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalms 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; 1 Peter 3:1-7) 

3.  Divorce and Remarriage

We believe that God disapproves of and forbids divorce except on Biblical grounds.  Divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service.  (Malachi 2:14-17; Matthew 19:3-12; Mark 10:11-12; Romans 7:1-3; I Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6; I Corinthians 7:10-16) 

4.  Abortion

We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion is murder and constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. (Job 3:16; Psalms 51:5; 139:13-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:36, 44)

 5.  Euthanasia

We believe that an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, facilitates premature death, is assuming a decision that is to be reserved for God. We do not believe that discontinuing medical procedures that are extraordinary or disproportionate to the expected outcome is euthanasia. (Exodus 20:13; 23:7; Matthew 5:21; Acts 17:28)

6.  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 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; I Peter 3:8-9; 1 John 3:17-18)