The Holy Bible

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We believe that the Holy Bible, consisting of Old and New Testaments, to be fully, verbally, inspired and without errors in all matters to which it contains and is solely authoritative in matters of faith and conduct in a believer's life.   

(2 Tim 3:16, Acts 1:16, 2 Peter 1:20-21, Jeremiah 30:1-2)

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The Godhead

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We believe in one God existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each eternal in being, identical in essence, equal in power and glory and having the same divine attributes and perfections, yet exercising them in varied offices.  

(Genesis 1:26, Deuteronomy 6:4, John 1:1, John 10:30, John 14:9, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 2 Corinthians 13:14)

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The Person of Jesus Christ

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We believe that Jesus Christ was the eternal Logos of God that became flesh; which as a man was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary so that He was both Son of God and Son of Man, simultaneously.  

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Though Son of God by nature, He divested Himself (Gr. Kenosis) of His divine attributes (Philippians 2:6-8).  Though the revelation of the Kenosis is not easy to comprehend, scripture is clear that Jesus required the anointing of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38) and the indwelling of the Father (John 14:10) to fulfill His work of revealing the Father, perform signs and wonders, and destroy the works of the devil.

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Jesus lived in perfect dependence upon the Father and in perfect obedience of His commandments, and though tempted in every way, as are we, He was without sin and thus capable of being the perfect sacrifice for our sins and propitiation for all mankind.  

(John 5:30, John 8:28-29, John 15:10, Hebrews 4:15, Hebrews 7:26-28, 1 John 2:2)

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In accordance with the foreknowledge and perfect purpose of Father God, He was rejected by the Jewish nation as their Messiah and was delivered by wicked hands unto historical judgment and crucifixion by Pontius Pilate and the Roman government.  He was made sin with our sin upon the cross; died and was buried in the borrowed tomb of a rich man, and after three days was raised, bodily, from the dead, by the Father, in triumph over Satan and death. 

(Acts 2:23-36, Acts 3:13-15, Isaiah 53:9, Matthew 27:57-60, Matthew 28:18, Romans 6:9, Colossians 2:15, Ephesians 4:8-10, 1 Peter 2:24)

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Having humbled Himself in obedience, even unto death, the Father has highly exalted Him, seating Him at His own right hand and giving Him all authority in heaven and upon earth.  As Lord and Christ He is head of all things, for the Church, which is His body, and acts as Apostle and High Priest and Intercessor for the saints, while He awaits His enemies to be made His footstool.

(Philippians 2:9-11, Ephesians 1:20-23, Revelation 1:13,20, Revelation 2-3, Hebrews 3:1, Hebrews 8:25, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 10:13)

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The Person of the Holy Spirit

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We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and is coequal with the Father and the Son, of the same substance and nature, who proceeds forth from the Father and is bestowed by the Son to regenerate the spirits of those who place saving faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. He further baptizes all believers into Christ, joining them as one spirit with the Lord Jesus and eternally indwelling the believer, making their body His temple. 

(Titus 3:5, John 15:26, Acts 2:33, 1 Corinthians 12:13, 1 Corinthians 6:17-20, John 14:17)

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He comes forth from the Father, in the name of Jesus, in a way that reflects the spiritual union of the Trinity, so that when a believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit he is, in fact, indwelt by Christ and simultaneously made the abode of the Father also. 

(John 14:26, 14:20, 14:23, John 18:23, 2 Corinthians 3:17, Galatians 2:20, Galatians 4:6, Colossians 1:27)

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He is the empowerment of the believer's life.  The source of the believer's comfort and consolation. And He is the one who guides into all the truth and reveals things to come. He brings the witness and the outworking of Christ life in the believer.  He reproves the world of sin, and righteousness, and judgment.  (John 14:16, 14:26, John 15:26, John 16:8)

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We believe in a secondary experience of the Holy Spirit, apart from the initial reception of the Holy Spirit at the time of new birth.  This secondary experience is commonly called the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit" or "Infilling of the Holy Spirit" and endues the believer with power for service and equips them with spiritual gifts.  We believe this overflow of the Holy Spirit is accompanied by the manifestation of spiritual language known as "speaking in tongues".  

(John 20:22, Acts 2:4, Acts 4:31, Acts 8:12-16, Acts 19:2-6)

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We believe that all the charisma gifts of the Holy Spirit as recorded in 1 Corinthians 12 are still in manifestation by the Holy Spirit and that it has always been the intent of Father God that these manifestations remain throughout the dispensation of the Church age. (1 Corinthians 1:7)

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We believe that a continual filling of the Holy Spirit is both available for and expected of the believer in their walk with the Lord (Ephesians 5:18-19).  This is to maintain fervency of spirit (Romans 12:11) and the freshness of a "first love" relationship with the Lord (Revelation 2: 4-5).

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The Fall of Man

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We believe that though man was created in the image and likeness of God, through the transgression of the first man, Adam, all the human race who was in Adam at the time of his sin, shared in his transgression and fall and incurred a sin nature resulting in spiritual death and separation from God. In this fallen state each person expresses that sin nature by living as a child of disobedience, enslaved by sin and the prince of the power of the air, incapable of fulfilling the righteousness of God by their own efforts and unable to save themselves by good works of their own practice.  Therefore all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and are in need of a redemption which only God Himself can provide. 

(Romans 3:23, Romans 5:12-19, Ephesians 2:1-3, Hebrews 7:9-10, 1 John 3:8-10)

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Salvation

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We believe that God's salvation for mankind is by Jesus Christ alone and that there is no other name under heaven by which a man or woman may be saved. 

(Acts 4:12)

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We believe that this salvation provided by God, in Christ Jesus, is a free gift of God given by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. That salvation is not of works, lest any person boast before God that they contributed to their salvation by their own efforts at goodness. 

(John 20:31, Romans 3:22-25, Romans 4:1-4, 4:24-25, Ephesians 2:8-9) 

 

We believe God's saving grace is extended to all people (Titus 2:11) without which no person would believe that Jesus is the Son of God or understand that by His shed blood and His bodily resurrection from the dead, the penalty for their sin has been fully met and God extends to them the benefits of being reconciled to Him (2 Corinthians 5:19).

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We believe receiving God's salvation comes by trusting in the work of Jesus Christ, on our behalf, that He performed by His death, burial, and resurrection.  That trust is expressed as stated in Romans 10:9-10. "That if you confess with your mouth 'Lord Jesus' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation". The one who so believes will on the basis of that faith, and confession of faith, be born again by receiving eternal life and become a child of God.

(1 John 4:15, John 5:24, John 6:40 & 47, Acts 16:30-31, 2 Corinthians 5:19, John 1:12, Galatians 4:6)

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We believe in eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12) and complete justification from sin (Hebrews 10:14).  That the grace which saves a person is also the same grace which keeps them in steadfastness of faith to the end of their Christian race upon this earth.  

(John 6:39-40, John 10:27-30, Philippians 1:6, Hebrews 7:24-25, 1 Peter 1:5, Jude 1:24)

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We believe that real grace is transforming in it's nature and empowering in it's substance, and if a person has truly undergone the process of it's miraculous work within their heart then the seed of God within their born again spirit will remain (1 John 3:9) and they will shun sin and the world system and abide in Christ seeking what pleases God. 

(1 John 2:3-6, 1 John 3:6-9, 2 Corinthians 13:5-6)

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We also believe that a Christian must yield to the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit within them and depend upon the overcoming life of Christ (John 16:33) within them to overcome sin and the world system, which is in the evil one. It is our belief that if one has truly encountered grace they will do exactly that, though imperfectly and with times in which it may seem they have lost their salvation. What God saves, He keeps (Romans 8:28-39) and by this fact we now have the assurance that we are indeed eternally saved.  

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Regeneration (The New Birth)

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We believe that the salvation provided by God does not stop at the forgiveness of sins but also includes the regeneration of the believer, commonly called the New Birth or being Born from Above (John 3:3) or being Born Again (1 Peter 1:3).  

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This new birth is accomplished by the entrance of the seed of the Word of God (1 Peter 1:23) which is acted upon by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5) within a heart of faith (Romans 10:17) which God provides (Ephesians 2:8).  

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From this sequence of events the human spirit is regenerated anew and joined in union to Christ as one spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17).  The believer's is sealed by the Holy Spirit unto true righteousness and holiness of which their new spirit is composed (Ephesians 1:13, 4:24).

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We believe that by the new birth a believer's total identification is that of Christ (Galatians 3:27-29, Colossians 3:3-4) and their earthly identity is exchanged for a heavenly identity.  They are the New Man where Christ "is all" and "in all" (Colossians 3:10-11) who's citizenship is in heaven (Ephesians 3:20) with their affections now on things above (Colossians 3:1-2) so that their remaining time on planet earth is lived as sojourners (1 Peter 2:11, Hebrews 11:13-14, Hebrews 12:22-23) and ambassadors of God (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).

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Sanctification (Being Made Holy)

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We believe that though a man or woman is born again and established as "righteous" and "perfected forever" in the eyes of God, there is yet an ongoing process of the Holy Spirit, within them, outworking the rebirth of their recreated spirit into their daily lives.

(Hebrews 10:14, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 2 Corinthians 3:18).

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We believe that as a child of a holy God a believer's life is to continually manifest the fact that they are called to be separate from the world system that is under the sway of Satan (1 John 5:18-19, 2 Corinthians 6:14-18) and to live holy as their heavenly Father is holy (1 Peter 1:13-19). 

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We believe that though this process is not achieved in the New Covenant by keeping the law of Moses, enacted at Sinai (Romans 7:6, Romans 8:3, 1 Corinthians 15:56, 2 Corinthians 3:6, Hebrews 7:11-19, Hebrews 10:1) this does not permit the believer to be lawless (1 Corinthians 9:21) but requires them to be vigilant to maintain their abiding in Christ by which the fruit of His holy life flows into their own (John 15:4-5, Galatians 4:6). 

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We believe the "abiding in Christ" is lived out as a believer sanctifies their body a living sacrifice to the Lord (Romans 12:1) and set their minds on the things of the Spirit (Romans 8:5-7) whereby they are transformed through the renewing of their minds (Romans 12:-2).

 

We believe the setting of the mind on the things of the Spirit is achieved by the daily taking in and thinking upon the Word of God (Mark 4:13-20, James 1:21-25, Psalm 1) the personal worship of the Father, and Jesus, through the Holy Spirit (Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 5:18-19) and a daily prayer relationship with the Father and Jesus, through the Holy Spirit (John 4:23-24, Jude 1:20, 1 Corinthians 14:15). 

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We believe obedience to God, in what He speaks to the believer by the Word, or by the Holy Spirit, is required to maintain a fresh, living, fellowship with Him (1 John 1:5-9, 1 John 2:36, John 8:29) and this is nowhere viewed in the New Testament as being of law, or works, but is, in fact, stated by the Lord Himself as the basis by which one properly loves Him (John 14:15, 14:21, 14:23-24, Matthew 28:20). 

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The Church

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We believe that the Church is the organic, victorious, body of Christ, upon planet earth.

(Ephesians 1:20-23, Ephesians 4:15-16, Hebrews 3:6, 1 Corinthians 12:27). 

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We believe the Church is not a structural building of wood or stone but is composed of a people called out of the world system, baptized into Christ and made one spirit with Him (Matthew 16:18, 1 Corinthians 12:12-14, 1 Corinthians 6:17) so that though they are physically, in body, upon the earth, they have also been raised up in Christ and that one third of their being (their spirit) is seated with Him in the throne room of heaven at the right hand of God (Ephesians 2:5-6).  

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Just as we believe that all the gifts of the Spirit listed in 1 Corinthians 12 are still in manifestation today, we also believe that all the ministry gifts as listed in Ephesians 4:11 are still in operation today, as per the original design of Christ for His body.  As such, we believe the Bible clearly speaks for itself as to how Christ has composed His body to function while upon the earth and it is only the theological presumption and arrogance of man that would tread upon what is clearly stated so as to redesign it into an image of their own making. 

 

Though we believe all the ministry gifts are in operation today this does not mean that we believe the current office of the Apostle holds the same level of stature as the twelve Apostles or the Apostle Paul had in the Church and are not today vessels of "new revelation" which either add, or supersede, what has been revealed and canonized in the New Testament.  We believe the modern Apostle has historically, though inaccurately, been renamed a "Missionary" but that the  function of a modern Missionary in opening a new territory to the work of the gospel and overseeing that work until Elders can be trained up and established over it, fulfills the scriptural picture of an Apostle. 

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Though we believe in the office of the Prophet and do not despise prophecy, as is the admonition of scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:19-20) this does not mean we believe a modern prophetic minister brings forth new revelation which either adds to, or supersedes, what has been revealed and canonized in the New Testament, but that the words they bring forth are to be judged on the basis of Scripture and the witness of the Holy Spirit in the individual believer receiving their word (1 Thessalonians 5:21, 1 Corinthians 14:29, 14:32-33). We believe that the scriptural focus of prophecy is to edify, exhort, and console (1 Corinthians 14:3) and is not used primarily for guidance of the New Testament believer, in the way the world would use a psychic.  Each New Testament believer possesses the Holy  Spirit and is to seek guidance for their life directly from the Lord for themselves. 

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The Second Coming

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We believe in the personal, imminent, premillennial, of the Lord Jesus Christ for His Church and the subsequent establishment of His millennial kingdom whereby He will rule visibly, upon the earth, from the throne of David, for a literal 1000 year time span. 

(Luke 1:32-33, Luke 17:22-24, Matthew 19:28, 2 Timothy 4:1, Revelation 19:11-Revelation 20:6)

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 We believe in the prophetically revealed event of the "catching away" (Greek. harpazo, Latin. rapio,) of the saints (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17) commonly called the rapture. While we hold the doctrine of a pretribulation rapture of the Church we will grant liberty, amongst membership, for a midtribulation or a prewrath viewpoint of this event.  For though it's certainty is scripturally uncontestable, the viewpoints of it's timing are based on inference from the scriptures, and such is the admission of the most ardent theologians of the dispensational, pretribulation, viewpoint.  

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The Eternal State

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We believe that the spirits of those who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, do at death immediately pass into His presence and there remain until the resurrection of the body at His appearing where it will then change into a body like unto Jesus after His resurrection.  (2 Corinthians 5:1-8, Philippians 1:23, Philippians 3:20-21, 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17, 1 Corinthians 15:35-49)

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We believe the spirits of unbelievers, who are not justified by faith in Jesus Christ, depart to Hades, in conscious misery until the final Great White Throne judgment, at which time they are resurrected, judged, and cast into the Lake of Fire along with the devil and his angels, suffering eternal punishment away from the presence of the Lord.   (Luke 16:20-24, Mark 9:43-48, Revelation 20:11-15)

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