Statement of Faith

The Holy Scriptures

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and therefore are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning. The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by the church . (2 Tim 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21)

The Godhead

We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut 6:4; Matt 28:19; 2 Cor 13:14; John 14:10, 26)

The Person and Work of Christ

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. (Is 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor 5:19-21; Gal 4:4-5, Phil 2:8) 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; Rom 3:24 -25; 1 Pet 2:24; Eph 1:7; 1 Pet 1:3-5)

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is not exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. (Act 1:9-10;Heb 9:24' 7:25; Rom 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgment; and He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers in the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Rom 8:9; 1 Cor 12:12-14,· 2 Cor 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14) 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. (Eph 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20,27) We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelist, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (Rom 12:3-8; 1 Cor 12:4-11,28; Eph 4:7-12) We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary. We believe that speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. ( 1 Cor 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22)

The Total Depravity of Man

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam's sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and that man is totally depraved, and of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Gen 1: 26-27; Rom 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph 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. (John 1:12,· Eph 1:7,· 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:18-19)

The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers

We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom 8:1, 38-39; 1 Cor 1:4-8; I Peter 1:4-5) 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. (Rom 13:13-14; Gal 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)

The Church

We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. (1 Cor 12:12-14; 2 Cor 11:2; Eph 1:22-23; 5:25-27) We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32 ; I Tim 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11) We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom 16: 1, 4; I Cor 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 1 -4) We recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the Church in the age. (Matt 28:19-20,· Acts 2:41-42; 18:18, I Cor 11 :23-26)

Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and, that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God. (Rom 12:1-2; 14:13: 2 Cor 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11)

The Second Advent of Christ

We believe in the "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. (Ps 89:3-4; Dan 2:31-45; Zech 14:4-11; 1 Thess 1:10; 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6)

The Eternal State

We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and. the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment.. (Matt 25:46; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Rev 20:5-6, 12-13) 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 Cor 5:8; Phil 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thess 4:16-17; Rev 20:4-6) 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. (Matt 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48,· Luke 16:19-26,· 2 Thess 1:7-9; Jude 6 -7,· Rev 20:11 -15)

The Personality of Satan

We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the Fall of Man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. (Job 1:6 -7; Isa 14:12-17; Matt 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev 20:10 )

Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory and Theistic Evolution's unscriptural theories of origin. (Gen 1 -2; Ex 20:11)

Human Sexuality

We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity should be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a 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. (Gen 2:23; 19:5, 13; 26:8-9; Lev 18:1-30; Rom 12:26-29; 1 Cor 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess 4:1-8; Heb 13:4 )

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, the physical or mental well-being of the mother are acceptable. (Job 3:16; Psalm 51-5; 139:14-16; Isa 44:24; 49:1,5; Jer 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)

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. (Matt 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor 5:20)