Beliefs
The Scriptures: We believe the Scriptures of the Old Testament and New Testament to be the verbally inspired Word of God. We believe these 66 books are God breathed, complete, inerrant in the original writings, infallible and are the final authority for faith and life. (Psalm 119:97-104; Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:15-16; 2 Peter 1:19-21)
The Godhead: We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections, and are worthy of precisely the same honor, confidence and obedience. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; Mark 12:29; John 1:1-4)
God the Father: We believe in God the Father: an infinite, personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love. He serves as the first person of the Godhead. He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of humanity, hears and answers prayer, saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (Psalms 90:2; Psalms 100:5; John 1:18; John 6:46; Romans 11:33-36)
God the Son: We believe in the total deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God. We believe in His incarnation, that He is “Immanuel” - God in the flesh. We believe Him to be fully God and fully man. We believe He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary (John 1:1, 14,18; John 14:8-9; 1 Timothy 3:16). We also believe in His sinless life, His substitutionary atonement, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His ascension into heaven, His priestly intercession on behalf of His people, and His personal, visible, and premillennial return from heaven to rule and reign as King.(Hebrews 4:14 & 15; 1 John 4:10; Hebrews 1:3; Matthew 1:18; Revelation 19:11-16; Hebrews 7:25; Luke 24:6 & 7)
God the Holy Spirit: We believe in the total deity of the Holy Spirit and that His ministry is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:14). The Holy Spirit regenerates the sinner upon belief in Christ, baptizing the believer into one body of which Christ is the head. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, of God’s righteousness and of coming judgment. (John 16:8-11) The Holy Spirit indwells, seals, guides, instructs, fills, comforts and empowers the believer for godly living and service though individually bestowed gifts (Mark 13:11; John 14:26; John 16:13; Romans 5:5; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 5:18).
Man: We believe man was created male and female in the image of God in innocence but, by voluntarily sinning, was separated from God. Consequently, all mankind is sinful. All people are sinners by birth and their own choice and therefore are under just condemnation without defense or excuse. We believe that without exception every man and every woman is totally depraved and needs a Savior. (Genesis 3:1-6; Romans 3:10-19; Romans 1:18, Romans 1:32; Romans 5:1-2)
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 blood was shed for the forgiveness of our sins. Each person who receives Christ as personal Savior is born again of the Holy Spirit and becomes eternally secure as a child of God. We believe the Holy Spirit baptizes each believing person into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation. (John 10:28-29; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:37-39; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 12:13)
Church: Upon accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, a believer becomes part of His body, which is the church. There is one church universal, composed of all those throughout the world who acknowledge Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Scriptures command believers to gather in order to devote themselves to worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of the ordinances (baptism and communion), fellowship, service to the body through the development and use of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world in fulfillment of the command of Christ to make disciples of all nations (Ephesians 5:23; Romans 12:1; Acts 2:42-46; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Matthew 28:18-20). Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to this command there is the local expression of the church – under the oversight of elders and other supportive leadership. The church’s members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ. (Ephesians 4:16)
Angels & Satan: We believe angels are created beings and are therefore not to be worshiped. They were created to serve God and to worship Him. We believe that Satan is a created angel and the author of sin and all powers of darkness. He incurred the judgment of God by rebelling against his Creator. We believe he is the enemy of God and man, the prince of this world, and the god of this age who tempts men and accuses them before God. He has been defeated through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and shall be eternally punished in the lake of fire. (Isaiah 14:12; Zechariah 3:1; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Colossians 2:15; Revelation 20:10)
Heaven, Hell and the Return of Christ: We believe in the “blessed hope”: the personal, premillennial return of the Lord Jesus Christ. His return has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We believe in the bodily resurrection of both the saved and the lost. The saved are raised to eternal, conscious enjoyment in heaven (Matthew 25:34; John 14:2; 2 Corinthians 5:1; Revelation 2:7). The lost are raised to eternal torment in hell in conscious separation from God. (Matthew 8:11-12; Matthew 10:28; Matthew 13:49-50; Mark 9:47-48; Luke 12:5; Revelation 21:8)