What We Believe

The Scriptures
We believe that the Bible in the original writings, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, was verbally and plenarily inspired by God and is the complete, inerrant, infallible Word of God ( 1 Thessalonians 2:12; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-21); that God will preserve His Word so that we will always have it (Psalm 12:6-7; Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 5:18; 1 Peter 1:23); that it constitutes the only perfect rule and final authority in all matters pertaining to Christian faith and practice (Isaiah 8:20; Acts 17:11; Hebrews 4:12).

The Godhead
We believe that there is one God, Who created the universe in six solar days, externally existent in the three co-equal Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, having the same attributes and perfection, Who is True, Holy, Eternal, Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent, Infinite Love, Perfect Justice, and Absolute Truth (Genesis 1:1; Leviticus 19:2; Matthew 28:19; Romans 1:20; 3:26; 1 Timothy 2:5; Titus 1:2; 1 John 4:3,9).

Jesus Christ
We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ, His conception by the Holy Spirit, His birth of the virgin Mary, His humanity, His sinless life, His miracles, the infallibility of His teachings, His substitutionary sacrifice through His shed blood on the cross, His literal bodily resurrection, His literal bodily ascension to the right hand of His Father where he ever liveth to make intercession for His saints. His coming for His saints, and His return to reign in power and glory (Matthew1:18-23; 28:6; John 1:1,14; 7:18; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Hebrews 4:15; 7:25; Zechariah 14:4-9).

The Holy Spirit
A We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine person, Who moved holy men to write the Scriptures. Who illuminates the believer to understand the Scriptures, Who convicts of sin, Who quickens the believer in the new birth, Who seals the believer and is the earnest of our inheritance, Who indwells the believer, Who baptizes the believer into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation, and Who fills the believer with power for Holy living and service (John 14:16-17; 16:8-11,14; 2 Peter 1:21; John 3:5-7; Romans 8:11; Ephesians 1:13-14, 5:18; 1 Corinthians 2:12-14, 12:13)
B We believe that the Holy Spirit bestows one or more gifts on each member of the body of Christ according to His own will (1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 28-30; 1 Peter 4:10). Initially, some of these gifts were for use (used) as signs for (of) confirmation of the spoken word of the disciples (Mark 16:20; Hebrews 2:4). With the completion of the written Word of God these miraculous gifts (such as the ability to speak in other languages without having learned these languages, the power to receive and communicate divine revelations, and the ability to perform supernatural healings and other miracles) were no longer necessary and were gradually replaced (1 Corinthians 13:8-10; Revelation 22:18-19) by permanently needed gifts such as those of pastoral guidance, evangelism, teaching the written Word, and others (Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:11-12). This does not imply that God can no longer answer prayer in miraculous ways, when in accordance with His own will.

Angels
A We believe that God created an innumerable company of spirit beings (the majority of whom remained faithful to God and were confirmed in holiness) who are serving as ministering spirits, worshipping God, and executing His will on earth. (Psalm 103:20; Luke 15:10; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:14, 12:22)
B We believe that Satan was created the highest of angels, but, through the sin of pride, fell and became the author of sin, the god of this world, the enemy of God and man, and is destined to eternal punishment in the lake of fire (Genesis 3:1-19; Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-17; John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 Timothy 3:6; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 20:10). We also believe that a great number of angels followed Satan in his moral fall and became demons. These are active as Satan’s agents in carrying out his unholy purposes and will likewise share his fate in the lake of fire (Revelation 12:4,9; Matthew 25:41; Ephesians 6:12).

Mankind
We believe according to the Genesis account, that man was created by an immediate act of God in His own image and likeness and not by the process of evolution; that through Adam’s disobedience to God, mankind fell and thereby became sinful in nature, and that since that time every man, except Jesus Christ, is conceived a sinner, spiritually dead, alienated from God, and is of himself totally incapable to remedy his lost condition. (Genesis 1:26-27; 3:1-24; Romans 5:12, 3:23-24; Psalm 51:5; Ephesians 2:1; 4:18; Colossians 1:14,21; 2:13; Hebrews 9:1).

Salvation
A. We believe salvation is a gift of God brought to men by grace, not by human works but only by personal faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12; 14:6; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-9; 1 Peter 1:18-19).
B. We believe that sanctification is both instantaneous and progressive. At the moment of salvation, the believer is instantly sanctified in Christ. Progressive sanctification is a continuing work of grace, not involving the eradication of the old nature, but rather, revealing in the believer the growth of the new life in Christ toward perfection (Romans 8:32; John 17:19; 1 Corinthians 1:2,30; Ephesians 5:25-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7; 1 John 1:8-10).
C. We believe in the “eternal security” of the believer in Christ, that we are kept by God’s power and not by our own, thus it is impossible for one who is born into the family of God ever to be lost. While we rejoice in our assurance of salvation through the testimony of God’s word, we are forbidden -by His Word to use this Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh (John 10:27-29; Romans 5:8-11; 8:35-39; 11:29; Philippians 1:6; 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 1:5; 1 John 5:9-13; Jude 1).

The Church
A We believe in the unity of all true believers in the one true church (the “universal church”), which is the spiritual body and bride of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe the church was established on the day of Pentecost and that all believers, from Pentecost to the rapture, both Jew and Gentile, are added to the church by baptism of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:1-47; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:22-23; 3:1-6; 5:23-32; Colossians 3:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17; Hebrews 12:23).
B We believe that the manifestation of the spiritual church is found in the New Testament local church, which is the local assembly of born-again believers united in organization to practice New Testament ordinances; to meet together for worship, prayer, fellowship and teachings; to have a united testimony; and to actively engage in carrying out the precepts, principles, commands, and commissions of the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 2:41-47; Ephesians 4:11-16; 5:26-27; 1 Timothy 3:1-15; Titus 1:5-11).
C We believe the scriptural ordinances given to the local church are two: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism by immersion should be administered only to believers as a symbol of their belief in the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and as a testimony to the world of that faith. It is to be a prerequisite to the privileges of our local church membership. The Lord’s Supper is the commemoration of His death until He comes, and it should be preceded always by solemn self-examination, and it is a continuing memorial of the body and shed blood of Christ, signifying the believer’s communion with Him (Matthew 3:15; 26:26-30; 28:19-20; John 3:23; Acts 2:41-42; 9:18-19; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 11:23-31; Colossians 2:12).
D We believe that the scriptural officers of the church to be two: Pastor and Elder, whose qualifications, claims, and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures (Acts 6:1-6; 20:28-29; Ephesians 4:11-12; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; 6:17; 2 Timothy 2:24; 4:1-5; Titus 1:5-11; Hebrews 13:7,17; 1 Peter 5:2-3).
E We believe in the autonomy of the local church, and that each assembly is independent of any outside denomination by any centralized power whether from a denomination, another church, or the state; and is, therefore, free to govern itself without ecclesiastical interference. We believe the local church should cooperate with other fundamental churches of like faith as the Holy Spirit leads, but that each church is directly accountable to God for maintaining Biblical New Testament doctrines and practices (Matthew 18:17; Acts 6:1-5; 13:1-3; 15:19-31; 20:17-18; Ephesians 5:23-24).

Future Events
A We believe in the “Blessed Hope,” the personal, imminent, pre-millennial, and pre-tribulation coming of the Lord Jesus Christ for His redeemed ones (The Rapture), and in His subsequent return to the earth with His saints after the tribulation period to establish His Millennial Kingdom (Titus 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:9; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 19:11-16; 20:1-6; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; 2:1-8; Revelation 3:10).
B We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Revelation 20:5-8; 12-13).
C We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, in conscious bliss until the resurrection, when, with body, soul, and spirit reunited, they shall appear at the Judgment Seat of Christ to be judged for their works and not for salvation, and shall be glorified forever with the Lord in Heaven (Luke 23:43; Revelation 20:4-6; 2 Corinthians 5:8,10; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).
D We believe that the souls of the unbelievers are, at death, in conscious misery until the resurrection when, with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into everlasting conscious punishment in the lake of fire (Luke 16:19-26; Matthew 25:41-46; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 20:11-15).

Separation
We believe in obedience to the biblical commands to separate ourselves unto God from worldliness and ecclesiastical apostasy (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; Ephesians 5:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:6; 14:1; 1 Timothy 6:3-5; Romans 16:17; 2 John 9-11).