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WE
BELIEVE in
the inerrancy of Scripture, that the Bible, Old and New Testaments, is
the inspired, inerrant, infallible, authoritative Word of God (2 Tim
3:16).
WE
BELIEVE that
there is one God, eternally existent in three separate persons: Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit (Deut 6:4; Matt 28:19).
WE
BELIEVE that
God the Father is the personal, transcendent, and sovereign Creator of
all things (Gen 1:1 ff.).
WE
BELIEVE that
Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human, that He was born of a virgin,
lived a sinless life, provided for the atonement of our sins by His
vicarious death on the Cross, was bodily resurrected by the power of the
Holy Spirit, ascended back to the right hand of God the Father, and ever
lives to make intercession for His Church. After Jesus ascended to
Heaven, He poured out His Holy Spirit on the believers in Jerusalem,
enabling them to fulfill His command to preach the Gospel to the entire
world, an obligation shared by all believers today (Matt 1:18; John
3:16; Acts 1:9, 11; 2:1–41; Heb 4:15; 1 Pet 3:18; and the Gospels).
WE
BELIEVE that
all people are by nature lost and separated from God and responsible for
their own sin, but that salvation, redemption, and forgiveness are
freely offered to all by the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We believe that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in
Christ alone. When a person places his/her faith in Christ as his/her Savior, that
person is immediately born again, sealed by the Holy Spirit, all his/her
sins are forgiven, and becomes a child of God, destined to spend
eternity with the Lord (John 3:16–19; 5:24; Rom 5:8-9; Eph 1:13–14;
2:8–10; Titus 3:5).
WE
BELIEVE in
the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, who came forth from the Father
and the Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and the coming
judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower for service all who
believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe the Holy Spirit indwells
every believer in Jesus Christ and baptizes them into the Body of Christ
(1 Cor 12:3). We believe that He is an abiding Helper, Teacher, and
Guide.
WE
BELIEVE in
the gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in the Bible, and that the use of
the gifts is valid for today within the guidelines of Scripture. We
believe that love is more important than the most spectacular gifts, and
without love all exercise of the spiritual gifts is compromised (John
14:26; 16:13; Rom 8:9; 1 Cor 3:16; 6:19–20; 12–14).
WE
BELIEVE that
church government should be simple rather than a complex bureaucracy. We
depend on the Holy Spirit’s guidance in establishing the leadership
within the church in accordance with the Scriptures (1 Tim 3:1–13;
Titus 1:5–9).
WE
BELIEVE in
the pre-tribulation rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of Jesus
Christ with His Church to rule on the earth during the Millennial
Kingdom. We believe Christ’s rule will be visible and personal. We
also believe in the resurrection of the saved and the unsaved; the saved
unto eternal life and the unsaved unto eternal punishment (1 Thess 4:13–18;
Rev 3:10; 19:11–16; 20:1–15).
WE
BELIEVE in
the two New Testament ordinances of Water Baptism and the Lord’s
Supper. These ordinances are observed in obedience to the command of our
Lord Jesus Christ as acts of love and devotion and are not necessary for
one’s salvation (Matt 28:19–20; Luke 22:19–20; 1 Cor 11:24–25).
WE
BELIEVE worship
of God should be spiritual. Therefore, we remain flexible so that the
Holy Spirit may direct our worship.
WE
BELIEVE worship
of God should be inspirational. Therefore we give great place to music
in our worship.
WE
BELIEVE worship
of God should be intelligent. Therefore we emphasize verse by verse
biblical teaching so God can instruct us how to worship and know Him. We
seek
to
teach the Word of God in such a way that its message can be applied to
an individual’s life, leading that person towards greater maturity in
Jesus Christ.
WE
BELIEVE the
only true basis for Christian fellowship is Jesus Christ’s (agape)
love, which is greater than any differences we possess, and without
which we have no right to claim ourselves Christians.
We are not a denominational church, nor are we opposed to denominations
as such, only to their overemphasis of the doctrinal differences that
have led to the division of the body of Christ.
WE
BELIEVE the
worship of God should be fruitful. Therefore,
we look for His love in our lives
as the supreme manifestation that we have been truly worshipping Him.
WE
REJECT: (1)
The belief that true Christians can be demon possessed, (2) the “Positive
Confession Movement” which teaches that God can be commanded to heal
or work miracles according to man’s will, (3) the “Prosperity
Movement” which teaches that it is God’s will for every believer to
be wealthy, (4) human prophecy that supersedes the Scripture, (5) the
incorporation of humanistic and secular philosophy into biblical
teaching, and (6) the overemphasis of spiritual gifts, experiential
signs and wonders to the exclusion of biblical teaching.
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