What We Believe

The Holy Scriptures
We believe in the verbal (every word) and plenary (complete) inspiration of the Old and New Testaments; that they are the final authority for faith and life, inerrant in the original writings, infallible and God-breathed, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions shall be tried.

2 Timothy 3:15-17, Psalm 119:160, Romans 15:4, 2 Peter 1:19-21, and Revelation 22:18-19

The Godhead
We believe in one triune God, the maker, preserver, and ruler of all things, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, each with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being.

Genesis 1:26, 2 Corinthians 13:14, and 1 John 5:7

The Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ
We believe in the deity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, perfect God and perfect man; that He is God manifested in the flesh, conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary; that He lived a sinless life on earth; that He died on Calvary’s cross as a satisfactory sacrifice for sinners; that His body was buried in and arose from Joseph’s tomb; that He ascended to Heaven and was glorified at God’s right hand; and that He is coming again for His own and then to establish His Kingdom on earth.

Isaiah 7:14, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Matthew 1:18-25, and John 16:7-8

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Holy Trinity and is co-equal with God the Father and God the Son; that He convicts the world of sin and righteousness and judgment; that He is the supernatural agent in regeneration; that He indwells all believers and seals them unto the day of redemption; and that He endues, teaches, and guides believers.

John 14:16-18, John 16:7-8, and John 3:5-7

We believe that at the moment of regeneration (rebirth) the believer is baptized by the Holy Spirit, and that the believer does not seek the Spirit’s baptism as an evidence of regeneration.

Romans 8:9, John 14:26, and Ephesians 5:18

Man
We believe that man was created by a direct act of God and not by any evolutionary process (Genesis 2:7); that man was created in God’s own image and in a state of innocency; that through his transgression sin entered into the world, and death by sin—not only physical death—but spiritual death, which is conscious and eternal separation from God; and that consequently, his posterity inherit a corrupt nature, being born in sin under its condemnation, and as soon as they become capable of moral action, become actual transgressors.

Genesis 3:6-19, Romans 5:12, Psalm 51:5, and Jeremiah 17:9

Salvation
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ “died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried; and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures”; that a person is saved when he repents of his sin and exercises faith by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Savior; that salvation is a gift of eternal life wholly by the grace of God without any merit or works.

We believe that the atonement of Christ is not limited, but that God desires all to be saved and come to knowledge of the truth; that it is not His will that any should perish, but all should come to repentance.

1 Corinthians 15:3,4, Romans 6:23, Romans 10:9-10, Acts 16:31, 2 Peter 3:9, and Ephesians 2:8-9

Sanctification
We believe that believers have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once and for all. We believe that sanctification is not a second work of grace for which the believer should seek; and that sanctification is a divine and progressive work of the Holy Spirit whereby God, upon the ground of the finished work of Christ on the cross, His present intercessory ministry, and His divine work, sets the believer apart and works out, in and through him, by means of a submissive will, that which is well-pleasing to Himself through Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 5:13 and 2 Peter 3:18

We believe that sanctification culminates ultimately in receiving the end of our faith, even the salvation of our souls.

Luke 19:17, 1 Peter 1:5,9,17, and James 1:21

The Church
We believe that the local New Testament church is to be composed of regenerated, baptized believers, voluntarily united together for the purpose of worship, edification, ordinances, fellowships, and service; that the officers of the local church are pastors and deacons whose qualifications and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures; that the mission of the church is the faithful witnessing of Christ to all men as we have opportunity, in the local community, and to the uttermost part of the earth; that the local church has the absolute right to self-government, free from the interference of any individuals or organizations, religious or political; that the one and only superintendent is Christ, through the Holy Spirit; that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate with each other in contending for the faith and for the furtherance of the Gospel, with each local church as the sole judge of the measure and method of its cooperation; and that on matters of membership, policy of government, discipline, benevolence, etc., the will of the local church is final.

Acts 2:41-47, Romans 1:7, Colossians 1:2, Acts 20:28-31, 1 Peter 5:1-5, and Titus 1:5-8

Baptism
We believe that biblical baptism is by immersion, the symbol of the believer’s union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection; that every believer should be baptized because of the example and command of our Lord; and that while there is no saving power in water baptism, it is an act of obedience by those who are already saved; and that baptism is a picture of the believer’s death, burial, and resurrection with Jesus Christ by faith in Him.

Romans 6:3-5, Matthew 3:13-17, Matthew 28:19-20, Acts 8:36-39, and Titus 3:5

The Lord’s Supper
We believe that the Lord’s Supper is an ordinance given to the church by the Lord Jesus Christ to remember and show forth the Lord’s death ‘till He comes; that the Lord’s table should be open to all regenerated persons living in fellowship with and obedience to the Lord Jesus; and that the elements (wafer and grape juice) used in the Lord’s table are symbolic and render in themselves no means of grace.

1 Corinthians 11:25-32 and Luke 22:14-20

Satan
We believe that Satan is a supernatural person, a fallen angel, the author of sin, and the cause of the Fall; that he is the “god of this age,” the “prince of the power of the air,” and the open and declared enemy of God and man; and that his destiny is eternal punishment in the lake of fire.

Ezekiel 28:1-19, Job 1:6-9, 2 Corinthians 4:4, Matthew 4:1-11, James 4:7, and Revelation 20:10

Hell
We believe in an actual Hell, and that the Lake of Fire and Brimstone shall be the place of eternal punishment for Satan, fallen angels, demons, and the unbelieving dead.

Luke 16:22-26, Revelation 20:12-26, and Revelation 21:8

Heaven
We believe in an actual place called Heaven where God’s immediate presence is manifested, where the angels dwell, and where the redeemed shall ultimately dwell; that it is from Heaven which Christ descended and to which, after the completion of His earthly ministry, He ascended and that it is in Heaven that He makes intercession for the saints, and from whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

John 14:1-3, and Revelation 21

The Eternal State
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men; the saved to everlasting life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

We believe that the souls of the unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious misery and torment until the second resurrection when, with spirit, soul, and body, they shall be cast into the lake of fire, not to be annihilated but to suffer everlasting punishment.

Revelation 20:11-15

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.

2 Corinthians 5:6-8, 1 Corinthians 15, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

The Second Coming of Christ
We believe in the bodily, personal, premillennial, and imminent coming of the Lord Jesus Christ into the air to catch away all believers unto Himself before the tribulation period; and in the personal, visible, and glorious return of Christ to the earth, with believers, at the close of the tribulation period to judge the nations and to set up His millennial Kingdom on earth.

Acts 1:11, John 14:3, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, and Matthew 24:42-44

The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
We believe that all the redeemed of God are kept by God’s power and are thus eternally secure in Christ forever, and that once a person is saved, he will always be saved.

John 10:27-29, 2 Timothy 1:12, and Philippians 1:6

The Lord’s Day
We believe that the Lord’s Day, which is Sunday, the first day of the week, the day of our Lord’s resurrection, is the proper day for regular Christian worship and service.

Acts 20:7, 1 Corinthians 16:1-2, and Hebrews 10:25