STATEMENT OF FAITH

The Bible:  We believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the inspired word of God, inerrant in the original writings, complete as the revelation of God’s will for salvation, and the supreme and final authority in all matters to which they speak.

The Trinity:  We believe in one God, Creator and Sustainer of all things, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; that these are equal in every divine attribute and that they execute distinct but harmonious functions in the work of creation, providence and redemption.

God the Father:  We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love.  We believe He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ:  We believe that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal son, and has precisely the same nature and attributes as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.  We further believe that He is not only true God, but true man, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.  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,  pre-millennial return from heaven.

The Holy Spirit:  We believe in the Holy Spirit, His personality, and His work in conviction, regeneration, sanctification, and preservation.  His ministry is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and implement Christ’s work of redeeming the lost and empowering the believer for godly living and service.

Man:  We believe God created man, male and female, in the image of God and free from sin.  Because of disobedience to God, man fell and became a sinner in nature and by choice and is therefore spiritually separated from God and in and of himself can do nothing to gain his own salvation.

Salvation:  We believe that salvation is the free gift of God available to all by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  We further believe that this salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God, and was purchased by Christ on the cross, and is received by man through faith, apart from any human merit, works or ritual.  We also believe that every true believer can (and should) have assurance of eternal life.

The Church:  We believe that the church is the spiritual body of which Christ is the Head.  We believe that the universal Church is  composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit.  We believe that this body expresses itself in independent local assemblies whose members have been immersed upon a credible confession of faith and have associated themselves for worship, for instruction, for evangelism, and for service.  We further believe that the ordinances of the local church are believer’s baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper.

Christian Conduct:  We believe that the supreme task of every believer is to glorify God in his life; that his conduct should be blameless before the world; that he should be a faithful steward of his possessions; and that he should seek to realize for himself the full stature of maturity in Christ.  We further believe in the mutual submission of believers to each other in love.

Last Things:  We believe in the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ, the bodily resurrection of the saved and lost, the eternal existence of all men either in heaven or hell, in divine judgments, rewards and punishments.