Doctrinal Statement
A. The Scriptures
a. We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men supernaturally inspired; that it has truth without any admixture of error for its matter; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the age, the only complete and final revelation of the will of God to man; and the true center of Christian union and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.
b. By “Inspiration” we mean that the books of the Bible were written by holy men of old, as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, in such a definite way that their writings were supernaturally and verbally inspired and free from error, as no other writings have ever been or ever will be inspired.
i. II Tim. 3:16-17; II Pet. 1:19-21; Acts 1:16; Acts 28:25; Ps. 119:160; Ps. 119:105; Ps. 119:30; Luke 24:25-27; John 17:17; Luke 24:44-45; Ps. 119:89; Prov. 30:5-6; Rom. 3:4; I Pet. 1:23; Rev. 22:19; John 12:48; Isa. 8:20; Eph. 6:17; Rom. 15:4; Luke 16:31; Ps. 19:7-11; John 5:45-47; John 5:39
B. God
a. We Believe that there is one, and only one, living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit, the maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth; inexpressibly glorious in holiness and worthy of all possible honor, confidence, and love; that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of Redemption.
i. Ex. 20:2-3; Gen. 17:1; I Cor. 8:6; Eph. 4:6; John 4:24; Ps. 147:5; Ps. 83:18; Ps. 90:2; Jer. 10:10; Ex.15:11; Rev. 4:11; 1 Tim. 1:17; Rom. 11:33; Mark 12:30; Matt 28:19; John 15:26; I Cor. 12:4-6; I John 5:7; John 10:30; John 17:5; Acts 5:3-4; I Cor. 2:10-11; Phil. 2:5-6; Eph. 2:18; II Cor. 13:14
C. Holy Spirit
a. That the Holy Spirit is a divine person; equal with God the Father and the Son and of the same nature; that He was active in the creation; that in His relation to the unbelieving world He restrains the Evil One until God’s purpose is fulfilled; that He convicts of sin, of judgment and of righteousness; that he bears witness to the Truth of the Gospel in preaching and testimony; that He is the agent in the New Birth: that He seals, endues, guides, teaches, witnesses, sanctifies, and helps the believer.
i. John 14:16-17; Matt. 28:19; Heb. 9:14; John 14:26; Luke 1:35; Gen. 1:1-3; II Thess. 2:7; John 16 8-11; John 15:26-27; Acts 5:30-32; John 16:8-11; John 15:26-27; Acts 5:30-32; John 3:5-7; Eph. 1:13-14; Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33; Acts 11:16; Luke 24:49; John 16:13; John 14:26; Rom. 8:14,16; II Thess. 2:13; Pet.1:2; Rom.8:26-27
D. Satan
a. We believe that Satan, a cherub, was once holy and enjoyed heavenly honors; but through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, fell and drew after him a host of angels; that he is now the malignant prince of the power of the air, and the unholy god of this world. We hold him to be man’s great tempter, the enemy of God and Christ, the accuser of the saints, the author of all false religions, the chief power back of the present apostasy; the lord of the anti-Christ, and the author of all the powers of darkness- destined, however to final defeat at the hands of God’s own Son, and to the judgment of an eternal justice in Hell, a place prepared for him and his angels.
i. Isa. 14:12-15; Ezek. 28:14-17; Rev. 12:9; Jude 6; II Pet.2:4; Eph. 2:2; John 114:30; I Thess. 3:5; Matt. 4:1-3; I Pet 5:8; I John 3:8; Matt. 13:25, 37-39; Luke 22:3-4; Rev. 12:10; II Cor. 11:13-15; Mark 13:21-22; I John 4:3; II John 7; I John 2:22; Rev. 13:13-14; II Thess. 2:8-11; Rev. 19:11; Rev, 19:16, 20; Rev. 12:7-9; Rev. 20:1-3, 10; Matt. 25:41
E. Creation
a. We believe in the Genesis account of creation, and that is to be accepted literally, and not allegorically or figuratively; that man was created directly in God’s own image and after His own likeness; that man’s creation was not a matter of evolution or evolutionary change of species or development through interminable periods of time from lower to higher forms; that all life was made directly and God’s established law was that they should bring forth only “after their kind.”
i. Gen. 1:1, 11-24, 26-27; Ex. 20:11; Acts 4:24; Cp; 1:16-17; Heb. 11:3; John 1:3; Rev. 10:6; Rom 1:20; Acts 17:23-26; Jer. 10:12; Neh. 9:6; Gen 2:21-23;
F. Fall of Man
a. We believe that man was created in innocence under the law of his Maker, but by voluntary transgression fell from his sinless and happy state, in consequence of which all mankind are now sinners, not by constraint, but of choice, and are therefore under just condemnation without defense or excuse.
i. Gen 3:1-6; Rom. 5:12, 19; Rom 3:10-19; Eph. 2:1-3; Rom 1:18, 20, 28-32; Ezek. 18:19-20; Gal. 3:22
G. Virgin Birth
a. We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten of the Holy Spirit in a miraculous manner, born of Mary, a virgin, as no other man was ever born or can ever be born of woman, and that he is both the Son of God and God the Son.
i. Gen. 3:15; Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:35; Mark 1:1; John 1:14; Ps. 2:7; Gal. 4:4; I John 5:20; I Cor. 15:47
H. Atonement for Sin
a. We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace; through the mediatorial offices of the Son of God, who by appointment of the Father, freely took upon Him our nature, yet without sin, honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and by His death made a full and vicarious atonement for our sins; that His atonement consisted not in setting us an example by His death as a martyr, but was the voluntary substitution of Himself in the sinner’s place, the Just dying for the unjust, Christ, the Lord, bearing our sins in His own body on the tree; that, having risen from the dead, He is now enthroned in Heaven and uniting in His wonderful person the tenderest sympathies with divine perfection, He is every way qualified to be a suitable, a compassionate, and an all-sufficient Savior.
i. Eph. 2:8; Acts 15:11; Rom. 3:24; John 3:16; Matt. 18:11; Phil 2:7; Heb. 2:14; Isa. 53:4-7; Rom. 3:25; I John 4:10; I Cor. 15:3; II Cor. 5:21; John 10:18; Phil 2;8; Gal. 1:4; I Pet. 2:24; I Pet. 3:18; Isa. 53:11; Heb. 12:2; I Cor. 15:20; Isa. 53:12; Heb. 9:12-15; Heb 7:25; I John 2:2
I. Grace in the New Creation
a. We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be born again; that the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; that it is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the one dead in trespasses and in sins is made a partaker of the divine nature and receives eternal life, the free gift of God; that the new creation is brought about in a manner above our comprehension, not by culture, not character, nor by the will of man, but wholly and solely by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection with divine truth, so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the gospel; that its proper evidence appears in the holy fruits of repentance and faith and newness of life.
i. John 3:3; II Cor. 5:17; Luke 5:27; I John 5:1; John 3:6-7; Acts 2:41; II Pet. 1:4; Rom. 6:23; Eph. 2:1; II Cor. 5:19; Col. 2:13; John 1:12-13; Gal. 5:22; Eph. 5:9; I Pet. 1:18-23
J. Freeness of Salvation
a. We believe in God’s electing grace; that the blessings of salvation are made free to all by the gospel; that it is the immediate duty of all to accept them by a cordial, penitent, and an obedient faith; and nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the gospel; which rejection involves him in an aggravated condemnation.
i. I Thess. 1:4; Col. 3:12; I Pet. 1:2; Titus 1:1; Rom. 8:29-30; Matt. 11:28; Isa. 55:1; Rev. 22:17; Rom 10:13; John 6:37; Isa. 55:6; Acts 2:38; Isa. 55:7; John 3:15-18, 36; I Tim. 1:15; I Cor. 15:10; Eph. 2:4-5; John 5:40
K. Justification
a. We believe that the great gospel blessing which Christ secures to such as believe in Him is Justification; that Justification includes the pardon of sin and the gift of eternal life on principles of righteousness; that it is bestowed not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done; but solely through faith in the Redeemer’s blood, His righteousness is imputed unto us.
i. Acts 13:39; Isa. 53:11; Zech. 13:1; Rom. 8:1; Rom. 5:1,9; Titus 3:5-7; Rom. 1:17; Hab. 2:4; Gal. 3:11; Rom 4:1-8; Heb. 10:38
L. Repentance and Faith
a. We believe that Repentance and Faith are solemn obligations; thereby, being deeply convicted of our guilt, danger, and helplessness, and of the way of salvation by Christ, we turn to God with unfeigned contrition, confession, and supplication for mercy; at the same time heartily receiving the Lord Jesus Christ and openly confessing Him as our only and all-sufficient Saviour.
i. Acts 20:21; Mark 1:15; Acts 2:37-38; Luke 12:8; Luke 18:13; Rom. 10:9; Ps 51:1-7; Isa. 55:6-7
M. Church
a. We believe that a Baptist Church is a local, visible, called-out assembly of baptized believers convened to fulfill the Gospel, such congregation being associated by a covenant of faith and fellowship of the Gospel, said the church is understood to be the citadel and propagator of the Divine and Eternal Grace; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word; that its officers of ordination are pastors or elders whose qualifications, claims and duties are clearly defined in the scriptures; we believe the true mission of the church is found in the Great Commission: First, to make individual disciples; Second, to build up the church; Third, to teach and instruct as He has commanded. We hold that the local church has the absolute right of self-government, free from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations; and that the one and only
the superintendent is Christ through the Holy Spirit; that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate and fellowship with each other in contending for the faith and for the furtherance of the Gospel; that every church is the sole and only judge of the measure and method of its cooperation; on all matters of membership, of policy, of government, of discipline, of benevolence, the will of the local church is final.
i. Matt. 16:18; 18:15-17; 28:16-20; Mark 16:14-20; Acts 1:4-8, 2:41,42,47; 13:1-3; 14:23; 15:22, 23; 20:17-28; I Cor. 1:2; 5:11-13; 11:1-3; 12:12-27; 16:1, 2; II Cor. 8:23, 24; 11:1-3; Gal. 1:2; Eph. 1:22, 23; 4:4-6, 11, 12; 5:23-27; Col. 1:18; I Tim. 3:1-13: Heb. 12:23; I Pet. 5:1-4; Jude 3, 4; Rev. 1:10-3:22; Mal. 3:10; Lev. 27:32
N. Pastor
a. We believe that the Pastor is Christ’s local representative as the head of the church and that he is ordained of God above other men to this holy office.
i. Acts 20:8; Eph. 4:11, 12; I Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 5:1-4
O. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
a. We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer, in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, with the authority of the local church, to show forth in a solemn and beautiful emblem our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, with its effect in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life. Baptism in no way saves anyone nor washes away any sin nor bestows any grace.
b. The Lord’s Supper is the ordinance which the members of the local church, by the sacred use of unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine are to commemorate together the dying love of Christ, witnessing His resurrection and His examination. There is no saving effect in the Lord’s Supper nor is there any grace imputed. The Lord’s Supper is not a sacrament but is a memorial ordinance sacred to the church.
i. Acts 2:41-42; 8:36-39; Matt. 3:6, 16; 26:26-30; 28:16-20; John 3:23; Rom 6:3-5; Mark 14:22-26; 16:14-20; Eph. 4:5; Col. 2:12; Luke 22:19,20; 1 Cor 10:16-21; 11:18-34
P. Eternal Security and Preservation of the Saints
a. We believe the Doctrine of Eternal Security is the scriptural teaching that when a person believes and trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour and confesses Him so both with the hearth and the mouth, by the grace of God through a saving, believing faith, that person is instantaneously born into the Family of God and as a child of God is sealed, pardoned, justified and released from the penalty and condemnation of sin and hell; that through the new birth the very Divine Life of Christ is imputed to the believer, and he is placed in the Hand of Christ and Hand of the Father for eternity, never to be separated from the Family of God, and shall never perish but have everlasting life. To deny this doctrine is to deny the Holy Bible and to call God a liar. The belief is eternally secured and shall endure and be preserved by the Holy Spirit of God by the Love of Christ forever and for eternity.
i. John 1:12, 13; 3:3-7, 15-18, 36; John 5:24; 6:37; 10:28,29, 39; Rom. 3:1, 34, 39; Gal. 3:26; Eph. 1:12-14; Eph. 4:30; Phil. 1:6; II Tim. 1:12; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:4-6; 7:25; 10:10-18; I Pet. 1:1-9; 1:18-25; I John 1:8-10; 2:1-2; 5:11-13; Jude 24; Job 19:25-27; Ps. 37:24,28; 89:29-36; 97:10; 121:3
Q. Righteous and the Wicked
a. We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that such only as through faith are justified in the name our the Lord Jesus, and sanctified by the Spirit of our God, are truly righteous in His esteem; while all such as continue in impenitence and unbelief are in His sight wicked, and under the curse, and this distinction holds among men both in and after death, in the everlasting felicity of the saved and the everlasting conscious suffering of the lost.
i. Mal. 3:18; Gen. 18:23; Rom.1:17; 6:17-18; 6:23; 7:6; Prov. 11:31; I Pet. 1:18; Rom. 1:17; I Cor. 15:22; Acts 10:34, 35; I John 5:19; Gal. 3:10; Prov. 14:32; Luke 9:26; 16:25; Matt 7:13, 14; 25:34, 41; John 8:21; 12:25
R. Separation of the Believer
a. We believe that all who are truly born of God by the Spirit should separate themselves from the world and all worldliness; should conduct their lives in a Christ-like example. Should have all manner of conversation and behavior beyond reproach, should abstain from all appearances of evil; should be attired in modest apparel, clean and well-groomed; that we should resist the Evil One and the lust of the flesh, avoid all heresy and false doctrine; that we should seek the fruits of the Spirit and live a yielded life to the Holy Spirit of God as the Temple of God.
i. Rom. 12:1-2; I Cor. 6:19-20; 10:14; II Cor. 5:17-19; 6:14-18; Gal. 5:18-26; Eph. 2:8-10; 5:1-33; 6:1-20; I Thess. 5:15-22; I Tim 2:9; 3:1-12; Titus 2:1-8; James 2:14026; I Pet.1:13-16; 2:2;13-17: I John 2:15-16; Jude 17-25.
S. Civil Government
a. We believe that civil government is of divine appointment for the interests and good order of human society; that magistrates are to be prayed for, conscientiously honored and obeyed, except only in things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ; who is the only Lord of the conscience, and the coming Prince of the kings of the earth, the Sovereign Lord of the universe unto whom our first obedience is due, according to the authority of His Holy Word, the Holy Bible, the final standard by which all mankind and governments shall be judged.
i. Rom. 13:17; II Sam. 23:3; Matt 10:28; 22:1; 23:10; Titus 3:1; I Pet. 2:13,14,17; Acts 4:19-20; Dan. 3:17-18; Phil. 2:9-11; Ps. 72:11
T. Resurrection and Return of Christ and Related Events
a. We believe in the Pretribulational and Premillennial return of Christ. We accept the sacred Scriptures upon these subjects at their face and full value. Of the Resurrection, we believe that Christ rose bodily “The third day according to the Scriptures;” that he alone is our “merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God,” “that this is the same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven” - bodily, personally, visible; that the “dead in Christ shall rise first,” that the living saints “shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump;” “that the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His Father David;” and that “Christ shall reign a thousand years in righteous until He hath put all enemies under His feet.”
b. Isa. 11:4-5; Ps. 72:8; Matt. 24:27; 28:6-7; Mark 16:6,19; Luke 1:32; 24:2, 4-6, 39, 51; John 14:3; 20:27; Acts 1:9, 11; 1 Cor. 15:25, 42-44; Phil. 4:20-21; I Thess. 4:16, 17; Heb 2:17; 5:9-10; 8:1; 9:28; Rev. 3:21; 20:1-4, 6, 10-15; Rev. 22:12-13.
U. Missions
a. The command to give the gospel to the world is clear and unmistakable. The Great Commission was given to the churches to evangelize the whole entire world, both at home and abroad.
i. Matt. 28:16-20; Mark 12:41-44; 16:14-16; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; Rom. 10:13-17; II Cor. 8:1-5; 9:6-11; I Kings 17:8-16: I Sam. 1:11
V. Command of Giving of Tithes and Offerings
a. We are commanded to bring our offering with a cheerful spirit upon the first day of the week to the church, as it is the body of Christ through which He works and has the Headship over. Under Grace, we give and do not pay, our offering. We believe that the tithe is God’s fair and equal guideline in giving; not as to supplant the giving of freewill offerings, but to provide accountability for our regular freewill offerings. Jesus said concerning the tithe, “These ye ought to have done.” We believe that a regular tithe should be the first goal accomplished in the general command to give.
i. Gen 14:18-20; Lev. 27:30: Mal. 3:10; Matt. 23:23; Acts 4:33-37; Heb. 7:4; 5:6; 6:20; 7:17, 21,24; I Cor. 8:7; 9:6-11; 16:2; Eph. 1:22, Eph. 5:1; Col. 1:18
W. Commands Concerning Marriage and Gender
a. We believe that marriage is a gift from God to join together exclusively one man and one woman in a loving covenant for a lifetime to produce fruit. We believe that all intimate sexual activity outside the marriage relationship, whether heterosexual, homosexual or otherwise, is immoral and therefore sin
i. (Gen. 2:24-25; Ex. 20:14, 17, 22:19; Lev. 18:22-23, 20:13, 15-16; Matt. 19:4-6, 9; Rom. 1:18-31; I Cor. 6:9-10, 15-20; I Tim. 1:8-11; Heb. 13:4; Jude 7).
b. We disapprove of divorce as God’s intention for marriage is for a lifetime commitment. The only exception being that of fornication.
i. (Matt. 5:31-32; Matt. 19:3-9; Mark 10:2-12)
c. We believe that God created the human race male and female and that all conduct with the intent to adopt a gender other than one’s birth gender is immoral and therefore sin.
i. (Gen. 1:27; Deut. 22:5).
d. We believe that both gender roles are equal in value to God and society, but that their roles are different and complementary in nature.
i. (I Cor.14:35; Eph. 5:22-33; I Tim. 2:12, I Tim. 5:8; I Pet. 3:7)