The Standard of Faith

We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19).

We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; and that in His incarnation, He is true God and true man; that He died for our sins, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father, interceding for the saints (John 1:1-19; 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; Romans 8:34b).

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a Person, that He came into the church on the day of Pentecost; that He convicts the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment; that He regenerates the sinners by the preached Word of God; that He indwells, enlightens, instructs, and guides the Child of God (John 16:7-15).

We believe that the Bible is the verbally inspired Word of God, His revelation to man, without error in its original writings, therefore the final and supreme authority in faith and life (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

We believe in the Blessed Hope, the personal pre-millennial and imminent return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:11-14).

We believe that man was created in the image of God; that he sinned and thereby incurred, not only physical death, but also spiritual death, which is separation from God; that all human beings are born with a sinful nature and are totally depraved and that they must be born again to be accepted of God (Romans 3:10-20; 5:12; John 3:1-21).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, as a Representative and Substitutionary Sacrifice; and that all who believe in Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood; that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior are born again by the Holy Spirit and thereby become children of God; that regeneration (the New Birth) is obtained by grace on the singe ground of faith in the merit of the shed blood of Christ, crucified in our stead; and that by it we are made members of the body of Christ, which is the true church (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Hebrews 9:22; Acts 2:37-47).

We believe that two ordinances are significant above any others that Christians are commanded to observe: BAPTISM and the LORD’S SUPPER.

• We believe that baptism has no saving merit, but that after one believes and is saved, baptism is the next step to show to the world that we are now identified with Christ, who died, was buried and rose again; that baptism is observed once and is a sign of identification and testimony to newness of life.
• We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ instituted the Lord’s Supper to commemorate His death until He comes again, and is to be observed often as a memorial to the broken body and shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:9-12; 1 Corinthians 11:26).

We believe that the Scriptures clearly teach nonconformity to the world for every believer; that it is incumbent upon believers to live lives of separation from all worldly and sinful practices; and that nonconformity can be maintained only by constant abiding in Christ in a life of private and public Bible study, meditation, prayer, and worship (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; John 15:1-27; 1 John 1:1-5:21).

We believe in the bodily resurrection of the saints of God at the reappearing of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:16 and 1 Corinthians 15:15-57), and of the unsaved at the end of time (Revelation 20:11-15; Daniel 12:2; John 5:28-29).

We believe in a heaven and a hell. Heaven is the place of eternal conscious happiness for all who accept by faith the merits of Christ’s atoning sacrifice. Hell is the place of eternal, conscious punishment for all who reject Christ (2 Thessalonians 1:7-0; Luke 16:19-31; Revelation 20:10-15).

We believe that Satan is a personal being, the prince of demons, the great enticer and deceiver, the god of this age, whose end is the lake of fire (2 Corinthians 4:3-4; Revelation 20:10).