Statement of Beliefs

  1. God is One God, Spirit, eternally existing in three Persons and of one substance. He does whatever He pleases, without self-contradiction. He is perfect, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and love--not willing that any perish. God created all things (Gen. 1:1, John 1:1-3) and is the sovereign ruler of all His creation.
  2. Jesus Christ is One with the Father, God, Lord, was born of a virgin, lived perfectly, and died as a substitutionary sacrifice for all those being saved. He was raised by the Father three days later, ascended to heaven, and will again return to earth as Judge. The Father grants the gifts of repentance, faith in Christ and eternal life. Salvation is by faith in Christ alone, plus nothing.
  3. The Holy Spirit is a Person and active today, convicting of sin, the righteousness of Christ and the coming judgment. Among the ministries of the Spirit are regeneration of the unsaved, indwelling of the saved as Comforter, and giving spiritual gifts.
  4. God gave us verbal, infallible and adequate revelation of Himself and His will in the Old and New Testaments of the Christian Bible. It is without mixture of error in the autographs, and is the basis for Christian belief and behavior. Its truth is undiminished by the cultural context when received. The Bible is not one revelation of God among other books held sacred, but is the one trustworthy and Spirit-inspired Word of God, and the only source of infallible truth and consequent moral absolutes. Those disobeying those absolutes commit sin.
  5. The Church is the Body of Christ, composed of all the regenerate, to glorify God, and build up its members for the service of God.
    1. The Church does not exist simply for the comfort of its members, but is a pilgrim body in mission to the glory of God, best achieved through acts of worship, witness and love. She seeks new worshippers by sharing the Good News with people of all cultures, near and far. Each Christian should esteem other Christians more highly, regardless of ethnicity.
    2. The Church is the basis of the enduring work of God.
    3. Satan is the personal embodiment of Darkness, and a fallen angel for whom hell was created. He exists to destroy the work of God and God's people. Christ came to destroy Satan's work. Those who die who are not in Christ are eternally lost in hell, because of sin. They will be in conscious torment in the Lake of Fire, away from the presence of God and without hope. The redeemed will experience the extreme opposite, enjoying the presence of God and pleasures forevermore.
  6. A Christian will sin, but has access to the Father for forgiveness by confession. No sin can separate a Christian from God's salvation, once bestowed. Apart from Christ we can do nothing, but through Him we can do everything God wills. Because of the supreme power of God, worship, petition and intercession are prior to fruitfulness in His service.
  7. Based upon Paul's teaching in 1 Timothy 2:12-14, women will teach other women and children, not men, in the general church context. This is not to imply that women are incapable, or that men are superior, but to honor the divine order of authority and the primacy of scripture as our rule of conduct.
  8. God, being the Creator and sovereign ruler of all things has declared two genders, male and female, as mankind (Gen. 1:27). He has blessed the covenantal vow and union of one man and one woman before Him as marriage (Gen. 2:23-24, Mark 10:6-9). God has designed marriage in this way as a picture of Christ's relationship with the Church (Eph. 5:32). Therefore, we believe any sexual union other than the marriage covenant as defined by Scripture is unacceptable to God. The Bible condemns adultery (Ex. 20:14), fornication (1 Cor. 6:9, Acts 15:28-29), and homosexual activity (Lev. 18:1-30, Rom. 1:25-27, Jude 1:7). We further believe from Scripture (Gen. 1:27) that God disapproves of, and forbids, any attempt to alter one's gender by surgery or appearance.