Beliefs

We believe in the One Triune God Who is personal, spirit, sovereign, perfect, infinite, and eternal in His Being, holiness, love, wisdom, and power; separate from and above the world as its Creator, yet present everywhere in the world as its Sustainer; self-existing and self-revealing in three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each of Whom is to be honored and worshipped equally as true God (Mark 12:29; Deut. 33:27; Psm. 104; John 5:23,26).

We believe the Holy Scriptures to be the very Word of God, the product of the breath of God and thus verbally inspired in all parts, and therefore wholly without error as originally given by God, altogether sufficient in themselves as our only infallible rule of faith and practice, the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds and opinions should be tried (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:19-21).

We believe in the Lord Jesus Christ Who is the second Person of the Triune God, that without any essential change in His divine person, He became man by the miracle of the virgin birth, thus to continue forever as both true God and man; that, as man, He was tested as we are, yet without sin; that, as the perfect Lamb of God, He gave Himself in death upon the cross, bearing there the sin of the world, suffering its full penalty of divine wrath in our stead; that He rose again from the dead and was glorified in the same body in which He suffered and died; that, as our High Priest, He ascended into Heaven, there to appear before the face of God as our Advocate and Intercessor (John 1:1; Matt. 1:23; Col. 2:9; Heb. 4:15; Gal. 3:13; John 20:25-28; 1 John 2:1).

We believe in the Holy Spirit Who is the third Person of the Triune God, the divine agent in nature, revelation and redemption; that He convicts the world of sin, restrains evil, regenerates those who believe, indwells, baptizes, seals, empowers, guides, teaches and sanctifies all who become the children of God through Christ (Acts 5:3-4; 1 Cor. 2:10; John 16:8-11; 1 Cor. 6:11-19).

We believe in the creation and fall of man in that mankind was the direct creation of God, not in any sense the product of animal ancestry, but made in the divine image; that, by personal disobedience to the revealed will of God, man sinned and thus brought physical and spiritual death to the entire race who are universally sinful in both nature and practice, alienated from the life and family of God, and have no possible means of recovery of salvation within themselves (Gen. 1:26-28, 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12; Eph. 4:18; Rom. 1:18). We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God (Gen 1:26-27). Rejection of one's biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person. We believe the term "marriage" has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture and we will only recognize marriages between one man and one woman (Gen 2:18-25). We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other (1 Cor 6:18; 7:2-5; Heb 13:4). We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God (Matt 15:1820; 1 Cor 6:9-10). We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ (Acts 3:19-21; Rom 10:9-10; 1 Cor 6:9-11). We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31). Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated.

We believe in salvation by grace through faith and that salvation is the free gift of God, neither merited or secured in part or in whole by the virtue or work of man, but received only by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom all believers have as present possessions the gift of eternal life, a perfect righteousness, sonship in the family of God, deliverance and security from all condemnation, every spiritual resource needed for life and godliness, and the divine guarantee that they shall never perish (Rom. 3:24; Titus 3:5; John 3:16; 1 John 5:13; 2 Pet. 1:3).

We believe in the existence of Satan who originally was created as a perfect and holy being, but, through pride and unlawful ambition, he rebelled against God, thus becoming completely corrupt in character, the adversary of God and His people, leader of all evil angels and spirits, the deceiver and god of this present world; that his powers are supernaturally great, but limited by the purpose of God Who overrules all his wicked devices for good, that he was defeated at the cross, making certain his final doom (Ezk. 28:13-17; John 8:44; Rev. 12:9-11; Matt. 12:24-26; John 26:11; Eph. 6:12-18).

We believe in the Universal Church which is the invisible body and bride of the Lord Jesus Christ which He began to build on the day of Pentecost and will complete at His second coming, and into which all true believers of the present age are baptized by the Holy Spirit. We believe in the local church which is the visible body of the Lord Jesus Christ which consists of believers who assemble regularly to worship and glorify God through the building up of each member of the body of Christ by means of employment of spiritual gifts, the bearing of burdens, prayer, and the teaching of Scriptures. In obedience to the command and example of Christ, we practice two New Testament ordinances: baptism by immersion as a public testimony of faith, and the Lord's Supper as a commemoration of the death of Christ (Heb. 10:25; Matt. 28:19; Acts 8:26-39; 1 Cor. 11:23-28; Eph. 4:7-16; 1 Cor. 12:4-11; Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Pet. 4:10-11).

We believe, based on our study of the Scriptures, in the pre-tribulation rapture of the church (and pre-millennial second advent of Christ). We realize, however, that the timing of the rapture of the church in regards to the tribulation period is subject to different interpretations.

We believe in future life, bodily resurrection, and eternal judgment in that the spirits of believers at death go to be with Christ in heaven where they abide in joyful fellowship with Him until their bodies are raised from the grave and changed into the likeness of His glorious body at which time their works will be brought before the judgment seat of Christ for determination of reward; that the spirits of the unrighteous at death go into Hades where they are kept under punishment until the final day of judgment at which time their bodies will be resurrected and they will be judged and condemned, and they will be cast into the place of final and everlasting punishment (Phil. 1:21-23; 1 Cor. 15:35-58; 2 Pet. 2:9; Luke 16:19-31; Rev. 20:11-15).

We believe in righteous living and good works, not as procuring salvation in any sense, but as its proper evidence of fruit, and therefore, as Christians, we should keep the Word of God, seek the things which are above, walk as He walked, be careful to maintain good works, and especially accept as our solemn responsibility and privilege and taking of the Gospel to a lost world (Eph. 2:8-10; John 14:23; Col. 3:1; 1 John 2:6; Acts 1:8).