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STATEMENT OF FAITH:
We believe:
--There is only one God,
and that He is eternally existent in Three Persons: Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit.
--God the Father is the Creator of the universe. He created man in
His own image for fellowship, and called man back to Himself through
Christ after the rebellion and fall of man.
--Jesus Christ is eternally God. He was together with the Father
and the Holy Spirit from the beginning, and through Him all things
were made. He left heaven and became incarnate by the Holy Spirit of
the Virgin Mary; henceforth, He is forever one Christ with two
natures, God and Man, in one Person.
--The Holy Spirit is God,
the Lord and giver of life, who was active in the Old Testament, and
given to the Church in fullness at Pentecost. He empowers the saints
for service and witness, cleanses man from the old nature, and
conforms us to the image of Christ.
--The baptism in the Holy
Spirit with evidence of speaking in tongues, subsequent to
conversion, releases the fullness of the Spirit and is evidenced by
the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit.
--In the Bible containing
the Old and New Testaments is alone the only infallible, inspired
Word of God, and that its authority is ultimate, final, and eternal.
It cannot be added to, subtracted from, or superseded in any regard.
The Bible is the source of all doctrine, instruction, correction,
and reproof. It contains all that is needed for guidance in
godliness and practical Christian conduct.
--Christ's vicarious death
on the cross paid the penalty for the sins of the whole world. Its
benefits of healing (body, soul, and spirit) are provided for in the
atonement as well.
--That salvation is a free
gift of God, based on the merits of the death of His Son, and is
appropriated by faith. Salvation is affected by personal repentance,
belief in the Lord Jesus (justification), and personal acceptance of
Him into one's life as Lord and Savior (regeneration).
--The Christian life is to
be one of consecration, devotion, and holiness. The shortcomings of
the individual are because of the still progressing sanctification
of the saints. The Christian life is filled with trials, tests, and
warfare against a spiritual enemy. For those abiding in Christ until
their deaths or His return, the promises of eternal blessing in the
presence of God are assured.
-- The Church is the Body of
Christ, the habitation of God among the saints through the Spirit.
Every believer born of the Spirit has a place in the church
designated by God. A place where Christ is working in the lives of
the called out ones and calling ministers to the great commission to
go into all the world and make disciples of every nation.
--In the ordinances of
Baptism & the Lord's Supper. Baptism, is the outward sign of what
God has already done in the individual's life, and is a public
testimony that the person now belongs to Christ. It is identifying
with the death and resurrection of Jesus and is done in the name of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Lord's Supper is a
commemoration of the death of the Lord and is done in remembrance of
Him until He comes again; it is a sign of our participation in Him.
--In the bodily, personal,
second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the
saints, the millennium, and the final judgment. The final judgment
will determine the eternal status of both the saints and the
unbelievers, determined by their relationship to Jesus Christ.
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