I. The Doctrine of the Scripture

We believe in both the verbal (Mt. 5:18; Lk. 16:17) and plenary (2 Tim. 3:16) inspiration of the sixty-six canonical books that make up the Old and New Testaments.

A. Inspiration: The Bible is “God-breathed.” Holy men of God were inspired by a supernatural act of the Holy Spirit enabling them to write the Holy Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-21).

B. Inerrancy: The Holy Scriptures are without error in every spiritual, moral, historical and scientific teaching. The Bible is true and accurate in everything that it affirms (Ps. 12:6; 19:7; Dan. 10:21; Jn. 10:35).

C. Authority: The Scriptures are infallible and are the absolute and sufficient authority for Christian faith and practice (Dt. 4:2; 2 Tim. 3:15-17; Rev. 22:18-19).

D. Eternality: The Word of God is forever settled in heaven (Ps. 119:89), shall stand forever (Is.40:8), shall never pass away (Lk. 21:33), and endureth forever (1 Pet. 1:25). 

E. Preservation: God has supernaturally preserved His word from error. God inspired an inerrant record of His word in the original autographs, and has preserved for every generation a perfect, reliable, and authoritative record of His Word (Ps.33:11; Rom.15:4; 1 Cor. 10:16).

II. The Doctrine of God

We believe there is one God (1 Tim. 2:5; Is. 45:5-6), who is the Creator of all things (Gen. 1:1; Heb. 1:10), who exists co-equally and co-eternally in three distinct Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Mt. 3:16-17; 28:19; 2Cor. 13:14), who are one (Dt. 6:4). Each Person of the Trinity is worthy of the same praise, honor, and worship because they all have the same attributes and perfections.

A. The Essence of God: This is God’s substance or that which constitutes His essential being. God is a spirit (Jn. 4:24). He is immaterial, invisible, and incorporeal (Lk. 24:39; Jn. 1:18).

1. Self-existence ~ The continuation of God’s existence does not depend upon anything outside of Himself. God has always existed and the ground of His existence is within Himself (Ex. 3:14; Jn. 5:26; 1 Thess. 1:9). The fact that God is alive is the most basic aspect of His nature (Heb. 11:6).

2. Eternity ~ God has no beginning and will never cease to exist. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He exists without reference to time and is from everlasting to everlasting (Ps. 90:2; 102:27; Is. 57:15; 1 Tim. 6:16).

3. Infinity ~ God is unlimitable. He transcends all limitations which time or space can impose. There is no place where He cannot be found. All of God’s attributes and perfections are to an infinite degree (Ps.147:5; Rom. 11:33).

4. Immutability ~ God is unchangeable in every aspect of His person and character (Mal.3:6; Heb. 1:2; Ja. 1:17).

5. Personality ~ God is a living being able to have a reciprocal relationship with other personal and social beings. He possesses the component parts of personality: self-consciousness, self determination, intellect, emotion, and will (Is. 45:5; Job 23:13; Eph. 1:9; Gen. 6:6).

6. Unity ~ The Divine nature of God is undivided and indivisible (Mk. 12:29; Dt.6:4).

7. Immensity ~ God transcends space. He is not subject to the limitations of space and His whole person fills the universe (1 Ki. 8:27; Jer. 23:24; Acts 17:28).

B. The Attributes of God: These attributes are that which characterizes God’s essential being. They are all to a perfect and infinite degree (Ps. 147:5).

1. Omnipotence ~ God is all-powerful and has the ability to do anything He wills (Gen. 17:1; Job.42:2; Jer. 32:17; Hab. 1:13; Mt. 19:26; Phil. 2:10; Heb. 6:18; Rev. 19:6).

2. Omniscience ~ God knows all things perfectly and immediately: past, present, and future (Ex.3:7; Deut. 31:20; Ps. 139:1-4; Prov. 5:21; 15:3; Jn.13:27; Heb.4:13).

3. Omnipresence ~ God is everywhere present at all times (Gen. 16:13; Deut. 4:7; 2Chron. 2:6; Ps. 139:7-13; Mt. 28:20; Heb. 4:13).

4. Holiness ~ God is absolutely morally pure, separated from sin, and has a unique exaltation above sinful man (Lev. 11:44; Josh. 24:19; Ps. 22:3; Is. 6:3; Jn. 17:11; 1 Pet. 1:15-16; Rev. 4:8).

5. Righteousness ~ God is always right and expresses perfect righteousness in all of His laws, His works, and every dealing with man (Ezra 9:15; Ps. 89:14; 97:2; Rev. 16:5, 7).

6. Justice ~ God is completely just in the administration of His law. God’s verdicts are without bias and partiality. He is totally just whether he condemns the wicked or saves the believer (Ps. 58:11; Dt. 32:4; Rev. 15:3).

7. Truth ~ God is genuine. He represents things as they really are and cannot lie. He fulfills His commitments and never has to revise any of His promises (ie. Abraham and Sarah) (Jer. 10:10; Titus 1:2; Jn. 17:3, 17; Num. 23:19; I Thess. 5:24 ).

8. Love ~ God is love. If we do not have love we do not abide in God. He loves infinitely and He loves many objects. His love is demonstrated by the giving of Himself (I Jn.4:8; Jer. 31:3; Jn.3:16; 2 Cor. 13:11; Eph. 2:4-5).

9. Mercy ~ The compassion and tenderheartedness that God has toward miserable and needy man (Ex. 3:7; Ps. 103:13-14; Mk. 5:19; Lk. 1:78).

10. Grace ~ The undeserved favor of God toward us as sinners manifested in Jesus Christ. God does not deal with us on the basis of our our worthiness (Eph. 2:7-9; Rom. 11:5; IPet. 5:5).

11. Benevolence (goodness) ~ God’s unselfish concern for others. This is the concern of God for the welfare of those whom he loves (Ps. 145:9, 15-16; Mt.5:45; Rom. 2:4).

C. The Works of God:

1. Creation ~ We believe that God created the heavens and the earth entirely out of nothing (Gen 1:1; Heb. 11:3). He spoke all creation into existence by the power of His word in six literal days (Ex. 20:11). We do not accept any view of Theistic Evolution.

2. Government ~ God sustains the existence of all things (preservation), and guarantees that all things work together to fulfill His purposes (providence). These both are part of His Sovereign rule or government (Neh. 9:6; Dan. 4:25; Eph. 1:11; Rev. 19:6).

3. Salvation ~ God ordained, planned, and provided for the salvation of mankind (Eph. 1:10; Gal.4:4).

III. The Doctrine of the Son of God

We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (Rom. 1:4) and is the Savior of the world (2 Tim. 1:10). We believe that He is the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (Jn. 10:30; 17:11), that He was born of a virgin (Mt. 1:18, 22-23), that He lived an impeccable sinless life (Heb. 4:15; 7:26), died substitutionally for the sins of all men by shedding his blood on the cross (Rom. 5:8; 2 Cor. 5:21; Eph. 2:13; 1 Jn. 2:2), was buried and raised bodily from the grave on the third day (1 Cor. 15:3-4), was seen by over five hundred witnesses (1 Cor. 15:5-8), and ascended to the right hand of the Father conquering death and triumphing over sin and Satan (Acts 1:1, 9- 11; 7:56; Rom. 6:9; 1 Cor. 15:54-57).

A. The Person of Jesus Christ:

1. His Deity ~ He is God manifested in the flesh, co-equal, co-eternal, and co-existent with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit (Is. 7:14 ; 9:6; Jn. 1:1, 14, 18; 20:28; Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:3,8; 1 Jn. 5:20).

2. His Humanity ~ He is God manifested in the flesh by the miracle of the virgin birth so he exists as the unique God-man, having two natures in one Person. He is fully God, having the same nature as God in His Deity, and fully man, having the same nature as man in his humanity (Mt. 4:2; Jn. 1:14; Phil. 2:7; 1 Tim. 2:5; 3:16).

B. The Works of Jesus Christ:

1. Creation ~ The scriptures indicate that all three Persons of the Godhead had an active part in creation. Christ is the Creator of all things (Jn. 1:3; Col. 1:16).

2. Salvation ~ Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). The very purpose for His manifestation was to provide salvation for all who believe in Him ( Mk. 10:45;1 Jn. 3:5, 8).

C. The Offices of Jesus Christ:

1. Prophet ~ The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect Prophet. He has proceeded forth from God (Jn. 8:42) and has given a revelation in word and in deed that is the perfect, matchless expression of God’s Person and God’s will (Dt. 18:15; Lk. 24:19; Acts 3:22).

2. Priest ~ Jesus Christ is our great high priest and is the only mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5). He is seated at the right hand of God the Father and ever lives to make intercession on behalf of His people (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:17, 25-26).

3. King ~ God’s word affirms that Christ will one day take the reign of human government, will sit upon the throne of His father David, and will rule the nations with a rod of iron during the millennium (Is. 9:6-7; Prov. 12:5). His Kingship extends beyond the millennium (Heb. 1:8) and is clearly seen in His headship of the church (Col. 1:18) and in His sovereign rule of the universe (Mt. 28:18).

IV. The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is God and that He is co-eternal, co-existent and co-equal with God the Father and God the Son (Heb.9:14). He is the third Person of the Godhead.

A. His Deity: The Holy Spirit is God, not merely a manifestation of God nor simply a part of God. He possesses the attributes of God (1 Cor. 2:10-11; Jn. 16:13; Heb. 9:14), performs the works of God (Gen.1:2), and is expressly called God (Ex. 17:7; Heb. 3:7-9; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21).

B. His Personality: The Holy Spirit is a person. He has the attributes of personality. He has intelligence (Jn. 14:26), will (1 Cor. 2:10,14), and emotion (Acts 5:3-9; Rom. 15:30; Eph. 4:30).

C. His Works:

1. Creation ~ The Spirit of God was clearly active in creation (Gen. 1:2; Ps.33:6).

2. Conviction ~ He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He reproves the sinner and convicts him of his need to believe in Christ (Jn. 16:8-11).

3. Illumination ~ He illuminates the darkened minds of sinful men enabling them to comprehend spiritual things (Jn. 16:13; 1 Cor. 2:9-13; Eph. 1:9).

4. Regeneration ~ The work of the Spirit whereby He imparts spiritual life (the new birth) to those who were dead in trespasses and sins (Jn. 3:3-6; Eph. 2:5; Col. 2:13; Titus 2:5).

5. Indwelling ~ The Holy Spirit abides within us. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit (Jn. 4:17; 1 Cor. 3:16).

6. Baptizing ~ The work of Christ through the Holy Spirit in which the believer is united with the body of Christ (Mt. 3:11; 1 Cor. 12:13).

7. Sealing ~ We are sealed with the Holy Spirit which is the assurance of God’s ownership, security, and of our coming inheritance (Eph. 1:13; 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:22).

8. Filling (Eph.5:18; Acts 4:31)

9. Guiding (Acts 8:29; Gal. 5:18)

10. Empowering (Zech. 4:6; Rom. 8:13)

11. Teaching (Jn. 14:26; 1 Jn. 2:20, 27)

12. Distributing gifts (1 Cor. 12:11)

13. Interceding (Rom. 8:26)

V. The Doctrine of Man

We believe that God created man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life and man became a living soul (Gen. 2:7). He was created in the image of God, innocent and holy (Gen. 1:27), and was created a unity of body, soul, and spirit (1 Thess. 5:23) with intellectual, emotional, and volitional attributes. Man was created with the ability to choose right and wrong (Josh. 24:15; Is. 53:6) and given a conscience to reflect the demands of God’s law written on his heart (Rom. 2:14-15).

VI. The Doctrine of Sin

We believe that the entire human race fell into sin through the willful disobedience of Adam, that we all sinned in Adam, and that as the head of our race his sinful nature passed upon all men (Rom. 5:12, 19). We believe that man’s nature is entirely corrupt (Rom. 3:10-18), that men are sinful by nature as well as by choice (Gen. 3:16; Rom. 3:23) and that all men are condemned as guilty (Rom. 3:19). We believe that all men are under the penalty of both physical and spiritual death (Rom. 6:23; Gen.2:17) and apart from salvation through faith in Jesus Christ will suffer eternal damnation and retribution under God’s wrath and judgment in the lake of fire (Rom. 6:23; Rev. 20:11-15).

VII. The Doctrine of Salvation

We believe that salvation is accomplished entirely by the grace of God through faith in the redeeming work of Christ on the cross (Eph. 2:8-9) and is completely apart from any human merit (Titus 3:5; Rom.3:20-22).

A. God’s plan of salvation: We believe that the ultimate purpose of Him who worketh all things after the council of His own will is to glorify Himself and to demonstrate the exceeding riches of His grace by providing salvation for undeserving sinners (Eph. 2:7). Man is totally depraved and incapable of finding favor or acceptance in the sight of God (Rom. 3:23). In His grace God has ordained the means of man’s salvation (Eph. 1:9-10), sent Christ to secure his salvation (Heb. 2:9), and works through the agency of the Holy Spirit to effect that salvation in man’s heart (Jn. 16:8-11). Salvation is a work of God from the beginning to the end. It is initiated by Him, provided by Him, and sustained by Him.

B. God’s call to salvation: God calls men to salvation by repenting of their sin toward God and having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:30; Acts 20:21).

1. Repentance ~ The change of mind and disposition toward God and toward sin. It is the intellectual, emotional, and volitional response of the sinner in reference to his sin (Mk. 1:15; Lk. 13:3).

2. Faith ~ The intellectual, emotional and volitional response of the sinner toward God. It is accepting the gospel message and believing on Christ as the object of hope and salvation (Rom. 10:9-10; Heb. 11:6).

3. Conversion ~ The total change of life and direction by means of the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit as a result of the repentance and faith just described (Acts 3:19).

C. God’s provision for salvation:

1. Propitiation ~ Sin is an offense to God because He is holy and righteous. His law demands the punishment of sin and His justice will always satisfy that demand (Num. 14:18; Ez. 18:4; Rom.6:23; Ja. 2:10). Christ’s perfect sinless life met every demand of the law for righteousness (Mt. 5:17-18), and his sacrificial death by the shedding of His blood on the cross propitiated (appeased) God’s wrath (Rom. 3:22- 26), and satisfied the just demand of the law for the sinner’s death (Col.2:14).

2. Redemption ~ Christ bought us back from the slave-market of sin by giving his life a ransom payment (Mk. 10:45; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Rev. 5:19).

3. Justification ~ This is the judicial act of God in which he declares righteous the one who believes on Christ (Rom. 3:24; 1 Cor. 6:11 ; Titus 3:7).

4. Reconciliation ~ This is the restoration of our relationship to God by removing our sin which separated and alienated us from God (Rom. 5:10; 2 Cor. 5:18; Col. 1:21).

5. Regeneration ~ This is the impartation of spiritual life through the Holy Spirit. God restores in us the new man of His unmarred image which is created in righteousness and true holiness (Eph.4:24; Col. 3:10 ; 2 Pet. 1:4).

6. Adoption ~ This is the placement, at the time of salvation, into the position of sons with all the rights, blessings, and privileges of inheritance given to God’s children (Jn. 1:12; Rom. 8:15, 23; Gal.4:5; Eph. 1:5).

D. God’s Power in Salvation:

1. Sanctification ~ This is the continuing work of God in the life of the believer, making him holy. It is a process by which our moral condition is brought into conformity with our legal status before God. We believe this is a setting a part of the believer from sin unto God. Sanctification of the believer is determined by God in His work through Christ (Phil. 1:6). The believer is responsible to cooperate with God by obeying His word (Jn. 17:7), submitting to His Spirit (1 Pet. 1:2), and by yielding to the continual promptings of the new nature (Eph. 4:22-23).

2. Perseverance ~ We believe that every true believer, because of the regeneration of the Holy Spirit, can never totally and finally fall from grace, can never draw back into perdition, and can never fully reject Christ. He is fully kept by the power of God through faith (Jn. 10:27-28; Heb. 10:38-39; 1 Pet. 1:5; 1 Jn. 2:18-19).

3. Glorification ~ This is the final part of the salvation package which occurs after death or Christ’s return, when we are saved from even the presence of sin. We will be completely conformed into the image of Christ (Phil. 3:21 ; 1 Thess. 3:13; Jude 24).

VIII. The Doctrine of Angels

We believe that angels are a company of spiritual beings (Heb. 1:7) who were created by God before the creation of the earth (Ps. 148:2-5; Job. 38:4-7).

A. They exist in two states:

1. The unfallen angels ~ They exist for the praise, worship, and service of God (Heb. 1:6; Is. 6:3). They minister to the saints (Heb. 1:14) and engage in spiritual conflict (Dan. 10:13 ; Eph. 6:12).

2. The fallen angels ~ They fell from their holy estate because of their rebellion with Satan (Is.14:12-14; Jude 6). Therefore, one-third of the angels are corrupt (Mt. 10:1) and oppose God (Jude 9). Satan, the archenemy of God, is the prince and authority of these wicked spirits (Mt. 12:24). We do not believe that these angels can ever be redeemed because Christ did not take on the form of angels, but Abraham’s seed (Heb. 2:16; Phil. 2:7). Satan and the fallen angels will ultimately be condemned to eternal fire (Mt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

B. They were created holy (Mt. 25:31; 2 Pet. 2:4).

C. They are great in number and power (Mt. 26:53; Heb. 12:22; 2 Pet. 2:11; Ps. 103:20).

D. They differ in rank and function (Dan. 10:13; Is. 6:2-3).

IX. The Doctrine of the Church

We believe that the church is Christ’s body (Eph. 1:22-23) and that it is made up of all born-again believers at this present time whether they are alive or asleep in Christ (Eph. 2:11-22; Col. 3:11).

A. The Church was founded at the Day of Pentecost (Acts 1:4,5; Acts 2; Acts 11:15-17).

B. The Universal Church is made up of all believers in Christ and is distinct from the national Israel (Eph. 2:15; Rom.11).

C. The Local Church is the visible expression of the larger universal body. This establishment is seen in the New Testament with the purpose to enable localized believers to assemble themselves together for worship and edification. Through doctrinal instruction, fellowship, prayer, and worship believers are built up in the faith and equipped to carry out the supreme task of evangelizing the world (Acts 2:42; 13:1; 14:22-27).

D. The Offices of the Church:

1. The Office of Pastor/Elder/Bishop ~ These titles refer to men in the local assembly who are called by God (Acts 20:28), endowed by God (Rom. 12:6-8), and qualified (1 Tim.3:1-7; Titus 1:6-9) to exercise spiritual leadership over the flock of God. This man oversees spiritual teaching, ordinances, discipline, and all business relating to his flock (1 Pet. 5:1-3). His ultimate responsibility is to give himself to the ministry of the word and prayer (Acts 6:4).

2. The Office of Deacon ~The deacon helps to hold up the arms of the pastor/elder/bishop by taking care of the temporal and material needs of the church. This office is a service-oriented ministry that came into existence (Acts 6:1-6) so the pastor could devote himself to the word and prayer. Deacons must also meet the qualifications outlined in the New Testament (1 Tim. 3:1-3; Titus 1:5-11).

E. The Ordinances of the Church:

1. Baptism ~ The immersion of the believer into water as the outward expression of His Identification with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection and as a symbolic act that pictures the essential elements of the gospel. As Christ died, was buried, and rose from the dead, so the believer experiences death to sin, resurrection to walk in newness of life, and the hope of the resurrection of his physical body (Mt. 28:18- 20; Rom. 6:4).

2. The Lord’s Supper ~ This is to be exercised only by believers and is a constant reminder for us to examine ourselves to make certain there is no sin separating us from communion with Christ. This was instituted by Christ to be regular (1 Cor. 11:25), solemn (1 Cor. 11:27-33), joyful (Mt. 26:27; Lk. 22:15) and a mutual participation of believers (Mk. 14:22) in commemorating the death of our Savior (Lk. 22:19; 1 Cor. 11:24). The elements are symbolic of Christ’s broken body and shed blood. Participation does not bring grace and we strongly reject that Christ is in any way physically present in the elements (Jn. 6:51, 58, 63).

F. The Government of the Church: We believe in a congregational form of church government in which the entire body is involved in the decisions and direction of the church. While the congregation has a voice in the decision- making process, she is constantly called upon to obey and submit to the authority of the leadership. At the same time, the actions of the leadership should always be subject to the entire body (Acts 6:1-6; 13:3; 14:26; 15:4, 22; 18:27; 1 Cor. 5:13; 2 Cor. 2:6).

G. The Gifts of the Church: We believe God has given the church gifted men endowed with ministerial skills in order that believers may develop in Christian maturity, be edified, and be equipped to do the work of the ministry (Eph.4:7-14). Also, the Holy Spirit has endowed individual Christians with specific spiritual gifts (Rom. 12:6-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11; Eph. 4:11; 1 Pet. 4:11).

X. The Doctrine of Last Things

We believe in the immanent (1 Thess. 5:2), pre-tribulational return of the Lord Jesus Christ to rapture His church (1 Cor. 15:51-53; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 5:9) and His pre-millennial second coming in order to establish a literal one thousand year millennial kingdom (Rev. 19:11-21; 20:1-5).

A. Sequence of Events:

1. Rapture (1 Cor. 15:51-53; 1 Thess. 4:13-18).

2. The Great Tribulation ~ Daniel’s 70th Week (Dan. 9:24-27; Mt. 24:31)

a. Judgment Seat of Christ (Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 3:9-15; 2 Cor. 5:10).

b. Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-9).

c. Antichrist and Abomination of Desolation (Dan. 9:27).

3. The Second Advent of Christ (Rev. 19:11-21).

a. Antichrist and False Prophet cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20).

b. Enemies defeated (Rev. 19:21).

c. Satan bound for a thousand years (Rev. 20:1-3).

4. The Millennial Reign of Christ

a. The Church will reign with Christ (2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 2:26-27).

b. Satan will be loosed at the end of the period (Rev. 20:7-9).

5. The Great White Throne Judgment ~ unsaved of all ages appear before the Great White Throne to be judged (Rev. 20:11-15).

B. The Eternal State: The consummation of all things.

1. Satan and his angels ~ Satan and the fallen angels will be condemned to the lake of fire (Mt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

2. The Unsaved ~ Anyone who is not found written in the book of life (Rev. 20:15) will be cast into the lake of fire and tormented eternally under God’s righteous judgment (Mt. 25:41, 46; Mk. 9:48; Lk. 16:26; Rev. 14:11).

3. The Saved ~ All of God’s children will spend eternity in heaven, the dwelling place of God, and will be completely free from even the presence of sin. Heaven is a place of great glory and beauty. Our glorified bodies will be perfect and we shall see Christ as He is (1 Jn. 3:2; 2 Cor. 5:8; 1 Thess. 5:17; Rev. 21:4; 22:3).