Enjoy Church Again

HOLY BIBLE

The Holy Bible, and only the Bible, is the authoritative Word of God. It alone is the final authority in determining all doctrinal truths. In its original writing, it is inspired, infallible and inerrant II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20-21; Proverbs 30:5; Romans 16:25-26.

TRINITY

There is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are coequal and co-eternal I John 5:7; Genesis 1:26; Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 9:6; Hebrews 3:7-11.

JESUS CHRIST

Jesus Christ is God the Son, the second person of the Trinity. On earth, Jesus was 100% God and 100% man. He is the only man ever to have lived a sinless life. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, died on the cross for mankind and thus, atoned for our sins through the shedding of His blood. He rose from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return again in power and glory. John 1:1, 14, 20:28; I Timothy 3:16; Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 2:5-6; 1 Timothy 2:5.

VIRGIN BIRTH

Jesus Christ was conceived by God the Father, through the Holy Spirit (the third person of the Trinity) in the Virgin Mary's womb; therefore, He is the Son of God Matthew 1:18, 25; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:27-35.

REDEMPTION

Man was created good and upright, but by voluntary transgression he fell; his only hope of redemption is in Jesus Christ, the Son of God Gen. 1:26-31, 3:1-7; Romans 5:12-21.

REGENERATION

For anyone to know God, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential John 6:44, 65; Matthew 19:28; Titus 3:5.

SALVATION

We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ; His death, burial, and resurrection. Salvation is a gift from God, not a result of our good works or of any human efforts Ephesians 2:8-9; Galatians 2:16, 3:8; Titus 3:5; Romans 10:9-10; Acts 16:31; Hebrews 9:22.

REPENTANCE

Repentance is the commitment to turn away from sin in every area of our lives and to follow Christ, which allows us to receive His redemption and to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit. Thus, through repentance we receive forgiveness of sins and appropriate salvation Acts 2:21, 3:19; I John 1:9.

SANCTIFICATION

Sanctification is the ongoing process of yielding to God’s Word and His Spirit in order to complete the development of Christ's character in us. It is through the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God that the Christian is enabled to live a Godly life I Thessalonians 4:3, 5:23; II Corinthians 3:18, 6:14-18, II Thessalonians 2:1-3, Romans 8:29, 12:1-2, Hebrews 2:11.

JESUS’ BLOOD

The Blood that Jesus Christ shed on the Cross of Calvary was sinless and is 100% sufficient to cleanse mankind of all sin. Jesus allowed Himself to be punished for both our sinfulness and our sins, enabling all those who believe to be free from the penalty of sin, which is death I John 1:7; Revelation 1:5, 5:9; Colossians 1:20; Romans 3:10-12, 23, 5:9; John 1:29.

JESUS CHRIST INDWELLS ALL BELIEVERS

Christians are people who have invited the Lord Jesus Christ to come and live inside them by His Holy Spirit. They relinquish the authority of their lives over to Him thus making Jesus the Lord of their lives as well as Savior. They put their trust in what Jesus accomplished for them when He died, was buried, and rose again from the dead John 1:12; John 14:17, 23; John 15:4; Romans 8:11; Revelation 3:20.

BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

Given at Pentecost, it is the promise of the Father, sent by Jesus after His Ascension, to empower the Church to preach the Gospel throughout the whole earth Joel 2:28-29; Matthew 3:11; Mark 16:17; Acts 1:5,2:1-4, 17, 38-39, 8:14-17, 10:38, 44-47, 11:15-17, 19:1-6.

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Holy Spirit is manifested through a variety of spiritual gifts to build and sanctify the church, demonstrate the validity of the resurrection, and confirm the power of the Gospel. The Bible lists of these gifts are not necessarily exhaustive, and the gifts may occur in various combinations. All believers are commanded to earnestly desire the manifestation of the gifts in their lives. These gifts always operate in harmony with the Scriptures and should never be used in violation of Biblical parameters. Hebrews 2:4; Romans 1:11, 12 :4-8; Ephesians 4:16; I Timothy 4:14; II Timothy 1:6-7; I Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40; I Peter 4:10.

THE CHURCH

The church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of Jesus' great commission. Every person who is born of the Spirit is an integral part of the church as a member of the body of believers. There is a spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:22, 2:19-22; Hebrews 12:23; John 17:11, 20-23.

HEALING OF THE SICK

Healing of the sick is illustrated in the life and ministry of Jesus, and included in the commission of Jesus to His disciples. It is given as a sign, which is to follow believers. It is also a part of Jesus' work on the Cross and one of the gifts of the Spirit. Psalm 103:2-3; Isaiah 53:5; Matthew 8:16-17; Mark 16:17-18; Acts 8:6-7; James 5:14-16; I Corinthians 12:9, 28; Romans 11:29.

RESURRECTION

Jesus Christ was physically resurrected from the dead in a glorified body three days after His death on the cross. In addition, both the saved and the lost will be resurrected; they that are saved to the resurrection of life and they that are lost to the resurrection of eternal damnation Luke 24:16, 36, 39; John 2:19-21, 20:26-28, 21:4; Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:42, 44; Philippians 1:21-23, 3:21.

SECOND COMING

Jesus Christ will physically and visibly return to earth for the second time to establish His Kingdom. This will occur at a date undisclosed by the Scriptures. Matthew 24:30, 26:63-64; Acts 1:9-11; I Thessalonians 4:15-17; II Thessalonians 1:7-8; Revelation 1:7.

HELL AND ETERNAL RETRIBUTION

Anyone who physically dies in their sins without Christ is hopelessly and eternally lost in the Lake of Fire and, therefore, has no further opportunity of hearing the Gospel or repenting. The Lake of Fire is literal. The terms “eternal” and “everlasting” used in describing the duration of the punishment of the damned in the Lake of Fire, carry the same thought and meaning of endless existence as used in denoting the duration of joy and ecstasy of saints in the presence of God. Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 19:20; 20:11-15; 21:8; Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:43-48; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; I Corinthians 6:9-10.

WATER BAPTISM

Following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new convert is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized in water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12, 36-38; 10:47-48.

COMMUNION

The Lord's Supper, consisting of the elements —bread and the fruit of the vine— is the symbol expressing our sharing the divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ (II Peter 1:4), a memorial of His suffering and death (I Corinthians 11:26), and a prophecy of His second coming (I Corinthians 11:26), and is enjoined on all believers “until He comes!” John 6:48, 51, 53-57; Luke 22:19-20; I Corinthians 10:16.

TITHING

We believe in the Scriptural principle of tithing (giving one tenth) of our income to the local church. It is an act of obedience and worship to our Savior, acknowledging His provision in our lives. Tithing supports the church’s ministries, missions, and activities. Malachi 3:10; Leviticus 27:30; Proverbs 3:9-10; Genesis 14:20; Matthew 23:23.

MISSIONS

We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ, we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us. Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; II Corinthians 5:20.

CREATION

We believe that the account of origins presented in Genesis is a simple but factual presentation of actual events and therefore provides a reliable framework for scientific research into the question of the origin and history of life, mankind, the Earth and the universe. Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11; Acts 4:24; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 11:3; Revelation 10:6.