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God
1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things,
holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving
unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and
the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power,
God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for
Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
The Bible
2. We believe that God has spoken in the
Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of
human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible
is without error in the original writings, the complete
revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority
by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be
judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches,
obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it
promises.
The Human Condition
3. We believe that God created Adam and Eve in
His image, but they sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with
Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice,
alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s
saving work in Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and
renewed.
Jesus Christ
4. We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate,
fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures.
Jesus—Israel's promised Messiah—was conceived through the Holy
Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was
crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead,
ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the
Father as our High Priest and Advocate.
The Work of Christ
5. We believe that Jesus Christ, as our
representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as
the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning
death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for
salvation.
The Holy Spirit
6. We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that
He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ. He convicts the world
of its guilt. He regenerates sinners, and in Him they are
baptized into union with Christ and adopted as heirs in the
family of God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips and
empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.
The Church
7. We believe that the true church comprises all
who have been justified by God's grace through faith alone in
Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of
Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in
local churches, whose membership should be composed only of
believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and
the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the
gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when
celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances
confirm and nourish the believer.
Christian Living
8. We believe that God's justifying grace must
not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God
commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and
to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion
toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word,
the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are
to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ’s
commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always
bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
Christ’s Return
9. We believe in the personal, bodily and
premillennial return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of
Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy
and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly
living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.
Response
and Eternal Destiny
10. We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe
the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the
Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead
bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to
condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer
to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven
and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen. |
