Statement of Faith

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments  to be the verbally and plenary inspired  Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, and God-breathed, and therefore are the only authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The King James Version of the Bible shall be the only translation used by the Church (II Tim. 3:16-17; II Pet.1:20-21).

We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons-Father, Son, and Holy Ghost­ each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes  and perfections (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28: 19; II Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, became man without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; II Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ made a way for our redemption through His death on the cross as a vicarious, substitutionary  sacrifice; and that our justification  is made sure by His bodily resurrection from the dead (Rom. 3:24-25; I Peter 2:24; 3-5; Eph. 1 :7).

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-1 0; Heb. 7:25; 9:24; Rom. 8:34; I John 2:1-2).

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness,  and of judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 12:12-14; II Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1: 14).

We believe that He is the Divine Teacher, who assists believers to understand and appropriate  the Scriptures,  and that it is the duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18).

We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists,  pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry (Rom. 12:3-8; I Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12).

We believe that man is created in the image and likeness of God, but as a result of Adam’s sin the entire human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. We believe that man is totally depraved and unable to save himself (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19).

We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. We believe that all sins except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, (unbelief) are forgivable. (John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-9; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Matt. 12:31-32; I John 1:9)

We believe that upon receiving Christ as Savior, we are kept by God’s  power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1, 38-39; I Cor. 1:4-8; I Pet. 1 :4-5).

We believe that the local Church, which is the body and the bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again  believers baptized by immersion in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Ghost (Matt. 28:19; 1 Cor.12:12-14; II Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27).

We believe in the autonomy of the local Church free of any external authority or control (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20-28; Rom. 16:1, 4; I Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; I Peter 5:1-4).

We recognize water baptism by immersion only and the Lord’s  Supper as the only Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the Church in this age (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; I Cor. 11:23-26).

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations  is commanded  of God (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; II Cor. 6:14-7:1 ; II Tim. 3:1-5; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11).

We believe in the “blessed hope,” the personal, imminent return of Christ Who will rapture His Church prior to the seven-year  tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation,  Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints to establish  His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; 4:13-18; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6).

We believe in the bodily resurrection  of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment which is hell and the lake of fire (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13).

We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection  when_ spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; II Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3: 21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20-4-6).

We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment  and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the lake of fire, not to be annihilated,  but to suffer conscious punishment and torment forever and ever (Matt. 25:41-46;  Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; II Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:1-15).

We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the Fall of Man. He is the open and declared enemy of God and man, and he shall be punished in the lake of fire forever and ever (Job I:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:1 0).

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution,  the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin (Genesis 1-2; Ex. 20:11 ).

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions:  1) the home; 2) the Church; and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities,  but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable  to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution  has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the Church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility  under God (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 2:13-14).

The Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible itself is the only source of all that we believe. We do believe, however, that the foregoing Statement of Faith accurately represents the teaching of the Bible, and therefore should be adhered to by all Church members.