ARTICLE IV ‑‑
STATEMENT OF DOCTRINE
Section A. ‑‑ The Holy Scriptures.
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New
Testaments to be the verbally inspired Word of God, the final authority for
faith and life, inerrant in the original writings, and infallible. 2 Tim. 3:16‑17;
2 Pet. 1:20‑21; Mt. 5:18; Jn. 16:12‑13.
Section B. ‑‑ The Godhead.
We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three
persons‑‑Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—co‑eternal in being, co‑identical in
nature, co‑equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and
perfection. Dt. 6:4; 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Pet. 1:2.
Section C. ‑‑ The Person and Work of Christ.
(1) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal Son
of God, became a man without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the
Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and
redeem sinful men. Jn. 1:1‑2,14; Lk. 1:3-5.
(2) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our
redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious,
substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His
literal, physical resurrection from the dead. Rom. 3:24‑25; Eph. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:3‑5;
2:24.
(3) 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; Heb. 9:14; Rom. 8:34; 1 Jn. 2:1‑2.
Section D. ‑‑ The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit.
(1) 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. Jn. 16:11;
Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12‑14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13‑14.
(2) We believe that He is the divine teacher who guides
believers into all truth; and, that it is the privilege and duty of all the
saved to be filled with the Spirit. Jn. 16:13; Eph. 5:18; 1 Jn. 2:27.
Section E. ‑‑ The Total Depravity of Man.
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness
of God, but that in Adam’s sin the race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and
became alienated from God; and that man, outside Christ, is totally depraved,
and of himself utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. Gen. 1:26‑27; Rom.
3:22‑23; 5:12; Eph. 2:1‑3, 12.
Section F. ‑‑ Salvation.
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 the cross for forgiveness
of our sins. Jn. 1:12; Eph. 2:8‑10; 1 Pet. 1:18‑19.
Section G. ‑‑ The Eternal Security and Assurance of
Believers.
(1) We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept
by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. Jn. 6:37‑40; 10:27‑30;
Rom. 8:1, 38‑39; 1 Cor. 1:4‑8; 1 Pet. 1:5.
(2) We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice
in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which,
however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion for sin to
reign in the mortal body, exacting obedience to the body’s desires. Rom. 6:12;
13:13‑14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11‑15.
Section H. ‑‑ The Two Natures of the Believer.
We believe that every saved person possesses two natures,
with provision made for victory of the new nature over the old nature through
the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit; and, that all claims to the
eradication of the old nature in this life are unscriptural. Rom. 6:13; 8:12‑13;
Gal. 5:16‑25; Eph. 4:22‑24; Col. 3:10; 1 Pet. 1:14‑16; 1 Jn. 3:5‑9.
Section I. ‑‑ Separation.
We believe that all the saved should
live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and,
that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures,
practices and associations is commanded of God. 2 Tim. 3:1‑5; Rom. 12:1‑2;
14:13; 1 Jn. 2:15‑17; 2 Jn. 9, 11; 2 Cor. 6:14‑7:1.
Section J. ‑‑ Missions.
We believe
that it is the solemn duty of the saved to witness by life and by word to the
truths of Holy Scripture and to seek to proclaim the Gospel to all mankind. Mk.
16:15; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:19‑20.
Section K. ‑‑ The Ministry and Spiritual Gifts.
(1) We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowment of
all His gifts and that the gifts of evangelists, pastors, and teachers are
sufficient for the perfecting of the saints today; and that speaking in tongues
and the working of sign miracles gradually ceased as the New Testament Scriptures
were completed and their authority became established. 1 Cor. 12:4‑11; 13:8‑10;
14:1‑25; 2 Cor. 12:12; Eph. 4:7‑12.
(2) We believe that God does hear and answer the prayer of
faith, in accord with His own will, for the sick and afflicted. Jn. 15:7; 1 Jn.
5:14‑15.
Section L. ‑‑ The Church.
(1) We believe that the Church which is the body and the
espoused bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born‑again
persons of this present age. Eph. 1:22‑23; 5:25‑27; 1 Cor. 12:12‑14; 2 Cor.
11:2.
(2) We believe that the establishment and continuance of
local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures.
Acts 14:27; 20:17; 28:28‑31; 1 Tim. 3:1‑13; Titus 1:5‑11.
Section M. – Dispensationalism.
We believe in the dispensational view of Bible
interpretation. However, we reject the extreme teaching known as “Hyper
Dispensationalism,” such as that teaching which opposes either the Lord’s Table
or water baptism as a scriptural means of testimony for the Church in this age.
Mt. 28:19‑20; Acts 2:41‑42; 18:8; 1 Cor. 11:23‑26.
Section N. ‑‑ The Personality of Satan.
We believe that Satan is a person,
the author of sin and the cause of the fall of man; that he is the open and
declared enemy of God and man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the
lake of fire. Job 1:6‑7; Is. 14:12‑17; Rev. 20:10.
Section O. ‑‑ The Second Advent of Christ.
We believe in the “Blessed Hope,” the personal, imminent,
pre‑tribulation and pre‑millennial coming of the Lord Jesus Christ for His
redeemed ones; and in His subsequent return to earth with His saints to
establish His Millennial Kingdom. 1 Thes. 4:13‑18; Zech. 14:4‑11; Rev. 3:10;
19:11‑16; 20:1‑6; 1 Thes. 1:10.
Section P. ‑‑ The Eternal State.
(1) We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the
saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment.
Mt. 25:46; Jn. 5:28‑29; 11:25‑26; Rev. 20:5‑6, 12‑13.
(2) 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 and soul will be reunited in a
new body to be glorified forever with the Lord. Lk. 23:43; Rev. 20:4‑6; 2 Cor.
5:8; Phil. 1:23; 1 Thes. 4:16‑17.
(3) We believe that the souls of
unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious misery 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 everlasting conscious punishment because of the
rejection of God’s Son as their Savior. Lk. 16:19‑26; Mt. 25:4‑46; 2 Thes. 1:7‑9;
Jude 6‑7; Mk. 9:43‑48; Rev. 20:11‑15.