THE SCRIPTURES
We believe that the Holy Bible was divinely inspired by God and given to man as the only complete and final revelation of the will of God to man. By the “Holy Bible” we mean that collection of sixty-six books (Genesis through Revelation) of the Old and New Testaments, which we believe is the very Word of God. We also believe that God has supernaturally and providentially preserved His inspired Word, without error, for us today in the Authorized Version 1611 (King James Version). We believe that this preserved Bible is the final authority for us in all matters of faith, doctrine, and practice. The Authorized King James Version of the Bible shall be used exclusively in all meetings associated with this church. Finally, we believe that Christians should not only believe the Book, but also do what it commands and teaches. (Psalms 12:6-7; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; James 1:22-25; 2 Peter 1:21)
THE GOD HEAD (TRINITY)
We believe that the God Head eternally exists in three Persons–Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–and that these three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes, and perfections. (Genesis 1:1; Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 28:19-20; John 10:30; Romans 8:9; 2 Corinthians 13:14)
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
We believe in: 1) His eternal existence as God (Hebrews 1:8); 2) His incarnation by means of the Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:35); 3) His death on the cross as the substitutionary atonement for the sins of all mankind (Romans 3:25; Hebrews 9:14); 4) His literal bodily resurrection from the dead (Luke 24:36-43; Acts 10:40-41); 5) His present ministry of intercession in Heaven (Acts 1:9; Hebrews 8:1-2; 1 John 2:1); 6) His imminent return for the body of Christ (Rapture) (Acts 1:11; Colossians 8:4; 1 Thessalonians 4:16); and 7) His personal return to earth. (Matthew 26:64; Revelation 19 & 20)
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, convicts men of sin (John 16:8) and regenerates, indwells, seals, and sets believers apart into a holy life (1 Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 5:18); that He keeps and empowers believers day by day; and that He is the teacher of the Word of God and Guide for our daily lives. The baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place the moment one trusts Christ for Salvation. (1 Corinthians 12:13) Anyone who does not have the Spirit living in him is not a child of God. (Romans 8:9)
SALVATION
We believe that: 1) Man was created innocent and pure (Genesis 1:26); 2) Adam fell through the sin of disobedience (Romans 5:19); 3) Thereby, all men are corrupted in body, mind, and soul (Romans 5:12); 4) Therefore, all are in need of redemption (Romans 3:23); 5) This redemption is only acquired by grace, repentance from sin, and faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary. (Acts 20:21; Romans 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-9)
THE LOCAL CHURCH
We believe that: 1) The local church is composed of regenerated and baptized believers, voluntarily united together for the purpose of worship, edification, fellowship of believers, spiritual growth, and Christian service. 2) It has been commissioned by Christ to take the Gospel unto the uttermost parts of the earth. 3) It has absolute right of self-government, free from interferences of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations; and that the Head of the church is Christ, through the Holy Spirit. 4) Its only Scriptural officers are bishops or pastors and deacons, whose qualifications, claims, and duties are defined in the Epistles of Timothy and Titus. 5) On all matters of membership and governmental policy, the will of the local church is final. (Acts 2:41-47; Acts 4:33-37)
ORDINANCES
We believe that Christ gave only two ordinances to the Church to be observed “till He comes.”
The Lord’s Supper — The Lord Himself left this as an ordinance (Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-25) for a memorial of His death until He comes. The Supper should not be taken inadvisably, but with the examination of one’s life.
Believer’s Baptism — We practice baptism because of the example of our Lord Jesus while He was here on earth, (Matthew 3:13) and because of the command given by our Lord to be baptized (Matthew 28:19). We accept immersion in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, as the Scriptural mode of baptism. Baptism does not save; it is meant for those who are already saved showing forth, in a solemn and beautiful emblem, our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Saviour with its effect in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life. (Colossians 2:12)
PRIESTHOOD OF BELIEVERS
We believe in the priesthood of all believers: 1) that Christ is our Great High Priest; 2) that through Him every born again person has direct access into God’s presence without the need of a human priest; and 3) that the believer has the right and responsibility to personally study and properly interpret Scripture guided by the Holy Spirit. (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 4:16)
SECURITY OF THE SAINTS
We believe that all who are truly born again are kept by God the Father for Jesus Christ and cannot lose their salvation. However, God cannot overlook sin in His children and will chasten and correct them in love. (John 10:28-29; Romans 8:35-39; Hebrews 12:5-8)
CREATION
We believe in the Genesis account of Creation. We believe that it is to be accepted literally and not allegorically or figuratively: 1) that man was created directly in God’s own image and after His likeness; 2) that man’s creation was not a matter of evolution or evolutionary change of species; that all animal and plant life was made directly by God; and 3) that God’s established law was to bring forth only “after their kind”. (Genesis 1 & 2; Exodus 20:11; Nehemiah 9:6; Jeremiah 10:12; John 1:3; Acts 4:24; Acts 17:23; Romans 1:20; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 11:3; Revelation 10:6)
THE DEVIL OR SATAN
We believe: 1) that the devil is real and personal, created as an anointed cherub, who together with a great multitude of angels, fell from his first estate (Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:14-17; Luke 10:18; 2 Peter 2:4) to become the enemy of God, man, and all righteousness (1 Peter 5:9); 2) that the devil is the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2), blinding, deceiving, and enticing them in order to lead them to follow him in his rebellion against God and to reject the salvation offered through Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4); and 3) that the devil and his angels will ultimately be cast into the lake of fire. (Job 1:6-9; Job 2:3; Revelation 20:10; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 4:1-11; 1 Peter 5:8; 2 Peter 2:4)
THE RIGHTEOUS & THE WICKED
We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked (Malachi 3:18); that such only as through faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus (Romans 1:17) and sanctified by the Spirit of God, are truly righteous in His esteem (1 Corinthians 6:11) while all such as continue unrepentant and in unbelief are in His sight wicked (John 3:18-36) and under the curse of sin. The righteous at death go immediately into the presence of God in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:8), and the wicked at death go immediately into a literal hell. (Psalm 9:17; Matthew 18:8-9; Luke 16:22-24; Revelation 21:8)
THE FUTURE
1) We believe in the imminent, personal, pre-millennial return of Jesus Christ: a) for His saints to gather them unto Himself (This is called the Rapture, which immediately precedes the Tribulation period), and b) with His Saints to judge the nations (This is called the Revelation, which follows the Tribulation period but precedes the Millennial period). 2) We believe in the bodily resurrection of the unjust unto judgment and everlasting, conscious punishment in the lake of fire (This takes place immediately following the Millennial period). (Zechariah 14:4-11; Matthew 24:31-46; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:9; Revelation 3:10; Revelation 19:11-16; Revelation 20:1-6 & 11-15)
SEPARATION
We believe that it is our duty to call the attention of believers to the Scriptural teaching of separation and that we should abstain from worldly practices and live a life devoted unto the Lord. (Deuteronomy 22:5; Acts 1:8; Romans 6:11-14; Romans 12:1-2; Romans 13:13; 1 Corinthians 11:14; 2 Corinthians 5:17; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17; Colossians 3:1-3; Titus 2:12; 1 John 2:15-16)
MISSIONS
We believe that Jesus left us the command that we should all be witnesses for Him (Acts 1:8) and should take the good news of the Gospel to every place where people are to be found (Matthew 28:19-20). We believe that to carry out this command, we must ourselves be witnesses by life and word to tell lost men about Christ. Also, we must support by prayer and financial aid those who go out under sound missionary agencies to represent us in other parts of the world.
