OUR STATEMENT OF
FAITH
THE ESSENTIALS WE BELIEVE:
1. ABOUT GOD
God is the
Creator and Ruler of the universe. He
has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. These three are co-equal and are
one God.
Genesis 1:1,26,27; 3:22; Psalm
90:2; Matthew 28:19; I Peter 1:2; II
Corinthians 13:14
2. ABOUT
JESUS CHRIST
Jesus
Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered
Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a
cross. He arose from the dead after
three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's
glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and
Lord of Lords.
Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews
4:14,15; I Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11;
I Timothy 6:14,15; Titus 2:13.
3. ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT
The
Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make men aware
of their need for Jesus Christ. He also
lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for
living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is
right. He gives every believer a
spiritual gift when they are saved. As
Christians we seek to live under His control daily.
II Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14:16,17; Acts 1:8; 1
Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18.
4. ABOUT THE BIBLE
The
Bible is God’s Word to us. It was
written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance/inspiration of the
Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of
truth for Christian beliefs and living.
Because it is inspired by God, it is the Truth without any mixture of error.
II Timothy 3:16; II Peter
1:20-21; II
Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:119:105, 160,
12:6; Proverbs 30:5.
5. ABOUT HUMAN BEINGS
People
are made in the Spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God’s
creation. Although every person has
tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of
disobedience toward God called "sin".
This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in
life.
Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6;
Isaiah 53:6a; Romans
3:23; Isaiah 59:1,2
6. ABOUT SALVATION
Salvation is
God's free gift to us but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin
by self-improvement or good works. Only
by trusting in Jesus Christ as God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from
sin's penalty. When we turn from our
sins and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved.
Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life
by faith.
Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8,9;
John 14:6,1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians
3:26; Romans 5:1
7. ABOUT HOLY
LIVING
The Christian
life is to be received by faith and then lived out in the practical issues of
our life. For most all of us, the
decision to let Christ be Lord of our life is the beginning point of
fleshing out what it means to “live in
order to please God”. The Scripture
calls this “holiness” or
sanctification.
I
Thess. 4:1-8, John 17:17, I Pet. 1:2, Eph. 5:26
8. ABOUT ETERNITY
People were
created to exist forever. We will either
exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through
forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal
life.
Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.
John 3:16; John 14:17; Romans
6:23; Romans 8:17-18; Revelation 20:15; I Cor. 2:7-9