THE SCRIPTURESWe accept the Bible, including the 39 books of the Old
Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament, as the written Word of God. The Bible is
an essential and infallible record of God's self-disclosure to mankind. It leads us to
salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Being given by God the Scriptures are both fully
and verbally inspired by God. Therefore, as originally given, the Bible is free of error
in all it teaches. Each book is to be interpreted according to its context and purpose and
in reverent obedience to the Lord who speaks through it in living power. All believers are
exhorted to study the Scriptures and diligently apply them to their lives. The Scriptures
are the authoritative and normative rule and guide of all Christian life, practice, and
doctrine. They are not to be added to, superseded, or changed by later tradition or
extra-biblical revelation. Every doctrinal formulation, whether of creed, confession, or
theology, must be put to the test of the full counsel of God in Holy Scripture. GOD IS TRIUNEThere is one God: infinite, eternal, almighty, and perfect
in holiness, truth, and love. In the unity of the godhead there are three persons, Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, co-existent, co-equal, co-eternal. The Father is not the Son and the
Son is not the Holy Spirit, yet each is truly Deity. One God - Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit - is the foundation of Christian faith and life. GOD THE FATHERGod the Father is the Creator of heaven and earth. By his
word and for his glory, he freely created the world out of nothing. Through the same word
he daily sustains all his creatures. He is faithful to every promise, works all things
together for good to those who love him, and in his unfathomable grace he gave his Son
Jesus Christ for mankind's redemption. He made man for fellowship with himself, and
intended that all creation should live to the praise of his glory. JESUS CHRISTJesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, was the eternal
Word made flesh, supernaturally conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary. He
was perfect in nature, teaching, and obedience. He is fully God and fully man. He was
always with God and is God. Through him all things came into being and were created. He
was before all things and in him all things hold together by the power of his word. He is
the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation, and in him dwells the
fullness of the godhead bodily. He is the only Savior for the sins of the world, having
died a vicarious death on Calvary's cross for all mankind. By his death in our place, he
revealed the divine love and upheld divine justice, removing our guilt and reconciling us
to God. Having redeemed us from sin, the third day he rose bodily from the grave,
victorious over death and the powers of darkness, and for a period of forty days appeared
to over five hundred witnesses, performing many convincing proofs of his resurrection. He
ascended into heaven where, at God's right hand, he intercedes for his people and rules as
Lord over all. He is the Head of his body the Church and should be adored, loved, served,
and obeyed by all. THE HOLY SPIRITThe Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life, convicts the
world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. Through the proclamation of the gospel he
persuades us to repent of our sins and confess Jesus as Lord. By the same Spirit a person
is led to trust in divine mercy. The Holy Spirit unites believers to Jesus Christ in
faith, brings about the new birth, and dwells within the regenerate. The Holy Spirit has
come to glorify the Son who in turn came to glorify the Father. He will lead the Church
into all the truth. He is to be respected, honored, and worshiped as God the Third Person
of the Trinity. MANGod made man - male and female - in his own image, as the
crown of creation, that man might have fellowship with him. Tempted by Satan, man rebelled
against God. Being estranged from his Maker, yet responsible to him, he became subject to
divine wrath, inwardly depraved and apart from grace, incapable of returning to God.
Fallen, sinful people, whatever their character or attainments, are lost and without hope
apart from salvation in Christ. THE GOSPELJesus Christ is the gospel. The good news is revealed in
his birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Christ's crucifixion is the heart of
the gospel, his resurrection is the power of the gospel, and his ascension is the glory of
the gospel. MAN'S RESPONSE TO THE GOSPELThe gospel is to be preached to all people but is only
effectual to those who genuinely repent of their sins and by God's grace put saving faith
in Christ. Biblical repentance is characterized by a changed life, and saving faith is
evidenced by kingdom service or works. While neither repentance nor works save, unless a
person is willing to deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow Christ, he cannot become
his disciple. MAN'S INHERITANCE THROUGH THE GOSPELSalvation, the free gift of God, is provided solely by his
grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Anyone turning from sin in repentance and looking to
Christ and his substitutionary death is born anew into eternal life by the Holy Spirit and
declared to be righteous as a gift. Through Christ's great redemptive act an individual is
reconciled to God as Father and becomes his child. The believer is forgiven the debt of
his sin and liberated from the law of sin and death into the freedom of God's Spirit. SANCTIFICATIONThe Holy Spirit is the active agent in our sanctification
and seeks to produce his fruit in us as our minds are renewed and we are conformed to the
image of Christ. As we are led by the Spirit, we grow in the knowledge of the Lord, freely
keeping his commandments and endeavoring to so live in the world that all people may see
our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven. THE CHURCHGod by his Word and Spirit creates the Church, calling sinful men out of the whole human race into the fellowship of Christ's Body. By the same Word and Spirit he guides and preserves that new, redeemed humanity. The Church is not a religious institution or denomination. Rather, the Church universal is made up of those who have become genuine followers of Christ and have personally appropriated the gospel. The Church exists to worship and glorify God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It also exists to serve him by faithfully doing his will in the earth. This involves a commitment to see the gospel preached in all the world for a testimony. The ultimate mission of the Church is the redemption of souls. When God transforms human nature, this then becomes the chief means of society's transformation. All members of the Church universal are to be a vital and committed part of a local
church. In this context they are called to walk out the New Covenant as the people of God
and demonstrate the reality of the kingdom of God. The ascended Christ has given gift
ministries to the church (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers) for the
equipping of Christ's body that it might mature and grow. Through the gift ministries all
members of the Church are to be nurtured and equipped for the work of ministry. In the
context of the local church, God's people receive pastoral care and leadership and the
opportunity to employ their God-given gifts in his service in relation to one another and
to the world. |
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