Beliefs

We believe the Bible is the written Word of God, that has been accurately preserved. It was written without error by men, totally and directly inspired by God in the original writings. (II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:21; John 14:26; Matthew 5:18; Mark 12:36; I Corinthians 2:10-13; Revelation 1:19)

We believe in God the Father who is perfect in holiness, limitless in love, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power, eternal, unchangeable, absolutely just and truthful, and everywhere present. He is not limited by space, time, or the constraints of His creation; yet He is merciful and concerns Himself with the affairs of mankind. God deserves and desires to be worshiped by His creation, and He must be worshiped in spirit and in truth. (I Peter 1:15; I John 4:7-8; Isaiah 55:8-9, 57:15; Revelation 19:6; Psalm 90:2, 139:7-12; Malachi 3:6; Isaiah 30:18; Revelation 16:7; Exodus 34:6; Jeremiah 23:24; Ephesians 2:4; John 4:24)

We believe in Jesus Christ, one with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, God’s only begotten Son. Born of a virgin, sinless in His life, He paid the price for the sins of the world by His death on the cross, and in Him, we have redemption through His blood. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His ascension into heaven, His high priestly intercession for His people, and His personal, visible, premillennial return to the earth according to His promise. (John 3:16; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 15:21-47; Acts 1:9-11; Hebrews 9:24-28; Ephesians 1:7; Philippians 2:6-7)

We believe in the Holy Spirit, one with God the Father and Jesus Christ, who was sent from God to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit will regenerate, sanctify, comfort, teach and seal forever those who believe in Jesus Christ. (John 3:3-8, 14:26, 16:7-11; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8)

We believe that Satan is alive and real. He is the god of this age, author of sin, prince of all the powers of darkness, and deceiver of all mankind. According to God’s judgment, he is destined to spend eternity in the lake of fire. (Matthew 4:1-11, 25:41; II Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 20:10)

We believe that God created the heavens, the earth, and all life, each after its own kind. Creation is a direct act of the triune God and did not occur by any other means. (Genesis 1, 2; Psalm 33:6-9; John 1:1-5; Colossians 1:16-17)

Man is a unique and direct creation of God and was made to bear His divine image. This image includes intellect, emotion, and will. Man exists to glorify God and have fellowship with Him. As a result of the willful disobedience of Adam, man has a sinful nature that is overcome only by the finished work of Jesus Christ in which one must have faith. (Genesis 1:26-28, 2:7, 3:6, 5:1; Matthew 19:4; James 3:9; Colossians 1:16, 3:10; II Corinthians 5:17-19)

Sin is that which is concrete and opposed to the character of God.  Sin is what God says it is, is opposed to holiness, and is sin because it is unlike God. (See Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, Dallas Seminary Press, 1967, pp. 224-28)

A.   Origin

Adam, through a willful act of disobedience to God, became sinful by nature, breaking fellowship with God.  All of humanity is represented in Adam’s sin and is, therefore, under the judgment and wrath of God, thus being subject to both physical and spiritual death. (Genesis 3:6, 8, 22, 23; I Timothy 2:14; Romans 1:18, 3:10-23, 5:12, 18, 6:23; I Corinthians 15:21-22; Ephesians 2:1-3)

B.   Result

Due to his sinful nature, man cannot have access to or redeem himself to God; God’s final punishment for him will be eternal separation and torment.  Furthermore, all creation groans and suffers because of the original sin. (Genesis 3:14-19; Matthew 19:26, 25:41; Romans 7:18, 8:20-22; Revelation 20:14-15)

We believe that faith in and acceptance of the finished work, that is the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and ascension to the right hand of the Father is the only way to be reconciled to God. Salvation is the free gift of God, impossible to obtain by human effort, works, or merit. By new birth, one dead in trespasses and sin is quickened to eternal life, thus justified, and made righteous, a partaker of the divine nature of Christ. As a result of salvation, one is eternally secured in Christ as a member of God’s family. (Romans 3:21-25, 5:1, 8:31-39; Ephesians 1:8, 2:8-9; I Corinthians 1:30; II Corinthians 5:17, 21; II Peter 1:4; Revelation 1:5)

We believe the only escape from the condemnation of sin is through the redemption provided by Jesus Christ. He voluntarily took upon Himself a human body, being fully human in all aspects while retaining His divinity. Christ, without sin, and by His suffering, death, and resurrection, made full satisfaction to the justice of God for the sin of man. The blessings of this salvation are based on God’s grace alone to all who believe and confess Jesus Christ as Savior. (John 3:1-9; Acts 4:12, 16:30-33; Romans 8:3, 10:9-13; II Corinthians 5:17; Philippians 2:7)