What We Believe

The Holy Trinity

Our God is One, but manifested in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.(Phil 2:6, Matt 3:16-17)

A. Father: God has revealed Himself as the eternally self-existent One. He is greater than all, the Source of the Word (Logos) and the Begetter (John 1:14, 14:28, and 16:28.

B. Son: The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God and as much shares in the divinity and deity of God. He is the One Begotten (John 1:1, 14, 18, 10:30)

C. Holy Spirit: He proceeds forth from both the Father and the Son and is eternal (John 15:26). 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 believers into the body of Christ, indwelling them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 12:12-14; II Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14).

Scripture

The Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, is the inspired and inerrant Word of God, the product of holy men of old who spoke and wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (II Tim. 3:15-17; I Thess. 2:13; I Pet. 1:21)

Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six 24-hour days. We reject evolution as an unscriptural theory of origin (Genesis 1-2; Ex. 20:11).

Man, His Fall and Redemption

Man is a created being, made in the likeness and image of God, but through Adam’s transgression and fall, sin came into the world. We believe that Satan is 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. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was manifested to undo the works of the devil and gave His life and shed His blood to redeem and restore man back to God (Job 1:6-7; Is. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11, 25:41; Rom. 3:9-10, 3:23, 5:12, I John 3:8; Gal. 3:13,14; Rev. 20:10).

Salvation

“All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”(Rom. 3:23) We believe that there is only one way of salvation and 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 Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12, 14:6; Eph.1:7, 2:8-10; I Pet. 1:18-19;).

Conditions to salvation: The grace of God, which bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men, through the preaching of repentance toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ; Man is saved by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, and being justified by grace through faith, he becomes an heir of God according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 2:11; Rom. 10:13-15; Luke 24:47; Titus 3:5-7). The evidences of salvation: the inward evidence, to the believer of his salvation, is the direct witness of the Spirit (Rom. 8:16); the outward evidence to all men is a life bearing the fruit of the Spirit.  While we are not legalistic in spirit we stand for Biblical righteousness in living and personal conduct, in accordance with the Scriptures. “Follow peace with all men and holiness, without which, no man shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).

Resurrection

We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28-29, 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13). The terms “eternal” and “everlasting” used in describing the duration of the punishment of the damned in the lake of fire, carry the same thought and meaning of endless existence as used in noting the duration of joy and ecstasy of the saints in the presence of God. (Heb. 6:1-2, 9:27; Rev. 19:20).

1. Heaven: 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, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. “And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain”(Luke 23:43; II Cor. 5:8; Phil 1:23, 3:20-21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4).

2. Hell and The Lake of Fire: Whoever is not found written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, will be consigned to punishment in Hell until the Great White Throne Judgement, where those unsaved will be raised and join those still alive from the Millennial Reign of Christ, and be judged according to their works. (Matt 25:46; Mark 9:43-48; Rev 19:20, 20:10-15, 21:1,8; II Pet 3:13)

The Church

We believe that the church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons (I Cor. 11:2, 12:12-14; Eph 1:22-23, 5:25-27). Christ alone is the recognized “head of the church.” Every born-again believer is a member of the church and should be loved and fellowshipped with accordingly.  While it is true that some have erred in matters of Doctrine, and laboring together with them may work a hardship, we do recognize that fellowship is based on our “walking in the light as He is in the light.”We believe that the Holy Ghost will never lead the body of Christ to walk contrary one to another and it is enjoined upon all to “strive to keep the unity of the Spirit until we all come to the Unity of the Faith. “We believe that the establishments and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:27, 20:17, 28-32; I Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11).

Baptism

The Baptism in the Holy Ghost and fire is a gift from God as promised by the Lord Jesus Christ to those who are believers in this dispensation and is received subsequent to the new birth. This experience usually or should be accompanied by the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues as the Holy Spirit Himself gives utterance. (Matt. 3:11; John 14:16-17; Acts 1:8, 2:38-39, 19:1-7, 2:4)

Communion

The Lord’s Supper is a memorial of his sufferings and death and a prophecy of his second coming. It is enjoyed by all believers until he comes. (I Cor. 11:26)

1. The bread represents the Lord’s broken body. (Is. 53:5; I Cor. 11:24)

2. The cup represents the new covenant in his blood, which provides us forgiveness and relationship with God. (Heb. 9; I Cor. 11:25)  We must judge ourselves with the Holy Sp[irit and realize that this is our salvation and receive it for if we receive it unworthily, without giving it honor as our salvation, we are guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. (I Cor. 11:27-30)

Giving

We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially. We believe that God has established the tithe, ten percent of one’s total income, as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give additional offerings cheerfully to the support of various ministries of God’s Kingdom, including, the relief of those in need and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; I Cor. 16:2; II Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. :6; Eph. 4:28; I Tim. 5:17-18; I John 3:17). 17) M I S S I O N S . We believe that God has given all believers a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; II Cor. 5:20).

Human Sexuality

“As an ecclesiastical nonprofit corporation (religious organization) we are not required to provide, and in order to live by and according to the Holy Scriptures, we specifically choose against the provision of services, accommodations, facilities, goods, or privileges to an individual if such request is in violation of the corporation’s religious beliefs as duly set forth in the corporation’s governing documents, policies, and the Holy Scriptures. However, any and all such decisions shall be carried out in a manner that would cause anyone seeking their salvation to believe that this organization does sponsor, support, and implement the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a means of being delivered from such abominable activities.”

Marriage

Marriage is a covenant relationship between a man and a woman, established by God as the foundation of family and human society reflecting the nature of Christ’s sacrificial love and devotion for His bride, the Church. We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person. (Genesis 1:26-27, Psalm 139:13-16)

LAYING ON OF HANDS

A simple belief that power or anointing or any other necessary quality can be transmitted from one person touching another. Laying on of hands was practiced by the Levitical Priesthood. Jesus practiced it in Mark 10:13-16 as a blessing, and is our grounds for baby dedication instead of baptism.

1. Laying on of hands for divine healing, which was provided for in the Old Testament, and is an integral part of the Gospel. (Ex. 15:23-26; Ps. 103:1-3; Is. 53:4-5; Matt. 8:16-17; Mark 5:22, 23, 41, 28-31, Acts 5:16, 28:8, 19:11, 12; Jas. 5:14-16).

2. Laying on of hands to confer office. (Acts 6:2-6)

3. Laying on of hands to receive the Holy Ghost. (Acts 8:16-18)

4. Laying on of hands to believe words spoken, to receive anointing, and to cultivate the

anointing. (I Tim. 4:14)

5. Laying on of hands for minister in training, licensing, and/or ordination to consecrate

and receive the necessary ministry tools. (I Tim. 4:14)

THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH

We believe the Pre-Tribulation period removal of the Church by Christ as found in numerous Scriptures (Jn 14:1-3; Rom 8:19; 1 Cor 1:7-8, 15:1-53, 16:22; Phil 3:20-21; Col 3:4; 1 Thes 1:10, 2:19, 4:13-18, 5:9, 5:23; 2 Thes 2:1; 1 Tim 6:14; 2 Tim 4:1; Titus 2:13; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:7, 13; James 5:7-9; 1 John 2:28-3:2; Jude 21; Rev 2:25, 3:10). This event, known is the Greek as the Harpazo, is well established and clearly different from the Second Coming of Christ at the end of the Tribulation period.