THE HOLY TRINITY
We
believe in one living and true God, eternal and of infinite power,
wisdom, goodness and righteousness. He is a loving and faithful God who
is the Creator and preserver of all things. (Genesis 1:1; Jeremiah
10:10; I Timothy 1:17) In the unity of his Godhead, there are three
persons of one substance with identical qualities and attributes: The
Father (God), The Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirt (John 1:1,2;
4:24; 5:18; 10:30).
THE SON OF GOD
We
believe in the divine nature of Jesus Christ, God's only Son, who was
conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
Christ was both fully man and fully God. He walked our earth, suffered
at the hands of men, was crucified, died, and was buried as a sacrifice
for the sins of all men and women everywhere. The purpose was to
restore our relationship to God which is broken by sin (disobedience)
(Luke 1:27; 31:35; John 3:16; Romans 5:10; Ephesians 5:2.) Christ rose
from the dead and ascended into heaven in full victory over Satan and
sin. He now intercedes for the body of believers to God the Father
(Matthew 28:5-9; Luke 24:4-7).
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We
believe the Holy Spirit is coequal 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 (2Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13;
14:16-17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 13:16; Ephesians 1:13;
Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18).
THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE
We
believe that the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments combined
constitute the Holy Bible; no books may be added or deleted. The Holy
Bible is inspired and inerrant (that is, without error or failure of
basic content and meaning in the original manuscripts). The Holy Bible
contains all the necessary truth to lead men and women into salvation
(Psalm 19:7; John 17:17; Romans 15:4; 1Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy
3:15-17).
MAN
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).
SALVATION
We
believe that Jesus Christ, the living Son of God, was given by God as a
sacrifice for the sins of all men. Christ died on the cross to mend the
broken relationships which were caused by man's sin of disobedience.
This severed relationship between God and man may be restored into
perfect harmony through belief in Jesus Christ by faith, and not on the
basis of our works, but the free gift of grace.(Galatians 5:4,5; Ephesians 2:8,9). This belief and
faith in Jesus Christ, recognizing Him as Lord and Savior, gives men
and women the free gift of eternal life (John 1:29; 3:16; 1Corinthians
5:7; Ephesians 5:2; 1Peter 1:9).
GOOD WORKS
We
believe that even though men and women cannot receive salvation by good
works, their good works are still pleasing to God and show evidence of
a true faith in God and Jesus as Lord of the believer's life (Matthew
5:16; 7:16-20; Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16; James 2:18,22).
SANCTIFICATION
We
believe that sanctification is the work of God and the power of the
Holy Spirit, making the believer pure in heart and totally committed
and dedicated to God. This work is both instantaneous and gradual (or
progressive). It begins when a person is saved and continues throughout
life. In this process of sanctification there is a time when the
believer is convicted of a "lukewarm" Christian life and looks to
Christ with a total commitment and dedication to "Christ-like" living.
There is no black and white time line involved; for some this occurs
soon following salvation and for others, much time elapses. But for all
believers, sanctification is the will of God (1Thessalonians 4:3).
Sanctification is the point in life when a believer renounced the
desire to live for self and desires to live totally for the glory of
God. Christ indeed becomes Lord of your life. The believer is then
empowered by the Holy Spirit, making him able to live a life of
holiness: this does not mean perfection of the believer, but purity of
heart, soul and mind (Deuteronomy 30:6; Luke 1:74-75; Acts 15:8-9;
1Corinthians 6:11; Ephesians 4:13, 24; 1Thessalonians 4:3,7; James 4:8).
GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT
We
believe that the Holy Spirit has given spiritual gifts to all believers
for the purpose of building up the body of Christ and bringing glory to
God. The gifts are to be exercised in love and emphasize the need of
unity (1Corinthians 12:4, 11, 18, 21-25; Ephesians 4:11-16).
THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST
We
believe that those who have not accepted Christ as their personal
Savior and are unrepentant will be judged by God in His perfect justice
and doomed to eternal punishment (Ecclesiastes 12:14; Matthew 25:31-46;
2 Corinthians 5:10; Romans 2:16). We believe in the personal return of
Jesus Christ to receive His believers into heaven and eternal life. The
time of His return is unknown, but may be at any moment. This is the
glorious hope of all God's children (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians
4:13-18; James 5:7-8; Revelation 22:12,20).