Beliefs

The Holy Scriptures

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and therefore are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical, and literal meaning. (Tim. 3:16-17; II Pet. 1:20-21).

The Godhead

We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons–Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 13:14; John 14:10,26).

Civil Government

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home; 2) the Church; and 3) the government. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the Church, and the government are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 2:13-14).

The Person and Work of Christ
  1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2; 1:14; II Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8).
  2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through his death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; I Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; I Pet. 1:3-5)
  3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; I John 2:1-2).
The Total Depravity of Man

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and, that man is totally depraved, and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19).

Salvation

We believe 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; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; I Pet. 1:18-19).

The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
  1. We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; I Cor. 1:4-8; I Pet. 1:4-5).
  2. We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15).
The Church
  1. We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons (I Cor. 12:12-14; II Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27).
  2. We believe that the establishment 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).
  3. We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external control (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1,4; I Cor. 3:9,16; 5:4-7, 13; I Pet. 5:1-4).
  4. We recognize water baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the Church in this age (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; I Cor. 11:23-26).
  5. We recognize pastor and deacons as the two offices of the local church (Acts 6:1-3; Eph. 4:11).
Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and, the separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; II Cor. 6:14-7:1; II Tim. 3:1-5; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11)

The Second Advent of Christ
  1. We believe in that “blessed hope,” the personal, imminent return of Christ Who will rapture His Church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return, with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the Nation of Israel (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; I Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6).
The Eternal State
  1. 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).
  2. 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 (Luke 23:43; II Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6).
  3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; II Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15).
The Personality of Satan

We believe that Satan is a person, 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 (Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin (Genesis 1-2; Ex. 20:11).

Human Sexuality

We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a biologically assigned man and a biologically assigned woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, transgenderism, polygamy, polyamory, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s biological gender assigned at birth by surgery, treatments or appearance. (Genesis. 2:24; Genesis. 19:5, 13; Genesis 26:8-9; Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1: 26-29; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4)

We believe that the only Scriptural marriage is the joining of one biologically assigned man and one biologically assigned woman. (Genesis 2:24; Romans 7:2; 1 Corinthians 7:10; Ephesians 5:22-23)).

Human Life

We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being made in the image of God. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the mental well being of the mother are acceptable. (Job 3:16; Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)

We believe that reproductive technologies that discard human embryos are contrary to God’s intentions for reproduction. Any technology that is not between a biologically assigned man and a biologically assigned woman in marriage is contrary to God’s Word. We affirm the righteous and high moral plane of adoption as we believe it is a fitting picture of God’s adoption of His children. (Proverbs 1:8; Genesis 1:27; Galatians 4:5; Ephesians 1:5)

We believe that the direct taking of an innocent human life, such as euthanasia at any age or in any scenario is a moral evil, regardless of the intention. Life is a gift of God and must be respected from conception until natural death. We believe it is acceptable for individuals and families to preplan end of life decisions relating to life support through a living will. We also believe it is acceptable for individuals and families, with the consultation of medical professionals, to remove advanced life support in situations that are warranted. (Exodus. 20:13, 23:7; Matthew. 5:21; Acts 17:28)

Missions

We believe that God has given the church 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).

Giving

We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, out of love for God and the church should support his local church financially. We believe that God has established in both the Old and New Testament the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the Church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; I Cor. 16:2; II Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; I Tim. 5:17-18; I John 3:17).