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Doctrinal
Statement
Regarding
Scripture
I believe in the
verbal and plenary inspiration of the Old and New Testaments based on the
Hebrew of The Masoretic Text and the Greek of The Textus Receptus, also
known as the Received Text. I believe these Scriptures are inerrant,
infallible, and complete. I believe the Bible provides the absolute and
true basis and standard for Christian doctrine and unity. It is the
supreme authority for evaluating all human conduct, creeds, beliefs, and
opinions. I believe that God has preserved His word,
and I believe only in The Authorized King James Version, do we have a
true, faithful, inerrant, and complete translation of Holy Scripture.
This
translation shall be the exclusive English version used in all preaching
and teaching of the ministry.
[Psalm 12: 6, 7;
119:89; Isaiah 40:8; 2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Peter 1:23; 2 Peter 1:19,20].
Regarding God
I believe there is
but ONE living and true God. He is infinite and sovereign Spirit and is
the Creator and Ruler of Heaven and earth. He eternally exists in three
Persons--- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit ...each identical in nature, equal
in power and glory, and possessing the same attributes and perfections.
[Matthew 3: 16,17; 28:19; John 4:24; 1 Corinthians 12: 4-6; 2 Corinthians
13:14; 1 John 5:7]
Regarding
Origins
I believe the
Genesis account of creation is a literal and historical account of the
direct and immediate creative act of God without any organic or theistic
evolutionary process. Adam is a historical person and was created (spirit,
soul, and body) by a direct work of God and all humanity is descended from
him and the biblical Eve. [Romans 5: 12-14; 1 Corinthians 15: 21,22]
Regarding
Satan
I believe Satan is
a real creature who is the unholy god of this age and the ruler of all
unsaved humanity. He is the relentless enemy of God, the saved,
righteousness, and truth. He controls all the powers of darkness and is
destined to the judgment of an eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire.
[Matthew 4: 1-11; Revelation 20: 1-10]
Regarding Sin
I believe the first
man, Adam, was created sinless, but with an equal disposition to choose to
obey or not to obey God his Maker. By willful transgression Adam and Eve
fell from their sinless state. Consequently, all humanity has inherited a
fallen nature and is separated from God and lost in rebellion and sin.
Every descendant of Adam then is a sinner by nature, conduct, and choice
and under deserved divine condemnation without defense or excuse. I
believe that Hell (and ultimately the Lake of Fire) is the eternal destiny
of every unsaved person. [Romans 3:23; 5:12-14; 1 Corinthians 15: 21,22;
Revelation 20:15]
Regarding
Salvation
I believe that
salvation is by grace alone through personal trust in the finished work of
Christ. I believe this faith results in the new birth which is
instantaneous and not a process. Salvation means a sinner receives eternal
life, a divine nature, and is made a new person by the act of God. This
event is accomplished by the Holy Spirit and is beyond human
comprehension. I believe there must be Repentance on the part of
the sinner. Repentance is a sorrow for things done or said, a regret for
past conduct, true penitence, deep contrition for sin. The unbeliever
must see themselves as God sees them, lost and undone, a hopeless sinner
under the condemnation of the Lord.
[Luke13:2-5, Matt.3:1-8, Mark 2:17,
2Pet. 3:9, Acts 11:18]
Salvation results in a sinner’s voluntary obedience and
submission to God and His word and is accompanied by a newness of life,
faith, and good works. I hold that those who truly are saved are eternally
safe in Christ and will never perish. [John 10:28; 14:6; Acts 4:12; 2
Corinthians 5:21]
Regarding
Jesus Christ
I believe that God,
the eternal Son, was made Flesh and dwelt among us, in that, Jesus was
conceived of the Holy Spirit by the virgin Mary in a miraculous manner as
no other man is, or ever will, be conceived. I believe that Jesus Christ
is both the Son of God and God the Son. I believe that in Him dwells all
the fullness of the Godhead bodily and that He is both God and the Man
Christ Jesus. [John 1: 1-3; Colossians 1: 14-19; 2:9]
I believe He lived
a sinless life and that He fulfilled the Divine law by His perfect
obedience. Moreover, through His shed blood and death on the cross, He has
made a full and vicarious atonement for our sin by the voluntary
substitution of Himself in the sinner’s place. This is the Just dying for
the unjust and has with this offering of Himself, Jesus Christ has
placated God’s righteous anger and has made available to humanity,
reconciliation to God. [2 Corinthians 5:21; Colossians 1:14]
I believe His
literal bodily resurrection assures our justification and is the promise
of our own glorious resurrection. Jesus Christ is now ascended to God’s
throne where He sits at the right hand of the Father and makes
intercession for us. [John 5: 28,29; Romans 5:8]
Regarding
Justification
I believe that
justification is the judicial act of God in which He declares a sinner is
righteous. Justification means sin is pardoned and Christ’s righteousness
is imputed to the sinner. Justification is bestowed solely on the
condition of the sinner’s trust in the blood of Christ to atone for his
sin. [Romans 4: 21-25; Colossians 1:14,20]
Repentance
and Faith
I believe that
repentance is godly sorrow. It is a change of mind, heart, and purpose
toward God that is prompted by the Holy Spirit. It is the heart cry of the
sinner who perceives his absolute inability and helplessness to please
God. Repentance causes sin to be recognized as offensive to God and
damning to the soul. I believe that biblical repentance is always
accompanied by true faith in Christ. [Matthew 4:17; Acts 17:30]
The Holy
Spirit
I believe the Holy
Spirit is the third Person of the Godhead. He is coeternal with the Father
and the Son and is of identical nature. He convicts the sinner of sin,
righteousness, and judgment. He is the acting Agent in the new birth
experience and then, seals, endues with power, bestows gifts, guides,
teaches, comforts and keeps the believer. [John 14: 15-31; 16:7-15]
The Holy Spirit
sanctifies (sets apart) the believer in Christ at the moment of the new
birth. He also progressively sanctifies him throughout his earthly life by
means of the Word of God, self-examination, self-denial, prayer,
soul-winning and the preaching, teaching, and fellowship found in a
scriptural church. [Acts 2:41-47]
I believe that some
gifts of the Holy Spirit were meant for those early churches existing
before the completion of the Scriptures. These churches which were without
the complete Word of God were provided with temporary special gifts to
help validate and confirm their ministries. With the completion of the
perfect Word of God those formerly necessary helps became obsolete and
irrelevant and were ended. [1 Corinthians 13: 8-12]
The New
Testament Church
A church is an
assembly of immersed believers who are united in doctrine and observe the
ordinances of Christ. Its members obey the great commission and exercise
the gifts and privileges given them by the Word of God and Holy Spirit.
Its officers are pastors and deacons whose qualifications, claims, and
duties are clearly given in the Word of God. 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:6-9
Each local assembly is the body of Christ whose one and only Head is the
Lord. [Ephesians 1:22; 5:23]
I believe a church
has the right of complete autonomy and that on all questions of
membership, polity, and discipline, the will of the church is final.
Baptism and
Communion
Baptism is the
single immersion of a believer upon the authority of the church. This
ordinance pictures the believer’s faith in the crucified, buried, and
risen Savior and portrays that the believer, likewise through Christ, has
died to sin and is risen to a new life. Baptism after conversion is
prerequisite to membership and the Lord’s table.
The Lord’s Supper
is the church’s special commemoration of the Lord’s death which will
continue until He comes again. Moreover, it portrays the abiding communion
of Christ with His people and they with Him and each other. [1 Corinthians
11: 17-32]
Associations
Christians are
commanded to depart from every form of wickedness, apostasy, compromise
and worldliness. Moreover, the Word of God exhorts us to identify and
oppose all heresies and other departures from the truth and sound
doctrine. [Romans 16: 17; 2 Corinthians 6: 14-18]
This church must
perpetually continue as an independent, sovereign, and biblical Baptist
church. It is subject only to Jesus Christ, its Head. This church may
fellowship with any other church that is in agreement in both doctrine and
conduct.
Eschatology
I believe in the
imminent, pre-millennial coming of Christ in the air to rapture the saints
before the Tribulation. The glorious return of Christ to the earth will
occur at the end of the seven-year great Tribulation. He will then
establish His millennium kingdom upon the earth. [1 Thessalonians 4:
13-18]
I believe in the
bodily resurrection of the dead. I believe the saved will be resurrected
to everlasting blessedness at the Rapture and the lost to everlasting
punishment in a literal Lake of Fire at the time of the Great White Throne
Judgment. [Revelation 20: 10-15]
I believe that at
death, the souls of the redeemed are with the Lord and souls of the lost
go to a literal Hell to await the judgment of the Great White Throne.
[2Corinthians 5: 6-8; Philippians 1:21-24]
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