WHAT WE BELIEVE

Principles & Practices

Lord Jesus Christ

Matthew 1:23

Genesis 3:16

Colossians 1:3

Colossians 2:10

John 10:18

1st John 1:5

Ephesians 1:18-23

Revelation 20:6-15

The Lord Jesus Christ is God incarnate. The fulfillment of the great prophecy concerning The Coming Redeemer, the eternal Word of God, became flesh through the overshadowing of Mary by the Holy Spirit. Mary was preserved by her husband Joseph as a virgin until after she birthed her firstborn, Jesus Christ. Being the very image of the invisible God, the exact representation of His Being, and the full expression of His Person, all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him bodily. He ever has known all things, and has power over life and death. He had power to lay His life down - which He did - and power to take it up again, which He also did.

He lived an impeccable life, having an impeccable and sinless nature, and therefore character. The Lord Jesus Christ could not ever and did not ever sin.

Having risen from the dead in a glorified body of flesh and bones, He ascended into heaven, and was crowned with glory and honor, above the angels. As such He has elevated in Himself a new humanity above the angels.

He is the head of the church, which is His body. He will return again to earth bodily at an appointed future time. He will reign over the earth for a thousand years, after which He will raise from the dead all those not previously raised, and will judge them with respect to their final destiny.

Salvation

Romans 4:3

Romans 6:23

Romans 10:10

Ephesians 2:8-9

We hold that the Bible teaches that there is salvation from the penalty of all sins committed by anyone on the basis of the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, only.

The grace of God is God freely acting based on His Own Self, and therefore is not determined by the object of His love. The "gift of God is eternal life" and so eternal life is given by God.

Faith is the same as belief. The Bible says "with the heart man believes." Therefore, there is no such thing as "head faith" as distinguishable from "heart faith." One either believes in the Lord Jesus Christ or does not. If he or she does, He gives them eternal life, and no one is able to snatch them from His hand.

While we believe that salvation comes to someone only and solely by faith, we do not hold that faith saves, but that salvation is predicated upon the true meritorious work of Jesus Christ in His death on the cross as a vicarious substitute for all sinners, each of whom may come into the good of that work through personal faith.

Water Baptism

Ephesians 4:5

Acts 19:1-5

Acts 8:36-39

The Bible teaches in the Book of Ephesians that there is now only "one baptism." It is not John's baptism, nor is it "spirit baptism." It is the same baptism practiced in Ephesus when the gospel was preached there by Paul the apostle, and it is water baptism after one has faith in Christ.

That means we do not practice or recognize infant sprinkling or pouring (or any other for that matter) and that we do practice immersion subsequent to personal faith in Jesus Christ.. We do not believe that any special powers are inherent in one who baptizes. We believe baptism should be practiced publicly within the context of the local church, and that ordinary believers can baptize new believers.

No Clergy

Matthew 23:8-9

John 10:11-14

Not only do we not have any clergymen, we do not want any. The Bible nowhere allows for a clergy class, nor are salary arrangements ever practiced anywhere in the Scriptures except by those who do not accept the Lord Jesus Christ. Among them the practice flourishes.

No Collections

1st Corinthians 16:1-2

3 John 1:7

Psalm 50:7-15

In the New Testament, the apostle Paul took measures to make sure there were NOT collections taken at Christian gatherings. So do we. We have no collections. We practice no fundraising.

Christian work is to proceed without contributions from unbelievers.

God does not need any money. If he did, he would not ask you for it.

Charismatic Gifts and Pentecost

1st Corinthians 12

1st Corinthians 13:8-13

1st Corinthians 14:39

Acts 2:1

We believe in charismatic gifts as described in the Bible. None of the nonsense practiced today and labeled as those gifts match what happened in the Bible. The practices traveling under that name today appear to be the work of either man's own imaginings, or demons. We do not "forbid speaking in tongues" but we do forbid babbling nonsense.

Pentecost was fully come in the book of Acts just like the Bible says. Passover was also accomplished once for all when the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins on the cross in approximately 29 AD.

Communion

Romans 10:17

1st Corinthians 11

The word "communion" is elsewhere translated "fellowship" in the Bible. Our fellowship (common life) one with another has to do with faith. Faith comes by hearing God's Word. Our fellowship with each other comes out of the belief in the Scriptures.

What many call "communion" actually has as to do with the Lord's Supper, which is a practice of remembering the Lord Jesus Christ in a way he left for us. It has to do with partaking together of two symbols, a loaf and a cup, which are two of the four symbols left for us by Him.

The other two are the woman's head covering, and water baptism.