statement of faith
Mission: To glorify God, by making disciples who bring people to Christ, build them to Christ-like maturity, and send them for ministry.
our statement from the Baptist General Conference
what we believe
THE WORD OF GOD
We believe that the Bible is the revealed Word of God, fully and verbally inspired, written under the direction of the Holy Spirit (2 Tim. 3:16, Matt 5:18, 2 Peter 1:21). We believe it is without error in the original manuscripts and is true and trustworthy in all that it asserts. It has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct (Titus 1:2, John 10:35, Romans 3:4).
GOD, THE FATHER
We believe in God, the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love (John 4:24, Isa 6:1-4, Psa. 115:3, Rom 5:8, Deut. 7:7, Eph. 2:4, 1 John 3:1; 4:7-12). We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of each person, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He Saves from sin and
GOD, THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe in the Holy Spirit, who was sent by the Father and Son (John 15:26; 16:7, Gal. 4:6) to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16:8-11), and to regenerate, sanctify and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ (Tit 3:5, 1 Cor. 6:11, 2 Cor. 3:18, Gal. 5:16; 22-23, Rom 8:4, 1 Cor. 12:7). We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ and that He is an abiding helper, teacher and guide (Rom 8:9-11).
CREATION
We believe the Triune God created everything - both physical and spiritual - out of nothing (Genesis 1, Revelation 4:11, John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:16– 17). We believe God created human beings, male and female, in His own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27, 5:1) and therefore with unique, intrinsic worth (James 3:7–10) from conception (Psalm 139:13–16) to natural death (Hebrews 9:27).
REGENERATION
We believe that all people are sinners by nature and by choice and are, therefore, under condemnation (Romans 3:10-19,23, Eph. 4:18, Rom 5:12; 6:23). We believe that those who repent of their sins and trust Jesus Christ as Saviour are regenerated by the Holy Spirit (2 Cor. 5:17, Titus 3:5, Eph. 1:13-14).
CHRISTIAN CONDUCT
We believe that Christians should live for the glory of God and the well-being of others (1 Cor. 10:31, 1 Peter 4:11, Eph. 1:6,12, Gal. 6:10, Heb. 13:16); that their conduct should be blameless before the world (Acts 24:16, 1 Tim 3:7); that they should be faithful stewards of their possessions (2 Cor. 9:8-10, Eph. 5:16); and that they should seek to realize for themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ (Eph. 4:16, 2 Cor. 3:18, Rom. 8:29).
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
We believe that every person is directly responsible to God (1 Tim. 2:5, Heb. 4:14-16, 1 Peter 2:5). Believers should be free to covenant together in autonomous congregations without undue interference from any ecclesiastical or government authority (Acts 15:22; 20:28, 1 Cor. 5:13). While respecting the authority of government we affirm the responsibility of the church to speak into the public forum. In matters of disagreement between Scripture and government, we believe we must obey God (1 Peter 2:13, Romans 13:1-7).
LAST THINGS
We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His kingdom (Acts 1:11, John 14:3, Luke 24:25-33, 1 Thess. 4:13-18). We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the endless suffering of the unbeliever in Hell (Dan. 12:2, John 5:28-29, Rev. 20:11-15) and the eternal joy of the believer in the presence of God.
THE TRINITY
We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons, that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption (Deut. 6:4, James 2:19, 1 Tim 2:5-6, Matt 28:19, 2 Cor. 13:14, 1 Peter 1:2)
GOD, THE SON
We believe in Jesus Christ, existing eternally as God’s Son. In His incarnation He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin (Matt 1:16, 20), led a sinless life, performed miracles and taught with authority. We believe in his substitutionary atoning death (2 Cor. 5:21, Rom 5:8), bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven (1 Cor. 15:1-58, Act 1:9-11), perpetual intercession for His people (Heb. 7:25) and personal visible return to earth (Acts 1:11, John 14:1-3).
ANGELS
We believe that angels are a distinct order of created spiritual beings; that they can appear in human form; that good angels minister to human beings and serve God as special messengers (Heb. 1:14, Acts 12:7; 27:23-24); that Satan, a fallen angel, and his evil angels whom he leads, exercise great but limited evil power in the world, and will suffer final defeat at the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ (James 4:7, John 8:44, Isa. 14:12-20, 1 Peter 5:8, 1 John 5:19, Rev. 20:2,10)
HUMANITY
We believe Adam and Eve experienced perfect relationship with their Creator (Genesis 1:31) and were appointed stewards (Genesis 1:28–30) of God’s originally good creation (Genesis 1:31). We believe they sinned by choosing to disobey God (Genesis 3) and thereby brought death to the human race (Genesis 2:17, 3:19, Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21–22).
THE CHURCH
We believe in the universal church, the living spiritual body of which Christ is the Head and all regenerated persons are members (Matt 16:18, Col 1:18, Eph. 1:22-23). We believe in the local church, consisting of a community of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible profession of faith, and associated for worship, ministry and fellowship (1 Cor. 1:2, Acts 2:41-42; 8:37-38, Eph. 4:11-16, Heb. 10:25). We believe that the mission of the church is to bring the good news of Jesus Christ into our lost world (Matt 28:19-20, Luke 24:46-47, Acts 1:8, 1 Peter 2:9-10).
ORDINANCES
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe in Christian Baptism as the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the triune God (Matt 28:19- 20, Acts 2:41). We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ in order to remember His death (1 Cor. 11:23-26, Luke 22:19-20). We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and celebrated until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
CHURCH COOPERATION
We believe that local churches can best promote the cause of Jesus Christ by cooperating with one another in an association of likeminded congregations. Such an organization, whether a district or national conference, exists and functions by the will of the churches. Cooperation in a conference is voluntary and may be terminated at any time. Churches may likewise cooperate with interdenominational fellowships on a voluntary, independent basis (1 Cor. 16:1,19, 2 Cor. 9:2, Acts 14:23, 1 Cor. 5:13, Acts 15:ff).
