Doctrinal Statement

I. God - We believe that the Godhead eternally exists in three persons-the Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit-and that these three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes, and perfections.

II. Jesus Christ - We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, death on the cross to provide for our redemption, bodily resurrection and ascension into heaven, present ministry of intercession for us, and His return to earth in power and glory.

III. The Scriptures - We believe that the whole Bible is inspired in the sense that holy men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. This divine inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the writings as appeared in the original manuscripts. Therefore, the whole Bible, in the originals, is without error. As the revelation of God, we believe the Bible to be the sole authority and sufficiency with regard to Christian faith and practice. The Scriptures center upon the Lord Jesus Christ in His person and work in His first and second coming, and hence no portion is properly read, or understood, until it leads to Him. The Christian's responsibility and duty is to handle accurately the Word of Truth. The reading and interpretation of the Scriptures is to be under the guidance and illumination of the Holy Spirit.

IV. Man, created and fallen - We believe that man was originally created in the image and after the likeness of God. Adam fell through sin, and as a consequence of his sin, lost his spiritual life. Becoming dead in trespasses and sins, he became subject to the power of the devil. This spiritual death, or total depravity of human nature, has been transmitted to the entire human race of man, the Man Christ Jesus alone being excepted. Thus every child of Adam is born into the world with a nature which not only possesses no spark of divine life, but is essentially and unchangeably sinful apart from divine grace.

V. Salvation only through Christ - We believe that, due to universal death through sin, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again. No degree of reformation, no attainments in morality, no baptism or other ordinance or other good works can help the sinner to take even one step toward heaven. Our redemption has been accomplished solely by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, who was made to be sin and was made a curse for us by dying in our place. We believe that the new birth of the believer comes only through faith in Christ and that repentance is a vital part of believing. Repentance is not in itself a separate and independent condition of salvation. Nor are any other acts, such as confession, baptism, prayer, faithful service, or manifestation of certain spiritual gifts, to be added to believing as a condition of salvation. We believe it is the privilege, not only of some, but of all who are born again by the Spirit through faith in Christ as revealed in the Scriptures, to be assured of their salvation from the very day they take Him to be their Savior. This assurance is not founded upon any discovery of their own worthiness or fitness, but wholly upon the testimony of God in His written word. Such assurance will motivate in God's children love, gratitude, and obedience to His commands.

VI. The Church - We believe that all those who have been redeemed by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ form the Body of Christ, the church. We also believe in the local church as the body of believers in a geographic locale who meet together to worship and serve God, observe the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's Supper, and work together to further the gospel of Christ.

VII. The Great Commission - We believe the explicit message and mandate of our Lord Jesus Christ is to make disciples of all the nations. During His post-resurrection ministry Christ gave two particular commands. First in Matthew 28, Jesus commands us to "Go and Make Disciples of All the Nations." Secondly, just before His Ascension, in Acts 1:8 we are called to be witnesses to "the remotest parts of the earth." The greatest responsibility and privilege of the church is to serve as ambassadors and witnesses for Christ.

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