God: We believe in one God, the Father, unbegotten, uncreated, eternal, self-sufficient, needing nothing, creator of all that exists, and the sole giver of life. He is both good and severe. He is the epitome of "love." Yet He is to be feared. Everything good originates with Him. He always acts in accord with His character, which never changes. Thus God is very predictable. "He remembers His covena
nt forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations." God's past faithfulness is the guarantee of His future faithfulness. The Person of Jesus Christ: "The Word," who "came forth out of God", was "begotten" of the Father before all ages of the essence of God. He was "in the beginning with God," and was the agent of creation ("all things were made through Him"), and the personal agent of the Father within the creation. He is the one who has always appeared in the form (image) of God within the creation, walking in the garden with Adam, speaking face to face with Abraham, wrestling with Jacob, and speaking with Moses in the burning bush and at the Tabernacle. At the appointed time, the Word willingly "emptied Himself" of His uniquely divine attributes and equality with the Father to become fully human, being made "man" in every way. As a human being, Jesus was personally instructed by His Father from childhood, and therefore He always "refused the evil to choose the good." At the appointed time, He was baptized by John and received the full measure of the Holy Spirit to empower Him to do miracles and accomplish the work the Father had appointed Him. He was unsuccessfully tempted by the Devil for 40 days, being tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin. As the "second Adam," Jesus was not under the sentence of death that was passed down to all of Adam's descendants because He was the "Seed of the Woman" through the Virgin birth, and did not have a human father. Yet, Jesus willingly took upon Himself the sentence of death that was passed upon all who were fathered by Adam. Having satisfied God's judgment on Adam's race -- death, Jesus was raised by the Father bodily. His resurrection is the prototype of our future resurrection of the flesh. He then ascended bodily into heaven where He now sits on the right hand of the Father interceding for believers, awaiting His Kingdom to be established over all the earth at His second coming in the flesh. The Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit proceeds forth from the Father, and is sent by the Son. He is constantly observing everything, the evil and the good. He makes the power and influence of God available everywhere through His presence. Every repentant believer is baptized in, indwelled with, and sealed by the Holy Spirit upon obeying the Gospel. Jesus freely gives His Spirit to comfort, instruct, convict of sin, correct, and sustain the child of God. The Holy Spirit is the deposit guaranteeing the future "redemption of our body" (resurrection) and our future inheritance in the Kingdom of God. The Holy Spirit is not merely a force, but is a divine person of the Godhead, who acts by His own authority. The Helpless State of Mankind: Infants are born innocent, in the image of God. However, all have been given a free will, and soon rebel against God -- first out of ignorance, and then willfully. Once someone has willfully sinned, God's justice requires the condemnation of death. Man is totally incapable on his own of pleasing God, or securing his own salvation. Unless God rescues him, he is in a hopeless, helpless predicament, awaiting God's judgment, death and permanent destruction. Conditional Immortality: God alone possesses immortality. All creatures are continuously dependent on Him for life itself. Man does not have an "immortal soul"; he IS "a living soul" -- a body animated by the breath of God -- a physical creature. Death is not the departure of an immaterial ghost from the body, but God's receiving back the "breath of life" which He has loaned to every person. Death is sleep, not a conscious existence in another realm. Therefore, punishment or reward can only be realized through resurrection of the body. Resurrection to eternal life is a gift of God granted only to those whom God declares righteous. Salvation: God is ready, willing, and able to save and declare righteous anyone who obeys the Gospel. God actively draws all people by His Spirit to repentance because He "is not willing that any should perish." Everyone has been given a free will. God does not choose who will be saved and who will be lost regardless of the individual's choice. The Bible is absolutely clear regarding whom God bestows His grace upon, and whom He resists. "God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble." Therefore, those who humble themselves and receive His offer of salvation receive His grace. However, most refuse to humble themselves, resist Him, and will perish. Obeying the Gospel means hearing and understanding the Gospel, believing the message of the Gospel, turning from sin (repentance) to Christ, and being baptized unto Christ upon one's confession that "Jesus is the Christ the Son of God." When someone obeys the Gospel, God forgives and sets them free from sins, adopts them into His family, renovates the heart, and baptizes them with His Spirit, who is a deposit on their full salvation. Continuing in faith in Christ until the end of life is necessary for our salvation to be completed. This will take place at the resurrection to eternal life "at His coming." The Universal Church: The Greek word translated, "church," means an assembly of people gathered in one location. Jesus' universal Church will be gathered by the angels and assembled for the first time at His return (and not before). It will include the people of faith from all ages, regardless of nationality. The inheritance promised to Abraham and His 'Seed' will be realized through Jesus Christ - the 'Seed' to whom the promises were made. This will occur when Christ's universal Church is assembled for the first time. All who are baptized into Jesus Christ are "Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise," co-heirs with Jesus Christ. The Local Church: is the limited expression of Jesus' Church in one locality, and is the only expression of the "Church" in this age. It is organized for the purpose of worship, instruction, discipleship, fellowship, and evangelism. There is no structure ordained of God for His churches beyond the local level. Elders (pastors) and deacons are the only offices of the local church. "Pastor" means "shepherd, and is the function of the elders. "Pastor" is not a distinct office apart from the elders. New Testament congregations are to be led by the elders alone, under Christ. They serve as overseers, shepherds, and instructors of Jesus' local flock. The Reward of Believers: We believe in the bodily resurrection of the saints who have died and the gathering of all resurrected and living saints at Jesus' second coming to earth to reign as King. We believe in the Judgment Seat of Christ where all true believers will be judged and rewarded individually according to our works. Yet the common reward for all true Christians is immortality (everlasting life) through continuous access to the Tree of Life, and an eternal inheritance in the coming Kingdom of Christ on the restored earth. The Total Destruction of the Wicked: "... when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe." The wicked and disbelieving who have died prior to Christ's coming will be raised from the dead at the end of the Millennium, and judged according to their works. "And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." "This is the second death." The destruction of S***m and Gomorrah is "set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire," and "an example to those who afterward would live ungodly." This is the biblical prototype for the "Lake of Fire." The Fate of the Ignorant: The Bible only absolutely condemns to utter destruction the wicked who have rejected the knowledge of God which they have received, or flatly rejected the Gospel of Jesus Christ which they have heard and understood. God is just, yet also merciful and gracious. He "takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked." Nor does He reckon "sin" where there is no law. While those who receive Jesus Christ and remain in Him are promised immortality, this does not limit God from showing mercy on little children, those with mental disabilities, or those who have never heard the message of salvation. God is able to apply the atonement of Christ and give immortality to whomever He chooses. We therefore leave these people in God's hands, trusting His nature and His good character to deal with them in both justice and mercy. The Bible: We believe the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments were inspired by God and free from all errors in their original manuscripts. The Bible is the sole source of infallible truth, and is sufficient to fully equip the people of God. It is the final authority in all matters for both individual Christians and for Christian churches. No single manuscript or translation of the Scriptures is perfect. We are free to compare all of the extant copies of God's Word (despite occasional mistakes in copying) when seeking to understand Scripture. Thus, we compare both the Hebrew and Greek versions of the Old Testament, as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls. We also take into consideration the variant readings in the New Testament. Depending on one version only is misguided and unwise in our opinion. However, for public reading and worship, we use the New King James Version.
