SECTION 1.   THE HOLY BIBLE – WORD OF GOD

We believe the Bible is the inspired, authoritative Word of God given to mankind.  We accept the Bible as the very word of God in original manuscript, wholly inspired, absolutely infallible, our source of truth and the sole basis of our doctrine and beliefs.  The Bible reveals God and is the source of knowledge about salvation, the origin of all things, and the hereafter.  It alone is the final court of appeals on all points of doctrine, life and Godliness.  II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20-21; Proverbs 30:5; Romans 16:25-26

SECTION 2.   THE PERSON OF GOD – THE TRINITY  

There is one God, existent in three persons equal in deity, power, and glory and eternally existent: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  God has not hidden himself, but has continued to progressively reveal himself to His creation through nature, conscience, history, miracles, prophecy, scripture, and personal experiences in the Holy Spirit. Psalm 104; 139; Matthew 10:29-31; 28:19; Acts 17:24-28; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 1:9-12; 4:4-6; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:1-3; Revelation 1:4-6

SECTION 3.   THE FATHER – THE ETERNAL CREATOR 

We believe the Father is the source of all life, love and light.  He is the invisible “Great I Am” who dwells in unapproachable light, holiness, glory, and majesty.  He is a covenant-maker and keeper.  He not only created the world but also now upholds, sustains, governs, and providentially directs all that exists. Gen 1:1; John 3:16; I Tim 6:16; Heb 12:29; John 1:10-12

SECTION 4.   THE SON – JESUS THE CHRIST 

We believe Jesus is God the Son who existed in eternity past with the Father and now in human form, 100% God and 100% man. He is the only man to have ever lived a sinless life.  He was born of a virgin through the Holy Spirit, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, died on the cross, and was buried.   He descended into Hell, rose bodily from the dead on the third day, appeared to His disciples, and ascended into the heavens. Having atoned for our sins through the shedding of His blood, He freely gives eternal life for all those who by faith receive Him as Lord and Savior.  He is seated at the right hand of the Father as our high-priest, there to ever make intercession for us. At the appointed time He will return to earth to receive the righteous both living and dead and to execute judgment upon the wicked.  Christ will reign as King over an everlasting Kingdom among men and the consummation of all things in Himself to the glory of the Father. Matthew 1:18-25; John 1:1-18; Roman 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:1-28; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:10-14; Ephesians 1:7; Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 1:15-23; Hebrews 7:25; 9:13-15; 10:19; 1 Peter 2:21-25; 1 John 2:1-2

SECTION 5.   THE HOLY SPIRIT – THE HELPER 

We believe God the Holy Spirit indwells Christian believers, seals them for the day of redemption, regenerates them, and equips them for godly living and service accompanied by the graces and fruit of the Spirit.  We believe that the Holy Spirit God sanctifies the believer by enabling them to do what is pleasing in God’s sight in order to be progressively conformed into the image and character of Christ. It is through the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God that the Christian is enabled to live a Godly life. The Holy Spirit is manifested through a variety of spiritual gifts to build and sanctify the church, demonstrate the validity of the resurrection, and confirm the power of the Gospel. The Bible lists of these gifts are not necessarily exhaustive, and the gifts may occur in various combinations.  All believers are commanded to earnestly desire the manifestation of the gifts in their lives. These gifts always operate in harmony with the Scriptures and should never be used in violation of Biblical parameters. Hebrews 2:4; Romans 1:11, 8:29, 12 :1-2, 4-8; Ephesians 4:16; I Timothy 4:14; II Timothy 1:6-7; I Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40; I Peter 4:10; I Thessalonians 4:3, 5:23; II Corinthians 3:18, 6:14-18, II Thessalonians 2:1-3, Hebrews 2:11

SECTION 6.   MAN – HIS NATURE   

We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female.  These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God.  Because God created man in His own image, all human life is sacred and of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. We believe the first man, Adam, was originally created righteous and without sin.  Because of Adam’s disobedience to God, all mankind is now born into a sinful world and separated from God by both imputed and inherent sin.  No one is righteous and all stand in need of redemption from sin and its’ penalty of death. Gen 1:26-31; Ps 51:5; Isaiah 53:5; Rom 3:9-18; 5:12-21; Eph 2:1-3; Ps 139

SECTION 7.   MARRIAGE – TWO BECOME ONE  

We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, instituted by God Himself as delineated in Scripture.  We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other.  Marriage is to be a fruitful lifelong partnership for the well-being of the spouses, procreation, and the upbringing of children. Marriage is a typology of Christ and the Church.  As such, the Church views marriage as a profound spiritual institution established by God where love expressed in the giving of oneself to one another in sexual intimacy, is profound and holy. Consequently, any other form of sexual activity STANDS IN OPPOSITION OF God’s commandments. Gen 1:26-27, 2:18-25; Matt 15:18-20; 1 Cor 6:9-10, 18; 1 Cor 7:2-5; Heb 13

SECTION 8.   SALVATION – REDEMPTION AND ETERNAL LIFE  

Salvation from sin, death and eternal separation from God unto eternal life is a gift from God, not a result of our good works or of any human efforts. The Lord Jesus Christ is man’s only and all-sufficient Savior who by His broken body, physical death and blood shed on the cross made provision for the eternal redemption of creation, for the forgiveness of sins, and for life everlasting to all who repent of their ways, turn to God, and acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. When a person repents and receives Jesus as Lord of their life, they receive the gift of salvation through faith, they are born again and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, declared righteous by the Father, and transformed from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God.  As such these persons (Christians) become adopted sons and daughters of God the Father. It is the Father’s will for believers to become whole, healthy and successful in all areas of life.  But because of the fall, many may not receive the full benefits of God’s will while on Earth. That fact, though, should never prevent all believers from seeking the full benefits of Christ’s provision in order to better serve others: Spiritually, Mentally, Emotionally, and Physically. Joshua 1:8; Malachi 3:10-11; Deuteromy 28:1-14; Ps 34:10, 84:11; Matthew 4,8:17; Luke 6:38; John 1:12-13, 3:3-21,14:17,23, 15:4; Acts 16:30-31; Romans 3-4, 8:1-17, 31-39, 10:9-10, 12:2, 15:4; Philip 2:12-13, 4:7-8,19; II Corinthians 5:17-21, 9:6-10; Eph 2:8-9; II Timothy 1:7, 2:11; I Peter 2:24; Galatians 2:16, 3:8; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 9:22; 1 John 1:7,9;  Revelations 3:20

SECTION 9.   SATAN – THE DEVIL  

We believe that Satan, originally a great and good angel, rebelled against God, taking a multitude of angels (now demons) with him.  He was cast out of God’s presence and is at work with his demonic hosts to establish his counter-kingdom of darkness and evil in the earth. Satan was judged and defeated at the cross of Christ but continues to tempt, deceive, oppress, lie, steal, destroy, and kill until the appointed time of the end.  The people of the world live in spiritual darkness under the influence and oppression of Satan, the desires of the flesh, and the spirit of this world. Greater than Satan and all his dominion is Christ and the Holy Spirit within us as Christians.   We overcome the evil one and put to death the old sinful nature by and through the power of Christ within.   We take captive every thought into obedience to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, we walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh, and we war not against people, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this age, against the hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. It is God’s desire to deliver and free His people from all mental, emotional, physical or spiritual bondage caused by demonic activity.  (Job 5:19, Psalms 91:3, II Tim 4:13; Heb 2:15; II Peter 2:9).  We have been granted the authority in the name of Jesus to bring deliverance to others.  (Mk 16:17; Jn 14:12; I Cor 12:8-11).  We must understand that our warfare is with the forces of evil (Ephesians 6:12), our weapon is the Word of God, our authority and power is from Jesus himself (Mk 16:17, Acts 1:8) and that the battlefield is first of all in the spiritual realms.  (Eph 6:10-18; II Cor 10:3-5; Rm 8:9; Gal 5:22-23). Matthew 12:25-29; 25:41; John 12:31; 16:11; Ephesians 6:10-20; Colossians 2:15; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6; Revelation 12:7-9; 20:10.

SECTION 10.   THE CHURCH – THE BODY OF CHRIST 

The church is made up of every born again believer (saint), which is The Church universal, the habitation of God through the Holy Spirit.  The Church is God’s primary vehicle in which He is fulfilling his purposes in the earth.  God has given the Church apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. We believe the Church is called to declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations, especially to remember the poor and to minister to those in need through sacrificial giving and practical service.  This is an expression of God’s heart and an essential part of His kingdom. Given at Pentecost, the baptism of the Holy Spirit promised by the Father was sent by Jesus after His Ascension to empower the Church to preach the Gospel and be His witnesses throughout the whole earth.  We believe this baptism following new birth in Christ with the evidence of speaking in tongues, signs and wonders, as well as the gifts of the Holy Spirit described in the New Testament, are operative today in the Church and are designed to empower and edify the Church to fulfill its calling on earth. We believe the Local Church is an expression of the community and fellowship of God.  As the Body of Christ in the earth it is an intimate community of people that is devoted to apostolic teaching, to fellowship, breaking of bread and prayer.  We consider the fellowship of the saints together in the private homes of the members to be an essential expression of the life of faith of the church. We affirm the priesthood of all believers and the importance of every Christian being joined with and actively involved in a Local Church. We believe that women, no less than men, are called and gifted to proclaim the gospel and do all the works of the kingdom. We believe as members of the same Body of Christ, baptized by one Spirit into one body that we must endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  We believe as members of the Body of Christ, lawsuits should not be brought against another person who professes to be a Christian or against a Christian ministry.  We believe that all such disputes should be resolved within the Body of Christ without taking them before unbelievers for judgment.  (1 Cor 6:1-8; Ephesians 4:3-6) Within the Local Church we recognize proper and remedial discipline and judgments set forth in the Bible in relationship to disobedience and the sin of believers.  We believe that this discipline is an expression of the grace of God and is given that we might walk blameless before Him. We believe and are praying for a great end-time harvest of souls and the emergence of a victorious church that will experience unprecedented unity, purity, and power in the Holy Spirit. We believe the church is owned by the Lord Jesus Christ who has entrusted the care of the flock to the leadership He has raised up here in this Local Church.  It is not a place of public accommodation, nor is it a public institution, and its property is not a public place, but is rather, private property belonging to this church. Psalm 103:2-3; Isaiah 53:5, 58:6-12; 61:1; Joel 2:28-29; Matthew 3:11, 8:16-17,16:17-19,  28:18-20; Mark 16:17-18; John 1:12-13; Acts 1:5, 2:1-4,17, 8-39, 4:29-30, 8: 6-7,14-17, 10:38,44-47, 11:15-17,42;  20:28-31; Romans 8:9; 11:29, 12:3-8, 16:17; I Corinthians 5:1-13, 12:9,12-13,28; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; I Timothy 1:20; 2:11-15; 3:1-5; 6:5; II Thessalonians 3:6-15; Titus 3:10-11; Ephesians 1:13-14, 3:14-21; 4:11-16; Galatians 2:10,3:1-5; Hebrews 10:23-25; James 5:14-16; 1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-10; 3:1-15; II Peter 2:1-3; II John 9-11;

SECTION 11.   ORDINANCES – WATER BAPTISM AND COMMUNION 

The ordinances of Water Baptism and The Lord’s Supper are not a means of salvation, but have an important spiritual function in the life of a believer and are a reflection of God’s sanctifying grace and blessing to the faithful in Christ Jesus. We believe that Jesus Christ observed, established, and commanded the Church to observe Water Baptism by immersion as a visible representation of our death, burial, and resurrection with Christ and a visible declaration of our union with Him and His body the Church. We believe that Jesus Christ observed, established, and commanded the Church to observe The Lord’s Supper as a means of fellowship of the saints and to partake of the spiritual benefits given to new covenant believers through this ordinance in the presence of God when the elements of bread and juice (the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ) are taken in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. Matthew 26:26-29; 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38, 8:12, 36-38, 10:47-48; Romans 6:3-11; 1 Corinthians 10:16,11:23-34; 1 Peter 3:21 

SECTION 12.   RESURRECTION – THE PROMISE OF ETERNAL LIFE 

Jesus Christ was physically resurrected from the dead in a glorified body three days after His death on the cross. We believe that when the Christian dies he/she passes immediately into the blessed presence of Christ to enjoy conscious fellowship with the Savior until the day of the resurrection and glorious transformation of the body. Jesus Christ will physically and visibly return to earth for the second time to establish His Kingdom at the end of this age. This will occur at a date undisclosed by the Scriptures.  Jesus will judge the living and the dead and each man will appear before Him on that day to be judged by whether he accepted or rejected Jesus and His word. The saved and the lost will be resurrected; they that are saved to the resurrection of life and they that are lost to the resurrection of eternal separation from God. At the end of this age, Satan will be cast forever into the lake of fire which has been prepared for him and his angels.  Then Death and Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire as well.  The lake of fire is the second death.  If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he will be thrown into the lake of fire.  And this earth and heaven will pass away for a new heaven and a new earth where God himself will dwell with His people.  He will wipe away every tear and there shall be no more death, sorrow, crying or pain.  Those who overcome shall inherit all things; He will be their God and they shall be His sons.  (Rev 21) Psalms 2:7-9, 22:27-28; Matthew 24:30, 25:46, 26:63-64; John 2:19-21, 4:12, 5:25-29, 20:26-28; Luke 16:19-31, 24:16, 36, 39; Acts 1:9-11, 24:15; Romans 11:25-32; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, 35-58, 42, 44; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians 1:19-26, 3:20-21; I Thessalonians 4:15-17; II Thessalonians 1:5-10; Revelation 1:7,7:9-14,17:20;  20:11-15