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| DOCTRINAL STATEMENT |
| DOCTRINE |
| *Doctrine-something that is taught. A principle or position or the body of principles in a branch of knowledge or system of belief. I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead...preach the word...For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:1-4 |
| The Bible - The Bible is the inspired word of God. The original autographs are infallible and inherent. God has supernaturally preserved the Bible through a history of persecution. It is complete in its current form and is the sum total of God’s special revelation to man. There shall be no addition to or subtraction from its words. It is the source text of Christian faith and the only authoritative book for doctrine, correction, and instruction in life. It is the only special revelation of God given to mankind and is therefore to be revered as supernatural having no equal or rival. God - God is beyond the scope of human comprehension but has revealed Himself to humanity through the natural revelation of creation and the special revelation of the Bible. There is one God who exists in three distinct persons being of the same substance and acting in different modes of operation. The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit are all equally God, unique and individual in person, diverse in function, equal in power, eternal in existence, unified in being. God transcends His creation and stands apart from it having no need. The essence of His divine nature is love. He is equitable in all His dealings with His creation. There is no other god but Him. Mankind - Man (male and female) has been created in the image and likeness of God. God created both male and female to bear His image. Man has been created as a representative of God without divine prerogatives or power. Man never has nor ever will posses the divine qualities of deity. Man is dualistic in the sense that he/she is both material and non material. Man is a tripartite being in that he/she is composed of three distinct parts being; spirit, soul, and body. Man has a spirit, man has a soul, and man has a body. No one of these parts is complete apart from the others and man’s true self is contained within a symbiotic relationship of all three parts. The life of man begins at conception and has no prior existence back behind this point. The life of man is sacred and belongs to his creator God. Sin - Sin is disobedience to God. It has its origins in the rebellious angel Lucifer and he is the father of it. Mankind became infected with sin by the choice of our father Adam when he disobeyed God. All people are born with a propensity to sin also known as a sin nature. All people have sinned and missed the mark of perfect obedience to God. Sin is self destructive and has separated man from his Creator. Man is unable to generate a remedy for sin. All sin will be judged by God. Judgment - God will judge all men for their sins. The penalty of sin is death and that being eternal separation from God in the lake of fire. All judgment by God is final and irreversible. Upon the return of Christ as King over all the Earth He will sit in judgment of the nations of the world. This is known as the judgment seat of Christ. Standing before Him will be all those who have received Him as Lord and Savior since the completion of His redemptive work as well as all those found living at His coming. He will separate the just, who will reign with Him on the Earth, from the unjust who will be sent into the lake of fire. God has determined a certain day in which He will judge all people who ever lived in the Earth. This second Day of Judgment is known as the Great White Throne judgment. On this day the sins of all who have ever lived shall be made known and the guilty shall be thrown living into the lake of fire to be tormented there for all eternity. Salvation - Salvation from sin and its resulting judgment in the lake of fire cannot be obtained at all by human efforts. Man is a sinner and unable to save himself. God has made provision for the salvation of man through the person and work of Jesus Christ. Salvation can only be obtained as a free gift of God by faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ - Jesus Christ is both God and man. He is God the eternal Son that has come into this world for the express purpose of seeking and saving lost humanity. He is man that has experienced all the hardships and temptations of humanity without yielding at all to sin. He was incarnated through the miracle of the virgin birth. He lived the life of a man without sin. He demonstrated His power over sin, sickness, death and the material world proving Himself to be God. He was unjustly condemned to die by crucifixion as the scriptures foretold. He was buried in a tomb. On the third day after His death He arose from the dead by His own power defeating death and granting eternal life to all who put their trust in Him. He ascended again to Heaven where He will remain until all things are fulfilled. He will return to rule the nations as the King of Kings. The Church - The Church of Jesus Christ consists of all people who have been called out of darkness into the light of God by the good news of Jesus Christ. The universal church consists of those who have heard the good news of Christ and have put their faith in Christ alone to give them eternal life being born again. The local church consists of a group of believers having put their faith in Christ and having followed Him in believer’s baptism making public profession of their faith and living, with an individual commitment to God and one another, as a community of saints fulfilling the mission of the church both locally and trans-locally. Second Coming of Christ - Christ will return in bodily form to the Earth. The time of His coming will not be predicted by man. He will come suddenly and visibly in flaming fire, like lightning flashing from East to West, executing judgment on those rejecting His gospel and persecuting His people. He will simultaneously give His people rest from their enemies. He will return to the Mount of Olives, from where He ascended, and establish His Kingdom. At His coming the Christian dead will be resurrected in bodily form as was Christ the third day after His death. Living Christians shall be changed, their perishable bodies becoming imperishable as did the physical body of Christ at His resurrection, and all Christians, whether dead or alive, will be gathered together from their respective places throughout Heaven and Earth to meet Him in the air in order to descend with Him as His New Jerusalem, His holy habitation, His bride. From this day forward Christians shall never be separated from the Lord. Millennial Kingdom - Christ will rule and reign over the kingdoms of this world for one thousand years. During His Earthly reign there shall be peace throughout the entire world. Satan shall be bound in chains for this millennial reign and he shall be loosed at the end of it to again deceive the nations. At which time God will cast him into the Lake of Fire to be tormented for all eternity thus permanently abolishing all influence of sin and death. Christ will reign forever. Heaven - Heaven is the eternal abode of God where those persons who die, having their full trust in Christ alone for their salvation, go to await the resurrection of their bodies as they return to Earth with Christ. Hell - Hell is a place of temporary judgment and torment for all those who do not receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and savior taking advantage of the gift of eternal life which He offers to all people. All who go there will one day be resurrected from the dead and stand before the Great White Throne judgment at which time they shall all be officially and irrevocably sentenced, spirit, soul, and body, to the Lake of Fire for all eternity. Priesthood of Believers - Every Christian is a priest to God having access to His Throne of Grace in prayer. It is not necessary for a Christian to approach God through any other person than Jesus Christ but all Christians have been given equal access to God in His name. God has invited all His people to approach Him in prayer and ask Him whatsoever they desire promising that if it be according to His will that He will grant their request in His own time and at His own sovereign discretion. Christian Stewardship - The local church is supported by the tithes and offerings of its members. The tithe is 10% of the gross income of each Christian and is holy to the Lord being His by right. The tithe is not a gift but an obligation of Christian stewardship given in order to recognize the Lordship of Christ over one’s life production. It is to be the first payment released from all personal increase to honor the Lord. Offerings are not compulsory but should be given with joy and enthusiasm at the impression of the Lord upon the individual’s heart. God promises to bless a person’s obedience in tithes and offerings. Baptism in the Holy Spirit - The Holy Spirit of God comes to dwell in the hearts of those who put their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He is released into the lives of believers, flowing forth like a mighty river from their inner most being or spirit, in order to fill or baptize them in His presence and power. This baptism or filling of the Spirit is for the empowerment of the believer to represent the Lord Jesus Christ as He is, and thus continue His ministry in the Earth. Water Baptism - Water baptism, as a sign of the inward death to self and resurrection of new life to God, is preformed after conversion to demonstrate publicly what Christ has done in a believer’s life. Infant baptism is not taught by scripture; as is believer’ s baptism by immersion, and does not constitute a fulfillment of Christ’s command to baptize all nations. Supernatural Manifestation - Miracles, signs, and supernatural wonders as well as spiritual, emotional, and physical healing are accomplished by God according to His own will and most often in response to the prayers of His people. Christians should seek God concerning all good and proper solutions to the impossible difficulties and dilemmas of life in an attitude of confidence and submission. Nothing is too small, too great, too improbable, or too impossible for God to intervene should requests be made in sincere faith and in accordance with His will. |