The “Statement of Faith” which this church shall embrace, preach, and defend is specifically set forth as follows:
1. THE BIBLE: The Word of God, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, verbally inspired in all parts, and therefore wholly without error as originally given of God (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).
2. THE ONE TRUE GOD: Existing eternally as three persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14).
3. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST: His preexistence and deity (John 1:1-3), incarnation by virgin birth (John 1:14; Matt. 1:18-23), sinless life (Heb. 4:15), substitutionary death (2 Cor. 5:21), bodily resurrection (Luke 24:36-43), ascension into heaven and present ministry (Heb. 4: 14-16) and coming again (Acts 1:11).
4. THE HOLY SPIRIT: His personality (John 16:7-15); and deity (Acts 5:3-4); and His work in each believer: conviction (John 16:8), baptism and indwelling at the moment of regeneration (1 Cor. 12:13; Rom. 8:9), and filling (Eph. 5:18), to empower for Christian life and service (Eph. 3:16; Acts 1:8; Gal. 5:22-23).
5. MAN: His direct creation in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-28), his subsequent fall into sin resulting in spiritual death (Gen. 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12), and the necessity of the new birth for his salvation (John 3:3-5).
6. SALVATION: A complete and eternal salvation by God’s grace alone, received as the gift of God through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:18-19).
7. THE CHURCH: One true Church, the body and bride of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-32), composed of all true believers of the present age (1 Cor. 12:12-13); and the organization of its members in local churches for worship, for edification of believers and for worldwide gospel witness, each local church being autonomous but cooperating in fellowship and work (Eph. 4:11-16).
8. CHURCH LIFE: A life of righteousness, good works, and separation unto God from the evil ways of the world (Rom. 12:1-2), manifested by speaking the truth (James 5:12), maintaining the sanctity of the home (Eph. 5:22-6:4), settling differences between Christians in accordance with the Word of God (1 Cor. 6:1-8), not engaging in carnal strife but showing a Christ-like attitude toward all men (Rom. 12:17-21), exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22- 23), and maintaining a life of prayer (Eph. 6:18; Phil. 4:6), including the privilege, when sick, of calling for the elders of the church to pray and to anoint with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5:13-18).
9. ORDINANCES: The Christian should observe the ordinances of our Lord Jesus Christ, which are: (1) baptism of believers by triune immersion (Matt. 28:19) and (2) the threefold communion service, consisting of the washing of the saint’s feet (John 13:1-17), the Love Feast (1 Cor. 11:20-22, 33-34, Jude 12), and the communion of the bread and the cup (1 Cor. 11:23-26).
10. SATAN: His existence and personality as the great adversary of God and His people (Rev. 12:1-10), his judgment (John 12:31), and final doom (Rev. 20:10).
11. SECOND COMING: The personal, visible, and imminent return of Christ to remove His church from the earth (1 Thess. 4:16-17) before the tribulation (1 Thess. 1:10; Rev. 3:10), and afterward to descend with the Church to establish His millennial kingdom upon the earth (Rev. 19:11-20:6).
12. FUTURE LIFE: The conscious existence of the dead (Phil. 1:21-23; Luke 16:19-31), the resurrection of the body (John 5:28-29), the judgment and reward of believers (Rom. 14:10-12; 2 Cor. 5:10), the judgment and condemnation of unbelievers (Rev. 20:11-15), the eternal life of the saved (John 3:16), and the eternal punishment of the lost (Matt. 25:46; Rev. 20:15).
13. MARRIAGE AND HUMAN SEXUALITY: God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary sexes reflect the image and nature of God (Gen. 1:26-27). Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person.
The term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in the Bible (Gen. 2:18-25). The Bible clearly teaches that marriage is between one man and one woman, for life, uniquely reflecting Christ’s relationship with His Church (Eph. 5:21-33). God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other (1 Cor. 6:18; 7:2-5; Heb. 13:4). God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.
The Bible teaches that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, the use of pornography, etc.) is sinful and offensive to God (Matt. 15:18-20; 1 Cor. 6:9-10).
God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ (Acts 3:19-21; Rom. 10:9-10; 1 Cor. 6:9-11).
Every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31). Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Bible or the doctrines of Community Grace.
14. SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE: All human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is 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 (Ps. 139).
