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We
Believe:
1.
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect,
and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine
Persons:
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge
and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to
redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own
glory.
2.
We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New
Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally
inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original
writings,
the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate
authority
by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be
judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches,
obeyed in all
that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.
3.
We believe that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they
sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are
sinners by nature and by choice, alienated from God, and under His
wrath. Only through God's saving work in Jesus Christ can we be
rescued, reconciled and renewed.
4.
We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully
man, one Person in two natures. Jesus-Israel's promised Messiah-was
conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He
lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose
bodily from the
dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the
Father
as our High Priest and Advocate.
5.
We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute,
shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice
for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute
the only
ground for salvation.
6.
We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies
the Lord Jesus Christ. He convicts the world of its guilt. He regenerates
sinners,
and in Him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted
as heirs
in the family of God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips
and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.
7.
We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified
by God's grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united
by
the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head.
The true church is manifest in local churches, whose membership
should be composed only of believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two
ordinances, baptism and the Lord's Supper, which visibly and tangibly
express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation,
when celebrated by
the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish
the believer.
8.
We believe that God's justifying grace must not be separated from
His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely
and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for
one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed.
With God's Word, the Spirit's power, and fervent prayer in Christ's
name,
we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ's
commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always
bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
9.
We believe in the personal, bodily and premillennial return of our
Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to
God,
demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates
the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic
mission.
10.
We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the
gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the
Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily
and
judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to condemnation and eternal
conscious punishment and the believer to eternal blessedness and
joy
with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise
of His glorious grace. Amen.
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