ARTICLES OF FAITH
I.THE SCRIPTURES
We believe that the Bible is the Word of God; that it was written by men who were moved by the Holy Spirit so that their writings in the original, were supernaturally and verbally inspired and free from error, as no other writings have ever been or will be. They are the complete and final revelation of the will of God to man, and so are the supreme authority in all matters of faith, conduct, and living, and thus render as unnecessary and unbiblical any further prophetic revelations or apostolic signs.
We believe the full historicity and perspicuity of the biblical record of primeval history, including the literal existence of Adam and Eve as the progenitors of all people, the literal fall and resultant divine curse on the creation, the worldwide cataclysmic deluge, and the origin of nations and languages at the tower of Babel.
II.THE TRUE GOD
We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
God the Father—We believe in God the Father, perfect in holiness, boundless in love, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayers, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ, His Son. We believe that He is the creator of resurrection, His ascension into Heaven, His perpetual intercession for His people, and His glorious second advent according to His promise.
God the Son—We believe in Jesus Christ, God the Son, pre-existent with the Father. We believe in the perfect, complete humanity, and in the full and absolute deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, incarnated Word of God, indissolubly united in one divine-human person, begotten by the Holy Spirit and miraculously conceived and born of the Virgin Mary, sinless in His nature and life, infallible in His teaching, having made atonement for the sins of the world by His substitutionary death on the cross. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His ascension into Heaven, His perpetual intercession for His people, and His glorious second advent according to His promise.
God the Spirit—We believe in the deity and personality of God the Holy Spirit. We believe that He came from God to convince and convict the world of sin; to reprove the world of righteousness and of judgment; and to regenerate, sanctify, indwell, comfort, and empower those who believe in Jesus Christ.
III.MAN
We believe that man was created in the image of God on the sixth literal day of the beginning of the world; that he sinned and thereby incurred not only physical death but also spiritual death which is separation from God. We believe that all human beings are born with a sinful nature, and in the case of those who reach the age of accountability, become sinners in thought and deed by choice.
IV.SATAN
We believe in the reality and personality of Satan, who is the adversary of God and His children. He was originally created by God but fell from heaven. His destiny is determined; he will be cast into the Lake of Fire.
V.SALVATION AND ASSURANCE
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who by faith receive Him as their personal Savior, are justified on the ground of His blood shed on Calvary and His resurrection from the dead and are born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby become the children of God. We believe in the eternal security of the believer.
VI.THE CHURCH
We believe in the visible local church, which is a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible confession of faith, and associated with worship and fellowship. We believe that these visible churches were committed to perpetual observance, and two ordinances: the baptism of believers and the Lord's Supper. We believe that God has laid upon these churches the task of preaching the Gospel to every creature, and the edification of the individual members of the Body of Christ.
VII.LAST THINGS
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead, the saved to eternal life and blessedness in Heaven, and the unsaved to eternal, conscious suffering, and woe in Hell. We believe that the blessed hope of the believer is the personal, premillennial, and pretribulational return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to rapture His church; and after the period of tribulation, return with His saints to establish His millennial reign.
VIII.CHURCH AND STATE
We believe that every human being has a direct relationship with God and is responsible to God alone in all matters of all faith; that each church is independent and autonomous, and must be free from any interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority; and that, therefore, the church and state must be kept separate having different functions, each fulfilling its duties without the dictation and patronage of the other.
IX.CHRISTIAN LIVING
We believe that every saved person should manifest the Christian life through a consistent walk in the Holy Spirit, fully and constantly yielding his members to the indwelling Christ, so that he may always by life and word show forth the praises of Him who has called him out of darkness into His marvelous light. We believe in a separate life, including but not limited to separation from worldly alliances, pleasures, methods of work, and secret societies. Thus, we believe that God’s children should be separated from sin, the world, false teachers, and disobedient brethren, including separation from theological liberalism, neo-evangelicalism, neo-orthodoxy, ecumenism, the charismatic movement, and other unbiblical movements. We believe that it is the responsibility of every Christian to evangelize the lost throughout the world according to the Great Commission of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
X.BIBLICAL CREATIONISM
We believe God created the heavens and earth according to the Scriptures. God created all things through this special creation of the existing space-time universe and all its basic systems and kinds of organisms in the six literal days of the creation week. We believe man was created specially in the image of God.
COVENANT
Having been led, as we believe, by the Holy Spirit of God to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, and having been baptized, upon the confession of our faith, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, we do now in the presence of God and this assembly, joyfully and solemnly enter into covenant with one another as one body in Christ.
We agree, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to exercise Christian care and watchfulness over one another; to remember one another in prayer; to help one another in sickness and distress; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Savior to secure it without delay to consider and provoke one another unto love and good works and not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together.
We further agree to strive for the advancement of this church in grace, knowledge, and holiness; to promote its spirituality’ to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines and to contribute cheerfully, regularly, and liberally to the financial support of the church, giving special attention to the spread of the Gospel to all nations and the relief of the needy.
We also agree to maintain family and private devotions, to bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances.
We further determine to walk circumspectly in the world, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements, and exemplary in our deportment; to refrain from gossip, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating drinks as a beverage and from every appearance of evil; to maintain a cleat line of separation from all religious apostasy and all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations.
Stands and Positions
- We stand for fundamentalism and are rooted in the Word of God.
- We maintain the doctrine of the Inerrancy of the Bible.
- We believe in the literal Six Days Creationism.
- We assert the Separatist position.
- We maintain the position of sound, godly, sacred music. Thus, we oppose all unbiblical, un-Christ-like music including CCM, Charismatic, worldly, and Christian rock, and modern praise music.
- We confirm the belief of Cessationism. Therefore, we believe that the
Bible is clear that the supernatural spiritual gifts have ceased after the Bible is finished and the church is established. We, therefore, oppose the errors of the charismatic movement and against the unbiblical tongue’s movement and the Signs and Wonder movement. - We assert the teaching of male leadership of the church pastors and deacons. Thus, we oppose all the unbiblical teachings and practices of the Pastoral Epistles. We oppose the idea and practice of ordaining women to be the pastor and leaders of the church. We also oppose women to preach or teach men, when it is assembling as the Body of Christ. We encourage sisters to teach sisters and children.We also encourage sisters to train gifted brothers to preach, teach and serve the Lord in the church privately with their husbands.
- We believe in the separation of church and state. Thus, we oppose the government controlling the church.However, we do believe the church should be the light and salt of the world to influence the government to follow God’s Will. Government should not intrude on the ministry of the church. Therefore, we oppose Three-self-government churches and government-controlled agencies to rule over the true church of Christ.
- We insist on the holiness of the Church. Thus, we believe marriage is for life without divorce, and once divorced, one cannot remarry. We also oppose worldliness and secularism. Christians must love God with all their souls to separate from the world and devote themselves to living a godly life to edify others and glorify God.
- We believe in Christian Education and assert the Biblical principle of raising godly children by the parents. Thus, we oppose the secular education system, which emphasizes unbiblical humanism, evolutionism, atheism, pragmatism, utilitarianism, and many unbiblical human philosophies.