The Bible

God is a God who reveals Himself (Hebrews 1:3). He desires for humans to know Him. God has revealed Himself in many ways but specifically through His Word (Deuteronomy 6:1-9). God gave humans the vehicle of language to reveal Himself in a concrete and personal way (Genesis 3:8). 

The Holy Spirit breathed each word of the Bible (2 Timothy 3:16). This is what the term ‘verbally inspired’ means. Since it is God’s special revelation for humanity, it is our ultimate authority (Hebrews 4:12) because it conveys the will of God.

The Trinity

There is one living and true God (Deuteronomy 6:4), forever existing in three persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 3:16-17). Each equally possesses the full nature, glory, and power of Deity with distinct characteristics of personality. This one true and triune God created all things and governs all things.

God the Father

The person of God the Father is eternal (Psalm 102:27), infinite, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love (1 John 4:8); that He cares about our concerns (1 Peter 5:7); that He hears and answers prayer (1 John 5:15); and that He saves from sin and death all those who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (John 3:16). He is our refuge (Deuteronomy 33:27) and worth praising for His attributes (1 Timothy 1:17).

God the Son

Jesus 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. Jesus Christ was both fully God (John 8:58) and fully man (1 John 4:2-3) simultaneously.

Jesus is the only way to the Father (John 14:6). Consequently the work of His death and resurrection is the only way to be restored (1 Timothy 2:5) in our relationship with the Father. Our sin was so severe to God that His plan of restoration was the death of His Son. If there was an easier or a simpler way, God would have utilized it. Anyone who adds a qualifier to the gospel dilutes its God-designed efficacy and blasphemes God. (Galatians 1:8-9; Revelation 22:18-19). 

God the Holy Spirit

We believe The Holy Spirit has come into the world to exist in the hearts of believers for the purposes of glorify Christ and encouraging believers. (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit is a gift from the Father (Luke 11:13) and helps us in our weakness to pray. (Romans 8:26). He also draws sinners to Christ, convicts of sin, and when sinners believe in Christ fully, God gives the Holy Spirit in order to give us a new heart, careful to walk in God’s statutes (Ezekiel 36:26-27). He is the living God residing in our hearts (1 Corinthians 6:19) and He equips believers for sanctification and for bearing fruit for the glory of God. (Galatians 5:22-23).

Sin

God created the world perfect and without sin (Genesis 1:31). Adam and Eve, the first humans, were created as a pair (Genesis 2:18). Adam and Eve were created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). They had the ability to reason; think and seek truth; make moral judgements about good and evil; speak and communicate love as social beings; create, build and appreciate beauty; and worship and pray as spiritual beings. They were given dominion over creation (Genesis 2:19-20). 

Our hearts are wicked (Jeremiah 17:9), and we can do nothing in our own power that make us blameless before God (Romans 3:20; John 15:4-5). This makes us sinners by choice.

Yet, God saves and gives new life to all who come to Him in repentance and faith, trusting in the Person and work of Jesus Christ. Jesus has reconciled us to His Father. Reconciled means we now enjoy peace with God (Romans 5:1), because He does not count our sins against us (2 Corinthians 5:19). The Christian has certain hope that our corrupted image is being renewed and made to bear Jesus’ likeness (1 Corinthians 15:49). We are being renewed to be like Him even now (Ephesians 4:24) and someday this will be completed (1 John 3:2).

Male Leadership

Men and women are both called to submit to God’s authority and live humbly. However, there is a created order in which men and women are to relate to each other in the home and in the church, which is the household of God (Ephesians 5:22-32; 1 Timothy 3:1-13). Even though God has given some women leadership gifts, He reserves the ecclesiastical office of elder to men (1 Timothy 3:2). Women are free and encouraged to minister to and mentor other women in the church (Titus 2:3-5). All women and men are called to minister to unsaved people and win them to Christ. (Matthew 28:19-20).

Heaven and Hell

The Gospel is the good news that Jesus died for sinners to save them from their sin. This beautiful message does however require a response. We are not only to believe the facts about Jesus but to receive Him by personally committing our lives to Him (Philippians 3:8; Colossians 1:27). Those who choose to reject Jesus’ free gift of salvation will spend eternity separated from God (Revelation 20:11-15).

Christ’s Second Coming

At the end of this current earth’s history, Christ will return to set up an earthly kingdom. The Old Testament teaches the Messiah will have a Davidic earthly kingship (Daniel 7:13-14; Isaiah 11; Zechariah 2:10-12). Luke 1:32-33 confirms these promises. The mantra of Christianity throughout the ages has been, “Christ died, Christ rose, Christ is coming again.” This last point should not be understated. The overall message of our faith does not make sense if Jesus is not to return (2 Peter 3:1-13). Jesus had a literal, bodily, and personal death and resurrection. So He will also have a literal, bodily and personal return (Acts 1:11). Jesus wants us to wait, watch and work for Him, because we do not know exactly when He is coming back (Matthew 24:45-51; 1 Thessalonians 5:2).

Marriage

God created human sexuality and made it sacred. Sexuality follows the pattern of creation in every day of the creation week. In this pattern, God created a contrasting opposite (i.e. separating light and darkness, greater light and lesser light, fish and birds). Therefore, sex is sacred because the joining of a man and a woman in monogamous marriage is a picture of how Christ and the church are joined (Ephesians 5:22-32). (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4-6; John 4:16-18; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 5:11; Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:3-7; 1 Timothy 1:9-11).

A Christian should not enter marriage unequally yoked by seeking marriage to an unbeliever (2 Corinthians 6:14-15; 1 Cor 7:12-14). Jesus provides for divorce on the grounds of adultery (Matthew 19:3-12; Mark 10:2-12). Paul also allows for divorce in the case of an unbeliever leaving a believer. Remarriage should be permitted if there are biblical grounds for divorce. (1 Corinthians 7:15).  God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16).

The Sanctity of Life

Psalm 139:13-18 undoubtedly displays the miracle and sanctity of human life, even the life of the preborn. All people are made in God’s image (Gen 1:27; James 3:9) and it is wrong to murder any human life (Ex 20:13). Moses’ infancy also instructs us that God views the life of the weak and indefensible as important. There are no grounds for taking a preborn or newborn life, as each is planned by God (Psalm 139:13). It is not our place as mortals to decide who lives and who dies via euthanasia, as God has numbered all of our days (Job 14:5).

Christian Living

To be sanctified means to be set apart, as God’s own holy people (1 Cor 1:2). The first step of sanctification begins with justification at the moment of conversion (Romans 8:1, 29-30). In order to be sanctified, God must first declare us righteous (Romans 5:1-5). Satan seeks to destroy the church by making sanctification seem unimportant and irrelevant. The Christian duty is to constantly deny the passions of this world and live for God in the presence of evil (Titus 2:11-14). We need to live like Christ through the power of God’s help until He makes us complete in glory with Him (Phil 1:6; 2:12-13).

The Body of Christ has an enormous responsibility towards the poor, sick, alienated, and disenfranchised (Proverbs 19:17; Matthew 10:42). Jesus’ ministry was focused on broken people (Luke 4:18). If we are the body of Christ, we must have the same focus. Apart from loving God, loving our neighbor is the next greatest command in Scripture (Mark 12:28-31). God commands Christians to take care of the poor (Galatians 2:10). Our faith is purest when we are taking care of the distressed (James 1:27).

The Christian faces three main enemies: the world, the flesh, and Satan. This world is both a distraction and an enemy (1 John 2:15-17; Romans 12:2), but it must be overcome (1 John 5:4). The flesh sets its desires against the Spirit (Galatians 5:17). The devil is real and someone to be resisted (1 Peter 5:8-9). Satan’s main front of attack is to try to get us to doubt what God says (Genesis 3:1-4). Jesus’ temptation in Matthew 4 and Luke 4 also show Satan misquoting God and trying to cast doubt on what God says. The sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17) is our weapon against Satan. We should also pray in Jesus’ name for deliverance from evil (Ephesians 6:18; John 14:14), knowing that the Holy Spirit will help us in our battle (Romans 8:26-27).