Statement of Faith

  1. We believe that the Bible, comprised of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is verbally inspired of God (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20–21), inerrant in the original writings (Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 5:17–18; Matthew 24:35), completed (Revelation 22:18-19), and the supreme and final authority in faith and life (2 Timothy 3:16–17; James 1:22– 25; 2 Peter 1:3–4).

  2. We believe in one God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5–7; 1 Corinthians 8:4), eternal (Psalm 90:2; Revelation 1:8), omnipotent (Genesis 17:1; Revelation 19:6), omnipresent (Psalm 139:7–12; Acts 17:27), eternally existing in Three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—one in nature and equal in attributes, power, and glory (Matthew 3:16–17; Matthew 28:19; Ephesians 2:18).

  3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is God, the second Person of the Trinity (Matthew28:19, John 1:1), is equal with and bearer of the nature and character of God the Father (John 1:1–2, 14; John 20:28; Colossians 1:15–16), was begotten by the Holy Spirit (the third Person of the Trinity), born of the virgin Mary (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18–21; Luke 1:34–35), and exists as both fully God and fully man simultaneously (Luke 2:52; Galatians 4:4, Colossians 2:9).

  4. We believe that God created man in His own image (Genesis 1:26–27; 1 Corinthians 11:7; James 3:9;) and in a state of innocency (Genesis 1:26–27, 31; Ecclesiastes 7:29), but man willfully transgressed God’s law and lost communion with God, becoming dead in sin, corrupt in nature, and incapable of pleasing God (Genesis 3:8, 24; Romans 3:10–13).

  5. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures (John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:3) as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice (Isaiah 53:4–6; 2 Corinthians 5:21) and rose again for our justification (1 Corinthians 15:4; Romans 4:25; Romans 5:1); all who believe in Him are justified on the grounds of His shed blood (Ephesians 2:13; Colossians 1:20; Hebrews 9:14) and are saved by grace through faith wholly apart from human merit and works (Ephesians 2:8–9; Romans 4:3– 5; Galatians 3:26).

  6. We believe that all who receive the Lord Jesus by faith are born again by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God and thereby become the children of God, possessing eternal life (John 1:12–13; John 3:5–7; Romans 10:9–10, 17; Titus 3:5; 1 John 2:2; 1 John 3:1–3).

  7. We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord Jesus (Matthew 28:5–8; Romans 1:4; 1 Corinthians 15), in His ascension into Heaven (Acts 1:9; Ephesians 1:20–21; Ephesians 4:10), and in His present life there for us as High Priest and Advocate (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:14–16).

  8. We believe in the personal (John 14:3) and visible return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to reign upon the earth (Isaiah 9:6–7; Matthew 24:27–31; 1 Corinthians 15:25; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–18; Revelation 19:16–20:6).

  9. We believe that the rapture of the Church (I Thessalonians 4:16-17) will save believers from the terrors the tribulation (I Thessalonians 5:1-10). Those who are in Christ will instead take part in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:1-10). Following the Rapture, there will be a time of unparalleled trouble, known as Israel’s seventieth week (Daniel 9:24-27); that, though there will be salvation (Matthew 24:22-31; Revelation 7:9-17), this will be a time of great judgments, the latter part being known as the Great Tribulation. (I Thessalonians 4:13-17; I Thessalonians 5:9).

  10. We believe that following the tribulation, Christ will return to the earth with His glorified saints to establish the Millennial Kingdom (Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation 20:4); that during the 1,000 years of peace and prosperity, Satan will be bound (Revelation 20:2-3) and Christ will reign with a rod of iron (Daniel 7:9-14); that at the end of the Millennium, Satan will be released for a short time, deceive many, and lead them in final rebellion, but will be destroyed with his armies (Revelation 20:7-10).

  11. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead; the saved to a life of eternal glory and bliss in heaven with God (John 6:39; Romans 8:10–11, 19–23; 2 Corinthians 4:14); the unsaved to eternal judgment of conscious suffering and woe in the Lake of Fire (Luke 16:19–26; John 5:29; Revelation 20:13–15).

  12. We believe in separation from all worldly practices (Romans 12:2; James 1:27; 1 Peter 1:14; 1 John 2:15–17), in whole-hearted devotion to the cause of Christ (Matthew 6:33; Luke 14:25–33; Romans 12:1; 2 Corinthians 5:9, 14–15), and in a high standard of Christian conduct (1 Peter 1:15–16; 1 Corinthians 9:24–27; Colossians 3:1–4; 2 Peter 1:5–11) since such separation, devotion, and standard is the only scriptural basis for a useful Christian life (Luke 9:23; Galatians 6:1; 2 Timothy 2:20–21). For this reason we oppose all practices which hinder Christian growth and detract from Christian influence (1 Corinthians 5:9–11; Galatians 5:16–24; James 3:14–18).

  13. We believe it is necessary to hold sound and aggressive scriptural convictions of separation from liberalism, apostasy and compromise with unbelief (Romans 16:17; 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1–5).

  14. We believe that men and women are both created equally as full bearers of the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27), have equal value and standing before God (Galatians 3:28-29), and equally enjoy the blessings and grace of God (Romans 2:11). This requires that each gender treat the other with dignity, respect, and love (John 15:12; Romans 12:5,10; Romans 13:8; Galatians 5:13; Galatians 6:2; Ephesians 4:2, 32; Ephesians 5:21; I Thessalonians 4:9; I Peter 5:5). We further believe that God assigns distinct roles to men and women in marriage and in the church (Ephesians 5:21-33; Colossians 3:18-19; Titus 2:1-8). Therefore, we affirm that the Scripture limits the office of pastor/elder to spiritually qualified men (I Timothy 2:12-14; I Corinthians 14:34-35; Titus 1:5-6; I Timothy 3:2-5).

  15. We believe that gender and sexual identity are not social constructs or personal choices, but Divine creation and assignment which He intends to use for His glory (Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 139:13-16). Since gender distinctions are rooted in Divine order, changing or disguising one’s inherited sex (and correlated gender) reflective of this order transgresses God’s design and is a personal rejection of God’s right as Creator to assign gender to and derive glory from His creatures (Romans 1:18-32; I Corinthians 10:31).

  16. We believe marriage is an institution ordained by God and prescribed by Scripture to be a monogamous, life-long relationship between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:27-28; Matthew 19:3-6; Romans 7:2) physically created in these respective genders by God (Genesis 1:27). We believe God intended heterosexual marriage to be an enduring, covenantal relationship established before Himself and man to propagate the human race (Genesis 1:28; Psalm 127:1-5; Psalm 128:3-4), to lovingly express healthy relational and sexual intimacy (Proverbs 5:15-19; I Corinthians 7:1-5), and picture the covenant relationship He has with all genuine believers (Romans 7:1-4; Ephesians 5:23-32). Our understanding of marriage and application of its meaning is grounded in more than established human tradition and existing cultural norms. As the authoritative, inspired, inerrant, and timelessly relevant Word of God, the Scriptures have binding authority for the doctrinal belief and moral practice of believers, churches, and Christian institutions (2 Samuel 7:28; Proverbs 30:5; Matthew 4:4; 5:17-20; 24:35; 2 Timothy 3:15–16; 2 Peter 1:16–21; 3:2). Furthermore, the Scriptures make plain that this first marriage was intended to be an authoritative pattern for all future human marriages as evidenced by the teachings of Moses (Genesis 2:18-24), the Wisdom books (Proverbs 12:4; 18:22; 31:10; Ecclesiastes 9:9), the Prophets (Malachi 2:13–16), the Apostles (1 Corinthians 7:1–16; Ephesians 5:21-33; Colossians 3:14–19; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1–7), and Jesus Himself (Matthew 19:4–6; Mark 10:1–9).

  17. Human sexuality is part of God’s divine design for human beings (Genesis 1:28). However, the Bible restricts all forms of consensual sexual activity to the boundaries of the marriage relationship (1 Corinthians 7:1–5; Hebrews 13:4). The Bible clearly prohibits not only non-consensual sexual misconduct (Deuteronomy 22:25–27) but also any consensual sexual activity outside the boundaries of heterosexual marriage (1 Thessalonians 4:1–8). Furthermore the Bible specifically names as sinful and prohibits any form of sexual activity between persons of the same sex (Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10; 1 Timothy 1:10), polygamy (Matthew 19:4–6; 1 Corinthians 7:11), incest (Leviticus 18:6–18; 1 Corinthians 5:1), bestiality (Exodus 22:19; Leviticus 18:23; 20:15–16; Deuteronomy 27:21; Galatians 5:19; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5), adultery (Exodus 20:14; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; James 2:11), and fornication of any sort, including pornography (1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 4:3–8; Leviticus 18:20; Matthew 5:27-28).

  18. We believe that all followers of Jesus Christ are ethically obligated to preserve, promote, and defend the sanctity of life because God values human life. After narrating God’s creation of a world teeming with life, the Genesis 1 climaxes with God’s first recorded words. God proclaims His intention to create a final creature “in our image” and “after our likeness” (Genesis 1:26). The crowning act of creation follows: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them” (Genesis 1:27). The chapter concludes with God’s verdict on His creation. “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). Therefore, we oppose the practices of abortion and euthanasia. We believe that whenever there is an ethical dilemma, the default position should always be to protect life, including the unborn, the infirm, and the elderly (Proverbs 24:11–12). Jesus teaches this principle of carefulness in the Sermon on the Mount when He instructs His followers not only to avoid killing, but to cease from any activity or passion that increases one’s proclivity toward murder (Matthew 5:21-22).

  19. We are committed to a dispensational hermeneutic (interpretation of the Bible), including a normal, historical, grammatical interpretation of the text of Scripture, which is the foundation of dispensationalism. This hermeneutic does not preclude or exclude correct understanding of types, illustrations, apocalypses, and other genres within the basic framework of literal interpretation. It does acknowledge the progressive revelation of God’s divine plan through time (Hebrews 11:1-2). Though various stewardships of revelation are acknowledged, the unifying salvific factor for all people for all time is the necessity of responding by faith to the special revelation given (Ephesians 2:1-10; John 3:14-18; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9-10; Galatians 3:22). The consequence of this consistent hermeneutic is a distinction between ethnic Israel and the New Testament Church. Covenants established between God and ethnic Israel will be fulfilled in the literal sense in which they were given and received (Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:15-21). The unique relationship between Christ and His Bride, the Church, is acknowledged and preserved (Ephesians 3:22-27; II Corinthians 11:2; Jude 1:24). Throughout all of eternity, the ultimate purpose of His universal plan is that of glorifying Himself (Revelation 4:11; 5:12; I Chronicles 16:28-29; Proverbs 16:4; Romans 11:36). We reject covenant theology, its hermeneutic, and the eschatology of amillennialism and post-millennialism. Furthermore, we reject the progressive concept that Christ is already reigning on the Davidic throne.