Our Beliefs
 

ARTICLE 1:  THE SCRIPTURES

We believe that the Holy Bible, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, as originally written, was verbally inspired and the product of Spirit-controlled men, and therefore has truth without any admixture of error for its matter.  We believe the Bible to be the true center of Christian unity and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions shall be tried.  (II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:19-21)

 

ARTICLE 2:  THE TRUE GOD

We believe there is one and only one living and true God, an infinite Spirit, the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth; inexpressibly glorious in holiness; and worthy of all possible honor, confidence and love; that in the unity of Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption.  (Exodus 20:2-3; I Corinthians 8:6; Revelation 4:11)

 

ARTICLE 3:  THE HOLY SPIRIT

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine person equal with God the Father and God the Son and of the same nature; that He was active in the creation; that in His relation to the unbelieving world He restrains the evil one until God’s purpose is fulfilled; that He convicts of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; that He bears witness to the truth of the gospel in preaching and testimony; that He is the agent in the new birth; that He seals, endues, guides, teaches, witnesses, sanctifies and helps the believer.  While we do clearly accept the work of the Holy Spirit in the church today, we do not support nor agree with the charismatic movement, speaking in tongues, baptism of the Holy Spirit subsequent to salvation and the practice of faith healers.  (Genesis 1:1-3; Matthew 28:19; Mark 1:8; Luke 1:35; 24:49; John 1:33; 3:5-6; 14:16-17, 26;16:8-11; Acts 5:30-32; 11:16; Romans 8:14, 16, 26-27;  Ephesians 1:13-14; Hebrews 9:14)

 

ARTICLE 4:  THE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST

We believe that Jesus was begotten of the Holy Spirit in a miraculous manner, born of Mary, a virgin, as no other man was ever born or can be born of woman; and that He is both the Son of God and God, the Son.  (Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:35; John 1:4)

We believe in the bodily resurrection of Christ and in His ascension into heaven, where He now sits at the right hand of the Father as our High Priest interceding for us.  (Matthew 28:6-7; Mark 16:6; Luke 24:2-6; 39, 51; John 20:27; Acts 1:9-11; I Corinthians 15:4; I Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 2:17; 5:9-10; 7:25; 8:6; 12:2; I John 2:1; Revelation 3:21)

 

ARTICLE 5:  THE DEVIL OR SATAN

We believe in the reality and personality of Satan, the Devil; and that he was created by God as an angel but through pride and rebellion became the enemy of his creator; that he became the unholy god of this age and the ruler of all the powers of darkness and is destined to the judgment of an eternal justice in the lake of fire.  (Matthew 4:1-11; II Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 20:10)

 

ARTICLE 6:  CREATION

We believe the Biblical account of the creation of the universe, angels, and man; that this account is neither allegory nor myth, but a literal, historical account of the direct, immediate creative acts of God without any evolutionary process; that man was created by a direct work of God and not from previously existing forms of life; and that all men are descended from the historical Adam and Eve, first parents of the entire human race.  (Genesis 1, 2; Colossians 1:16-17; John 1:3)

 

ARTICLE 7:  THE FALL OF MAN

We believe that man was created in innocence (in the image and likeness of God) under the law of his Maker, but by voluntary transgression Adam fell from his sinless and happy state, and all men sinned in him, in consequence of which all men are totally depraved, are partakers of Adam’s fallen nature, and are sinners bynature and by conduct, and therefore are under just condemnation without defense or excuse.  (Genesis 3:1-6; Romans 1:18, 32; 3:10-19; 5:12, 19)

 

ARTICLE 8:  THE PLAN OF SALVATION

We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace through the mediatorial offices of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who by the appointment of the Father, voluntarily took upon  Himself our nature, yet without sin, and honored the divine law by His personal obedience, thus qualifying Himself to be our Savior; that by the shedding of His blood in His death He fully satisfied the just demands of a holy and righteous God regarding sin; that His atonement consisted not in setting us an example by His death as a martyr, but was a voluntary substitution of Himself in the sinner’s place, the Just dying for the unjust; Christ, the Lord, bearing our sin in His own body on the tree; that having risen from the dead, He is now enthroned in heaven, uniting in His wonderful person the tenderest sympathies with divine perfection.  He is in every way qualified to be a suitable, a compassionate and an all-sufficient Savior.

We believe that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the only condition of salvation and that genuine repentance and turning away from sin will be found in the lives of those who are truly born again.  (Isaiah 53:4-7; Jonah 2:9; Matthew 18:11; John 3:16; Acts 15:11; 16:31; Romans 3:24-25; I Corinthians 15:3; II Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 2:7-8; Hebrews 2:14-17; I Peter 2:24; I John 4:10)          

We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be born again, that the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; that it is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the one dead in trespasses and in sins is made a partaker of the divine nature and receives eternal life, the free gift of God; that the new creation is brought about in a manner above our comprehension, solely by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection with divine truth, so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the gospel; that its proper evidence appears in the holy fruits of repentance and faith and newness of life.  (John 3:3, 8; Acts 16:20-33; Romans 6:23; II Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:1, 5; Colossians 2:13; II Peter 1:4;  I John 5:1)

We believe that justification is that judicial act of God whereby He declares the believer righteous upon the basis of the imputed righteousness of Christ; that it is bestowed, not in consideration of any work of righteousness which we have done, but solely through faith in the Redeemer’s shed blood.  (Romans 3:24; 4:5; 5:1, 9; Galatians 2:16; Philippians 3:9)            

We believe that all who are truly born again are kept by God the Father for Jesus Christ.  (John 10:28-29; Romans 8:35-39; Philippians 1:6; Jude 1, R.V.)

 

ARTICLE 9:  THE CHURCH

We believe that a local church is an organized congregation of immersed believers, associated by covenant of faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His laws; and exercising the gifts, rights and privileges invested in them by His Word; that its officers are pastors and deacons, whose qualifications, claims and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures.  We believe the true mission of the church is the faithful witnessing of Christ to all men as we have opportunity.  We hold that the local church has the absolute right of self-government free from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations; and that the one and only superintendent is Christ through the Holy Spirit; that it is Scriptural for true churches to cooperate with each other in contending for the faith and for the furtherance of the gospel; that each local church is the sole judge of the measure and method of its cooperation; that on all matters of membership, of polity, of government, of discipline, of benevolence, the will of the local church is final.           

We believe in the unity of all New Testament believers in the church which is in the body of Christ. (Acts 2:41-42; 15:13-18; 20:17-28; I Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:11; 5:23-24; Colossians 1:18; I Timothy 3:1-7)

 

ARTICLE 10:  THE ORDINANCES

We believe that Christian baptism is the single immersion of a born-again Christian in water to show forth, in a solemn and beautiful emblem, his identification with the crucified, buried and risen Savior; that baptism is to be performed under the authority of the local church; further, that it is a pre-requisite to the privileges of church membership.

We believe that the Lord’s Supper is the symbolic commemoration of His death until He comes, should be preceded always by solemn self-examination and conducted in a spirit of worship and gratitude to the Lord for His sacrificial death.  We believe and practice the policy of open communion wherein all who have received Christ as Savior and have been baptized are welcome to partake regardless of membership in this church.  (Matthew 3:16; John 3:23; Acts 8:26-39; Romans 6:3-5; I Corinthians 11:23-28; Colossians 2:12)

 

ARTICLE 11:  RAPTURE AND SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

We believe in the premillennial return of Christ, an event which can occur at any moment, and that at that moment the dead in Christ shall be raised in glorified bodies, and the living in Christ shall be given glorified bodies without tasting death, and all shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air before the seven years of the Tribulation.  (I Corinthians 15:42-44; 51-54; Philippians 3:20-21; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 3:10)

We believe that the Tribulation, which follows the rapture of the church, will be culminated by the revelation of Christ in power and great glory to sit upon the throne of David and to establish the millennial kingdom.  (Isaiah 9:6-7; 11:1-9; Daniel 9:25-27; Matthew 24:29-31; Luke 1:30-33; Acts 2:29-30; Revelation 20:1-4, 6)

 

ARTICLE 12:  THE ETERNAL DWELLING PLACES

We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that only those who are justified by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and sanctified by the Spirit of our God, are truly righteous in His esteem; while all such as continue in impenitence and unbelief are in His sight wicked, and under the curse; and this distinction holds among men both in and after death in the everlasting felicity of the saved and the everlasting conscious suffering of the lost in the lake of fire.  (Genesis 18:23; Proverbs 14:32; Malachi 3:18; Matthew 25:34-41; Luke 16:25; John 8:21; Romans 6:17-18; I John 5:19; Revelation 20:14-15)

 

ARTICLE 13:  CHURCH AND STATE

We believe that civil government is of divine appointment for the interests and good order of human society; that magistrates are to be prayed for, conscientiously honored and obeyed; except in those things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ who is the only Lord of the conscience, and the coming King of kings.

Therefore, since the civil government and the church are by design separate entities, we believe in the absolute separation of Church and State, with the state recognizing and respecting the spiritual basis of the church, and the church recognizing and respecting the civil basis of the state.  (Exodus 18:21-22; II Samuel 23:3; Daniel 3:17-18; Matthew 22:21; Acts 4:19-20; 5:29; 23:5; Romans 13:1-7)

 

ARTICLE 14:  CHURCH AFFILIATIONS AND FELLOWSHIP

While we recognize that God has His own who have come to Him on the basis of salvation by faith in Christ, that these may be members of or associated with various denominational groups and in essence are known only to God, we also recognize our responsibility to  maintain the biblical separatist position of official church association, affiliation and/or membership only in organizations that hold like faith and action as this church, not prohibiting, however, our individual friendship and fellowship with any who have been truly born again by personal faith in Christ.

 

ARTICLE 15 – SANCTITY OF LIFE, MARRIAGE, AND GENDER

We accept the Genesis account of creation and believe that man came by direct creation of God and not by evolution. We believe that 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 gladly seek to defend, protect, and value all human life. We believe that God wonderfully and immutably designed each person as male or female, together reflecting the image of God. We understand marriage to be a union between one man, as biologically designed by God at conception, and one woman, as biologically designed by God at conception. 

 

ARTICLE 16 – FINAL AUTHORITY FOR MATTERS OF BELIEF AND CONDUCT

This statement of faith does not exhaust the extent of our beliefs. The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of all mankind, is the sole and final source of all that we believe. For purposes of Faith Baptist Church’s faith, doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline, our Pastors and Board of Deacons is Faith Baptist Church’s final interpretive authority on the Bible’s meaning and application.