What We Believe
The following information is an attempt to express our beliefs. It is not intended to be an extensive explanation of all that we believe as that would require a commentary on the whole Bible. We have summarized our position on several key points to help you understand who we are and what we believe. If there is some point which we have neglected to address we would be delighted to do so upon request. Also, if there is a need for clarification or further explanation regarding anything in this statement of faith we would be glad to provide that upon request as well. Please email us here or call us at (910) 324-4455.
The Bible
We believe the 66 books of the Bible were written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit – “that men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:20-21), thus the Bible is not the word of man, but the word of God to man. As the word of God, we believe the Bible is inerrant and infallible, and that its writings are “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). We accept the Bible alone as the supreme source of truth and the final authority in all matters of Christian faith, doctrine, and practice. We believe the Bible is “able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15).
God
We believe Scripture when it declares, “in the beginning God” (Genesis 1:1) – that He was already there in the beginning, that no one or nothing created God. We believe that God is eternal in nature – that He had no beginning and He will have no end. He has always existed, and He always will. We believe there is only one true God eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe this triune God created from nothing the heavens and the earth and everything in them (John 1:3) in a period of six literal days and rested on the seventh (Genesis 1).
Jesus
We believe that Jesus is “…the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16); that He is the only begotten Son of God (John 3:16); that He is God (John 1:1) who became flesh (John 1:14) who came from heaven to redeem fallen man from sin. We believe He is the Messiah, the only Savior of the world (John 14:6; Acts 4:12) who died on a cross for our sins, was buried, and arose from the dead on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1-8).
Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is the presence of God who lives within the hearts of all true Christians (1 Corinthians 6:19), and marks us as belonging to God through Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:13). We believe He is given as a gift to all believers in Christ who repent of their sins and are baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of their sins (Acts 2:38). We believe He empowers us to accomplish works of service (1 Corinthians 12:7), and that He enables us to bear godly fruit in our lives (Galatians 5:22).
Mankind
We believe that God created mankind in His own image (Genesis 1:26-27). We believe God created human beings for the purpose of enjoying fellowship with God, but that fellowship was broken because of sin (Genesis 3:1-24). We believe that despite the fact that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) every human being has worth as a creation of God.
Salvation
We believe the only way a person may be saved from the penalty of sin is by God’s grace; that there is nothing an individual can do in order to earn the salvation of God (Ephesians 2:8). We believe God’s grace is a gift that is freely offered to all people in all places because of the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. However, grace is not an unconditional gift. There are certain conditions the Bible teaches one must meet in order to receive God’s grace.
1. Believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the Living God.
John 3:16; John 20:31; Acts 16:31; Hebrews 11:6
2. Repent of one’s sins.
Luke 13:3-5; Acts 2:38; Acts 17:30-31
3. Confess that Jesus is Lord.
Matthew 10:32-33; Romans 10:9-10; 1 John 4:15
4. Be Baptized for the forgiveness of sins, and to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Mark 16:16; John 3:5; Acts 2:38; 8:36-39; 21:16; Romans 6:3-6; 1 Peter 3:18-22
(The Greek word baptizo means dipped, plunged, or immersed.)
5. Be Faithful until death.
Matthew 24:13; Hebrews 10:25-31; 1 John 2:4-6; Revelation 2:10
The Church
We believe that the church is the body of Christ on earth and that individual Christians are members of His body (1 Corinthians 12:27). We believe the church was divinely instituted by Christ (Matthew 16:18), and that He is the only head of the church (Ephesians 1:22; Colossians 1:18). We believe the church exists to exalt the name of Christ (Philippians 2:5-11), to equip the saints (the saved) (Ephesians 4:11-16), and to evangelize the world (Matthew 28:18-20). We believe the church should wear the name of Christ (Acts 11:26; Romans 16:16). We believe the church should be devoted to the same things the New Testament church was devoted to: the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread (the Lord’s Supper), and prayer (Acts 2:42). The church should meet every Lord’s Day (Sunday) to fellowship, pray, study the Scriptures, and to meet around the Lord’s Table (Acts 20:7).
