ARTICLES OF FAITH
I. GOD
A. I
believe that there is only
one true and
living God who is worthy of my worship and service,
that He
as
Eternal Spirit is transcendent of His creation; infinite in all His
attributes;
omnipotent; omnipresent; omniscient; infinite in wisdom; perfect in
goodness,
mercy, love, justice and faithfulness; holy in His essential nature,
attributes
and purpose; and as Triune God in essential being is revealed as
Father, Son
and Holy Spirit.
B. I
believe God the Father is co-eternal, co-equal,
con-substantial
and has personal subsistence
with the
Son and the Holy Spirit.
C. I
stand
opposed to tritheism,
that there are three gods; sabellianism,
one God manifest in
three
relationships to the human race; arianism,
that the Godhead
consists of
one eternal person, who in the beginning created a superangelic being,
the only
begotten Son, who in turn created the Holy Spirit; polytheism,
that
there are many gods; dualism,
that the universe is composed of
two
impersonal forces—mind and matter; and pantheism,
that
God and the
universe are one and the same.
D. I
believe that God’s providence is
inherit in His sovereign will in maintaining the universe, that the
miracles of
God on earth are the laws of God in heaven, and that He does not
violate the
free moral agency of His created beings in things pertaining to their
salvation
and eternal destiny.
Scriptures:
Deuteronomy 4:35; 1 Kings 8:60; Psalm 86:9, 10; Isaiah 43:10, 11; John
17:3;
Ephesians 4:6; Colossians 1:15; Genesis 21:33; Psalm 90:2; Revelation
4:8-11;
Jeremiah. 23:24; 2 Chronicles 6:18; Job 11:7-9; Psalm 147:5; Isaiah
40:28;
Romans 11:33-36; Jeremiah 32:17; Revelation 19:6; Genesis 1:1; Psalm
33:13, 14;
Jeremiah 23:23, 24; Isaiah 46:9, 10; Isaiah 40:12-15; Psalm 113:5-9;
Daniel
2:20-22; Ephesians 1:7-9; Matthew 19:17; 1 Peter 1:16, 17; Jonah 3:4,
10; Psalm
104:4, 5; Matthew 3:13-17; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14;
Ephesians 2:18.
John 3:13; 6:32, 33, 38,
50, 51, 58,
62; John 1:1-3, 14; Hebrews 2:14-16; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:16; Isaiah 9:6;
Revelation 1:11; 2:8; 22:13; Matthew 28:20; John 2:24, 25; Galatians
2:3;
Philippians 3:21; Hebrews 1:10-12; John 16:15; Colossians 2:9; Matthew
9:2-7;
Galatians 3:13; Philippians 3:20, 21; Hebrews 1:6 Revelation 5:11, 12;
Philippians 2:9-11; John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26; 17:7, 14, 15; 1
Corinthians
2:10, 11; Acts 15:28 Acts 7:51; Isaiah 63:10; Ephesians 4:30; Matthew
12:31,
32; Acts 5:3, 4, 9; Genesis 6:3; John 16:13; Romans 8:26; 15:19; 1
Corinthians
6:11; Acts 13:2, 4; 1 Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30; 2
Timothy 3:16;
Isaiah 6:5, 9; Romans 8:26, 27; 1 Corinthians 2:10, 11; Romans 15:19;
Titus
3:5; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Matthew 10:20; Galatians 4:6; Matthew 28:18;
Ephesians 1:22; Hebrews 1:3; Revelation 17:14.
Job 9:5-8; Psalm 104:32;
Matthew 5:45; Isaiah
40:12.
II. THE
BIBLE
B. I
believe that God’s progressive
revelation was completed within my present Bible of 39 books in the Old
Testament and 27 books in the New Testament, so that whatever is not
found
written therein is not to be imposed as a doctrine or practice upon the
Church
of Jesus Christ.
C. I
believe the Bible became the infallible Word
of God as God superintended the natural powers and faculties of holy
men to
write His word without error. This is best explained in 2
Peter 1:20, 21.
D. I
believe the purpose of the Bible is clearly
stated in 2
Timothy 3:16, 17.
E.
I believe in a literal
interpretation of
the Bible.
F.
I stand opposed to all forms
of criticism
which do not accept the whole
Bible as the
Word of God. There was a flood,
Jonah was
swallowed by
a fish, etc.
G. I stand opposed to any further written or oral revelation that is to bring new light to the Church or to the world. Furthermore, I do not accept the apocryphal books as a part of the Old Testament Scriptures.
Scriptures:
2 Peter
III. SPE
A. I
believe true science and a correct
interpretation of the Bible are never in conflict with each other. The
Bible
acts as a supplement to the revealed truths of creation.
B. I
believe special creation reveals the
existence of God, His natural attributes, His works, and awakens me to
a sense
of accountability to Him.
C. I
believe as my Creator and Redeemer, God has the
authority to command my loving service and complete obedience for time
and
eternity.
D. I
believe the creation was planned by God the
Father, brought forth by God the Son through God the Holy Spirit, as an
act of
His love and desire for fellowship and exultation.
E.
I believe God created
everything
(material and spiritual) from nothing and formed them into the present
creation
as explained in Genesis 1 and 2 and Hebrews 11:3.
F.
I stand opposed to atheistic
materialism, which acts as
though God does not exist and material
is
eternal; pantheism,
which says matter is the eternal God; and
all forms
of naturalistic progressive
evolution, which deny tthe plain
teaching of God's Holy Word.
Scriptures: Gen. 1; 2; Hebrews 11:3;
Psalm 19:1-6; 33:6;
148:5;
John 9:17; Genesis 49:26; Job 38:4; Proverbs 8:22; John 1:1-3; Romans
1:20.
IV. ANGELS
A. I
believe that angels are intelligent beings
possessing great strength; are not able to reproduce their kind; have
spiritual
bodies; are incorruptible, immortal, invisible;
are
not omnipotent, omnipresent, or omniscient; and that God created them
as holy
beings with the power to choose between good and evil.
B. I
believe that a great number of the angels
chose evil and plunged themselves into apostasy, torment, and
damnation, and
are organized totally against the plans and purposes of God.
C. I
believe there is an actual devil, called
Satan, who is the incarnation of evil, the avowed enemy of the human
race, the
leader of the wicked angels (demons) that fell in the beginning.
Furthermore he
is the antichrist spirit, who is in the world today transforming
himself into
an angel of light to deceive people.,
He is
limited in
his wicked influences by the providence of God, and his end is eternal
fire and
brimstone in hell. (See
Revelation 14:10;
D. I
believe people can be possessed (under
complete control) by demons or oppressed (afflicted and tormented) by
demons.
E. I
believe that the holy angels are ministering spirits to the saints to:
a. reveal
God’s will in special cases;
b. preserve
them from evil;
c. convey
their souls to heaven at death; and
d. gather
them together when they are raptured.
F.
I believe that angels have
revealed
themselves to people in visible forms.
G. I
stand opposed to any teaching
which states that angels are
only impersonal good or evil
principles or
influences.
H. I
stand opposed to angels being worshipped.
Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 15:44;
Genesis 18:2; 2 Peter
2:11;
Psalm 103:20; 1 Peter 1:12; Matthew 22:30; Job 38:7; Hebrews 1:14; Jude
6; 1
Timothy 3:6; Ephesians 2:2; 6:12; Matthew 18:20; 2 Peter 2:4; Matthew
25:41;
Matthew 13:39; John 8:44; Job 1; Ephesians 2:2; Revelation 20:7, 8; 2
Thessalonians 2:9, 10; 2 Corinthians 2:11; 1 Peter 5:8; 2 Samuel 14:17;
Matthew
25:31; Daniel 10:13; 2 Kings 19:35; Psalm 91:10, 12; 34:7; Matthew
18:10; Luke
16:22; Revelation 19:10.
V. M
A. I
believe that mankind in his original state
was created with a threefold nature of body (which was of the dust of
the
earth), soul (which is our life energy), and spirit (which
was
created in
God’s image and likeness), possessing the attributes of being
spiritual,
social, creative, a free moral agent, rational, holy and immortal; had
a complete
and unbroken communion with his Creator God; was created as a finite
being a
little lower than the angels; and was placed in the Garden of Eden (a
land of
perfect happiness), to rule the earth, to reproduce their kind, and to
grow in
the grace and knowledge of the Lord.
B. I
believe that Adam, as the representative of mankind, was created first;
that
Eve was created from a rib of Adam; and these two were the common
parents of
the whole
human race.
C. I
believe that when Adam fell from his original state by an act of
disobedience, he died spiritually; the image of God in mankind was
defaced; he
became totally
depraved, and plunged the
whole human
race into sin with all of its consequences.
D. I
believe mankind as a free moral agent, who is
able to know right from wrong,
can freely
choose the
moral path he will take.
E.
I believe mankind is unable
to save
himself.
F.
I believe mankind can be
restored to
moral purity in this life through the blood of Jesus Christ.
G. I
believe God has provided a complete
restoration for the whole
human race which
must be
accepted on an individual basis through the blood atonement of Jesus.
H. I
stand opposed to rationalism,
which says the rational part of
man was
not affected by the fall and makes reason the sole source of knowledge
for
actions; gnosticism,
which says the spirit of man is an
emanation from
God and thus makes you a little god; and socialism,
which
denies
depravity in the human race, and makes injustices within the social
environment
the cause of moral depravity.
Scriptures: Genesis 1-3; Psalm 8;
Genesis 5:3; 6;
Genesis 3:15;
John 3:16; 2 Peter 3:9; Isaiah 53.
VI. SIN
A. I
believe sin is twofold in nature, in that it is a willful
transgression against a known law of God, and an inherited proneness
toward evil
which corrupts the whole
human
nature.
B. I
believe this corruption of human nature
remains in the born-again child of God until it is eradicated by the
infilling
of the Holy Spirit at sanctification.
C. I
believe the effect of sin is total depravity
to the extent that without a Redeemer I would be hopelessly and
eternally lost.
D. I
believe sin is in the world as a result
of
Adam’s fall and man’s own willful
rebellion against God.
E.
I believe the penalty of sin
is both
physical and spiritual death.
F.
I believe God’s
attitude toward sin
is present wrath and eternal vengeance on the sinner who refuses to
repent.
G. I
believe everyone is a sinner by birth and by
choice until Jesus becomes His Saviour and Lord.
H. I
stand opposed to any teaching that denies the
utter sinfulness of the whole
human race.
Scriptures:
Genesis 3; 5:3; 6:5; Psalm 10:2-11; 51:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3;
6:23;
Ezekiel 18:20-23 John 3:36; 1 Corinthians 3:1-3.
A. I
believe the Jews are God’s
chosen
people to bring the Redeemer of mankind and His earthly kingdom into
the world.
B. I
believe the Old Testament Scriptures show God’s
dealings with the Jewish people.
C. I
believe the promises God has given to the
Jews are literal and will be literally fulfilled.
Scriptures:
Isaiah 51:2; Deuteronomy 7:6. 7; 14:2; Exodus 19:5, 6; Deuteronomy
32:10, 11;
33:27-29; Psalm 105:13-15p; Psalm 121:3-5; Genesis 49:10; Daniel 9:25;
Psalm
14:7; Romans 11:26; Ezekiel 39:29; Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:25; Hosea
3:5;
Isaiah 44:22; 59:20; Jeremiah 33:8; Isaiah 44:23; 49:13; 52:8, 9;
66:10, 19;
Jeremiah 3:18; Isaiah 11:15, 16; 14:1-3; 49:22, 23; 60:11, 12, 14, 19;
61:4-6;
Isaiah 59:20; Zechariah 2:11; Romans 11:24.
VIII. SALVATION
A. I
believe that Jesus Christ (Who was born of
the Virgin Mary), lived a life without sin, died on a cross, was buried
in a
tomb, rose the third day, revealed Himself alive in a resurrected body
by many
infallible proofs for 40 days, ascended into heaven, having obtained
eternal
redemption for me, and is now seated on the right hand of God the
Father,
interceding for me. He is
perfect
God and perfect man—the God-man. I believe Jesus will come
again
to put
down wickedness and set up His kingdom upon this earth. I believe Jesus
is the
only provision for my eternal redemption.
B. I
believe salvation is threefold:
a.
I am saved
from the guilt
of sin when I repent of my own sins and accept
Jesus as my
own personal Savior by faith.
b.
I am saved
from the power
of sin when I fully consecrate ourselves to God
and by
faith accept the Holy Spirit as my Sanctifier after I am saved.
c.
I am saved
from the effects
of sin when
I either die
or am
raptured into glory at the second coming of Jesus.
C. I
believe salvation is received by faith in God’s
finished work, which is through Jesus Christ.
D. I
believe salvation is personal and knowable.
E.
I believe salvation is for
the whole
person for time and eternity.
F.
I believe
“saved,”
“eternal redemption,”
“regeneration,”
“born-again,” “conversion” are
all expressions
showing
a new life through faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
G. I
believe “atonement,”
“justification,”
“reconciliation,”
“propitiation” are expressions showing
God’s mercy in
forgiving my sins and freeing me from its guilt and penalty when I
repent of my
sins and accept Jesus as my Savior.
H. I
believe adoption is that gracious act of God
whereby I am made a child of God.
I.
I believe eternal life is
God’s
gift to me when I become a child of God.
J.
I believe I receive
regeneration,
justification, adoption and eternal life in the first definite work of
God’s
grace. I believe the original sin remains in a subdued condition in
this first
work of God’s grace.
K. I
believe
“original sin,” “selfishness,”
“the old
man,” “carnality,” “the
flesh,”
“the body
of sin,” “the law of sin and death,”
“the body
of
death,” “the besetting sin,”
“the sin of the
world” are all expressions of the inherited depravity of my
moral
nature
by which I am led into sin from birth to sanctification, at which time
this
nature is purged out.
L.
I believe entire
sanctification is a
second definite work of God’s grace by which God cleanses His
adopted
child from the inner defilement of his human nature. I believe when I
give my
life completely to God and trust Him for His cleansing,
I am filled with the Holy Spirit. I believe entire sanctification
brings me
into a life of holy living.
M. I
believe “holiness,”
“Christian holiness,” “Christian
perfection,”
“perfect love,” “perfect
peace,” “heart
holiness,” “rest of faith” are
all
expressions of a life of love, which can only be lived as the Holy
Spirit sheds
the love of God abroad in my heart.
N. I
believe the life of holiness is progressive
in that I grow in the grace and knowledge of my Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ
all of my Christian life.
O. I
stand opposed to:
baptismal regeneration,
which states a person is born again into
God’s
family when baptized in water with the baptismal formula; a
limited
atonement, which states God has
elected some to be saved and some
to be
lost or that I have to fight the carnal spirit all of my Christian
life; a works
salvation, which says I am saved
by works or receive grace through
the good
works of others; and unconditional
eternal security, which says
once I
am saved I never can backslide and be eternally lost in hell.
Scripture:
Isaiah 7:14; Matthew
1:18-23;
Hebrews
4:15; Matthew 27:50, 58-60; 28:5-10; Acts 1:3-11; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8;
Hebrews
7:25; 9:12; 1 Timothy 3:16; Matthew 25:31-46; Revelation 20:11-15; John
14:6;
Acts 4:12; Romans 5; 6; 1 Corinthians 15; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:8-10;
John
3:16; Acts 15:8, 9; John 3:1-3; Romans 8:14-21; Hebrews 10:14, 15; 1
John
5:18-21; Romans 8 with 1:8; 1 Thessalonians 1 with 4:3-8; 5:23, 24;
John
7:37-39; Acts 8:14-17; 19:1-7; Romans 5:5; 2 Corinthians 7:11;
Galatians 2:20;
4:4-6; 5:16-26; 6:7-9,14-16; 2 Peter 1:1-9; 3:18.
IX. THE
A. I
believe in a God-inspired, God-called, and God-equipped Christian
ministry.
B. I
believe that both men and women are called
into the Christian ministry to preach God’s Word and pastor a
church.
C. I
believe the extent of the Christian ministry
is for each organized church, for all cultures, for all time.
D. I
believe the purpose of the Christian ministry
is to propagate the gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the world, to
organize new churches, and to administer the laws, sacraments, and
disciplines
of the church.
E.
I believe the Christian
ministry is
equipped spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and socially through
personal
experience and training. I believe the Christian minister should know
the
gospel, live the gospel, be gentle to the contentious, and be apt to
teach and
ready to preach the gospel to others individually and collectively.
F.
I believe only those who meet
the
qualifications as set forth in 1
and 2
Timothy and
Titus should be allowed to preach in the church or be recommended as an
evangelist for the church.
G. I
believe every Christian has a called
ministry, whether it is being a good parent or pastoring a church. I
believe
the gifts of the Spirit are given to Christians to minister to and for
the
advancement of God’s kingdom upon the earth through the
Church of
Jesus
Christ my Lord and Saviour.
H. I
stand opposed to
an unprepared ministry,
which allows one to minister without
showing
your qualifications for it; a liberal
ministry, which rejects
the
literal and authoritative nature of the Word of God; an elite
ministry,
which states only the pastor can witness for Christ and have a full
understanding of the deep things of God; and a social
ministry, which
places social issues above spiritual issues and denies my need of a
born-again
experience within the church membership.
Scriptures: 1
and 2 Timothy; Titus; 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 13; Matthew 26:18-20; Acts
1:8;
2:17, 18; Romans 10:11-17; 1 Corinthians 12.
X. THE
CHRISTIAN CHURCH
A. I
believe the true Christian Church consisted of all true
“called-out”
followers of God in all generations who have organized themselves
together to
propagate the gospel of Christ to the uttermost parts of the earth.
B. I
believe the purpose of the Christian Church
is to provide Christian worship, Christian fellowship, a Christian
ministry,
and a Christian witness for every born-again child of God.
C. I
believe the true Christian Church is
separated from the world by the mighty working of the Holy Spirit, with
the
purpose of pointing the unregenerate world to a better way of life.
D. I
believe Jesus is the head of the Church,
which is the body of Christ.
E.
I believe the power of the
Christian
Church is through the moral purity and inspiration it receives from the
indwelling Holy Spirit.
F.
I believe the purity of the
Christian
Church covers three areas:
a.
not conformed to the world,
b.
freed from the carnal nature,
and
c.
not bound by evil influences
of satanic
powers.
G. I
believe this purity makes the Christian Church
free to follow God completely in all things.
H. I
believe the Church has the right and
obligation to discipline its members.
I.
I believe the Church has two
sacraments, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which were
instituted
by Jesus
for all generations.
J.
I believe the financial needs
of the
Christian Church should be met by tithes and offerings.
K. I
stand opposed to a
one church salvation, which
states I have to be a member of their
church to get to heaven; a formalized
worship, which leaves no
place for
God to work in a church service to bring a sinner to a personal faith
in
Christ; consubstantiation or
transubstantiation, which states
the body
and blood of Christ is with, or becomes one with the elements of the
Lord’s
supper, respectively.
Scriptures: Matthew 16:18;
18:17-20;
Acts 2:47; 5:11; 7:38; 14:23; 20:28; 1 Corinthians 4:17; 11:20-30;
12:28; 14:5,
33; Ephesians 5:23-32; Colossians 1:18, 24; 1 Timothy 3:5, 15, 16;
Hebrews
12:23; James 5:14; Matthew 26:26-30; Luke 14:22-26; Luke 22:14-20;
Matthew
28:19.
XI. THE
CIVIL GOVERNMENT
A.
I believe
the laws of the civil government are instituted by God and that I am to
obey
them, so long as they do not violate my God-given freedoms of worship
and
witnessing for Him.
B.
I believe the purpose of the
civil government
is to
provide me with the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness as
stated in the Constitution of the
C.
I believe
the civil government has a right to finance its constitutional
obligation to
its citizens through fair and representative taxation.
D.
I believe
the civil government is to administer protection and justice to its
people; the
Church is to minister to the spiritual needs of the people, and that
the two
are not to interfere with each other’s God-given duties.
E.
I stand
opposed to the government
regulating the Christian Church;
to a
state
church; and to atheistic
socialism, which wants to take
anything
that has to do with God out of my governmental institutions.
Scriptures: Acts
XII. THE
WORLD
A.
I believe “the
world” is the unregenerate
segment of my society, under the control of Satan, working as a
substitute for
real Christianity.
B. I believe the Christian is to be separated from worldly pleasures (dancing, movies, drug addiction, loose living), worldly fads (religious fads, indecent dress), and worldly attitudes (rebellion, party spirit). As a Christian, I am in the world, but not a part of its ungodly system.