The Inspiration of the Scriptures
We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God revealing the love of God to the world and telling us how to live the abundant life that God has given to us in Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; John 3:16.)
The Personality of the Threefold God-head—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19; John 10:30; Ephesians 4:4-6.)
The Deity of Jesus Christ—His Virgin Birth, Sinless Life, Miracles, Vicarious Atoning Death, Bodily Resurrection, and Ascension to the Right Hand of the Father His Virgin Birth
Jesus was virgin-born. If He had been con-ceived by normal human processes, the seed of sin would have been transmitted into His spirit. As He grew up He would have needed a Savior like all other human beings. For this rea-son, He could not have a human father. God was Jesus’ father, and the holy seed planted in Mary’s womb by a miraculous visitation of the Holy Spirit was without sin. Jesus received His humanity from Mary and His divine nature from God, thus He became both Son of man and Son of God. (See Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31-35.)
Sinless Life
God made Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, to become sin for us so that we might be made righteous through Him. Jesus is God human-ized. He came to earth in the form of a human being to enter into our needs and feel what we feel. He sat amidst the hurts and problems that invade our lives. So now there is no distance between us and Him or between our needs and His power to meet them through faith. Jesus is touched with our infirmities as He was tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin. (See II Corinthians 5:21; I Peter 2:21-23; Hebrews 4:15.)
Miracles
God approved His own Son’s ministry by signs and wonders and miracles. If you take the signs and wonders and miracles from Jesus, you don’t have the real Jesus. For it is the signs and wonders ministry of Jesus that makes Him what He is. When John the Baptist sent messengers to Jesus, questioning His deity, Jesus told them to go back and tell John about the miracles they had seen Him perform. Miracles settled the issue of Christ’s deity. (See Matthew 11:2-5; Luke 4:14-21; 7:20-22; Acts 2:22.)
Atonement on the Cross
The Cross did not just happen. It was planned from eternity past because God knew that man, whom He created in His own image, would exercise his freedom of choice and commit sin. Therefore, man needed a Re-deemer. When Jesus’ blood was shed on the Cross, He was making atonement for our sins. He who knew no sin became sin for us and took our place. For the Uirst time God dealt completely with the problem of sin by giving His Son to break down the barriers between sinful man and sinless God. Through faith in Christ’s blood we are made righteous before God. (See Isaiah 53:5-8, I Corinthians 15:3, II Corinthians 5:21, I John 4:9,10, Hebrews 9:22.)
Resurrection
Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee that every Christian will be raised from the dead. Because He lives, we shall live also. Our expectation for miracles is based upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The resurrection is continuous; it didn’t end when Jesus was raised from the dead. His resurrection is just the beginning of a continuous resurrection in our lives. We not only have the hope of being resurrected from the dead in the end-time, but we can also experience the miracle power of the resurrection in being raised from the death of sins and trespasses into newness of life. The same Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead is present in the world today, making miracles available to meet the needs in our everyday lives. (See Matthew 28:6, Luke 24:39, I Corinthians 15.)
Ascension to the Right Hand of God
Jesus Christ’s body is no longer in the tomb; He has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, where He is seated at the right hand of God making intercession for us. The Ascension of Christ is important to the victorious daily life of the Christian, for this event marks the beginning of a new access to God in prayer. Christ’s work is continues. He continues to work at the throne of God as our Mediator, Intercessor, and Advocate. (See Acts 1:9,11; 2:33, Romans 8:34, Philippians 2:9-11, Hebrews 1:3; 7:25.)
The Fall of Man
Man was tempted by the devil in the Garden of Eden and ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Man listened to the devil, rebelled against God, and lost his relationship with Him. Thus sin entered the world by one man. Because that one man is part of the whole, sin was passed on to all of us. Through Adam, sin was transmitted into his offspring, so every person is born with the seed of sin in his heart. The process of death set in, and the sentence of destruction was upon humanity. Man’s spirit died or ceased to function in the image of God, and spiritual and physical death began. (See Genesis 1-3, Romans 5:12-19.)
The New Birth
God created man in His own spiritual and moral likeness. But when man disobeyed God, his spirit died. That’s why Jesus said we must be born again. He was telling us to repent, to renounce taking our own way, and ask God to restore His divine nature in us. When we are reborn, the human spirit with which we were created is renewed. It’s no longer dead in trespasses and sins. It’s no longer dead in the sense of its relating to God. God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross to forgive the sins that are repented of, to change our lifestyle, to break the pattern of sin. (See Mark 1:15, Luke 13:3, John 3:3-7, Acts 2:21; 10:43, Romans 10:9,10, Ephesians 2:1.)
The Holy Spirit
A. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. He is co-equal, co-eternal and co- existent with the Father and with the Son. His ministry upon the earth is to convict and convert man as well as be the great paraclete (comforter, counselor, helper, intercessor, advocate, strengthener and standby) to the Church. The baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire is a gift from God as promised by the Lord Jesus to all believers and is received subsequent to and in addition to the New Birth. The initial evidence of speaking with other tongues, as well as other manifestations described in Acts 2, accompanies this experience. Whereas there is one initial baptism, there are many subsequent infillings of the Spirit. The purpose of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is so that we, the believers, may have power to be witnesses. (Matthew 3:11, John 14:16-17, Acts 1:8, Acts 2)
B. Speaking in Tongues—the Prayer Language
The baptism of the Holy Spirit is accompanied by speaking in tongues, a prayer language given through the infilling of the Holy Spirit, by which the believer may communicate directly to God through prayer and praise as the Spirit gives utterance. The Spirit Filled believer has the capability of speaking with new tongues whether or not he or she chooses to exercise this gifting. (See Acts 2:4; 10:46; 19:6, Romans 8:26,27, I Corinthians 14:4.)
Sanctification
The Bible teaches that without holiness no man can see the Lord. We believe in the Doctrine of Sanctification as a definite, yet progressive work of grace, commencing at the time of regeneration and continuing until the consummation of salvation at Christ's return. (I Thessalonians 5:23, II Corinthians 3:18, Philippians 3:12-14, I Corinthians 1:30)
Healing for the Whole Person
Healing is for spirit, soul and body. In healing, Jesus deals with every phase of our being, every area of our lives, with the full intention of bringing wholeness. Being made whole means healing and restoration for whatever part of the person is ill or in bad health. Divine healing is available through the redemptive work of Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, and giving of the Holy Spirit. Divine healing is available for all believers of the entire being (spirit, soul and body) in the New Covenant of the Lord Jesus Christ. (See Matthew 8:17; 9:22; 14:36, Mark 5:34; 6:56; 10:52, Luke 8:48,50, Acts 10:38, Hebrews 7:25, I Peter 2:24, III John 2.)
Signs and Wonders
Signs and wonders, divers miracles, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for the confirmation of the preaching of the Word and as a sign to the unbeliever. They act to bring forth the supernatural impact of God himself so that the Word becomes a living Word and produces miracles of deliverance. The nine gifts of the Spirit are divided as the Spirit wills through individual believers for the edification and building up of the body of Christ. (See Mark 16:20, Romans 15:18,19, I Corinthians 12:4-11; 14:12, Hebrews 2:4.)
Water Baptism
Jesus submitted to water baptism for our example to do likewise. Water baptism is by immersion in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is something Jesus personally commanded all believers to do to testify to the world that the old life of sin had been forsaken and that one was now living for God. It is the outward symbol of an inward experience — the believer’s identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. (See Matthew 3:13-17; 28:19, Luke 3:21,22, Acts 10:47,48, Romans 6:4, Hebrews 10:22.)
The Holy Communion
The Holy Communion is not a mere ritual but an integral part of our relationship with Jesus whereby our needs can be met. There are three definite things we are to do to properly receive the Holy Communion: Remember Jesus Christ, the living, triumphant Son of God; commemorate His death and resurrection; and discern His strong, healthy body so that as the elements enter our mouths, we take His health into our bodies. In the Communion we have access instantly to everything that Christ is in time and in eternity. (See Matthew 26:26-28, Luke 22:17-20, I Corinthians 11:23-26.)
The Second Coming of Christ
A. The Rapture
There are two stages of Christ’s return to the earth. The first stage is called the Rapture. In this stage the Lord does not descend to the earth. He appears in the air and “in the twinkling of an eye,” the Bible says, the dead in Christ shall rise to meet Him in the air. They will be followed by those saints who are alive at that time. In other words, He gathers up the saints in one miraculous moment of time to meet Him in the air and remain with Him forever. (See Luke 17:34-37; John 14:3; I Corinthians 15:51-54; I Thessalonians 4:15-18; Revelation 3:3.)
B. The Revelation
The second stage of Christ’s coming is called the Revelation. Jesus Christ and all His saints will return to the earth to begin His reign upon the earth, and every eye will see Him coming. This will be the grand climax to the end-time. (See Revelation 20:1-6.)
The Millennium
Jesus will establish a millennial reign upon the earth. During this thousand-year period, the devil will be bound in the bottomless pit. This is the first resurrection, and all the people of God who have lived and died are raised from the dead to be priests of God to reign with Him a thousand years. (See Revelation 20:1-6.)
The Final Judgement
All humanity will appear before the judgment seat of Christ. People who die without Christ will experience their first death. They remain in hell until the end of Christ’s thousand-year reign and then are brought forth to the judg-ment seat of Christ. After the judgment they are cast into the lake of fire and brimstone with the Antichrist, the false prophet, and the devil. This is the second death. (See Revelation 20.)
A New Heaven and a New Earth
The day of the Lord is coming when Christ will release fires from the elements to renovate and renew the heavens and the earth, where the saints will rule and reign with Him forever. Only righteousness will dwell in the new heavens and new earth. (See II Peter 3:7-13; Revelation 20:11; Revelation 21: 22:1-6.)
The Fivefold Ministry
God gave the five callings of the ministry for the upbuilding and edifying of the body of Christ, to instruct the people of God on this earth until we all come to unity and we all get to heaven. This fivefold ministry includes the apostle, a person who has been given a specific mission, a divine calling, that is usually worldwide and certainly church-wide; the prophet, one who gives revelation knowledge based on the written Word of God; the evangelist, who usually speaks to people who do not know Christ; the pastor, who is the shepherd with a heart that goes out to the flock, the church, day after day and week after week; and the teacher, one who deals with the truth of the Word of God, putting the church together philosophically and theologically so that we have a body of truth. Each of these five callings is absolutely sacred, divine, unalterable, and eternally ordained of God. (See I Corinthians 12:27-31, Ephesians 4:11-15.)
The Body of the Lord Jesus Christ – The Church
We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and that all true believers are members of His body, the church. (1 Corinthians 12:12, 27; Ephesians 1:22-23.)
Marriage
We believe God’s plan for human sexuality is to be expressed only within the context of marriage, that God created man and woman as unique biological persons made to complete each other. God instituted monogamous marriage between male and female as the foundation of the family and the basic structure of human society. For this reason, we believe that marriage is exclusively the union of one genetic male and one genetic female. (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5-6; Mark 10:6-9; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9.)
Human Life
We believe that human life is sacred from conception to its natural end; and that we must have concern for the physical and spiritual needs of our fellowmen. (Psalm 139:13; Isaiah 49:1; Jeremiah 1:5; Matthew 22:37-39; Romans 12:20-21; Galatians 6:10.)
Christian Dedication
We believe that we must dedicate ourselves to prayer, to the service of our Lord, to His authority over our lives, and to the ministry of evangelism. (Matthew 9:35-38, 22:37-39, and 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Romans 10:9-15 and 12:20-21; Galatians 6:10; Colossians 2:6-10; 1 Peter 3:15.)
Evangelism
We believe that the ministry of evangelism (sharing and proclaiming the message of salvation only possible by grace through faith in Jesus Christ) and discipleship (helping followers of Christ grow up into maturity in Christ) is a responsibility of all followers of Jesus Christ. Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Romans 10:9-15; 1 Peter 3:15.
God is a Good God
God is a loving God who desires that His children be well and whole spiritually, mentally, and physically. God is the author of blessings, miracles, and divine healing. He is not the author of sickness, disease, sin, or curses which are the oppression of the devil. He did not come to afflict His people but to heal them, not to beat them down but to lift them up, not to destroy them but to save them. (See John 10:10, Acts 10:38, III John 2.)
Miracles
A miracle is a supernatural effect in the physical world. It is beyond the power of nature. It is wonderful, unaccountable, astonishing, mysterious, and unusual. Jesus never called the things He did miracles. He called them “the works of my Father.” And He said, “Greater works than these shall ye do.” Jesus was telling us that miracles are the continuous action of the Father’s love, concern, and pow-er for us. And because they’re the works of the Father, they will never cease because God does not change. Miracles do not stop with our salvation. The Christian life is an unending experience of miracles. We are to expect them every day. (See John 10:37; 14:12, I Corinthi-ans 12:10, James 1:17)