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Children Praying

Our Beliefs:

We Believe...

 

1. We believe the Bible is God’s Word given by divine inspiration, the record of God’s revelation of Himself to humanity.

(II Timothy 3:16.)  It is trustworthy, sufficient, without error—the supreme authority and guide for all doctrine and conduct (I Peter 1:23-25John 17:17II Timothy 3:16-17.) It is the truth by which God brings people into a saving relationship with Himself and leads them to Christian maturity (John 20:31I John 5:9-12Matthew 4:4I Peter 2:2).

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2. We believe in the one living and true God, perfect in wisdom, sovereignty, holiness, justice, mercy, and love.

(I Timothy 1:17Psalm 86:15Deuteronomy 32:3-4). He exists eternally in three coequal persons who act together in creation, providence, and redemption (Genesis 1:26I Peter 1:2Hebrews 1:1-3).

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3. We believe God created an order of spiritual beings called angels to serve Him and do His will.

(Psalm 148:1-5Colossians 1:16). The holy angels are obedient spirits ministering to the heirs of salvation and glorifying God (Hebrews 1:6-713-14). Certain angels, called demons, Satan being their chief, through deliberate choice revolted and fell from their exalted position (Revelation 12:7-9). They now tempt individuals to rebel against God (I Timothy 4:1I Peter 5:8). Their destiny in hell has been sealed by Christ’s victory over sin and death (Hebrews 2:14Revelation 20:10).

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4. We believe God created man in His own image to have fellowship with Himself and to be steward over His creation.

(Genesis 1:26-28). As a result, each person is unique, possesses dignity, and is worthy of respect (Psalm 139:13-17). Through the temptation of Satan, Adam chose to disobey God; this brought sin and death to the human race and suffering to all creation (Genesis 3Romans 5:12-218-22). Therefore, everyone is born with a sinful nature and needs to be reconciled to God (Romans 3:9-1823). Satan tempts people to rebel against God, even those who love Him (Ephesians 4:27II Corinthians 2:11Matthew 16:23). Nonetheless, everyone is personally responsible to God for thoughts, actions, and beliefs and has the right to approach Him directly through Jesus Christ, the only mediator (Romans 14:12I Timothy 2:5).

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5. We believe salvation is redemption by Christ of the whole person from sin and death.

(II Timothy 1:9-10I Thessalonians 5:23). It is offered as a free gift by God to all and must be received personally through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ (I Timothy 2:4Ephesians 2:8-9Acts 20:21).  An individual is united to Christ by the regeneration of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 2:20Colossians 1:27). As a child of God, the believer is acquitted of all guilt and brought into a new relationship of peace (Romans 5:1). Christians grow as the Holy Spirit enables them to understand and obey the Word of God (II Peter 3:18Ephesians 4:15I Thessalonians 3:12).

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6. We believe the Church is the body of which Christ is the head and all who believe in Him are members.

(Ephesians 1:22-23Romans 12:4-5). Christians are commanded to be baptized upon profession of faith and to unite with a local church for mutual encouragement and growth in discipleship through worship, nurture, service, and the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world (Acts 2:41-4247Luke 24:45-48). Each church is a self-governing body under the lordship of Christ with all members sharing responsibility (Acts 13:1-314:26-28). The form of government is understood to be congregational (Matthew 18:17Acts 6:3-615:22-23).

  • The ordinances of the church are baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:18-20). It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of the Savior Jesus Christ (Romans 6:3-5). The Lord’s Supper is the partaking of the bread and of the cup by believers together as a continuing memorial of the broken body and shed blood of Christ. It is an act of thankful dedication to Him and serves to unite His people until He returns (I Corinthians 11:23-26).

  • To express unity in Christ, local churches form associations and a conference for mutual counsel, fellowship, and more effective fulfillment of Christ’s commission (Acts 15I Corinthians 6:1-3).

 

7. We believe religious liberty, rooted in Scripture, is the inalienable right of all individuals to freedom of conscience with ultimate accountability to God.

(Genesis 1:27John 8:32II Corinthians 3:17;  Romans 8:21Acts 5:29). Church and state exist by the will of God. Each has distinctive concerns and responsibilities, free from control by the other (Matthew 22:21). Christians should pray for civil leaders, and obey and support the government in matters not contrary to Scripture (I Timothy 2:1-4Romans 13:1-7I Peter 2:13-16). The state should guarantee religious liberty to all persons and groups regardless of their religious preferences, consistent with the common good.

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8. We believe Christians, individually and collectively, are salt and light in society.

(Matthew 5:13-16).  In a Christlike spirit, they oppose greed, selfishness, and vice; they promote truth, justice, and peace; they aid the needy and preserve the dignity of people of all races and conditions (Hebrews 13:5Luke 9:23Titus 2:12Philippians 4:8-9I John 3:16-17James 2:1-4).

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9. We believe God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring all things to their appropriate end and establish the new heaven and the new earth.

(Ephesians 1:9-10Revelation 21:1). The certain hope of the Christian is that Jesus Christ will return to the earth suddenly, personally, and visibly in glory according to His promise (Titus 2:13Revelation 1:73:11John 14:1-3). The dead will be raised, and Christ will judge mankind in righteousness (John 5:28-29). The unrighteous will be consigned to the everlasting punishment prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25-4146Revelation 20;10). The righteous, in their resurrected and glorified bodies, will receive their reward and dwell forever with the Lord (Philippians 3:20-21II Corinthians 5:10I Thessalonians 4:13-18).

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(Adopted by the North American Baptist Conference delegates, August 10-15, 1982, Niagara Falls, NY. Section 8 amended by the delegates, July 15-19, 2009, Winnipeg, MB.)

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