Doctrinal Statement of Elders and Teachers

• The Bible and Revelation

We teach that the Bible, consisting of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, is God's complete written revelation to mankind, verbally inspired in every word by the Holy Spirit through human authors, and inerrant in the original manuscripts. As such, the Bible is supremely authoritative and sufficient for all matters of life and godliness and the only infallible testimony concerning the nature of God, the origin and nature of all creation, and God's historical-redemptive plan, which he purposed in Jesus Christ. Therefore, all matters of conduct, experience, and observance are rightly discerned according to and consistent with the truth revealed in the Holy Scriptures. The word of God is living and active, exposing the hearts of its hearers and readers and possessing transforming power through the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 19:7-11; Psalms 119:105; Proverbs 30:5; Matthew 5:18; Mark 13:31; John 16:12-15; 17:17; Acts 20:32; Romans 6:17; Ephesians 3:9-12; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 4:12-13; 2 Peter 1:3-4; 3:15-16

We teach that the Bible preserves the very words and intentions of God expressed consistently with the words and intentions of the human authors in their original contexts such that what was written holds dual authorship where the intention of God is never less than or contradictory to the intention of the human author, but the words may contain divine meaning of which the human author was not fully aware. Therefore, The Bible is God's special revelation given in fixed, historical contexts to chosen individuals for both God's immediate purpose and the formation of the Holy Scriptures.

Psalm 19:7-11; John 11:51; 1 Corinthians 14:37; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 5:13-18; 1 Peter 1:10-11; 2 Peter 1:19-21

We teach that the Bible must be interpreted according to literal, grammatical-historical methods revealing spiritual truths consistent with such interpretation of all of Scripture. While the meaning of the Bible is bound to its historical and grammatical contexts, the application of that meaning to the lives of its hearers and readers may vary, yet only in a way that does not distort the intentions of God, which is the fullest meaning of text. Sin and natural limitations prevent us from discovering the intentions of God in the Bible and must be overcome by confession, prayer, and enlightenment from the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 19:7-11; John 11:51; 1 Corinthians 14:37; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 5:13-18; 1 Peter 1:10-11; 2 Peter 1:19-21

We teach that God actively makes himself known to every person by general revelation through his creation and their God-given consciences. God's general revelation is sufficient to reveal the existence of God and to condemn all people for suppressing the truth in unrighteousness and refusing to acknowledge God or seek him.

Romans 1:18-23; 2:12-16

We teach that God's greatest self-revelation came in the person and work of Jesus Christ, God in flesh, who dwelt among us.

Isaiah 9:6; Luke 24:27; John 1:14; 5:39; 8:42; Hebrews 1:1-4

• Triune God

We teach that there is one true and living God, eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; each coequal, being one in divine essence, and fully deserving of our worship, honor and joyful obedience. The Persons of the Trinity execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and redemption.

Exodus 20:3-6; Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 90:2; Isaiah 45:5; Jeremiah 10:10; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14

We teach that God is the Creator of all things, bringing all things into existence from nothing in six literal, twenty-four hour days and resting from work on the seventh day.

Genesis 1:1-31; Exodus 20:11; Psalm 90:2; Isaiah 45:12; John 1:1-3

We teach that God has accomplished the redemption of a specific people from fallen humanity to be holy unto himself in order to display his manifold perfections to all creation and in order that his redeemed people may enjoy him forever according to the magnificent splendor of all of his attributes.

John 17:22-26; Romans 3:21-26; 11:25-36; Ephesians 1:3-14; 3:4-11; Titus 2:11-14

We teach that God is perfect, infinite, and glorious in all of his attributes, among which are his holiness, sovereignty, omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, immutability, immortality, self-sufficiency, righteousness, truth, justice, jealousy, vengeance, wrath, wisdom, goodness, providence, faithfulness, patience, forbearance, forgiveness, kindness, compassion, mercy, grace, and love.

Exodus 34:6-7; Deuteronomy 32:35; 2 Kings 13:23; Psalms 106:1; 139:7-10; Isaiah 6:3; Malachi 3:6; Acts 2:23; 17:24-25; Romans 1:20; 2:4; 3:3-8; 9:22-24; 11:32-36; 1 Timothy 6:15-16; Titus 1:2; James 1:17; 1 John 4:8; Revelation 6:10

• Providence

We teach that God, from eternity, decrees or permits all things that come to pass, perpetually upholding, directing, and governing all creatures and all events, and accomplishing all things through miracles (direct divine acts in contradiction to perceived natural laws) and ordinary means (or secondary causes), including the free choices of his creatures. According to his sovereign will, God has ordained the existence and means of sin, yet so as not to be the author or approver of sin nor to destroy the free choices and moral responsibility of human beings.

Genesis 45:5-8; 50:20; Psalm 155:3; Proverbs 16:33; Isaiah 46:9-11; Acts 17:24-25; Romans 4:17; 9:6-11:36; Ephesians 1:3-14; Colossians 1:17; Hebrews 1:3; James 1:13-15; Revelation 13:7-8

• God the Father

We teach that God the Father, the first Person of the Trinity, is a living, personal Spirit, neither made nor created, who sovereignly decrees all things that come to pass according to the purpose of his own will to the praise of his glory.

John 4:24; Romans 11:36; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 1:3-14; 4:6; Revelation 13:8

We teach that God the Father is the Creator of all things according to his will through the eternal Word, God the Son. His fatherhood involves both his distinction in the Trinity and his relationship to mankind. He is the eternal Father of God the Son by the perfect nature of the Trinity, lovingly leading and exercising authority over the Son and the Holy Spirit. He is the Father of all mankind through creation, but the spiritual Father of believers only by adoption through Christ.

Matthew 23:9; John 1:1-3; 5:19-27, 30; Romans 4:12; 8:14-17; Hebrews 1:2, 8-12; 12:5-9

We teach that, without any loss of or contradiction to his sovereignty, God the Father hears and answers the prayers of believers offered in faith in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. God the Father graciously chose, before the foundation of the world, all whom he would save from sin and he saves all who come to him through faith in Jesus Christ.

Exodus 32:11-14; Psalm 66:19; Luke 10:21-22; John 1:12-13; 3:16; 16:23-24; 1 Peter 1:3-5

• God the Son

We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, is the eternal Son of God the Father, neither made nor created but eternally begotten of the Father, coequal and consubstantial with the Father. In his sonship, he is at all times in perfect and loving submission to the will of the Father and is the beneficiary of a divine inheritance of glory.

Isaiah 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-3, 14; John 4:34; 5:19-38; 6:38-40; 14:9-11; Romans 9:5; Colossians 1:15-19; Hebrews 1:1-14

We teach that God the Father created all things through the Son, who continues to uphold all things by the word of his power.

John 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:3

We teach that, at the time appointed by the Father, the Son was willingly and miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, becoming fully man, emptying himself of his divine prerogatives, taking on flesh in the form of a servant, and yet never ceasing to be fully God, thus becoming and remaining forevermore the God-Man.

Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; John 8:42; Galatians 4:4; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:19; 2:9

We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished the salvation of believers through his perfectly obedient and sinless life and his penal substitutionary, atoning death on the cross. His atoning work was shown to be acceptable to the Father and complete, fully satisfying the Father's wrath against the sin of all people for whom Christ died, by Christ’s literal, bodily resurrection from the dead and his ascension to heaven to be exalted at the right hand of the Father where he now mediates for all believers as Intercessor, Advocate, and High Priest.

Isaiah 53:1-12; Matthew 28:6; Mark 16:19; Luke 24:39-43; John 6:38-40; Acts 2:30-33; Romans 1:3-4; 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:12-19; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Ephesians 1:3-14; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:3; 7:24-28; 1 Peter 2:22-25; 3:18; 1 John 2:1; 4:10

We teach that, through his life, death and resurrection, Jesus Christ truly and perfectly executes the offices of Prophet, who reveals God to creation, delivering vessels of mercy from ignorance; Priest, who reconciles creation to God, delivering vessels of mercy from guilt and judgment; and King, who reigns over all creation, delivering vessels of mercy from weakness and oppression.

Romans 9:22-24; 2 Corinthians 18-19; Colossians 1:20; Hebrews 4:14-16; 7:24-28; 9:24-26

We teach that Jesus Christ is the Head of his body, the church, and the only Mediator between God and man. Christ is the righteous Judge of all mankind, who will judge all people on the basis of their works. Jesus Christ will return bodily in the last days to receive his church into the eternal presence of God in glory.

Matthew 25:31-46; 28:6; Acts 1:11; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 9:28; Ephesians 5:23; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:11-14

• God the Holy Spirit

We teach that the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, is a living, personal spirit, neither made nor created but eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son, coequal and consubstantial with the Father and the Son.

Genesis 1:2; Matthew 28:19; John 15:26; 16:7, 15; Romans 1:4; 2 Corinthians 13:14

We teach that the Holy Spirit continuously gives glory to the Father and the Son by executing the divine will in power. The Spirit is efficaciously active in creation; the anointing and gifting of God's people; the hardening of hearts; the conviction of sin, righteousness, and judgment; the inspiration of God's word; the incarnation of Jesus Christ; the empowerment of Jesus as a man; the resurrection of the dead; the regeneration of the elect; the baptizing of believers into the church; intercessory prayer for believers; the sanctification and empowerment of believers; and the adoption and sealing of believers as children of God for a glorious inheritance in Christ.

Genesis 1:2; 1 Samuel 16:13; Isaiah 61:1; Matthew 1:18; 3:16; 4:1; Luke 2:25-27; 4:1, 14; John 3:5-8; 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:7-14; Acts 1:5; 10:38; Romans 8:9-17, 26-27; 9:15-18; 1 Corinthians 2:4-5, 10-16; 12:4-13; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; 3:6, 18; 5:5; Galatians 5:16-18, 22-25; Ephesians 1:13-14; Titus 3:5-7; Hebrews 2:3-4; 9:14; 2 Peter 1:21

We teach that Christ's sending of the Spirit at Pentecost was a new manifestation of the work of the Spirit in the New Covenant, promised by God beforehand through Jesus Christ and the prophets. In the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit indwells every believer at conversion as an abiding Helper, Teacher, and Guide. Believers are to pursue being filled with the Spirit, which constitutes submitting to the guidance and empowerment of the Spirit, primarily through Spirit-enabled obedience to God’s revealed will in Scripture.

Ezekiel 36:27; Jeremiah 31:31-34; John 14:16-17; 15:26; Acts 2:33; Romans 8:9-17; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Galatians 5:16-18; Ephesians 5:17-18; 6:17-18; Titus 3:5-7

• Mankind and Sin

We teach that man and woman were created by God in his image and likeness to glorify God and enjoy God's fellowship. The first people, Adam and Eve, were created free of sin with a rational nature, intelligence, volition, self-determination, and moral responsibility to God.

Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7, 15-25; Isaiah 43:7; Revelation 4:11

We teach that when Adam and Eve sinned by disobeying God's command, they lost their innocence; they incurred the penalty of eternal death (separation from God), both spiritual and physical; they became subject to the wrath of God; and they became inherently corrupt in their nature, completely incapable of choosing or doing that which is acceptable to God.

Genesis 1:26-27; 2:15-17; 3:1-24; Isaiah 64:6; Jeremiah 17:9; 1 Corinthians 2:14

We teach that through Adam's sin a corrupt nature that is guilty of sin and deserving of death passed to all people. Therefore, all people are sinners by nature and by choice and are totally depraved from conception, completely incapable of pleasing God even by their best actions. No one seeks God or gives him the worship, honor, and joyful obedience that he alone deserves. All people, therefore, are in themselves hopelessly doomed to an eternity of God's wrath against sin according to the righteous judgment of the holy and just God.

Psalm 51:5; Isaiah 64:6; Jeremiah 17:9; Matthew 3:7; John 3:36; Romans 1:18; 2:5-8; 3:10-18, 23; 5:12-21; 8:5-8; 1 Corinthians 2:14; 15:21-22, 45-49; Ephesians 2:1-3; 5:3-6; James 1:14-15; 1 John 1:8, 10; Revelation 6:17; 19:15

• Salvation

We teach that election is the eternal plan and decree of God purposed in Jesus Christ in which he graciously chose, before the foundation of the world, all whom he would save from sin.

John 6:37-40, 44; 15:16; Acts 13:48; Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:3-14; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 2:10; 1 Peter 1:1-2; Revelation 13:8

We teach that regeneration is a change of heart created by a sovereign act of God in which the Holy Spirit empowers the message of the gospel by giving new life to people who are dead in trespasses and sins, enlightening their minds, enabling and effecting saving faith in Jesus Christ, and renewing their whole nature so that they love and pursue holiness according to the word of God.

Ezekiel 36:25-27; John 1:12-13; 3:3-7; Romans 8:12-17; 1 Corinthians 12:3; 2 Corinthians 4:1-6; Ephesians 2:4-10; Galatians 5:16-24; Thessalonians 2:13-14; Titus 3:4-7; 1 Peter 1:3

We teach that anyone who trusts in Jesus Christ alone apart from any trust in personal merit or good works is justified, fully acquitted of sin and declared righteous by God through Christ, who took the guilt of their sin upon himself and credits them with his own perfect righteousness.

Isaiah 53:5-6; John 1:12-13; 17:3; Romans 3:21-28; 4:2-8, 20-25; 5:1-21; 8:30, 33; 10:8-17; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13; Colossians 1:21-22; 2:14; 1 Peter 2:24

We teach that salvation frees the believer from slavery to sin and enables the believer to glorify and enjoy God forever. Therefore, true saving faith is accompanied by lifelong repentance, acknowledges in word and deed that Jesus is Lord, and results in the progressive sanctification of the believer into the likeness of Christ.

Ezekiel 36:25-27; Matthew 13:44; Luke 13:3; John 5:24; 8:31-32; 15:11; 17:13, 17-19; Acts 13:48; Romans 5:1-21; 6:1-23; 8:1-17, 31-39; 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 12:3; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 5:17; 7:10; Ephesians 2:10; Galatians 5:16-24; Hebrews 12:5-11; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 1:5-10; 2:3, 15-17; Jude 24

We teach that all people who possess true saving faith will never totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace. Though they may fall into sin and bring upon themselves the loving discipline of God, they will be renewed in repentance and will ultimately persevere in faith until they appear in glorified form in the eternal presence of God.

John 5:24; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:31-39; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8; Philippians 1:6; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Jude 24

• Christian Conduct

We teach that the entire Christian life should be one of repentance and worship, putting off the old self of ungodly, worldly, and fleshly desires, being renewed in the mind, and putting on the new self in Christlikeness, desiring to glorify God in all things through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit working through the word of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Matthew 3:8; Acts 26:20; Romans 8:13; 12:1-2; 13:14; 1 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 4:17-24; Philippians 3:7-16; Colossians 3:5-10; Titus 2:11-15; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 John 2:15-17

We teach that Christians should live in a manner worthy of the gospel, that they should first love God and then love others, that their conduct should be blameless before the world, that they should be faithful stewards of their possessions, that they should be just and honest in all of their dealings, and that they should seek, through the strength that God supplies, to realize for themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ, pursuing a holy life of joyful obedience to all of Christ’s commands and teaching others to do the same.

Proverbs 11:1; 12:17; Matthew 5:14-16; 22:34-40; 28:18-20; Luke 16:1-13; Romans 12:3-8; Galatians 5:13-26; Ephesians 2:20; 4:1-16; Philippians 1:27; Colossians 1:9-14; 3:1-17; Hebrews 10:24-25; James 1:27; 1 Peter 1:14-16; 2:11-12; 4:8-11

We teach that believers should seek, as much as it depends on them, to live peaceably with all people, blessing those who persecute them and being willing, as occasion requires, to give up personal preferences for the sake of peace and Christian liberties for the sake of their witness and the conscience of other believers. All believers should rather be wronged by others without repaying evil for evil, forgiving others as people who have been forgiven, and leaving vengeance and repayment to the wrath of God.

Matthew 5:21-26, 38-48; 18:21-35; Romans 12:14, 17-20; 14:1-15:7; 1 Corinthians 6:7-8; Ephesians 4:32; 5:28; Philippians 2:1-15; Colossians 3:12-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; 1 Peter 3:8-9, 17

We teach that believers should obey the law and all who are in authority over them so long as such obedience does not contradict obedience to the commands of God in the Holy Scriptures.

Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-18

We teach that believers should contribute cheerfully and regularly as God prospers them to the support the ministry and the expenses of the church, to the relief of those in need, and to the spread of the gospel to all nations for the joy of all peoples to the glory of God.

Psalm 67:1-7; 1 Corinthians 9:3-12; Galatians 2:10; Ephesians 5:28; 1 Timothy 5:3, 17-18; Revelation 5:9; 7:9-10

We teach that there is one human race descended from Adam and consisting of many nations, languages, and people groups. All believers, therefore, should seek racial harmony and social justice rooted in the truth and power of the gospel, denying the lies of Satan and the world that create false, prideful, divisive, and oppressive attitudes of superiority over others.

Genesis 1:26-28; Psalm 67:1-7; Jeremiah 22:3; Luke 10:30-37; Romans 5:12-21; 10:12; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Philippians 2:3-4; Colossians 3:11; Philemon 1; Revelation 5:9; 7:9-10

• The Church

We teach that the universal church is made up of all regenerated persons who, through the Holy Spirit, belong to one spiritual body of which Christ is the Head, in order that he may present them to himself without spot or blemish to the praise of his glory.

Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 1:3-14, 22-23; 3:8-12, 21; 5:23-32; 2 Corinthians 8:23; Colossians 1:18; Titus 2:11-15; 1 Peter 2:9

We teach that local churches are responsible in this age for carrying out God's purposes in the world through corporate worship of God, edification of the saints, evangelism to unbelievers, and administration of baptism and the Lord's Supper. Participation in the local church is open to all people who have made a credible profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and have been baptized.

Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8; 2:41-47; Romans 10:14-15; Colossians 3:16

We teach that every believer is a vital part of the ministry of deliberately making and maturing disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ through prayer, the exercise of spiritual gifts, deeds of mercy, encouraging and admonishing other believers, and giving as God has prospered them.

Acts 2:44-45; 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 16:1-2; 2 Corinthians 8:2-5; 9:6-15; Ephesians 4:1-16; 5:18-21; Philippians 2:1-7; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 3:13

We teach that church discipline is part discipleship and church membership prescribed in Scripture for the clarity of the gospel, the purity and health of the local church, and the hope of repentance and eventual restoration of members who are engaging in unrepentant sin. Church discipline includes lovingly confronting a member of the local church who is perceived to be in unrepentant sin in a private, individual setting. If the member continues in unrepentant sin, the member should be lovingly confronted by two or three witnesses. If the member still persists in unrepentant sin, the matter should be brought before the whole congregation where the member, if remaining unrepentant, should be formally excluded from membership and treated as an unbeliever in need of salvation.

Matthew 18:15-20; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; Galatians 6:1

We teach that Scripture reveals two offices in the local church: elders and deacons. Elders are a plurality of qualified men who are gifted by the Holy Spirit to lead and teach the local church under the headship of the Lord Jesus Christ. The biblical titles of elder, pastor or shepherd, and overseer or bishop all refer to the same leadership role in the local church. The responsibilities of elders are: to preach and teach the word of God, to be examples to the body, to equip the church for ministry, to protect the church from sin and false teaching, and to protect themselves and the church through plurality. Deacons are qualified men selected by the congregation and appointed by the elders to coordinate the various ministries of the church as needed so that the elders may devote themselves to the ministry of the word and prayer.

Acts 6:1-6; 14:23; 20:25-35; Ephesians 4:11-12; 1Timothy 3:1-15; 4:15-16; 2 Timothy 4:3-5; Titus 1:5-9; 2:1, 15; Hebrews 13: 17; James 2:15-17; 5:14; 1 Peter 5:1-4

• The Ordinances

We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church, baptism and the Lord's Supper, to be observed and administered by the church until the Lord Jesus Christ returns.

Matthew 28:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:26

We teach that baptism is the one-time immersion of new believers into water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit to publicly demonstrate the believer's union with Christ in his death to sin and resurrection to new life unto God.

Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:28-41; 8:36-39; Romans 6:1-11; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17

We teach that the Lord’s Supper is the repeated sharing of bread and wine between believers as a regular observance of the Passover supper between Jesus and the disciples on the night before his crucifixion. The bread represents union with the body of Christ, broken for the sins of the church. The wine represents union with the shed blood of Christ as seal of the New Covenant. Participation in the Lord's Supper must be conducted in an orderly way and preceded by self-examination and confession of sin so as not to eat or drink in an unworthy manner.

Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-34

• Future Things

We teach that upon death, all believers are immediately present with the Lord, awaiting only the glory of the eternal state and all unbelievers are immediately subject to conscious torment and separation from God in darkness, awaiting only the final judgment.

Luke 16:19-31; 23:43; John 6:39; 11:25-26; Philippians 1:23; Hebrews 9:27-28

We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ will personally and visibly return to earth at an hour known only to the Father. Christ will defeat every enemy of God and gather the believers on the earth to himself.

Matthew 16:27; 24:3-51; 26:64; Mark 13:1-37; 14:62; John 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 4:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-4; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10; 2:1-12; 4:13-5:10; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:27-28; 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 19:11-16

We teach that all dead persons, both the saved and the unsaved, will be bodily resurrected. The saved will face the judgment of their works and enter the eternal state of life in the glorious presence of God in a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness reigns. The unsaved will face the final judgment and be cast into the lake of fire, where their eternal state is conscious suffering under God's infinite wrath against sin.

Matthew 16:27; 25:31-46; John 3:36; 5:28-29; 17:3, 24; Romans 2:6-11; 8:18-25; 1 Corinthians 15:15-58; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:10; 2 Timothy 4:1, 8; Hebrews 9:27-28; 2 Peter 3:7-13; Revelation 19:11-22:5