Our Beliefs
The Scriptures
We believe the Scriptures, namely the Old Testament and New Testament, to be
the inspired Word of God, without error in original writings, the complete revelation
of His will for the Salvation of man and the divine and final authority for all
Christian faith, life, and conduct.We believe and teach the literal, grammatical-historical
interpretation of Scripture and, that although every passage may have several
applications, there is only one true interpretation.(1 Cor2:7-14; 2Tim. 3:14-17;
2Pet.1:20-21)
The Doctrine of God
We believe in one God, creator of all things, infinitely perfect, unchanging
in all His Divine Attributes, and eternally existing in three persons, Father,
Son and Holy Spirit. (Deut. 6:4; Isa. 45:5-7; Mt. 28:18-19; Mk. 12:29; Jn.
1:14; Acts 5:3-4; 2Cor. 13:14; Heb. 1:1-3; Rev. 1:4-6)
The Father
We believe that God the Father is the author of one eternal plan that includes
all things and He is directing this plan to glorify Himself. He is the Creator
of the universe and the human race, but is the spiritual Father only of those
who receive Jesus Christ by Faith. He becomes the believers Father by His gracious
act of adopting believers in Christ into His family. (Rom. 11:36; Eph. 1:11;
Gen. 1:31; Eph. 3:9; Rom. 8:14; 2Cor. 6:18 Jn. 1:12; Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:5)
The Son
We believe that Jesus Christ is God the Son, co-equal, co-eternal and of
the same essence with God and as such He is the pre-existent Son. Without any
change in His eternal deity He became man when conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary, that He died on the Cross, a perfect and complete
sacrifice, in our place and for our sins according to the Scriptures. He arose
bodily from the dead and ascended into Heaven where, at the right hand of the
Majesty on High, He is now our High Priest and Advocate. (Jn. 1:1-2, 14, 6:33,41;
Isaiah 9:6; Lk. 24:19; Matt. 1:21, 25; 21:11; Mk.1:9; Heb. 4:15, 7:26; Lk.
2:40 Phil. 2:8; Isaiah 7:14; Matt.1:23-25; Lk. 1:26-35; Jn. 1:18; 14:9-11;
Heb. 7:25-27, 9:26; Jn 3:16-18; 1Pet. 1:18-19; Jn 1;29, 10:15; 1Jn 2:2, 3:18
Acts 1;9;Lk24:51; 1Jn 2:1; Rom. 8:34; Heb.7:25, 9:24)
The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is eternal
and infinite and is of one essence and substance with the Father and the Son
in their deity. Though active in creation, divine revelation, and enablement
of Old Testament saints, the Holy Spirit was sent on the day of Pentecost by
the Father and the Son to take up His abode in believers. At the time of regeneration
the Holy Spirit baptises the believer into one body of which Christ is the
Head. Any doctrine of a baptism of the Spirit after regeneration in this age
is entirely foreign to Scripture. The Holy Spirit indwells, guides, instructs,
fills and empowers the believer for godly living and service. (Matt. 28:19;
Acts 5:34, 28:25-26; 2Cor. 13:14; Gen. 1:2; Jn. 3:5-7; Acts 1:4; Jn. 14:16-17,
15:26; Eph. 3:4-5, 9, 11: 1Cor. 6:19; Rom. 8:9; 1Cor. 12:11)
Creation
We believe that the creation of the world was a supernatural act of God by
which He brought the universe and all that it contains into existence through
the mediation of Jesus Christ and the operation of the Holy Spirit. Man is
the direct creation of God, not in any sense the product of animal ancestry,
but made in the divine image. The Genesis account is the trustworthy, historical
record of creation. (Gen. 1:1-2 Job 33:4; Ps. 33:6,9; Jn. 1:3; Col. 1:16;
Rev. 4:11; Acts 4:24, 14:15; Heb 11:3; Gen. 2:7, 2:21-22; 1Cor. 11:8-9)
Man
We believe that man was directly created by God in His own image, but fell
into sin when he chose to disobey. Therefore, through Adam’s sin and
by personal experience the entire human race is lost. We believe that God created
man good in His own image that he might know Him and glorify Him. By the fall
and disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve, our nature became so corrupt
that we are all conceived and born in sin, incapable of knowing or seeking
God without His empowering. It is only through repentance and faith in Jesus
Christ and regeneration by the Holy Spirit can salvation and spiritual life
be obtained. (Gen. 1:27; Eph. 1:11-12; 1Cor. 10:31Rom. 5:12-21; Ps. 51:5; Rom.
7:18; Titus 1:15; Jer. 17:9; Eph 4:18; Jn 15:5; Eph. 2:1-2; Jn. 8:34 Jn. 1:13;
James 1:18; 1Pet. 1:3; Jn. 3:3-8; Jn. 3:8; Eph. 2:5; Col. 2:13)
Salvation
We believe that salvation is a free gift of God’s grace, offered to us
on the basis of Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross. It is received
personally by repentance for sin and by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and
is in no way obtained or increased by human effort. This salvation contains
within itself deliverance from the guilt and penalty of sin, a perfectly righteous
standing before God, by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness, the
provisions for victory over the power of sin, and the promise of future glorification
in God’s presence. (Jn. 3:16; Eph. 2:8-9; Jn. 1:12; Acts 20:21; 2Cor.
7:9-10; Rom. 16:11-13; 2Cor. 3:18; Rom. 8:17, 23-24, 8:30; 1Cor. 15:51-55;
1Thess. 14-16;Jn. 6:39-40; Rom. 8:11)
Satan
We believe that Satan was originally a creature of God of the highest order,
but through pride he fell and became archenemy of God, and the deceiver of
humanity. Satan wilfully opposes God and influences believers to substitute
other revelations and experiences for those divinely given, and diverts believers
energies into ungodly channels. His power is particularly manifested in occult
practices such as demonic control, Satan worship, fortune telling and astrology.
Though his powers are supernatural, they are strictly limited under the rule
of a sovereign God. He was defeated at the cross and therefore his final doom
is certain. (Gen. 1:3; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Gen. 3:1-5; Math. 4:1-11; Jn 8:44;
Rev. 12:9; Ps. 106:37; 2Cor. 4:4; Gal.4:8; Job 1:12,2:6; James 4:7)
Future Plan Of God
We believe in the personal, premillennial return of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and that this blessed hope has a vital bearing on the purity, personal life
and service of the believer. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all
the dead – of the believer to everlasting blessedness and joy with
the Lord, and of the unbeliever to judgement and everlasting conscious punishment.
(Jn. 14:1-3; 1Cor. 15:51-53; 1Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:11-14; Phil. 2:23;
2Cor. 5:8; Jn. 5:28-29; Mt. 25:41-46; 2Thess. 1:7-9)
The Church
We believe that the Church is composed of all such persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are united together in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The Church is the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (1Cor. 12:12-27; Eph. 2:11-36; Eph. 1:22, 4:15; Col. 1:18)
Spiritual Gifts
We believe and teach that there are two kinds of gifts given to the early church; miraculous gifts of divine revelation and healing, given temporarily in the apostolic era for the purpose of confirming the authenticity of the Apostle’s message – and ministering gifts, to equip and edify one another. With the New Testament revelation now complete, Scripture becomes the sole test of authenticity of a man’s message, and confirming gifts of a miraculous nature are now no longer necessary to validate a man or his message. We believe that spiritual gifts are divinely given and sovereignly distributed by the Holy Spirit to every member of the body of Christ. The purpose of these ministering gifts is to glorify God, to edify the Church, and to bring unbelievers to faith in Christ. Revelation is not ongoing, tongues are not the sign of the baptism of the Holy Spirit nor of spirituality, and Christ’s atonement does not demand physical healing. The exercise of spiritual gifts must always be consistent with Scripture. (Heb.2:3-4; 2Cor.12:12; 1Cor. 13:8-12; 1Cor. 13:13-14:12; Rev.13:13-14; Rom.12:6-8 Eph. 4:7-16; 1Pet. 4:10-11)
