Our Purpose
The purpose of this Church is the salvation of lost souls, the edification of the Christians through the teaching of God's Word, the encouragement of members to do the work of the ministry, the worldwide proclamation of God's saving grace through the shed blood and finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary, the promotion of godly worship, the defense of the faith once delivered unto the saints (Jude 3), and cooperation with Christian activities functioning in harmony with God's Holy Word, until the rapture of the saints.
1Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Thessalonians 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Doctrinal Statement
We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men supernaturally inspired; that it is truth without any mixture of error for its matter; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the age, the only complete and final revelation of the will of God to man; the true center of the Christian union; and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.
1. By The Holy Bible we mean that collection of sixty-six books from Genesis through Revelation, which does not only contain the Word of God, but IS the very Word of God.
2. By inspiration we mean that the books of the Bible were written by holy men of old, as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, in such a definite way that their writings were supernaturally and verbally inspired and free from error, as no other writings have ever been or ever will be inspired.
3. We further believe that God, through the Holy Spirit, has committed himself to the Divine and Providential preservation in English of the pure words of God (Psalm 12:6-7; Psalm 119:89, Proverbs 30:5).
We further believe that the Authorized Version King James 1611 is that Providentially-preserved Word of God, to the exclusion of all other English versions. (II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:19-21; Psalm 119:89; Proverbs 30) The Bible is our sole authority for faith and practice.
We believe there is one God eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; II Corinthians 13:14)
We believe in the deity of Christ; His virgin birth; His shed blood for atonement; His bodily resurrection; His ascension into Heaven there to be our Intercessor.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men (Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14:2; II Corinthians 5:19-21; Galatians 4:4-5; Philippians 2:5-8).
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through his death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:18-36; Romans 3:24-25; I Peter 1:3-5, 2:24; Ephesians 1:17).
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-10; Hebrews 7:25, 9:24; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1-2).
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14).
We believe that He is the Divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 1:17-18; 5:18; I John 2:20 & 27).
We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry (Romans 12:3-8; I Corinthians 12:4-11; Ephesians 4:7-12).
We believe the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing were temporary. We believe that speaking in tongues was never the common necessary sign of the filling of the Holy Spirit and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing (I Corinthians 1:22, 13:8, 14:21-22; James 5:15).
We believe man was directly created by God in His own image and likeness, but that he willfully chose sin. The entire human race became alienated from God, in a state of spiritual bondage, and is therefore eternally lost. The natural man, of himself, is utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Genesis 1:26, 27; Romans 3:22, 23: 5:12; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12).
We believe every saved person possesses two natures, with provision made for victory of the new nature over the old nature through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and all claims to the eradication of the old nature in this life are unscriptural (Romans 6:13; 8:12, 13; Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:10; I Peter 1:14-16; I John 3:5-9).
We believe it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God's Word which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh (Romans 13:13, 14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15; I Peter 2:13-20).
We reject the ecumenical movement. This is the movement which attempts to unite the different faiths and religions on the basis of the least common denominator of doctrine. It emphasizes love and cooperation at the expense of truth. It is a betrayal of the unity of believers based upon sound doctrine of the historic Christian Faith. Its method of operation is subversive. We reject all cooperation with this movement.
We believe that all believers are called into a life of separation from all worldly and sinful practices. (Romans 12:1-2; II Corinthians 6:14; James 4:4 and I John 2:16)
We believe the saved should be separated unto the Lord Jesus Christ, necessitating holy living in all personal and ecclesiastical associations and relationships (Romans 12:1, 2; 14:13; I Corinthians 6:19, 20; II. Corinthians 6:14-18; Titus 2:14; James 4:4, 5; I Peter 2:9; I John 2:15-17).
As an Independent Baptist Church, we stand on all the doctrines of the Word of God and we stand against and separate ourselves from the heresy, apostasy, and the compromise of our day.
We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin and hold no truth in the Bible or science. (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11).
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and, that man is totally depraved, and of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23, 5:12, 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-3, 4:17-19).
We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7, 2:8-10; I Peter 1:18-19). This free gift of salvation is fully available to all who will receive it by faith. We reject the notion that only the “elect” may be saved, or that God has chosen who can and cannot be saved. Salvation is available to “whosoever will” receive it.
We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; I Cor.1: 4-8; I Peter 1:4-5).
We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God's Word, which, however clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh (Romans 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13;Titus 2:11-15).
We believe in the existence of Satan, the deceiver and god of this present world; that he is the author of sin and the cause of the Fall of Man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and, that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire (Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 4:2-11; 25:41; Revelation 20:10).
We believe in that “blessed hope,” the personal, imminent return of Christ who will rapture all believers prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Kingdom, which was promised to the nation of Israel (Psalm 89:3-4; Daniel 2:31-45; Zechariah 14:4-11; I Thessalonians 1:10, 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Revelation 3:10, 19:11-16, 20:1-6).
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28-29, 11:25-26; Revelation 20:5-6, 12-13).
We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23, 3:21; I Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 20:4-6).
We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Revelation 20:11-15).
We believe in the priesthood of all believers, that Christ is our Great High Priest and through Him every born-again person has direct access into God's presence without the need of a human priest; that the believer has the right and responsibility personally to study and interpret the Scriptures guided by the Holy Spirit. (1Peter 2:5;John16:13;Hebrerws4:16)
We believe that Jesus Christ established His church during His ministry on earth and that it is always a visible assembly of Scripturally baptized believers in covenant relationship to carry out the Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ. Each church is an independent, self-governing body, and no other ecclesiastical body may exercise authority over it.(Matthew16:18)
We believe that Jesus Christ gave the Great Commission to the New Testament churches only, and that He promised the perpetuity of His churches (Matt. 4:18-22; Matt. 16:18; Matt. 28:19,20; Mark 1:14-20; John 1:35-51; Eph. 3:21).
We believe in the separation of church and state; that God has ordained both, and has delegated authority to each; the authority of one must not interfere with the other; however, this does not mean that the state is to be non-religious nor does it mean that the Church and its members may not be involved in the political processes of this nation. (Romans13)
We believe the only Biblical officers of the church are Pastors and Deacons. In Scripture the Pastor is also referred to as an Elder and Bishop. The three terms describe the same office.
We believe the two scriptural ordinances given to the local church are baptism by immersion of believers only, and communion to be partaken of by the members of a church, in commemoration of the suffering and death of their Lord, and in hopeful anticipation of His return. This church will practice only what is commonly called “closed” communion. Thus, only those members of this church, in good standing with this church, may take communion. (Matthew 26:27-30; Mark 14:20-26; Luke 22:19-20; I Corinthians 10:16, 11:2 & 17-34).
We believe that all music used in the Church should meet the following criterion: . The message should be scriptural, and the music should compliment the message. The type of music should be both God honoring and edifying. (Ephesssians5:19;Colossian3:16)
We believe the Scriptures teach that giving is one of the fundamentals of the faith; that God is the Source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; that tithing is a Bible principle, and that the storehouse for the tithe in this present age is the common treasury of the church; that we are under obligation to serve God with our time, talents, and material possessions; and are commanded to cheerfully, regularly, and liberally bring our tithes and offerings into the storehouse upon the first day of the week.
Psalm 24:1; Haggai 2:8; Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 8:18; Genesis 14:18-20; 28:20-22; Leviticus 27:30; Malachi 3:8-10; Matthew 23:23; I Corinthians 9:13,14; 16:1,2; Hebrews 7:2,4; Acts 4:35,37; Proverbs 3:9; II Corinthians 8:3,12; 9:7,8; Luke 6:38.
We believe that Sunday has been set aside by the Lord as a day that the saints should come together in church. All saved people should be scripturally baptized into the church, should be faithful in attendance, and their tithe. The church is to be funded by the tithes and offerings of the people Acts 20:7 1Cor 16:2