Statement Of Faith
VII. The Doctrines of Creation, Humanity and Sin
VIII. The Doctrines of Salvation
IX. The Doctrine of the Church, including Baptism, The Lord’s supper, Offices in the Church, and Gender Roles
X. The Doctrine of Last Things, including Personal Eschatology and God’s Plan for the End of History
I. The Doctrine of Scripture
I believe that the Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments is the Word of God and constitutes an all-sufficient, inerrant revelation of God to His creation. God spoke and used men to write these words down (II Peter 1:20-21; II Tim. 3:16). The Old testament, consisting of 39 books was recognized as being authoritative by both Christ and the Apostles. The New Testament consisting of 27 books, was assembled by the early church. All that we need to know from God and about God is revealed to us through Scripture or can be deduced from Scripture. His direction for us, including His way for our salvation and how we are to live our lives is made plain in it. We are not to add anything to the Scriptures for they are sufficient in themselves (Rev. 22:18-19).II. The Doctrine of God as a Trinity
I believe in the oneness of God. This idea of oneness has a twofold meaning. First off, it means that God is one unit or being. We find this both in the affirmation of the “Shema” in the Old Testament and in the words of Paul in the New Testament (Deut. 6:4; Rom. 3:30). Secondly, this means that there is only one God, that there is no other (I Tim. 2:5, I Cor. 8:6). In addressing Moses while giving him the Ten Commandments, God says that we are to have no other gods (Ex 20:1-5; Deut. 5:7).
I also affirm the deity of the three Persons of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is a long standing doctrine that has been affirmed throughout the history of the Church. Though it is not explicitly stated, a number of scriptural references lead to this implied truth (Gen 1:26, Gen 11:7, I Cor. 12:4-6, II Cor. 13:14; Matt. 28:19, Eph. 4:4-6, I Peter 1:2). In the Old Testament, we read of how at creation God refers to Himself as “Us” (Gen 1.26) We also see God referring to Himself in plural form such as ‘Our’, and ‘We’. Also it should be noted that the name for God in Hebrew is “Elohim”, which is plural. The three persons that make up the trinity are God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. These three are together in a divine economy within which the Son voluntarily submits to the Father and the Spirit submits to the Son. This submission of the Son to the Father is an eternal submission (Acts 2:23, 1 Peter 1:20). Though in submission eternally, Christ is fully equal to God in nature and being. Each member of the trinity is equal to the other but each has differing functions.
Though each of the persons of God are distinct in that each has a unique function, they are one. Specifically we see that God the Father and God the Son are one; they are equal (John 10:30; Phil. 2:5; John 1:1-4, 14). We also see that God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are one (Psalm 139:7-8, I Cor. 2:10-11, John 3:5-7).
III. The Doctrine of God the Father – Nature, Attributes
I believe God the Father to be different from us in both essence and being. God is other than His creation. He is separate and apart from us. God is a spirit being and is not to be found in our physical world (John 4:24). He is also invisible (I Tim. 1:17). Finally, there are no finite boundaries to His existence (Job 11:7-9).
In describing God’s attributes I have opted to use the categories used by Wayne Grudem. Grudem has attempted to categorize God’s attributes by those which are incommunicable and those which are communicable. Incommunicable attributes are the characteristics of God that are not shared with humanity. For example, God is omnipresent. God cannot be contained and so also cannot be hidden from (Psalm 139:7-10). God is different from humans in that He is omniscient. God knows everything. He knows our very words even before we speak them (Psalm 139:1-4). God is omnipotent. God is capable of doing any and all things. In a great demonstration of this power He created the world (Gen. 1:1). God is also not subject to time (Gen. 1). Further, God is immutable; He does not change. No one can change Him, and no one can move Him to change (I Sam. 15:29, James 1:17).
There are also attributes of God that are communicable, which is to say that humans share in these attributes. This would include His wrath, jealousy, justice, love, mercy and grace. A proper understanding of God requires that we affirm his wrath. God will repay all those who do evil (Rom. 1:18). God is also jealous. In our lives, this often gets distorted but the truth is that God says of Himself that He is a jealous God (Ex. 20:5). God is also just. He will see to it that every good deed is rewarded and that every evil deed is judged (Rom. 6:23; Deut. 10:18). God is love. God’s love is demonstrated to us in the sacrifice of His Son for our sake (1 John 4:7-9; Rom. 5:8; John 3:16). In addition, God is merciful. God has compassion on those who are His own (Deut. 5:10; Rom. 9:18). Finally, I believe that God is gracious. Our lives and our salvation are examples of His grace. We are told that we are saved by grace, and that it is His gift to us (Eph. 2:8-9).
IV. The Doctrine of God The Son – His Person, Life and Work
God the Son, Jesus, is fully man and at the same time is fully divine. In being fully man, He experienced the weaknesses and limitations of being human. He experienced birth (Matt. 1:18). He also grew just like any other child, including learning to read and write (Luke 2:40). He experienced hunger (Matt. 4:2). He experienced human emotions including weeping and being troubled (John 11:35; John 12:27). Finally, people saw Jesus as being a man. Many who knew Him could not get past His humanity (Matt. 13:54-58).
In being fully divine, He shares attributes with both God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus has existed from eternity past as fully divine (John 1:1; Heb. 1:1-3). Jesus demonstrated His power when He calmed the storm and when He cast out evil spirits (Mark 4:35-41; Mark 5:1-20). In addition, the disciples acknowledged Him as being omniscient (John 16:30). Finally, though Jesus was not omnipresent during His earthly ministry, He does share in this at other times. For example, He was able to say as He looked forward to the building of His church that wherever two or three are gathered, He would be there with them (Matt. 18:20). Finally, we know that through Christ the heavens and the earth were created (Heb. 1:1-2; Col. 1:15-17). Some may suggest that this is the power of the Holy Spirit working through Christ as the Holy Spirit did through the disciples. Yet the scriptures affirm that these miracles were done as a manifestation of His glory, that is Christ’s (John 2:11, Matt 8:27).
I believe that Jesus, God’s one and only Son, who has existed from eternity past, was incarnated. In his incarnation He took on the form of man, was born, lived and then died as a man (I Cor. 15:1-8, I Timothy 3:16). When Jesus took on the form of a man He did not surrender any of his divine attributes but rather emptied himself of His position (Phil. 2:5f.f.). This emptying was of role and status, and was not of nature or attributes.
I affirm and believe in the historical reality of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:1-10, Mark 16:1-8, I Cor. 15:1-8). I believe that after having been raised from the dead Jesus appeared before many and then subsequently ascended into heaven where He was exalted and now is at the right hand of God the Father on high (Luke 24, John 20:14- 21:25, Acts 1:1-9, Acts 7:56, Col. 3:1). I believe that Jesus took on the form of man so that He might taste death for everyone, deliver victory over the devil, sanctify and thereby set apart the brethren, bringing His sons (all who confess Jesus as Lord) to glory, and become our merciful and faithful high priest and to come to the aid of those who are being tempted and tormented (Heb. 2:9-18, Col. 2:13-15). Were it not for the resurrection of Christ our faith is in vain. That Jesus was raised from the dead, we can be assured that we also who are in Christ will be raised also (I Cor 15:13-26). This is our hope.
V. The Doctrine of God the Holy Spirit
The Spirit is not just a mysterious power, rather He is a person. I believe that the Holy Spirit is fully divine. Further He has a unique role within the Trinity. Some may be inclined to think of the Holy Spirit as some power that we can acquire. In fact, the Holy Spirit is nothing of the sort. He is a person with a personality all His own. The Holy Spirit has knowledge. It is a truism to say that one cannot teach unless one first has knowledge. The Holy Spirit is the one who imparts knowledge and teaches us all things (John 14:26) and so we know that He has knowledge. He also has feelings. It is possible in our life to grieve the Holy Spirit, and it is also possible to sin against Him (Eph. 4:30; Matt. 12:31-32). Finally, in demonstrating that the Holy Spirit has a personality, I affirm that He has a will. The Holy Spirit is the one who distributes the gifts of God (I Cor. 12:11), and also is the one who directs those in the body of Christ (Acts 13:2).
The Holy Spirit is also God Himself. One of the clearest examples that God and the Spirit are one is in the story of Ananias and Sapphira. When Peter reprimands these two for lying he first references the Spirit and then later references God. Grammatically, the structure is such that the two are understood to be one and the same person (Acts 5:1-5). In addition, we see that the Holy Spirit is mentioned in the same breath as God the Father and God the Son, implying and speaking to His being equal and one and the same with them (II Cor. 13:14; Matt. 28:19).
It is the role of the Holy Spirit to actively work, making the presence of God known in our world. A number of examples speak to His work on earth. In the beginning, we read of the Holy Spirit being active in creation and the giver of life (Gen 1:1-2; Job 33:4). One of His most important roles is as a witness. It is the Spirit who testifies of those who are the children of God and seals their salvation (Rom. 8:14-16; Eph. 1:13). But the Holy Spirit also is the One in the Trinity who enables us to live out a godly life. We should give evidence to His presence by bearing spiritual fruit (Gal. 5:22-23). Further it is the Spirit who gives us unique gifts by which we can serve the church. These gifts include teaching, exhortation, hospitality, administration, mercy and many others (Romans 12:6-8, I Cor. 12:7-10).
VI. The Doctrines of Angels and Demons
I believe that in addition to having created the world, God also made beings that are alive and active in the spiritual world. I believe in the existence of spiritual beings often referred to as angels who were created to serve and glorify God. The number of these spiritual beings I do not believe is known. We have different names for them depending on their roles. For example there are the Cherubim who were given the task of guarding the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:24). In addition there are the Seraphim whose role it is to continually worship the Lord (Is. 6:3). The angels also serve to minister to people, as they did to Christ (Heb. 1:14; Mark 1:13). Finally, we know that angels are not equal to God. Though they are spiritual beings, they are not material as men and women. They are limited by both time and space (Luke 1:26).
In addition to angels, God also created demons and Satan. I believe that these evil beings were originally good, for when God had completed His creative work He declared all things good. These beings then at some point rebelled against God and are now separated from Him (II Peter 2:4). I believe that Satan is chief among these evil demons and was active in tempting Christ (Mark 1:13). These evil spirits are actively at work enslaving people and trying to keep them from knowing God (II Cor. 4:4).
VII. The Doctrines of Creation, Humanity and Sin
I believe that in the beginning there was nothing but God. God then created the world ex nihilo, out of nothing (Gen 1:1, John 1:1, Heb. 11:3). I affirm that His creative efforts were cosmic in scope and voluntary in nature. His creation encompasses everything. There is nothing that was not made by Him or for Him. I believe that God created the heavens and the earth in six, twenty-four hour, literal days. I affirm this on the premise that the evidence to the contrary is insufficient. I have to believe that where the Scriptures say “day” that it means a twenty-four hour day unless in the context it clearly suggests otherwise. In the case of the creation, we are given repeatedly the words “and there was evening and there was morning”. This would suggest that the context is a literal day.
I affirm that God made both man and woman in His image (Gen. 1:26-27). This is commonly referred to as the “imago dei”. This places us in a unique position. We are to rule over the rest of creation. I do not believe that Scripture is absolute in its affirmation of either a threefold constitution or a twofold constitution, though I tend to prefer the threefold explanation. To start, we know for sure that we possess both material and immaterial aspects. Our body is the material or physical. As for the immaterial, we have a spirit or soul. As Hebrews 4:12 makes clear, the spirit and soul can be divided indicating that they can be seen as separate, suggesting therefore a threefold constitution. We also know that while God is one, He is also three. Man being made in His image, would seem to imply that we may have a threefold aspect as well. My conclusion then is that we have a threefold constitution.
I believe that sin entered into the world as a result of the fall. Sin is any act or thought that is contrary to the will of God or that does not glorify God. Prior to the fall, man and woman were in a state of sinlessness. As a result of their having eaten of the fruit that God told them not to, sin entered into the world. Adam and Eve were driven out of the garden and separated from the presence of God (Gen. 3:22-24). From this point, sin has reigned in every man and woman (Rom. 5:12). It can therefore be said that every human being is sinful, and is inclined towards sin, and does not seek after God (Rom. 3:10f.f.).
VIII. The Doctrines of Salvation
With respect to matters of our salvation and sanctification I believe it is beneficial to view them as coming in a certain order. Specifically, I believe that nothing happens with respect to one’s salvation without first God electing them. It follows, then, that on coming to a point of understanding the truth, one should repent, put their faith and trust in Jesus, and also accept Him as Lord. Following this, God will do a work in us, granting us a new spiritual life. We then stand justified before God and are reconciled to Him. Having been reconciled to God, He will begin a work in us making us more like Him, but we also at the same time should desire this very thing.
I believe in the doctrine of election whereby God from before time chose who would be saved (Rom. 8:29, 9:11-13, Eph 1:4-6). This choice being made by Him was done out of grace and for His good pleasure. The reverse is also true. That is, God, in His sovereignty, before time began chose not to save some and to see that they would be punished for their sins so that He would be shown as just (Prov. 16:4; Rom. 9:17-22). It is the role of the Holy Spirit to work in the lives of the elect to convict them of their sin and to enable them to discern the truth of God and to call upon Him (I Cor. 2:10-14).
God, knowing our sinfulness and our state of hopelessness, to prove Himself both loving (John 3:16) and just (Rom. 3:26), sacrificed His Son for the atonement of sins. While the atoning work of Christ is effective for all, it is ultimately only applied to those who put their faith and trust in Him. If it actually applied to all, then all would be saved regardless if they trusted in Christ or not. The latter we know to be false.
God, through the Spirit has made known those things He freely gives to us (I Cor. 12). On learning of these gifts, we are to turn away from our sins, and repent. True repentance is the feeling of a real pain for sins committed and a subsequent renouncing of it. It also involves the turning around of one’s life in such a way as to demonstrate a desire to no longer sin. Repentance is a godly grief concerning one’s sins which in turn leads to salvation (Matthew 4:11, I John 1:9, II Cor. 7:9-10). Along with repentance should be the belief in the salvific work of Jesus and the accepting of His Lordship in our life (Rom. 10:9). It is to be understood that Jesus is the only way to salvation. Jesus is the only way by which we can be reconciled to God the Father (John 14:6; Rom. 10:13-14).
On repenting, believing and accepting Jesus as Lord, God will begin a work in us. I do not believe that regeneration is achieved through baptism, church membership, or some other ‘right’ that the church has instituted. Regeneration is a work of God where He works to make the elect into a completely new spiritual being (John 3:5-6; Col. 2:9-15).
Having been made into a new spiritual being, we stand justified in the eyes of God. God is the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. So on the basis of our faith, we assume the righteousness that is Christ’s. When God looks at us, He sees us as possessing the righteousness of Christ. It is understood to be applied and belonging to us (Rom. 3:23-28). In addition to having been justified we are reconciled to God. Through Jesus, God is able to reconcile all things to Himself. This reconciliation is possible because of the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. So for this reason we have peace with God; we are reconciled to Him (Col. 1:19-20).
Having being reconciled to God, He will begin a work in us making us more like Him. God is at work in us to accomplish His will in our lives (II Cor. 3:18, Phil. 2:13). But we also at the same time should desire to be like Him. As we are sanctified we are to become progressively more and more like Christ (Phil. 2:12). Yet in as much as God is at work in us, we can be sure that we will endure to the end. God has assured us that our salvation is sure. We are secure in our salvation for all eternity (John 10:27-28; Rom. 8:35, 37-39).
IX. The Doctrine of the Church, including Baptism, The Lord’s supper, Offices in the Church, and Gender Roles
I believe that the church consists of those who have come to believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior and have accepted Him as their Lord. So, while the true church is a spiritual body, it is the duty of these who have come to faith in Jesus Christ to associate with other followers of Jesus as a local expression of the Church for the purpose of remembering and glorifying God (Acts 2:42). Further, I affirm that the church is a spiritual institution and is quite separate from the nation of Israel. I find no evidence to support the church as being the new Israel. The two are distinct (I Cor. 10:32, Eph 2:11-16).
I believe in what is often referred to as ‘believer’s baptism’. Jesus commanded that we make disciples and baptize these disciples (Matt. 28:19). The act of baptizing is only to be done for those who have come to believe (Acts 8:12-13). Baptism is to be an act of immersion, as the very definition of the word implies. This is seen in the baptism of Jesus where He is described as coming out of the water (Mark 1:10). I further believe that there is nothing salvific in our being baptized. Rather our baptism is an outward expression of what has already taken place internally. Our baptism is an expression of our identification with Christ in His death and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-8).
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, before He was crucified, broke bread with His twelve disciples. There He established what we now often refer to as the Communion or the Lord’s supper. This ‘supper’ is a time of remembrance where we remember the sacrifice that Jesus made in giving up His life for us on the cross (Luke 22:19). The Lord’s supper was practiced continually in the early church (Acts 2:42). As such, it is appropriate that we should do what we can to remember our Lord in this way as often as is practically possible.
I believe that there are only two distinct offices in the church as sanctioned by the Scriptures. These offices are that of ‘elder’ and ‘deacon’. The qualifications for the position of elder include being male, being gentle, peaceable, not addicted to wine, of good reputation, husband of one wife and so on (I Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9). Elders are to serve as household stewards, they are to be leaders, instructors and teachers of the local church. The qualifications for a deacon are similar to that of an elder and include such things as being a man of dignity, not addicted to wine, the husband of only one wife and a good manager of his children and his household (I Tim. 3:8-13). Deacons are called on to be servants in the church. They are to help with matters concerning the church’s physical needs (Acts 6:1f.f.).
I affirm that both men and women are equal in the eyes of God (Gal. 3:25-29). This equality is in God’s love for us and in our inheritance. Men and women are different. We are uniquely gifted to serve in differing roles and functions in the life of the family and the church. Sadly, over the centuries, there have been terrible abuses in the name of upholding distinctions between the genders. These differences should never be used to lord ones role over another. History has given us examples of terrible abuses of one gender over and above another. Men and women have distinctive biological features as well as being endowed with differing emotional and mental tendencies. While these distinctions are not always absolute, efforts to change genders, to eliminate the distinction of the genders, or to form sexual union within the same genders undermines God’s divinely willed order. (Romans 2:26ff; I Tim. 3; Titus 2; Eph 5:22-33; I Peter 3:1-8).