What We Believe
The Apostle's Creed Circa 390 AD
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Christian Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
Nicene Creed Circa 325 AD
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through Him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation He came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate, He suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and His kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, Christian and apostolic Church. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
The Bible
We believe the Bible is the infallible, inerrant word of God and our guide to daily living. It was given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to men.
The Godhead
Deuteronomy 6:4- "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!
We believe there is one God who exists as three Persons; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal, co-eternal and co-existent.
God the Father
We believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth and of things visible and invisible. We believe faith is the only thing that pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). We believe Jesus spoke of God's love for us in the following Scripture,
John 3:16-For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
The Lord Jesus Christ
We believe Jesus is the only Savior of mankind. We believe what Jesus said of Himself in John 14:6- Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. We also believe what Peter said of Him in Acts 4:12- "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
We also believe Jesus existed with the Father in the beginning according to the gospel of John.
John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is our Helper. He is the One who is called along side of us to comfort us and teach us the word of God. He proceeds from the Father and Son. He is on the earth to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgement. According to Titus 3:5 the Holy Spirit's part in the new birth is "the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit." Also we believe what Jesus said of the Holy Spirit in John 14:16 in the Amplified Bible: And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever —
The Holy Spirit fulfills all these positions.
The Baptism Of The Holy Spirit
We also believe in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance according to Acts 2:1-4 and this baptism is for everyone according to Acts 2:38-39. The Holy Spirit's baptism empowers believers to live a powerful and holy life on earth. We also believe in the gifts of the Spirit ( 1 Corinthians 12:1-11) and that they are for today.
The two ordinances of the Church: water baptism and communion
Water Baptism
Water baptism is by immersion. It is also a commandment of the Lord Jesus Christ and is for born again believers only. Water baptism can in no way give you access to heaven but is a symbol of the Christian's identification with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection.
Communion
We believe only born again believers should partake of Communion. The bread represents His broken body and the cup represents His shed blood. His body was broken so we could be healed and His blood was shed so we could be forgiven. We partake of Communion to remember Jesus' great sacrifice for us.
MAN, HIS FALL AND REDEMPTION
Man is a created being, made in the likeness and image of God, but through Adam’s transgression and fall, sin came into the world. The Bible says “...all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,” and “...There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10; 3:23). Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was manifested to undo the works of the devil and gave His life and shed His blood to redeem and restore man back to God (Romans 5:14; 1 John 3:8).
Salvation is the gift of God to man, separate from works and the Law, and is made operative by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, producing works acceptable to God (Ephesians 2:8–10).
Divine Healing
We believe Jesus is the Healer of mankind. Healing is possible because of the sacrificial death that Jesus made for us and by His stripes we were healed. We believe Jesus can heal anyone and any disease or sickness.
Luke 4:40
When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.
Matthew 4:23
And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.
We also believe Jesus is not only interested in healing our physical bodies but also the soul of man; the emotions and mind.
The Soon Return Of The Lord
We believe in the rapture of the Church when Jesus will return to take His Church out of the earth as stated in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17. We also believe Jesus will return to the earth and set His feet on the Mount of Olives according to Zechariah 14:4 to set up His eternal kingdom on earth.
Hell And Eternal Punishment
The one who physically dies in his sins without accepting Christ is hopelessly and eternally lost in the lake of fire and, therefore, has no further opportunity of hearing the Gospel or repenting. The lake of fire is literal. The terms “eternal” and “everlasting,” used in describing the duration of the punishment of the damned in the lake of fire, carry the same thought and meaning of endless existence as used in denoting the duration of joy and ecstasy of saints in the Presence of God.
Marriage
Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in a lifetime marital covenant. The husband is to love his wife as Jesus loves the Church. He has the God-given responsibility to provide for, to protect, and to lead his family. The wife is to submit herself graciously to the servant leadership of her husband and to respect him even as the Church willingly submits to the headship of Jesus. She is created in the image of God, as is her husband, and is therefore equal to him.
Israel
We believe all peoples and especially Christians should support Israel for the following reason.
Genesis 12:3
I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you
God tells us we can be blessed by supporting Abraham's descendants who are the Jews. God also tells us we will be cursed if we do not support the nation of Israel and the Jewish people. The number one reason Christians should support Israel is Jesus, our Lord, was born Jewish. He was born King of the Jews
(Matthew 2:2).
Not only is Jesus the King of the Jews but Nathaniel called Him the King of Israel.
John 1:49
Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”
Since Jesus our Lord and Savior was born King of the Jews and King of Israel Believers have a Bible mandate to support Israel and the Jewish people.
A good example of someone being blessed because they made peace with Israel is Rahab the harlot.
Hebrews 11:31
By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.
Because Rahab made peace with Israel she and her family were the only survivors of Jericho. And Rahab is mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew's gospel.