Statement Of Faith

I believe in God who is the Creator. I believe that God is without beginning and without end and who is completely holy and righteous in character and just in action. I affirm a God who has created heaven, earth and humankind and is altogether above God’s creation, but who also is a God who makes Godself known through the events of human history.

I believe that God is the creator of human life. The human creature is made in the image of God from the moment of conception and is made alive by the breath of God within the dust from which we are made. Humankind consists of a mind, a body and a soul. God placed the first man and woman on earth in perfect conditions for eternal fellowship and communion with God. The human creature choose to want to be like God rather than to fellowship with God and fell from the lofty perch of sinlessness in taking the forbidden fruit into the quagmire of sinfulness. The penalty of that descent was that the human body would have to die and return to the dust from which it came (until the resurrection). The soul remains alive forever more and if redeemed, will return to God’s presence to reside throughout all eternity or if unredeemed will be eternally separated from God’s presence.

I believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God who is fully God and fully human. I believe that Jesus was conceived within the virgin Mary by the power of Holy Spirit and that Jesus was without sin. Jesus came to redeem humankind from sin by teaching us the ways of God (i.e., the true interpretation of the OT Torah), establishing the precepts and requirements of kingdom citizens and by sacrificing his life at Calvary. Jesus’ death on Calvary covered all of the sins of humankind and relinked the Creator with the fallen human creature in a new way not previous experienced under the OT covenant. I believe that Jesus was bodily resurrected from the dead on the third day and ministered on this earth for 40 days afterwards. Jesus commissioned his disciples to preach and teach the gospel and to baptize believers into the body of Christ. Following the commissioning, Jesus ascended back to the right hand of God the Creator where he intercedes for the believer day by day until the time of his return is at hand.

I believe in the Holy Spirit who is also is fully God. The Holy Spirit sustains the work that Jesus initiated. The Holy Spirit has empowered believers since the day of Pentecost as recorded in the book of Acts. The Holy Spirit energizes the believer to BE a Christian and is the force within each believer that enables us to live a Godly life to the extent that we yield to the Spirit’s guidance through the word of God. The Holy Spirit indwells the life of each saint at the moment of salvation and endows the believer with a gift or gifts needed for ministry in the church. The Holy Spirit baptizes and seals the believer into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation.

I believe in the Trinity in that God has chosen to reveal Godself to the human creature in three “persons”: God the Creator, God the Redeemer and God the Sustainer. As Creator, God has brought into being all that we know in the physical world today and has revealed God’s purpose to the human creature through God’s word and through the events of history. As God the Redeemer in the person of Jesus Christ, God has saved the human creature from the sin that would eternally separate us from God. And as God the Sustainer in the form of the Holy Spirit, God empowers the believer to live a Godly life each day.

I believe in the Bible as the inspired word of God. I affirm its witness to the interaction of God in the events of humankind and accept its message of redemption through the sacrificial life of Jesus Christ. I maintain that the Bible sets forth Godly principles for ethical living in the midst of ungodly times. I believe that the Bible is made authentic as it is lived out in the lives of the believer and that the power of the Bible comes through living it and not through mental or doctrinal ascent. I believe that the Bible is the foundational witness of God’s revelation to humankind.

I believe in the Church which was founded by Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry. I believe that the church is the human movement of God today in the world. I maintain that the Church is the community of believers who have accepted Jesus Christ as Saviour and who agree to meet regularly for worship and praise of Almighty God. Entry into this community is by way of public confession of Jesus Christ and inward belief of Jesus’ atoning work at Calvary. The church has been commissioned to preach and teach the Krygma and to evangelize the world. This commission carries with it the social dimensions of Jesus ministry which include caring for the poor and needy as well as carrying out social justice on behalf of those who are oppressed and without a voice in the world.

I believe in the Holy Ordinance of Believer’s Baptism. I affirm that Jesus was baptized of John the Baptist in the Jordan and that Jesus commends his disciples to baptize those who accept the gospel. I maintain that Believer’s Baptism is a public expression of a transformation that has already taken place inwardly as a result of belief in Jesus’ work at Calvary. Baptism does not save the individual but symbolically links the saint with Jesus who submitted to baptism in obedience.

I believe in the Holy Ordinance of The Lord’s Supper which was instituted by Jesus with his disciples in the upper room on the night in which Jesus was betrayed by Judas. I affirm that the Supper symbolically represents the bodily sacrifice of Jesus as portrayed in the bread and represents the blood of Jesus which is poured out for the sins of the world as portrayed in the wine/juice. I maintain that the observance of the Lord’s Supper may take place at any time and anywhere but traditionally is observed one Sunday each month when the church gathers for worship.