FELLOWSHIP BAPTIST CHURCH
Statement of Faith
To set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us . . . “that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou hast been instructed,” (Luke 1:4) we send forth this statement of faith.
Statement of Faith
The Holy Scriptures: We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and therefore are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning, and all issues of interpretation and meaning shall be determined by these statements of faith.
The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by the church. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21)
A. It being the Holy Bible: separate from all other books and writings, having the supreme authority over faith and daily living.
B. It being inspired: the inspiration of God has been preserved in the King James Version of the Bible.
C. It being preserved: every word, jot and tittle, inerrantly and infallibly preserved.
D. It being illuminated: the Holy Spirit of God illumines us to its truths and interpretations.
Dispensationalism: We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)
The Godhead: We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, coequal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26)
God the Father: We believe that God the Father is the first person of the Godhead.
We believe there is one, and only one, living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit, the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth, inexpressibly glorious in holiness and worthy of all possible honor, confidence and love; and that in the unity of the Godhead.
God the Son: We believe that God the Son is the second person of the Godhead.
A. 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 Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa.7:14; 9:6; Lk. 1:35; Jn. 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)
B. We believe that Jesus Christ, who was preexistent in the Godhead from eternity-past, was made flesh when He was begotten of the Holy Ghost in a miraculous manner: born of a virgin woman, Mary, as no other man was ever born or can ever be born of woman; and that Jesus Christ is God Incarnate, both the Son of God and God the Son. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6-7; Matt. 1:18-25; Jn. 1:1, 14)
C. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and descended into Hell for three days and nights, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Matt. 12:40Acts 2: 18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; Eph. 1: 7, 4:8-10; I Pet. 1: 3-5, 2: 24)
D. 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; Rom. 8:34; Heb. 9:9:24; 7:25; I Jn. 2:1-2)
God the Holy Spirit: We believe that God the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead.
A. We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person, equal with God the Father and God the Son, with the same nature. He was active in the Genesis account of the creation within the Godhead. He convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. (Jn. 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
B. 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. (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 Jn. 2:20, 27)
C. We believe that God, through His Spirit, is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God giving gifts to men through His Son uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12)
D. We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of the healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or 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. (Mk. 16:17-18; 1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22; Jam. 5:13-15)
The Devil: We believe Satan was once holy, and enjoyed heavenly honors, but through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, he fell and drew after him a host of angels; that Satan is now the malignant prince of the power of the air, and the unholy god of this world; that he is mankind’s great tempter, the enemy of God, the accuser of saints, the author of all false religions, the chief power behind the present apostasy; and that he is the lord of the antichrist, and the author of all the powers of darkness - destined however, to final defeat at the hands of God’s own Son, and to the judgment of an eternal justice in the Lake of Fire, a place prepared for him and his angels. (Gen. 3:14-15; Job 2:2; Isa. 14:12-17; Eze. 28:14-19; Matt. 4:1-11; Jn. 8:44; Eph. 2:2; 6:11-12; 1 Thess. 3:5; 2 Thess. 2:7; 1 Pet. 5:8; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Rev. 20: 1-3, 7-10)
The Fall of Man: We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell from his sinless state, therefore, by the sin of this one man all men are made sinners, not by constraint, but by nature and by self-will, and therefore are under just condemnation without defense or excuse. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19)
Salvation of Man: We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of sins for the whole world. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable. (Matt. 12:31-32; Jn. 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; I Pet. 1:18-19; I Jn. 1:9; 2:1-2)
A. Atonement: We believe that Jesus Christ, by the appointment of God the Father, freely took upon Himself the nature of man yet without sin, Who honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and Who by His death made a full and vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind, providing redemption through His blood; that without the shedding of blood is no remission of sin, therefore, the shed blood of Jesus Christ, that cleanseth man from all sin, was presented in Heaven, was sprinkled on the true mercy seat, and was accepted by God the Father as the atonement for the sins of the whole world, only becoming efficacious through man’s individual faith in Christ; and that Christ’s atonement was the voluntary substitution of Himself in the sinner’s place, Himself bearing the sins of man in His own body on the tree; and that after having given Himself for man, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour. (Is. 53:4-7; 10-12; Lk. 19:10; Heb. 1:3; 2:14-17; 7:25; 8:1-2; 9:12-15, 22-26; 1-:10-12; I Jn. 2:1-2; Rev. 1:5)
B. Freeness of Salvation: We believe that salvation is made free to all by the gospel; that it is the immediate duty of all men to accept salvation by obedient faith, and that nothing prevents the salvation of the sinner but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Lk. 11:10; Jn. 3:14-20, 36; 6:37; Acts 2:38; 8:20-21; Rom. 5:18; 6:23; 8:29-30; 10:12-13; Eph. 2:7-9; Tit. 1:1-2; Rev. 3:20; 22:17)
C. The New Creation: We believe sinners must be born again in order to be saved; that the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; that the new birth is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the one dead in trespasses and in sins is made a partaker of the divine nature and receives eternal life, the free gift of God; that the new creation is brought about wholly and sole by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection with divine truth and man’s faith; so as to secure man’s voluntary obedience to the gospel; and that proper evidence of the new birth appears in the holy fruits of faith, repentance, and newness of life. (Jn. 1:12-13; 5:24; 6:63; Rom. 5:15-17; 10:17; II Cor. 5:17-19; Gal. 4:29; 5:16-23; 6:15)
D. Repentance and Faith: We believe that repentance and faith are solemn obligations, and also inseparable graces, wrought in the soul of man by the quickening Holy Spirit of God; that being deeply convicted of his own guilt, danger and helplessness, and of the way of salvation by Christ, man must turn to God with unfeigned contrition, confession, and supplication for mercy, while at the same time heartily believing on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. (Joel 2:12-13; Mk. 1:14-15; 6:12; Lk. 13:3; 18:13-14; Acts 2:37-38; 3:19; Rom. 10:9-11; II Cor. 7:10; I Jn. 1: 8-9)
E. Justification: We believe that simultaneously at salvation man is justified in the eyes of God; that justification includes the pardon of sin, and the gift of eternal life on principles of righteousness; and that justification and its benefits are bestowed not in consideration of any works of righteousness which man has done, bur rather, God’s righteousness is imputed to man solely through faith in the Redeemer’s vicarious shed blood. (Gen. 15:6; Is. 53:11; Acts 13:39; Rom. 3:24-28; 4:1-9, 23-25; 5:1, 9; I Cor. 6:11; Gal. 2:16; 3:8-11, 24; Tit. 3:5-7)
The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers: We believe that all the redeemed are kept by the love and power of God and are thus secure in Christ forever, and that eternal security and eternal life are synonymous terms which describe the assurance of eternal life which was given as a gift from God to all who believe in Jesus Christ. (Jn. 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 6:23; 8:1; 38-39; I Cor. 1:4-8; I Pet. 1:4-5)
The Church: We believe the New Testament church is a local, visible, autonomous assembly; that Jesus Christ established His Church during His earthly ministry, that a Baptist church is a congregation of baptized believers associated by a covenant of faith and fellowship of the gospel, that all church members, ministries, and polities are to be subject to the Lordship of Christ, exercising the gifts, rights, disciplines, and privileges vested in them by His Word; and that the church officers consist only of pastors and deacons, whose qualifications, claims, and duties are clearly defined in the scriptures; and that the church alone is authorized to administer and observe the ordinances of Christ, these are two in number and include the following:
A. Baptism: We believe that the first step of obedience for a new believer is to follow the Lord in believer’s baptism; and that baptism is the immersion into water in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, by and under the authority of a New Testament Baptist Church, to show forth the solemn and beautiful emblem of one’s faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, identifying Him with Christ and His Church, and that baptism is requisite to the place and privileges of church membership. (Matt. 3:5-8, 13-17; 28:18-19; Jn. 3:22-23; Acts 2:41-42; 8:12, 36-39; 10:48; 18:8; rom. 6:3-5; I Cor. 12:12-13; Eph. 4:4-5; Col. 2:12; I Pet. 3:21)
B. Lord’s Table: We believe that after solemn self-examination, and by the use of unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine, the members only of this local Baptist Church are to commemorate together the sacrificial love of Christ. (Mt. 26:26-29; Lk. 22:19-20; I Cor. 10:21; 11:2, 23-29; Eph. 4:4-5; Col. 2:12; I Pet. 3:21)
We further believe that the local church is the body and espoused bride of Christ, and the church was established during the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, empowered on the day of Pentecost, and organized and set in order by the Apostles as recorded in the Acts and Epistles, and that the local church is an autonomous body free of any external authority or control. (Matt. 16:18-19; 18:15-18; Acts 2:41-42, 46-47; 6:2-6; I Cor. 11:2; 12:12-27; Eph. 1:22-23; 3:8-11, 21; 4: 11-12; 5: 23-27; Phil. 1:1; Col. 1: 18; I Tim. 3: 1-15; I Pet. 5: 1-4; Rev. 1: 11, 20; 2; 3)
Separation: We believe that all believers, both individually and corporately, should live soberly and separately from the world and apostates; our goal being, to be holy as God is holy, that we would not bring reproach to ourselves being saints.
A. Personal Separation: We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior or His Church. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations, and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, piercings, and bodily markings. (Lev. 19:28; Rom. 12: 1-2; 14: 13; II Cor. 6:14-17; II Tim. 3: 1-5; I Jn. 2: 15-17)
B. Ecclesiastical Separation: We believe that, in guarding and standing fast in our doctrine, we are to separate from any church, group, or organization who holds doctrine contrary to pure Biblical doctrine; we are to encourage them to embrace good doctrine as we give them the reason of hope within us. (Rom. 16: 17; Gal. 1: 6-9; Phil. 3: 17-19; I Tim. 1:3; 4: 13; 6: 3-5, 20-21; II Tim. 4: 1-5; Tit. 1:9-16; 2:1; 3: 10; II Jn. 8-11)
The Second Advent of Christ: We believe in that blessed hope: the personal, imminent return of Christ Who will rapture every believer prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation period, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom. (Ps. 89: 3-4; Dan. 2: 31-45; Zech. 14: 4-11; I Thess. 1: 10; 4: 13-18; Tit. 2: 13; Rev. 3: 10; 19: 11-16; 20: 1-6)
The Eternal State: We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and eternal punishment. (Ps. 89: 3-4; Dan. 2: 31-45; Zech. 14: 4-11; I Thess. 1: 10; I Thess. 4: 13-18; Tit. 2: 13; Rev. 3: 10; 19: 11-16; 20: 1-6)
A. The Redeemed: We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where they consciously await their bodily resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Lk. 23: 43; II Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1: 23; 3: 21; I Thess. 4: 16-17; Rev. 20: 4-6)
B. The Unbelievers: We believe that all unbelievers will, after death, dwell in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, at which time the soul and body will be 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. (Matt. 25: 41-46; Mk. 9: 43-48; Lk. 16: 19-26; II Thess. 1: 7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20: 11-15)
Creation: We believe that God created the heavens and the earth and all that is therein in six literal twenty-four-hour periods by the word of His mouth. We reject the evolutionary theory, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution Theory. We accept the Genesis account of creation as literal, and not allegorical or figurative; that all animal and vegetable life was created directly, and man, God’s supreme creation, only was created in the image and likeness of God, and are to reproduce after its own kind. (Gen. 1-2; Ex. 20:11; Neh. 9:6; Job 12:7-9; Jn. 1:1-3; Acts 4: 24; 17:24-26; Rom. 1: 20; Col. 1: 16-17; Heb. 11: 3; Rev. 4: 11)
Family Relations: We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society, and that, even though men and women are spiritually equal in position before God that He has ordained them with distinct and separate functions: the husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church; the wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to Christ. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values and leading them, through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. (Gen. 1: 26-28; Ex. 20: 12; Deut. 6: 4-9; Ps. 127: 3-5; Prov. 19: 18; 22: 15; 23: 13-14; Mk. 10: 6-12; I Cor. 7: 1-16; Gal. 3: 28; Eph. 5: 21-33; 6: 1-4; Col. 3: 18-21; I Tim. 2: 8-15; 3: 4-5, 12; Heb. 13: 4; I Pet. 3: 1-7)
Marriage and Divorce: We believe that the marriage union is one man united together, in the sight of God and man, with one woman until death parts them. We therefore reject same sex unions, whether under the bond of lawful marriage or in companionship. (Gal. 3: 28; Col. 3: 18; I Tim. 2: 8-15; 3: 4-5, 12)
A. Divorce: We believe that God disapproves of and forbids divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Divorce and remarriage is regarded as adultery, although, divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service; they may not be considered for the offices of pastor or deacon. (Mal. 2: 14-17; Matt. 19: 3-12; Mk. 10: 2-12; Rom. 7: 1-3; I Tim. 3: 2, 12; Tit. 1: 6)
B. Human Sexuality: We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged outside of marriage; and that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex; and that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance. (Gen. 2: 24; 19: 5, 13; 26: 8-9; Lev. 18: 1-30; Tom. 1: 26-29; I Cor. 5: 1; 6: 9; I Thess. 4: 1-8; Heb. 13: 4)
Abortion: We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the physical or mental wellbeing of the mother are acceptable motives for aborting human life from inside the womb. (Job 3:16; Ps. 51:5; 139:14-16; Isa. 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jer. 1:5; 20:15-18; Lk. 1:44)
Euthanasia: We believe that the direct taking of an innocent human life is a moral evil, regardless of the intention. Life is a gift of God and must be respected from conception until natural death. Thus, we believe that an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder contrary to the will of God. Discontinuing medical procedures that are extraordinary or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be a legitimate refusal of over-zealous treatment. (Ex. 20:13, 23:7; Matt. 5:21; Acts 17:28)
Civil Government: We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: The home, the church, and the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by his Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church , and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibilities under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 2:13-14)
Lawsuits Between Believers: We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (I Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)
Missions: We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ, we must use all available means to go to all people inland and across the world. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mk. 16:15; Lk. 24:46-48; Jn. 20-21; Acts 1:8; II Cor. 5:20)
Giving: We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially. We believe that God has established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made. (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; I Cor. 16:2; II Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; I Tim. 5:17-18; I Jn. 3:17)
Love: We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward both those who are not believers and those who oppose us. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or the use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflicts or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions. (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:44-48; Lk. 6:31; Jn. 13:34-35; Rom. 12:9-10, 17-21; 13:8-10; Phil. 2:2-4; II Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; I Jn. 3:17-18)
Authority of Statement of Faith
The Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe. We do believe, however, that the foregoing Statement of Faith accurately represents the teaching of the Bible, and therefore, is binding upon all members. All literature used in the church shall be in complete agreement with the Statement of Faith.