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The Bible is God’s Word written, inspired, infallible, and inerrant in the original manuscripts, and is the unique, full, and final authority on all matters on which it bears. The NT interpretation of the OT, both factually and theologically, represents an authoritative way of interpreting the Bible. See Psalm 119:89; Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21.
There is one true God, eternally existing in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each of whom possesses equally all of the attributes of deity and elements of personality. See Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Revelation 1:4-6.
The Lord Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, deity incarnate and born of a virgin. Although tempted by Satan, He did not sin. By His death as a substitute for sinners He infinitely satisfied divine justice and accomplished salvation for all who trust in Him alone. He rose bodily from the dead and ascended to His Father’s right hand where He now intercedes as our Great High Priest. See Matthew 3:17; Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 1:30-35; John 1:1, 14; Acts 1:10-11; Romans 3:24-25; 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 9:23-28.
The Holy Spirit was sent by the Father and the Son into the world to apply the benefits of the saving work of Christ. He enlightens the minds of sinners and convicts them of their need for a Savior. He permanently indwells from the moment of faith in Christ in every believer, whom He also seals for the day of redemption. The indwelling Holy Spirit is the available source of power, comfort, and teaching for all believers. See John 3:5-8; 14:16-26; 16:5-15; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:11; Galatians 5:22-23.
The first human, Adam, was created in the image of God. Through disobedience he sinned, choosing to go his own independent way, and thus was alienated from God, died spiritually, and suffered the corruption of his nature, rendering him unable to please God. This fall took place at the beginning of human history, and all individuals born since suffer these same consequences, are fallen, sinful, and lost and are thus in need of the saving grace of God. This saving grace cannot be experienced by any person in the world apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ. See Genesis 3:1-19; Romans 3:10-20, 23; 8:12-21; Ephesians 2:1-3.
God, out of love for the human race, sent the Lord Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, paid the full penalty for human sin when He died on the cross. Any person who believes in Jesus Christ for eternal life receives that gift which, as the words eternal life suggest, can never be lost. We believe the only right response to the Gospel of grace is faith alone in Christ alone based on His cross-work alone (Acts 16:30-31; John 3:16-18, 5:24, 6:32-40, 8:24; Romans 3:28, 4:5).
Every child of God possesses this eternal (or everlasting) life and, being regenerated, justified, and sealed by the Holy Spirit, is safe and secure for all eternity. However, a Christian can, through sin, lose his fellowship, joy, power, testimony, and reward and incur the Father’s discipline. Relationship is eternal, being established by the new birth; fellowship, however, is dependent upon obedience to the Word of God. See John 3:16-18; 5:24; 6:47; 10:27-30; Romans 3:21-25; 4:5; 8:38-39; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 2:1-10; 1 Timothy 1:15-16; Titus 3:3-7; Revelation 22:17.
All believers in the present age are members of the body of Christ, the church, and they are united to Christ and to one another by the indwelling Spirit. God has made a new creation, thus creating one new man from Jews and Gentiles who have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior (Ephesians 2:14-22). All believers are “Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise,” (Galatians 3:29). Thus, Gentiles or non-Jews who believe in Christ can trace their roots back to Abraham as the father of their faith (Galatians 3:5-9, Romans 11:11-24). The Word of God commands believers to gather together in local congregations, to devote themselves to worship, prayer, the teaching of the Bible, observance of the ordinances of water baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the edification of the body, and serving as an active witness to the unsaved world. A local expression of the church is found wherever Christians meet regularly in obedience to these commands. See Matthew 4:10; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:11-16; 5:24-30; Colossians 3:16; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Hebrews 10:23-25.
At physical death the believer enters immediately into eternal, conscious fellowship with the Lord and the unbeliever into eternal separation from Him. The bodies of all the dead shall be raised: those of believers to a resurrection of glory; those of unbelievers to a resurrection of eternal condemnation. All of the lost will experience conscious, physical punishment in a literal place called the lake of fire, forever. See Luke 16:19-31; Philippians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 2 Peter 3:8-13; Revelation 20:1-15; 21:1-22.
One day, God’s will on earth will be done as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:9-13). God’s kingdom will be fully realized on a renewed earth with a redeemed people in resurrection bodies (Romans 8:19-21). Death will be forever banished (I Corinthians 15:26).
Currently, a resurrected Jesus sits on King David’s throne in heaven advancing his kingdom in heaven and on earth (Acts 2:22-36, Hebrews 1:1-4). With his death, resurrection and ascension, Jesus secured the new covenant he promised at the last supper (Luke 22:14-20). The old covenant has been abolished and replaced by a better new covenant (Hebrews 8:13). Jesus Christ is the fulfillment to which all the shadows, symbols and prophecies of the Old Testament pointed (Colossians 2:16-17, Hebrews 10:1).
Jesus predicted the transition from the old covenant to the new covenant in Matthew 24 when he said the temple in Jerusalem would be destroyed within a generation (Matthew 24:1-34). In the Old Testament, God came in the clouds several times to judge nations (Isaiah 19:1-2). Because coming in the clouds is symbolic language for judgment, no one ever saw God in the clouds with their physical eyes. Jesus came in the clouds in A.D. 70 by destroying the temple in Jerusalem and judging Israel in the great tribulation foretold by Jesus and the prophets, thus completing the transition from the “last days” of the old covenant to the new covenant in which all who believe in Christ are now temples of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 24:20-22, Matthew 26:64, Revelation 1:7, I Corinthians 6:19). The old covenant temple in Jerusalem was a shadow that pointed to the greater reality of when God would indwell his people through the Holy Spirit as predicted by the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
The transition from the old covenant to the new covenant is now complete (Hebrews 8:6-13). The reign of Jesus over the universe began at his ascension and is now in session (Daniel 7:13-14, Hebrews 1). The kingdom of Jesus Christ is increasing every day as the gospel of grace is preached to peoples of all nations (Colossians 1:23). There will be no end to the increase of the Lord’s kingdom (Isaiah 9:6-7). May his kingdom increase greatly through this ministry!
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