DOCTRINAL STATEMENT OF BELIEFS
Section 1 – The Bible
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired
Word of God. We further believe that the Holy Scriptures have been completely and perfectly preserved
for the world in the 1611 King James Version of the Bible. We believe that all other versions, excluding
none, are perversions and corruptions of the true Word of God and, therefore, none may be used in any
service or ministry of the church. We believe that the sixty-six (66) books of the Old and New Testament
are the complete and divine revelation of God to man (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).
We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men supernaturally inspired; that it has truth without any
admixture of error for its matter; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the age, the only
complete and final revelation of the will of God to man, the true center of Christian union and the supreme
standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.
A. By "The Holy Bible" we mean the collection of sixty-six books, from Genesis to Revelation, which as
originally written and providentially preserved does not only contain and convey the Word of God, but IS
the very Word of God. At times these words were spoken and later written; at times they were simply
written. Either way, they are the words of God.
B. By "inspiration" we mean that the books of the Bible were written in such a definite way that those
writings are as certainly the words of God as they would be if God had penned them Himself. No other
writings can claim to be inspired as the Bible is inspired. Inspiration is not just a work of the past but is
also a work of the present. When the words of God are read or heard, the Holy Spirit gives them by
inspiration.
C. As God inspired His Word, we believe that God preserved His Word in the form of the Authorized King
James Version. We believe the King James Version to be the infallible and inerrant Word of God.
We believe that the absolute, sole, authoritative rule for faith and practice is the perfect, preserved word
of God, which, for English speaking people, is the Authorized King James Version.
Ps 12:6,7; 2 Tim 3:16-17; 2 Pet 1:19-21; Jn12:48-50; Acts 1:16; Ps 119:89, 105, 130, 160; Jn 17:17; 1
Pet 1:23; Matt 24:35; Lk 24:25-27; 44-45; Rom 15:4; Lk 16:31;
Prov 30:5-6; Rom 3:4; Ps. 19:7-11
Section 2 – 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 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; Eph 3:2-10; Col 1:24-25, 27; Rev 20:2-6
Section 3 – The True God
We believe that 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, there are three persons, the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Ghost, equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the
great work of redemption.
Ex 20:2-3; Deut 6:4-5; Mk 12:30; Gen 17:1; Is 43:10-12; 1 Cor 8:6; Eph 4:6; Jn 4:24; Ps 147:5; 83:18;
90:2; Jer 10:10; Ex 15:11; Rev 4:11; 1 Tim 1:17; Rom 11:33; Matt 28:19;
1 Jn 5:7; Matt 3:16-17; 2
Cor 13:14; Jn 1:1, 14; 10:30; 7:5; Phil 2:5-6; Jn 15:26; 1 Cor 12:4-6; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Cor 3:17; 1 Cor 2:1011; Eph 2:18
Section 4 – Jesus Christ
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. We believe that God manifested himself in the flesh, in the person of Jesus
Christ, who is both the Son of God and the Son of man. We believe that he lived a perfectly sinless life
on this earth.
1 Tim 3:16; Is 7:14; Lk 1:35; Jn 1:1-2, 14; Mk 1:1; Matt 1:1, Matt 9:6; Gal 4:4-5; Heb 4:15; 1 Pet 2:22
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a
representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His literal,
physical resurrection from the dead.
Phil 2:5-8; Eph 1:7; 2 Cor 5:19-21; 1 Pet 2:24; Rom 3:24-25; 1 Pet 1:3-5
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; 2:31-36; Heb 9:24, 7:25; Rom 8:34; 1 Jn 2:1-2
Section 5 – The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine person; equal with God the Father and God the Son, and of the
same nature; that He was active in the creation; that He reproves the world of sin, of righteousness, and
of judgment; that He bears witness to the Truth of the Gospel in preaching and testimony; that He is the
agent in the New Birth; and that He indwells, comforts, seals, fills, guides, teaches, sanctifies, helps and
assures the Believer; that he intercedes for the Believer, reveals the scripture to him, and endues him
with power.
We believe that baptism by the Holy Ghost into the body of Christ occurs at salvation and that there is no
verse in the Bible that commands believers that they must speak in tongues or perform miracles in order
to prove that they are baptized by the Holy Ghost or filled with the Spirit.
Matt 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Cor 3:17; Gen 1:1-3; Ps 104:30; Jn 16:8-11; 15:26-27; Acts 5:30-32; Jn 1 :33;
Heb 9:14; Jn 3:5-6; Eph 1:13; Jn 14:16-17; Acts 4:31; Jn 16:13; Rom 8:14; Jn 14:26; 2 Thes 2:13; 1 Pet
1:2; Rom 8:16; Rom 8:26-27; 1 Cor 2:10-16; Lk 24:49; 1 Cor 12:13; Acts 11:16
Section 6 – The Devil
We believe that Satan was once holy, and enjoyed heavenly honors as the anointed cherub that covered
the throne; that through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, he fell and drew after him a host of
angels; that he is now the malignant prince of the power of the air, and the unholy god of this world. We
hold him to be man's great tempter, the enemy of God and His Christ, the author of all false religions, the
chief power back of the present apostasy, the lord of the antichrist, the accuser of the saints, and the
author of all the powers of darkness, though he is transformed into an angel of light. We believe that he
is 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.
Ezek 28:13-17; Is 14:12-15; Eph 2:2; Jn 14:30; 2 Cor 4:4; 1 Thes 3:5; Matt 4:1-11; Matt 13:25, 37-39; 1
Pet 5:8; Lk 22:3-4; Mk 13:21-23; 1 Jn 4:3; 2 Jn 7; 1 Jn 2:22; Rev 13:13-14; 2 Thes 2:3-10; 2 Cor. 11:1315; Rev 12:7-10; 1 Jn 3:8; Rev. 19:20; 20:1-3, 10; Jude 6; 2 Pet. 2:4; Matt 25:41
Section 7 – Creation
We believe in the Genesis account of creation, and that it is to be accepted literally, and not allegorically
or figuratively; that man was created directly in God's own image and after His own likeness; that man's
creation was not a matter of evolution or evolutionary change of species or development through
interminable periods of time from lower to higher forms; and that all animal and vegetable life was made
directly and God's established law was that they should bring forth only "after their kind."
Gen 1-2; Jn 1:1-3; Mk 13:19; Heb 11:3; Col 1:15-17; Rom 1:20; Acts 17:28-29; Col 2:8; 1 Tim 6:20; Rom
1:22-27
Section 8 – Man
We believe that man was created in innocence under the law of his maker, but by voluntary transgression
fell from his sinless and happy state, in consequence of which all men and women are now sinners, not
by constraint, but of choice, and are therefore under just condemnation without defense or excuse.
Gen 3:1-6; Rom 5:12, 19; Rom 3:10-19; Eph 2:1-3; Gal 3:22; Rom 1:18; Rom 1:32; Rom 1:20
Section 9 – The Atonement for Sin
We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace; through the mediatory office of the Son of God,
who by appointment of the Father, freely took upon Himself our nature, yet without sin, honored the divine
law by His personal obedience, and by His death made a full and vicarious atonement for our sins; that
His blood atonement consisted not in setting us an example by His death as a martyr, but was the
voluntary substitution of Himself in the sinner's place, the just dying for the unjust, Christ, the Lord,
bearing our sins in His own body on the tree; that, having risen from the dead, He is now enthroned in
heaven and uniting in His wonderful person the most tender sympathies with divine perfection. He is in
every way qualified to be a suitable, a compassionate, and an all-sufficient Savior.
Eph 2:8; Acts 15:11; Jn 3:16; Matt. 18:11; 1 Tim 2:5; Heb 9:12-15; Phil 2:7; Heb 2:14; Heb 4:15; 1 Pet
2:22; Is 53:4-7; Rom 3:25; 1 Jn 4:10; 1 Cor 15:3; Heb 9:22; Col 1:14; Eph 1:7; 2 Cor 5:21; Jn 10:18; Phil
2:8; Gal 1:4; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Pet 3:18; Is 53:11-12; Heb 12:2; 1 Cor 15:20; Heb 7:25; 1 Jn 2:2
Section 10 – The New Creature
We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be born again; that the new birth makes us new
creatures in Christ Jesus; that the new birth is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the
one dead in trespasses and sins is made a partaker of the divine nature and receives eternal life, the free
gift of God; that the new birth is brought about in a manner above our comprehension, not by culture, not
by character, nor by the will of man, but wholly and solely by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection
with the divine truth, so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the gospel; and that its proper evidence
appears in the holy fruits of repentance and faith and newness of life.
Jn 3:3; 1 Jn 5:1; Jn 3:6-7; 2 Cor 5:17; Eph 2:1; Col 2:13; Rom 6:23; Jn 1:12-13; Gal 5:22; Eph. 5:9; 2 Pet
1:4;1 Jn 3:1-3; Phil 3:21
Section 11 – Free Salvation
We believe in God's electing grace; that the blessings of salvation are made free to all by the gospel; that
it is the immediate duty of all to accept them by a cordial, penitent and an obedient faith; and nothing
prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth but his own inherent depravity and voluntary
rejection of the gospel; which rejection involves him in an aggravated condemnation. We believe in
salvation by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary plus nothing. Therefore,
we do not believe that works are necessary for salvation, although once a person is saved, he should be
careful to maintain good works.
Rom 5:15-18; 1 Thes 1:4; 1 Pet 1:2; Tit 1:1; Eph 2:8-9; Tit 3:5; Rom 10:9-10, 13; Is 55:6-7, Jn 3:15-16; 1
Tim 1:15; Heb 2:3; Jn 3:18, 36; Tit 3:8
Section 12 – Justification
We believe that the great gospel blessing which Christ secures to such as believe in Him is justification;
that justification includes the pardon of sin, and the gift of eternal life on principles of righteousness; that it
is bestowed, not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done, but solely through
faith in the Redeemer's blood as His righteousness is imputed to us; and that the sinner is justified the
moment he receives Jesus Christ.
Acts 13:39; Rom 8:1; 5:9; 5:1; Tit 3:5-7; Rom 1:17; Gal 2:16, 3:11; Rom 4:1-8; 1 Cor 6:11
Section 13 – Repentance and Faith
We believe that Repentance and Faith are solemn obligations, and also inseparable graces, wrought in
our souls by the quickening Spirit of God, thereby; being deeply convicted of our guilt, danger,
helplessness, and of the way of salvation by Christ, we turn to God with unfeigned contrition, confession,
and supplication for mercy; at the same time heartily receiving the Lord Jesus Christ and openly
confessing Him as our only and all-sufficient Savior.
Acts 20:21; Mk 1:15; Lk 13:3, 5; 18:13; Acts 26:20; 1 Thes 1:9; Ps. 51:1-4; Is 55:6-7; Rom 10:9-10, 13; Lk
12:8
Section 14 – The Church
We believe that the church, which is the body of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born-again
Christians. The Lord Jesus Christ is the foundation and head of the Church and the head of every true
local church.
Eph 1:22-23; Col 1:18, 24; Eph 5:23-24, 30-32; 1 Cor 12:13
We believe that a local Baptist Church is a congregation of baptized Believers associated by covenant of
faith and fellowship of the gospel, said church being understood to be the citadel and propagator of Divine
and Eternal Grace; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His laws; exercising the gifts, rights,
and privileges invested in them by His Word; that its officers of ordination are pastors (also referred to in
Scripture as elders), and deacons, whose qualifications, claims, and duties are clearly defined in the
Scriptures; and we believe the true mission of the church is found in the Great Commission: first, to make
individual disciples; second, to edify the church; and third, to reach others and instruct them as He has
commanded. We do not believe in the reversal of this order; we hold that the local church has the right of
self-government, free from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations; that the one
and only superintendent is Christ through the Holy Spirit; that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate
with each other in contending for the faith and for the furtherance of the Gospel; that every church is the
sole and only judge of the measure and method of its cooperation; and on all matters of membership, of
policy, of government, of discipline, of benevolence, the will of the local church is final.
Acts 2:41-42; 1 Cor 11:2; Col 1:18; Eph 5:23-24; Acts 14:23; Acts 20:17-28; 1 Pet 5:1-4; 1 Tim 3:1-13;
Acts 6:5-6; Eph 4:11-16; Matt 28:19-20; 1 Cor 12:4; 1 Cor 12:8-11
Section 15 – Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a Believer in the name of the Father, of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost, with the authority of the local church, to show forth in a solemn and beautiful
emblem our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, with its effect in our death to sin and
resurrection to a new life; that it is prerequisite to the privileges of a church relation and to the Lord's
Supper, in which the members of the church, by the sacred use of bread and the fruit of the vine are to
commemorate together the dying love of Christ, preceded always by solemn self-examination. We
believe that baptism and the Lord’s Supper constitute the only two scriptural ordinances for the church,
but that neither has any saving power.
Matt 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; Acts 8:36-39; Acts 10:47-48; Matt 3:16; Rom 6:3-5; 1 Cor 11:23-33
Section 16 – The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ
forever. We believe that it is the privilege of Believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation
through the testimony of God's word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an
occasion to the flesh.
Jn 5:24; Jn 6:37-40; Jn 10:27-30; Rom 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor 1:4-8; 1 Pet 1:4-5; Rom 13:13-14; Gal 5:13; Tit
2:11-15
Section 17 – The Righteous and the Wicked
We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that
such only as through faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and sanctified by the Spirit of God,
are truly righteous in His esteem; while all such as continue in impenitence and unbelief are in His sight
wicked, and under the curse, and this distinction holds among men both in and after death, in the
everlasting felicity of the saved and the everlasting conscious suffering of the lost
Mal 3:18; Gen 18:25; Prov 11:31; Rom 6:23; Rom 6:16-18; 1 Pet 1:18-19; Rom. 1:17; 1 Cor 15:22; 1 Jn
5:19; Gal 3:10; Rom 7:6; Prov 14:32; Lk 16:25; Matt 25:34,41, 46; Jn 8:21; Matt 7:13-14
Section 18 – Civil Government
We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the
home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the
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 responsibility under God.
Eph 5:22-24; 1 Cor 11:3; Eph 6:1-3; Col 1:18; 1 Pet 5:1-4; Matt 18:17-18; 1 Cor 14:40; Rom 13:1-7; 1 Pet
2:13-14; Matt 22:21; Acts 4:19-21; 2 Sam 23:3; Ex 18:21; Heb 13:17
Section 19 – Resurrection, Return of Christ, and Related Events
We believe in and accept the sacred Scriptures upon these subjects at their full face value. Of the
Resurrection, we believe that Christ rose bodily the third day according to the Scriptures; that He alone is
our merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God; that “this same Jesus, which is taken up
from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven” - bodily,
personally, and visibly; that at the rapture of the church the dead in Christ shall rise first; that the living
saints shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; that at the Second
Coming of Jesus the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David; and that Christ shall
reign a thousand years in righteousness until He hath put all enemies under His feet.
Matt 28:6-7; Mk 16:6, 19; Lk 24:2, 4-6; Lk 24:39; Jn 20:27; 1 Cor 15:4; Acts 1:9-11; Lk 24:51; Heb 8:1, 6;
Rev 3:21; Heb 12:2; 1 Tim 2:5; 1 Jn 2:1; Heb 2:17; 5:9-10; Jn 14:3; 1 Thes 4:16-17; 1 Cor 15:42-44;
15:50-55; Matt 24:27, 42; Heb 9:28; Lk 1 :31-33; Is 11:4-5; Ps 72:8; Rev 20:1-4, 6; 1 Cor 15:25
Section 20 – Missions
We believe that the command to give the gospel to the world is clear and unmistakable and this
commission was given to the church. It is the church's clear responsibility to carry out this commission by
sending forth those whom God has called. The equipping and supplying of these "missionaries" is solely
the duty of the church.
Matt. 28:18-20; Mk 16:15; Jn 20:21; Rom 10:13-15; Acts 1:8; Acts 13:1-3
Section 21 – The Grace of 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; Heb 7:2-4; Lev 27:32; Prov 3:9-10; 1 Cor 16:1-2; 2 Cor 9:6-8; 2 Cor 8:8-12; Acts 20:35
Section 22 – Human Sexuality
We believe that God has commanded that a man and a woman shall not engage in intimate sexual
activity outside of marriage. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality,
incest, fornication, and adultery are sinful perversions of God's gift of sex. We believe that God
disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one's gender by surgery or appearance. We believe that
the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one man and one woman.
Gen 2:24; Heb 13:4; Eph 5:22-33; Rom 7:2-3; 1 Cor 7:10-11; Gen 26:8-9; Lev 18:1-30; 1 Cor 5:1-5; 6:910; 1 Thes 4:1-8; 1 Cor 6:13-16; Gen 19:5, 13; Rom 1:26-28; 1 Cor 5:11-13
Section 23 – Family Relationships
We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God but that God has ordained
distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and the church. The husband is
to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and deacons) of the church.
Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. We believe that God has
ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. 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 the headship of Christ. Children are “an heritage of the Lord.” 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; Gal 3:28; Col 3:18-19; 1 Pet 3:1-7; Eph 5:21-33; 1 Cor 7:1-16; 1 Tim 2:8-15; Mk 10:6-12; Ps
127:3-5; Eph 6:1-3; Ex 20:12; Col 3:20-21; Eph 6:4, Deut 6:4-9; I Tim 3:4-5, 12; Prov 19:18; 22:15; 23:1314
Section 24 – Divorce and Remarriage
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 except on the defined grounds of the
Scripture. These grounds are fornication and desertion. These instances of divorce clearly involve an
innocent party. It must be noted that there are many divorced who have since truly repented of
wrongdoing. The position of this church is that in the above instances, the role of this church is not
punitive. Divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service deemed
appropriate by this church's leadership, including the positions of pastor, assistants to the pastor and
deacons.
Mal 2:14-17; Matt 19:3-12; 1 Cor 7:1-16, 27-28, 39; Rom 7:1-4; Hos 2:1-2; 1 Tim 3:2, 12; Tit 1:6
Section 25 – Abortion
We believe that human life begins at conception and 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, and birth or
population control are acceptable.
Job 3:16; Ps 51:5; Is 44.24; 49:1, 5; Jer 1:5; 20:15-18; Lk 1:44
Section 26 – Lawsuits Between Believers
We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christian individuals or
the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe that 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