Statement of Faith

1. We believe that love for one another as Jesus loves the believer manifests our discipleship, proves our love for God and symbolizes our authority as New Testament churches. Love is therefore the great commandment of the Lord Jesus Christ upon which all others are dependent (Matt. 22:35-40; John 13:34-35; John 15:12; 1 John 4:7-21; 1 John 5:1-3; Rev. 2:4-5).

2. We believe in the infallible, verbal inspiration of the whole Bible and that the Bible (King James Version) is the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice (Psa. 119:160; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet 1:19-21).

3. We believe in the personal triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, equal in divine perfection (Matt 3:16-17; Matt. 28:19; 1 John 5:7).

4. We believe in the Genesis account of creation (Genesis chapters 1 and 2; Psalms 33:6-9).

5. We believe that Satan is a fallen angel, the archenemy of God and man, the unholy god of this world, and that his destiny is the eternal lake of fire (Isa. 14:12-15; Ezek. 28:11-19; Matt. 25:41; 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 6:10-17; Rev. 20:10).

6. We believe in the virgin birth and sinless humanity of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:18-20; Luke 1:26-38; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet.2:22).

7. We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ (John 10:30; John 1:1, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19).

8. We believe the Holy Spirit is the divine Administrator for Jesus Christ in His churches (Luke 24:49; John 14:16-17; Acts 1:4-5, 8; Acts 2:1-4).

9. We believe that miraculous spiritual manifestation gifts were done away when the Bible was completed. Faith, Hope and Love are the vital abiding Spiritual Gifts (1 Corinthians chapters 12-14).

10. We believe that man was created in the image of God and lived in innocence until he fell by voluntary transgression from his sinless state, the result being that all mankind are sinners (Gen. 1:26; Gen. 3:6-24; Rom. 5:12, 19).

11. We believe that the suffering and death of Jesus Christ was substitutionary for all mankind and is efficacious only to those who believe (Isa. 53:6; Heb. 2:9; 1 Peter 2:24; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 John 2:2).

12. We believe in the bodily resurrection and ascension of Christ and the bodily resurrection of His saints (Matt. 28:1-7; Acts 1:9-11; 1Cor. 15:42-58; 1Thess. 4:13-18).

13. We believe in the pre-millennial, personal, bodily return of Christ as the crowning event of the Gentile age. This event will include the resurrection of the righteous to eternal heaven, and the Millennium will be followed by the resurrection of the unrighteous unto eternal punishment in the lake of fire and that the righteous will enter into the heaven age (John 14:1-6; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 2 Thess. 2:8’ Rev. 19; Rev. 20:4-6; Rev. 20:11-15; Rev. 21:8).

14. We believe that the depraved sinner is saved wholly by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and the requisites to regeneration are repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. (Luke 13:3-5; John 3:16-18; Acts 20:21; Rom. 6:23; Eph. 2:8-9)

15. We believe that the moment a person repents of his sin and places his faith in Jesus Christ as Savior, he is born again, becomes a child of God, is personally indwelt by the Holy Spirit, receives forgiveness of all his sins and receives eternal life. He is also assured that from the moment of his physical death he will forever be in the presence of Christ, that he will be in the first resurrection and that he will not suffer any punishment in Hell or the Lake of Fire, regardless of the degree of his faithfulness to God. This is because he is saved and kept wholly by God’s grace, apart from works. (John 3:36; John 5:24; John 10:27-30; Rom 8:35-39; Heb 10:39; 1 Pet 1:5; John 3:6; John 16:8-9; Rom 8:9-11; 1 Cor 6:19-20; Eph 2:8-9; Eph 4:30; Titus 3:5)

16. We believe that God deals with believers as His children, that He chastises the disobedient, and that He rewards the obedient (Matt. 16:27; Matt. 25:14-23; John 1:12; Heb. 12:5-11; 2 John 8; Rev. 22:12).

17. We believe that Jesus Christ established His church, the body of Christ, during His ministry on earth and that it is always a local, visible assembly of scripturally baptized believers in covenant relationship to carry out the Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ, and each church is an independent, self-governing body, and no other ecclesiastical body may exercise authority over it. We believe that Jesus Christ gave the Great commission to the New Testament churches only, and that there has been a succession of true churches adhering to the doctrines and practices of the New Testament from the time of Christ to this day, and that the churches of this Association are so identified. (Matt. 4:18-22; Matt. 16:18; Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 1:14-20; John 1:35-51; Eph.3: 21)

18. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ will choose His Bride from the faithful members of His new Testament Churches (2 Cor 11:1-3; Rev 19 7-8)

19. We believe that there are two pictorial ordinances in the Lord’s churches: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Scriptural baptism is the immersion of penitent believers in water, administered by the authority of a New Testament church in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Lord’s Supper is a memorial ordinance, restricted to the members of the church observing the ordinance (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 8:12,38; Rom. 6:4; 1 Cor. 5:11-13; 1 Cor. 11:1-2; 17-20, 26).

20. We believe that there are two divinely appointed offices in a church, pastors and deacons, to be filled by men whose qualifications are set forth in Titus and 1Timothy.

21. We believe that all associations, fellowships, and committees are and properly should be, servants of, and under the control of the churches (Matt. 20:25-28).

22. We believe in freedom of worship without interference from the government and affirm our belief in civil obedience, unless the laws of and regulations of civil government run contrary to the Holy Scriptures (Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Pet.2:13-15)

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, ensuring that there is no prohibition on the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble…

A. We believe that civil government is

1. Of divine appointment, for the interests and good order of human society; (Gen 9:5-6)

2. That magistrates are to be prayed for, conscientiously honored and obeyed; a. Except in things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ (Rom 13:1-7)

B. God approves of Nationalism not Internationalism (Gen. 12:2)."And I will make of thee a great nation…
1. He promised to make a great nation of Ishmael. Gen. 17:20, "And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful,

and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him

a great nation."
2. He promised to bless all the nations of the earth through Abraham. (Gen. 18:18,

"Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the

nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?"

     C. No Scripture instructs man to set up a world government.
          1.       It does however, teach about many nations.
          2.       God stopped man's early attempt to build a one world government at Babel.                                                 (Gen. 11:1-9),

D. They have the authority to make laws and enforce them

23. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of, a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance (Gen 2:24; Gen 19:5, 13; Gen 26:8-9; Lev 18:1-30; Rom 1:26-29; 1 Cor 5:1; 1 Cor 6:9; 1 Thess 4:1-8; Heb 13:4).

24. We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one natural born man and one natural born woman. (Gen 2:24; Rom 7:2; 1 Cor 7:10; Eph 5:22-23)