Proposed Update to Statement of Faith (from Pastoral Body)
voted and approved unanimously by pastoral body

The Holy Scriptures

We believe in the verbal (every word) and plenary (complete) inspiration of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments;1 that they are a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction with salvation as their purpose;2 that they were written by men carried along by the Holy Spirit;3 that they are the final authority for faith and life,4 inerrant in the original writings, infallible and God-breathed;5 and that they are the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, interpretations, and opinions shall be tried.6

    1. Matthew 5:17-18; Luke 24:44; Romans 15:4; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 3:15-16
    2. Psalm 19:7-10; 119; 2 Timothy 3:15; James 1:21; 1 Peter 1:23-25
    3. John 14:25-26; 16:13-15; Acts 1:16; 3:21; 2 Peter 1:19-21
    4. John 8:31-32; Acts 20:32; 2 Peter 1:3-4; 1 John 4:6; 2 John 1:9
    5. Proverbs 30:5-6; Isaiah 40:8; John 10:34-35; 17:14-17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13
    6. Isaiah 8:20; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; 1 John 4:1-6

The Godhead

We believe in one triune God whose name is Yahweh,1 perfect in His unique attributes (eternality, immutability, self-existence, self-sufficiency, omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence)2 and moral attributes (holiness, truthfulness, righteousness, justice, love, goodness, grace, mercy, wisdom);3 that He is the Creator, Sustainer, and Ruler of all things,4 eternally existing in three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit),5 co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory,6 executing distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and redemption.7

    1. Exodus 3:13-15; Deuteronomy 6:4-5; Isaiah 46:9; Matthew 28:18-20
    2. Psalm 90:2; 139:1-10; Isaiah 40:28; Jeremiah 32:17; Malachi 3:6; Acts 17:24-25; Romans 1:19-20; 11:33-36; 1 Timothy 6:15-16; James 1:17
    3. Exodus 15:11; 34:6; Psalm 99:3, 5, 9; 119:137; Job 12:13; Jeremiah 9:24; John 14:6; Romans 2:2-5; Ephesians 2:4-5; 1 John 4:7-8, 16; 1 John 5:20
    4. Psalm 2; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Hebrews 11:3
    5. Matthew 3:13-17; 28:18-20; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 4:4-6
    6. John 1:1-2; 10:30; 15:26; 17:5; Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 2:10-11
    7. Genesis 1:1-2; John 1:3; 15:26; Ephesians 1:3-14; 2:18; Colossians 1:16-18

We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit1 whose fatherhood pertains to His relationship within the Trinity,2 His special relationship with those who become His children through faith in Jesus,3 and His attitude toward all of His creation;4 that He reigns with providential care, governing and disposing all things according to the purpose of His grace;5 that He hears and answers prayer;6 and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ.7

    1. Psalm 147:5; Jeremiah 29:11-13; Matthew 23:9; John 4:23-24; Romans 1:7; Revelation 1:6
    2. Matthew 3:16-17; John 5:36-38; John 6:37-40; John 10:14-18, 27-30; John 15:26; John 17:20-26
    3. Matthew 6:25-33; John 1:9-13; 17:9-11; Romans 8:12-17; 2 Corinthians 6:18; Galatians 4:6-7
    4. Matthew 5:44-46; Matthew 6:26, 28-32; Matthew 10:29
    5. Psalm 104:27-29; Isaiah 46:8-10; Acts 17:24-29; Ephesians 1:3-6
    6. Psalm 17:6; 66:19-20; Matthew 6:6; Luke 11:5-13; John 18:7-8
    7. John 3:16; 6:27; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 1 Peter 1:3

We believe in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, fully God and fully man;1 that He is God manifested in the flesh, conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary;2 that He lived a sinless life on earth;3 that He died on Calvary’s cross, shedding His blood as the only satisfactory sacrifice for sinners and payment for sin;4 that He was buried and rose bodily from the dead;5 that He ascended to Heaven and is now seated at the Father’s right hand in Heaven interceding for us;6 and that He is coming again to gather His saints and judge the world.7

    1. Isaiah 9:6-7; Mark 14:61-62; John 1:1-14; 8:58; 20:28-31
    2. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:16-25; Luke 2:6-7; Galatians 4:4; 1 Timothy 3:16
    3. 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22
    4. Romans 3:22-26; Hebrews 2:14-18
    5. Acts 4:10-12; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8
    6. Acts 5:30-31; Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 3:22
    7. Matthew 16:27; John 14:3; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; 2 Timothy 4:1; Hebrews 9:27-28; Revelation 20:4-6, 11-15

We believe in the Holy Spirit, called the Helper, the third person of the Holy Trinity, co-equal with God the Father and God the Son;1 that He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment;2 that He is the supernatural agent in regeneration;3 that He indwells all believers and seals them unto the day of redemption;4 that He illuminates, empowers, teaches, and guides believers;5 and that He gives gifts to believers for the edification of the church.6

    1. John 14:16-18; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Corinthians 13:14
    2. John 16:7-11
    3. John 3:5-7; Titus 3:5
    4. Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22
    5. Acts 1:8; Romans 8:14; 1 Corinthians 2:10-13; Galatians 5:16, 22-2
    6. 1 Corinthians 12:3-11; Romans 12:3-8; Ephesians 4:7-12; 1 Peter 4:10

Creation

We believe that in the beginning it pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,1 for the manifestation of the glory of His eternal power and divine nature,2 to create by His word out of nothing the heavens and the earth, and all things therein, visible and invisible, in the space of six days, evening and morning, without any evolutionary process, and all very good;3 that man was formed from the dust of the ground by a direct act of God;4 and that all men are descended from the historical Adam and Eve, first parents of the entire human race.5 

    1. Genesis 1:1-2; Job 33:4; John 1:3; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:2
    2. Psalm 19:1-6; Proverbs 3:19-20; Romans 1:20
    3. Genesis 1; Isaiah 42:5; 45:18; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 11:3; 2 Peter 3:5-7
    4. Genesis 2:7-8; 3:19, 23; Ecclesiastes 12:7; 1 Corinthians 15:45-49
    5. Luke 3:23-38; Acts 17:26; 1 Corinthians 15:45-47

Man

We believe that God created man in His own image to enjoy fellowship with man, and man with Him, through which man would glorify Him;1 that He made them male and female, breathed into him the breath of life, and gave them dominion over the earth;2 that He formed Eve to be a helper fit for Adam and to be his companion for life;3 and that He joined one man and one woman together in marriage, establishing from the beginning a monogamous pattern of spiritual, emotional, and physical union.4

    1. Genesis 1:26-28; John 17:3; Ephesians 4:24; Philippians 1:11; 1 John 1:3; Revelation 21:3, 7; 22:3-5
    2. Genesis 1:26-28; 2:7; 9:1-3, 7; Psalm 8:5-8 
    3. Genesis 2:18; Romans 7:2-5
    4. Genesis 2:22-24; Matthew 19:5-6; Mark 10:6-9; Ephesians 5:25-33; Hebrews 13:4

Marriage, Family, and Sexuality

We believe that God established the institution of marriage in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve;1 that this institution of monogamous marriage between male and female is not only the foundation of the family and basic structure of human society, but pictures Christ’s union with His people through a male groom and female bride; that for these reasons, marriage is defined as the union of one biological man and one biological woman;2 that an authority structure exists within the family: the Lord is the Head of the home, the husband is the head of the wife, and children are to obey and honor their parents;3 that God gave the gift and pleasure of marital intimacy for the mutual benefit of husband and wife, for the bearing of children, and for the prevention of immorality;4 that Christians are to marry only other Christians or remain single as God enables them;5 that children are to be seen as gifts from God and are to be raised for God’s glory and service;6 and that deviations from God’s plan for human sexuality include all sexual activity outside the covenant of marriage, including adultery, pornography, incest, bestiality, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, transgenderism, pedophilia, polygamy, and polyamory, and, therefore, are sinful and harmful practices, contrary to God’s plan for the individual, family, and society.7

    1. Genesis 2:21-24; Matthew 19:4-6
    2. Ephesians 5:22-32; Revelation 21:9-13
    3. Ephesians 5:22-28; 6:1-3; Colossians 3:18-21
    4. Genesis 1:28; 1 Corinthians 7:2-3; Hebrews 13:4
    5. 1 Corinthians 7:8-9, 25-28; 2 Corinthians 6:14
    6. Psalm 127:3-5; Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21
    7. Leviticus 18:6-18, 20-25; 20:10-21; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 15-20; 1 Thessalonians 4:2-8

The Fall

We believe that man was created in innocence, subject to his Maker;1 that he fell by voluntary transgression from that holy and happy state of fellowship with God;2 that consequently, all creation was subjected to death, suffering, and futility, and all mankind are now sinners,3 not by constraint, but by choice;4 that though the image of God remains, he is by nature utterly void of that holiness required by the law of God, positively inclined to evil;5 and that he is therefore under just condemnation to eternal ruin, without defense or excuse.6

    1. Genesis 1:27-31; 2:15-17; Ecclesiastes 7:29; Acts 17:26-29
    2. Genesis 1:31; 3:1-24; Romans 5:12
    3. Genesis 2:17; Psalm 51:5; Romans 3:23; 5:15-19; 6:23; 8:7, 19-23; Ephesians 4:17
    4. Genesis 6:5, 12; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 1:18; 1:32; 2:1-16; 3:9-19; 8:6-8; James 1:13-15
    5.  Genesis 9:6; Psalm 51:5; Romans 7:18-24; Ephesians 2:1-3; James 3:9
    6. Ezekiel 18:19-20; Romans 1:18-20; 3:19; Galatians 3:10, 22; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9

Salvation

Repentance, Faith, and Justification
We believe salvation is a gift of eternal life wholly by the grace of God apart from merit or works;1 that a person is saved when he turns to God with sincere confession and repentance,2 and faith in Jesus Christ as Lord, relying on Him alone as the only and all-sufficient Savior;3 and that all who believe in Him are justified (declared righteous) on the basis of His perfect righteousness, substitutionary death by shedding His blood on the cross, and bodily resurrection.4

    1. Romans 3:28; 4:5; 6:23; 11:6; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5
    2. Luke 15:18-21; 18:13-14; Acts 2:37-38; Romans 10:9
    3. John 3:16-18; 5:24; 6:68-69; Acts 16:30-31; Romans 10:9-13; 1 Timothy 2:5-6
    4. Romans 3:24-25; Romans 4:6-8, 23-25; Romans 5:9; Romans 10:10; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 2:16-17; Philippians 3:9