THE ARTICLES OF FAITH are incorporated in the Trust Deed of the property which is dated September 26, 1889, and declares that the property “…shall be held for the use of the members of a Regular Baptist Church, which shall be exclusively composed of person who have been baptized by immersion, on a personal profession of their faith in Christ, and holding the following doctrines, that is to say: The being and unity of God; the existence of three equal persons in the Godhead; the inspiration of the New and Old Testaments; the total depravity of man; election according to the foreknowledge of God; the Divinity of Christ and the all-sufficiency of His atonement; justification by faith alone in the righteousness of Christ; the work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration; perseverance of the saints; the resurrection of the dead; the final judgment; the punishment of the wicked and the blessedness of the righteous, both eternal; the immersion of believers in water in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the only baptism; the Lord’s Supper, a privilege peculiar to baptized believers; a Church, a company of believers voluntarily associated and meeting in one place on the first day of the week for mutual edification and the maintenance and propagation of these doctrines; the Word of God, a complete and infallible rule of faith and practice; the religious observance of the first day of the week; and the obligation of every intelligent creature to believe the record which God has given of His Son.”
INTERPRETATION OF THE ARTICLES OF FAITH
We believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God and therefore supremely authoritative in all matters of faith and life. By inspiration we mean the “holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost: in such a manner that the sixty-six books of the Bible, as originally written, are entirely free from error and constitute the very Word of God. II Timothy 3:16, II Peter 1:19-21
We believe in one God who is Spirit, self-existent, holy, sovereign, eternal, infinite in wisdom and power, holiness and love. He is the Creator, Upholder and Absolute Ruler of the world. John 4:24, Psalm 102:25-27, I John 4:8
We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal and pre-existent Son of God, that he was miraculously begotten of the Holy Ghost, born of Mary, a virgin, as no other man was ever born or can be born of woman. We believe that he perfectly fulfilled the requirements of the law, that He died as our substitute, “the just for the unjust to bring us to God.” We believe in His bodily resurrection for our justification, in His ascension to the right hand of God where He is our Advocate. John 1:1 Philippians 2:8 Romans 4:25 Hebrews 4:16 John 8:46 Hebrews 1:3 Luke 24:36-45 Acts 1:9 Hebrews 7:24-26 I John 2:1
We believe in the personality of the Holy Spirit Who convicts of sin and reveals Christ to men in regeneration and sanctification. He is sent forth by the Father and the Son and brings to perfection the works of God. John 14:16 Acts 2:17-18 Acts 5:3 John 16:8-10 John 15:26 Ephesians 4:30
We believe that these Three – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – are one God. Each of these is presented to us as a divine person, be distinctly recognized and adored, yet they are the same essence and are one God. Matthew 28:19, Hebrews 1:3, John 14:26
We believe that God created man in his own image and likeness. But many by his disobedience fell from the estate in which he was created. Having thus become substituionary before God he incurred physical and spiritual death. Genesis 1:27, 31, Romans 5:12, Romans 3:10-18
We believe in the substitutionary death of the Lord Jesus Christ, that redemption is provided through the blood of Christ, and that salvation freely offered by the grace of God is by faith and not of works, that this salvation received by faith is eternal. I Peter 2:24 Ephesians 1:7 Philippians 1:6 Romans 3:28 Ephesians 2:8, 9 John 10:27-30 Romans 8:29, 33
We believe that Jesus Christ will return to this earth, that this coming will be without sin unto salvation and that this coming will be personal, visible and glorious. Acts 1:9-11, Hebrews 9:28, Titus 2:11-14
We believe that a New Testament church is a body of baptized believers recognizing the Lordship of Christ, governed and guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit for worship, the observance of the ordinances, service, and the spread of the gospel through the world. Its regular officers are Pastors (Bishops) and Deacons. Acts 2:41-47, I Corinthians 1:2, I Timothy 3, Titus 1The OrdinancesWe believe in two ordinances to be observed in their scriptural order:
Acts 2:41, 42, Romans 6:3-5, I Corinthians 11:23-26
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the dead, the righteous (saved) to eternal life and blessedness with Christ, and the unrighteous (unsaved) to eternal conscious punishment and separation from God. John 5:28, 29, Luke 16:19-31, I Corinthians 15:51-58, Revelation 20:11-15
