Our Basic Beliefs
The sole basis of our beliefs is the Bible, God’s infallible written Word, all 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe that it was uniquely, and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit and that it was written without error (inerrant) in the original manuscripts. It is the supreme and final authority in all matters on which it speaks.
We accept those areas of doctrinal teaching on which, historically, there has been general agreement among all true Christians. Because of the specialized calling of our movement, we desire to allow for freedom of conviction on other doctrinal matters, provided that any interpretation is based upon the Bible alone and that no such interpretation shall become an issue that hinders the ministry to which God has called us.
1. There is one true God, eternally existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each of whom possesses equally all the attributes of Deity and the characteristics of personality.
2. Jesus Christ is God, the living Word, who became flesh through His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. Hence, He is perfect Deity and true humanity united in one person forever.
3. He lived a sinless life and voluntarily atoned for the sins of men by dying on the cross as their substitute, thus satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone.
4. He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died.
5. He ascended bodily into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, where He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own.
6. Man was created in the image of God. He sinned by disobeying God; thus, he was alienated from his Creator. That historic fall brought all mankind under divine condemnation.
7. Man’s nature is corrupted, and he is thus totally unable to please God. Every man is in need of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit.
8. The salvation of man is wholly a work of God’s free grace and is not the work, in whole or in part, of human works or goodness or religious ceremony. God imputes His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and thereby justified them in His sight.
9. It is the privilege of all who are born again of the Spirit to be assured of their salvation from the very moment in which they trust Christ as their Savior. This assurance is not based upon any kind of human merit, but is produced by the witness of the Holy Spirit, who confirms in the believer the testimony of God in His written word.
10. The Holy Spirit has come into the world to reveal and glorify Christ and to apply the saving work of Christ to men. He convicts and draws sinners to Christ, imparts new life to them, continually indwells them from the moment of spiritual birth and seals them until the day of redemption. His fullness, power and control are appropriated in the believer’s life by faith.
11. Every believer is called to live so in the power of the indwelling Spirit that he will not fulfill the lust of the flesh but will bear fruit to the glory of God.
12. Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, His Body, which is composed of all men, living and dead, who have been joined to Him through saving faith.
13. God admonishes His people to assemble together regularly for worship, for participation in ordinances, for edification through the Scriptures and for mutual encouragement.
14. At physical death the believer enters immediately into eternal, conscious fellowship with the Lord and awaits the resurrection of his body to everlasting glory and blessing.
15. At physical death the unbeliever enters immediately into eternal, conscious separation from the Lord and awaits the resurrection of his body to everlasting judgment and condemnation.
16. Jesus Christ will come again to the earth – personally, visibly, and bodily – to consummate history and God’s eternal plan.
17. The Lord Jesus Christ commanded all believers to proclaim the Gospel throughout the world and to disciple men of every nation. The fulfillment of that Great Commission requires that all worldly and personal ambitions be subordinated to a total commitment to “Him who loved us and gave Himself for us.”
Here are a few of the principles we base our beliefs on and typically coach you from...
Principle #1:
A growing relationship with Jesus Christ is essential for a healthy marriage and Godly parenting.
Explanation: Alienation from God, resulting from the Fall, affects every area of human life – including marriage (Gen. 3; Rom. 5:1-12). Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God offers human beings forgiveness, restoration, and eternal life. Marriage and family relationships can only function as God intends when husbands and wives are reconciled to God through faith in Christ, growing daily in a vital relationship with God, and deeply connected to other believers.
Application: We urge men and women to turn to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith for the forgiveness of sin, walk daily in the power Holy Spirit and live for the glory of God. We also call them to become involved in a local church and communities where they can experience grace and truth in authentic relationships with other followers of Christ.
Principle #2:
Marriage is the union of a man and a woman
in a sacred covenant instituted by God.
Explanation: Marriage was created by God (Gen. 2:18-25). God’s design for marriage involves a life-long covenant between one man and one woman (Matt. 19:4-6; Mark 10:6-8). Marriage is God’s unique gift and mystery that reveals the union between Christ and His Church (Eph. 5:22-33), provides intimate companionship for the man and woman (Gen. 2:18), expresses the gift of sexual intimacy (Gen. 2:24-25), and provides the means for the procreation of the human race (Gen 1:28). God designed the gift of sexuality to be expressed exclusively in the context of a lifelong covenant of marriage.
Application: We call husbands and wives to receive each other as God’s provision, to fulfill God’s purposes for their marriage, to respect and protect the sacred nature of the marriage covenant, and to be faithful to one another throughout their lives. We urge them to love, honor, serve, and care for one another and to pursue oneness throughout their lives. They are to extend grace to one another, and to be quick to seek and grant forgiveness.
Principle #3:
Husbands and wives possess unique callings.
Explanation: God created human beings as male and female. Both genders reflect the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27). Husbands and wives are equal in dignity and value (1 Pet. 3:7), yet they are not interchangeable. Scripture addresses husbands and wives with distinct callings (e.g., Eph. 5:22-33; Col. 3:18-19; 1 Peter 3:1-3; Titus 2:5). We believe that in marriage, husbands and wives are to live Spirit-filled lives surrendered and submitted to Jesus (Eph. 5:18-23). In that context, a husband is to love, lead, respect, and serve his wife, sacrificially laying down his life and considering the needs of his wife as more important than his own (Eph. 5:25-33a). Likewise, a wife is to love, serve, respect, and submit herself to her husband’s godly leadership (Eph. 5:22-24, 33b). Together, their relationship should reflect the relationship Jesus has with His bride, the Church (Eph. 5:32).
Application: We call men and women to joyfully embrace God’s specific calling for them as husbands and wives, and to sacrificially love and serve one another.
Principle #4:
God calls parents to pass on a spiritual
legacy to their children and grandchildren.
Explanation: Parents are God’s ambassadors to the next generation, seeking at every age and circumstance to communicate the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit to their children through the teaching of Scripture, their words, and their actions (Deut. 11:19; Prov. 1:8; Eph. 6:4; Col. 3:21) and giving their children a vision for the Great Commission (Matt 28:19-20). Parents demonstrate the love of God by consistently teaching their children right from wrong; responding appropriately to disobedience; and practicing and teaching biblical forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration of relationships.
Application: We call parents to embrace God’s design for the family and to pursue the high calling and blessing of conceiving (or adopting) and raising the children God may give them (Gen. 1:28; Ps. 127:3-5). We urge them to model and communicate the gospel of grace to their children and to raise them in the nurture and wisdom of the Lord. We call all men and women (whether single or married) to seek to actively pass on a legacy of spiritual vitality to the next generation.