Brookfield, MA
"...making fully devoted followers of Jesus"
INDEX-
Bible - God - Jesus Christ - Holy Spirit - Man - Justification - Salvation - Resurrection/Jesus Christ - Resurrection/Man - Local Church & Baptism - Lord's Supper - The Future
We believe in the absolute authority, accuracy and inerrancy of the 66 books of the Bible; it's full verbal inspiration of the original manuscripts and its all-sufficiency and final authority as the Christian's rule of faith and practice (Prv 30:5; Isa 40:8; II Timothy 3:16,17; II Peter 1:19-21).
We believe that there is but one God, the Creator, Preserver and Ruler of all things, who is perfect in holiness, and in love, infinite in wisdom and measureless in power, and who reveals Himself to us as three distinct entities, Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Dt 6:4; Ne 9:6; I Ch 29:11.12; Ex 15:11; I Jn 4:8b; Mt 28:19).
We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal and only begotten Son of God, conceived of the Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, and that He is true God and true man and is the only mediator between God and man (Mt 1:20; Lk 1:35; Jn 1:1,12,14; Jn 12:45; 14:9; I Tim 2:5).
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person, equal with the Father and the Son, and of the same substance and nature; that He convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment; that He bears witness to the church; that He is the agent of the new birth; and that at conversion He baptizes the believer into the Body of Christ; and that He seals, endues, guides, teaches, witnesses to, sanctifies and helps the believer, indwelling every true child of God (Jn 16:8-11; 3:3-7; Eph 1:13; II Cor 13:14; Jn 14:16,17, Rom 8:14-27; I Cor 12:12,13).
We believe that man was created in the image of God by direct creation and that he was originally in fellowship and communication with God. By man's choice he sinned, breaking this fellowship and incurred both physical and spiritual death. Thus all mankind by nature and by choice are sinners and unable of their own selves to re-establish fellowship with God. Apart from Christ all individuals shall be forever separated from God (Gen 1:26; Ez 18:20a; Rom 3:23; Titus 3:5; Eph 2:8,9; Rom 6:23).
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, that all who believe on Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood (I Cor 15:3,4; Rev 1:5).
We believe that salvation is by grace through faith, not of works, and that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are born again of the Holy Spirit, thereby becoming children of God. We believe in the eternal security of the believer (Eph 2:8,9; Jn 3:3,7; 1:12; 10:27-29; Rom 8:14-17).
We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His ascension into heaven and in His present ministry there for us as High Priest and Advocate.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just, the bodily resurrection of the unjust, the everlasting conscious blessedness of the saved and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost (I Cor 15:20-24; Rev 20:12-15; II Cor 5:8).
We believe that the local church is the local expression of the Body of Christ and is a voluntary association of baptized believers equal in rank and privilege, subject to the Word of God, and independent of any external ecclesiastical control whatsoever. We believe that God's Word commands every believer to be baptized by immersion in water. Though baptism has no saving merit, it does specifically demonstrate symbolically the believer's faith in and union with the crucified, buried, and risen Savior (Mt 28:19; Acts 2:41; Acts 8:38; Acts 18:8; Rom 6:3-5).
We believe that the Lord's Supper is a provision of bread and the cup which are symbolical of Christ's broken body and shed blood; that participation in the Lord's Supper is intended for saved individuals to remember the suffering and death of their Lord and in anticipation of His soon coming again; that it's observance is to involve faithful self-examination (Lk 22:19,20; I Cor 11:23-30).
We believe in the personal, visible, imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ for His church and in His coming in Glory with the believers to set up His millennial kingdom upon the earth followed by an eternal kingdom on a new heaven and earth. The saved will forever be in His presence and fellowship while the unsaved will forever be separated from God and His fellowship (I Cor 15:4; Acts 1:9-11; Heb 4:14-16; I Jn 3:1,2; I Thess 4:13-17; Rev 19:11-16; 20:1-15; 21:1-8)
