What We Teach
Our Statement of Faith
Concerning the Scriptures
We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were verbally inspired by God, working through Spirit-controlled men, and, as such, were wholly without error in the original documents. They reveal God’s will for man and are our only rule for faith, life and practice. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:19-21)
Concerning the True God
We believe in one God, the Creator of heaven and earth, eternally existing in three distinct Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, who are equal in every divine perfection, but execute distinct and harmonious offices in the great work of redemption. (Ex. 20:2-3; 1 Cor. 8:6; 2 Cor. 13:14)
Concerning the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person possessing all the attributes of personality and deity. He is equal with the Father and with the Son and is of the same substance and nature. He bears witness to and exalts the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. His revelation to the unsaved world is that He convicts of sin, righteousness, and judgement. He is the agent of the new birth in the believing sinner, whom He seals, indwells, empowers, guides, endows with gifts and teaches in the way of righteousness. (Jn. 14:16-17; 16:5-14; Heb. 9:14; Eph. 1:13-14; 1 Cor. 12)
Concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and His Second Coming
The Person and Work of Christ
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ existed eternally as the only begotten Son of God, that God the Father sent Him into the world to be the Saviour, that He was conceived by the work of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. He is both fully God and fully man, being God embodied in the flesh. He lived a sinless life and in His voluntary death, He made a full and substitutionary atonement for sinners. He was buried and rose again from the dead on the third day, and ascended bodily into heaven. He now ministers as our great High Priest at the right hand of God the Father, from where He will come again. (Isa. 7:14; Jn. 1:1, 12, 29; 1 Pet. 3:18; Phil. 2:5-11; Heb. 4:14-16)
The Second Coming of Christ
We believe that the return of the Lord Jesus will be twofold:
He will come in the clouds to receive His Church. This coming is imminent and will be personal and pre-tribulational (I Thess. 4:16; 1 Cor. 15). He will then come to earth in glory to establish His kingdom and reign. This coming will be personal and pre-millennial. (Mt. 24:29-31; Rev. 11:15; Rev. 19, 20)
Concerning Man
We believe that man was created by God in innocence but by voluntary transgression he fell from his sinless state. Because of this, all people are now sinners by nature and by choice and under just condemnation. The only hope of sinful man is found in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Gen. 1:27; Isa. 53:6; Rom. 3:23; 5:12-19; 8:1; 2 Cor. 5:17)
Concerning Salvation
We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace through the person and work of Jesus Christ. In order to be saved, the sinner must be born again, regenerated by the Holy Spirit. The new birth is wholly apart from works and is upon the sole condition of repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. That believer is then justified (declared as righteous) in the sight of God, receiving pardon of sins and the imputation of divine righteousness. This salvation is eternally secure and will be evident in holiness of life. (Eph. 2:8-9; 2 Pet. 1:4; Jn. 3:3-6; 10:28-29; Acts 13:39)
Concerning the Church
We believe in the unity of all believers in the Church, which is the Body and Bride of Christ. The Church consists of all the redeemed from the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) to the rapture.
We believe that the Church is manifested through local churches, congregations of believers under the lordship of Jesus Christ. Scriptural officers are pastors (or bishops or elders) and deacons. The doctrine, life and worship of the Church is to be governed by the Word of God, including observing the ordinances and commitment to the great commission. (Mt.28:19-20; Acts 2:41-47; 1 Cor. 12:27; 1 Tim.3:1-13; Titus.1; Rev. 19:27)
Concerning Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
We believe that Christ gave only two ordinances to the Church:
Baptism is the immersion in water of a believer to show, in a solemn and beautiful emblem, our faith in and identification with the crucified, buried and risen Saviour, through whom we died to sin and have been raised to a new life
(Acts 8:36-39; Rom. 6:3-5).The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of Jesus’ death until He comes, to be observed by believers only and always preceded by solemn self-examination.
(1 Cor. 11:23-28).
Concerning Marriage
We believe that marriage is the God-ordained union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life. This church will only solemnise marriages that conform to this Biblical definition.
Concerning Christian Living
We believe that a Christian should live an exemplary life, worthy of the Lord (Col.1:10), having been called to walk in the Spirit, in holiness and in love (Gal. 5:16; Eph. 5:2). As such, the desire and undertaking of each Christian should be as follows:
To exercise mutual care and watchfulness over each other, seeking to promote growth in Christian grace, knowledge and holiness; faithfully encouraging, exhorting and admonishing each other, as occasion may require. (Gal. 6:1; Eph. 4:16; Heb. 10:24-25)
To be careful and faithful in regularly assembling together with fellow believers at such times as the local church appoints for worship, instruction, prayer, evangelising or business; to strive for its development in the cause of Christ; to uphold its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrines; to cheerfully and systematically contribute of our material means, according as God has prospered us, for the maintenance of a faithful and evangelical ministry, for the support of the poor, and for the spread of the gospel throughout the world. (Heb. 10:25; 2 Cor. 9:1-8; Acts 1:8)
To endeavour to maintain personal and, where possible, family devotions; to train up our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord; and to faithfully witness for Christ, seeking the salvation of the lost. (Col. 3:16; Eph. 6:4; 1 Pet. 3:1)
To seek God’s help to live an exemplary life in and before the world, as a testimony to God’s grace; to be just and honest in our dealings, being sensitive to put aside any practice that opposes spiritual mindedness or may cause others to stumble, living to the glory of Him who has called us out of spiritual darkness into His light. (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 1 Pet. 2:9)
Concerning the Eternal State
We believe that those who are saved by God’s grace will spend eternity in full enjoyment of God’s presence. Those who by unbelief have never been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ will spend eternity in everlasting punishment. (Ps. 16:11; Mt. 25:46; Jn. 14:2)
Concerning Satan
We believe that Satan was created by God as an angel, but through pride and rebellion became an enemy of the Creator, drawing with him many angels. He is a personal being who is the “god of this age; the prince of the power of the air,” who seeks continually to frustrate the purposes of God and to ensnare mankind. The defeat of Satan and his angels was accomplished at the cross of Christ. At the end of the ages, their ultimate doom is to be cast into the lake of fire forever. (Eph. 2:2; Rev. 12:9; 20:10; 2 Cor. 4:4; 11:13-15)
Concerning Separation
We believe that Christians should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon the name of our Lord and Saviour (1 Thess.5:22). Therefore Biblical separation has two major dimensions:
From apostasy. The purity and integrity to read more Biblical truth must be strongly proclaimed and defended against every incidence of, or tendency toward, religious apostasy. (1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 2 Jn. 7-11; 2 Cor. 6:14-17; 7:1)
From the world. The believer should be separated to God in holy living, seeking always to walk in the ways of Christ and His Word, not loving this world and its ungodly pursuits and pleasures. (Rom. 12:1-2; Gal. 5:19-21; Prov. 6:17-19; Ps. 101:3-5; 1 Thess. 5:22)