Our Beliefs

The Individual

THE INDIVIDUAL- Humanity was created by the special act of God, in his own image, and is the crowning work of his creation. In the beginning, man and woman were innocent of sin and were endowed by the Creator with freedom of choice. By their free choice, they sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Through the temptation of Satan, human beings transgressed the command of God and fell from their original innocence, whereby human posterity inherited a nature and an environment inclined toward sin. As soon as the individual is capable of moral action, he or she becomes a transgressor and is under condemnation. Only the grace of God can bring a person into divine fellowship and enable one to fulfill the creative purpose of God. The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created men and women in his own image, and in that Christ died for all; therefore, every human being possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.

SALVATION- We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace by faith in the mediatorial office of the Son of God, who freely took upon himself our nature, yet without sin, honored the divine law by his personal obedience, and by his death made a full atonement for our sins and that having risen from the dead, he is now enthroned and is in every way qualified to be a suitable, compassionate, and all-sufficient Savior.

REGENERATION- We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be regenerated or born again; that regeneration consists in giving a holy disposition to the mind; that it is affected in a manner above our comprehension by the power of the Holy Spirit, in connection with divine truth, so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the Gospel; and that its proper evidence appears in the holy fruits of repentance and faith and newness of life.

REPENTANCE AND FAITH- We believe that repentance and faith are sacred duties of every person and also inseparable graces, wrought in our souls by the regenerating Spirit of God, whereby, being deeply convinced of our guilt, danger, and helplessness, and of the way of salvation by Christ, we turn to God in humility, godly sorrow, confession, and supplication for mercy–at the same time receiving heartily Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord and relying upon him alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life.

SANCTIFICATION- We believe that those who have been truly regenerated are also sanctified; that sanctification is God's will; that it is a progressive work; and that it is begun in regeneration and is carried on in the hearts of believers by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in the continual use of the appointed means, especially the Word of God, self-examination, self-denial, watchfulness, and prayer.

GRACE- We believe that those who are true believers will never fall away from the state of grace but will persevere to the end.

The Church

THE CHURCH- A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel, observing the two ordinances of Christ, committed to his teaching, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by his Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth.

This church is an autonomous body operating through democratic processes under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. In such a congregation, members are equally responsible. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons. The New Testament speaks also of the church as the body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages.

BAPTISM- Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer's death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Jesus Christ. It is a testimony to the believer's faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, baptism in prerequisite to the privileges of church membership.

LORD'S SUPPER- We believe that the Lord's Supper is to be administered with the breaking of the bread and serving of the cup and is to be observed by his churches until the end of the world; that it is in no sense a sacrifice, but it is designed to commemorate his death; that it calls for, and is preceded by, the most solemn self-examination.

LORD'S DAY- We believe that the first day of the week is the Lord's Day; that it is a Christian institution for regular observance, that it should be kept sacred and be employed in exercises of worship and spiritual devotion, both public and private.

STEWARDSHIP- God is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual. All that we have and are we owe to him. Christians have a spiritual debtorship to the whole world, a holy trusteeship in the gospel, and a binding stewardship in their possessions. They are, therefore, under obligation to serve God with their time, talents, and material possessions; and should recognize all these as entrusted to them to use for the glory of God and for helping others. According to the Scriptures, Christians should contribute of their means cheerfully, regularly, systematically, proportionately, and liberally for the advancement of the Redeemer's cause on earth.

EVANGELISM AND MISSION- We believe that the Great Commission as recorded in Matthew 28:18-20 requires and empowers our church body and its members as individuals to take part in local, state, home, and foreign missions. This is done by individual witnessing and the support of missions through voluntary cooperation with other Southern Baptist churches in mission effort at home and abroad through the Cooperative Program. We believe that mission organizations within the church encourage individual commitment to missions, and we pledge to these organizations our prayers and support.