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The Holy Scriptures
We believe that "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God," by which we understand the whole Bible is inspired in the
sense that holy men of God "were moved by the Holy Spirit" to write the very words of Scripture. We believe that while there
was progress in revelation from God, this divine inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the writings -
historical, poetical, doctrinal, and prophetical and to the smallest word and inflection of a word as appeared in the
original manuscripts. We believe that the whole Bible in the originals is therefore without error.
We believe that all Scriptures centre about the Lord Jesus Christ in His person and work in His first and second coming,
and hence that no portion, even of the Old Testament, is properly read or understood until it leads to Him. We also believe
that all the Scriptures were designed for our practical instruction (Matt. 5:18; Mark 12:26, 36; 13:11; Luke 24:27, 44;
John 5:39; Acts 1:16; 17:2-3; 18:28; 26:22-23; 28:23; Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 2:13; 10;11; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1;20-21).
The Godhead (The Holy Trinity)
We believe that the Godhead eternally exists in three persons - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit - and that these
three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections, and worthy of precisely the same homage,
confidence and obedience (Matt. 28:18-19; Mark 12:29; John 1:14; Acts 5:3-4; 1 Cor. 13:14; Heb. 1:1-3; Rev. 1:4-6).
Man Created and Fallen
We believe that man was created by God as a human being, and did not evolve from a lower order of life. We be-lieve that man
was originally created in the image and after the likeness of God and that he fell through sin and, as a consequence of his
sin, lost his spiritual life becoming dead in trespasses and sins, and that he became subject to the power of the devil.
We also believe that his spiritual death, or totally depraved human nature, has been transmitted to the entire human race of
man, the Man Christ Jesus alone being excepted; and hence that every child of Adam is born into the world with a nature which
not only possesses no spark of divine life, but is essentially and unchange-able bad apart from divine grace
(Gen. 1:26; 2:17; 6:5; Psalm 14:1-3; 51:5; Jer. 17:9; John 3:6; 5:40; 6:53; Rom. 3:10-19; 8:6-7; Eph. 2:1-3;
1 Tim. 5:6; 1 John 3:8).
The Great Commission:
We believe that it is the explicit message of our Lord Jesus Christ to those whom He has saved that they are sent
forth by Him into the world even as He was sent forth of His Father into the world. We believe that after they are saved they
are divinely reckoned to be related to this world as strangers and pilgrims, ambassadors and witnesses, and that their
primary purpose in life should be to make Christ known to the world
(Matt. 28:18-19; Mark 16:15; John 17:18; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:18-20; 1 Pet. 1:17; 2:11).
The Holy Spirit:
We believe that the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the blessed Trinity, though omnipresent from all eternity, took up His
abode in the world in a special sense on the day of Pentecost according to the divine promise, dwells in every believer and,
by His baptism, unites all to Christ in one body and that He, as the indwelling One, is the source of all power and all
acceptable worship and service. We believe that He never takes His departure from the church, nor from the feeblest of the
saints, but is ever present to testify of Christ; seeking to occupy believers with Him and not with themselves nor with their
experiences. We believe that His abode in the world in this special sense will cease when Christ comes to receive His own at
the completion of the church (John 14:16-17; 18:7-15; 1 Cor. 6:19; Eph. 2:22; 2 Thess. 2:7).
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