The following comprise the Scriptural beliefs of First Baptist Church and its members. All church, school and daycare policies are subject to this statement of faith.
The Bible
We believe the Bible to be the inerrant, infallible Word of God, fully and verbally inspired of Him, and preserved as the Old and New Testament in the sixty-six Books from Genesis to Revelation. We believe that the Bible is the sole authority for the faith and practice of individual Christians and of the church. First Baptist Church has chosen to use the King James Version of the Bible for all preaching. We will not level criticism toward or separate from like-minded churches or Christian organizations that choose to use different translations of the Bible. We will make a conscious effort to remove the distraction of the Bible-version discussion from our conversation and focus rather on Jesus Christ, adherence to His Word, and advancement of His kingdom. (Psalm 12:6-7; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Peter 1:23-25; 2 Peter 1:19-21)
God
We believe in one and only one living and true God named JEHOVAH. He is eternal, self-existent, unchanging, and infinite in power and glory. We believe He is One God who eternally exists in three divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Jeremiah 10:10; 1 Timothy 1:17, 4:10; James 1:17; 1 John 4:4)
Jesus Christ
We believe Jesus Christ is eternally God, possessing all the attributes of Deity as the one and only Son of God and Savior of mankind. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was virgin-born and that He was both fully man and fully God. We believe that He was offered for all mankind as a substitutionary sacrifice for man’s sin. This sacrifice was a just payment to God for the forgiveness of man’s sin. The wrath of God was satisfied by Jesus’ death through the shedding of His blood on the cross and the acceptance of His sacrifice was signified by His literal, physical resurrection. We believe He ascended into Heaven after His resurrection to be seated at the right hand of the Father. (Psalm 2:7-9; Isaiah 7:14, 9:6, 43:11; Micah 5:2; Matthew 1:25; Luke 1:26-35; John 1:1-4, 14, 18, 29; Romans 3:19-25; Romans 5:6-15; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:15-19, 2:9; 1 Timothy 2:5; 1 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 7:26, 9:24-28; 1 Peter 1:19; 1 John 1:3)
The Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit of God is a unique person of the Godhead, yet possesses all the attributes of Deity. We believe the Holy Spirit has always been involved in the affairs of mankind. Since Pentecost, He indwells all believers and His ministry includes reproving the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit was also sent to regenerate, sanctify, seal, illuminate, comfort and fill all who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. We believe that the miraculous sign gifts of the Spirit have ceased as a regular part of the Christian church. (Genesis 1:2; John 3:5-6; John 14:16,26; Acts 1:5, 2:1-4; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 1 Corinthians 12:13, 1 Corinthians 13:8-10)
Sin and Salvation
We believe that sin is any violation of the perfect character of God. We believe that all men were born with an inherited sin nature received from our common ancestor, Adam. We believe that because of this nature, man chooses to sin and is totally incapable of reforming himself or ceasing from his sin by his own power. We believe the only hope of deliverance for man is a total change of his heart and mind concerning his sinful condition and inability to change it, and a turning to Jesus Christ as the only Savior. We believe that only through the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross can a man be delivered from his sin and have permanent assurance of eternal life. We believe that all those who reject Jesus Christ as their Savior are already condemned to an eternity in the lake of fire. (Genesis 3:1-7; John 3:18; John 5:24; John 10:27-30; Acts 16:31; Romans 3:10-23; Romans 5:6-12; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:31-39; Romans 10:9-10; Ephesians 2:8-9; Philippians 1:6; Titus 3:5-6; James 2:10; 1 John 3:4; Revelation 20:11-14)
The New Testament Church
We believe that the Church was established at Pentecost with the empowering of the Holy Spirit. We believe the local church is composed of members who have been saved and baptized according to the command of Christ, and have voluntarily united together for the purposes of worship, fellowship, service, and observance of the ordinances of baptism (by immersion) and communion. We believe the Church will be taken up at the rapture, just prior to the Tribulation. (Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 2:1-4,41-43; Acts 11:15; Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 15: 51-58; Ephesians 1:12-14; Ephesians 5:25-30; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Timothy 3, Revelation 3:10)
The Last Days
We believe in the pre-tribulational rapture of the church saints, followed by the seven-year Tribulation. We believe in the pre-millennial return of Christ to the earth and His literal rule of 1,000 years. Following this one-thousand-year reign will be the Great White Throne judgment for unbelievers and the creation of a new heaven and new earth for believers. (1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9; Titus 2:10-15; Revelation 3:10; Revelation 19-22)
Separation and Sanctification
We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon the name of Jesus Christ. God commands individual believers and the church to separate from practices of worldliness while pursuing holiness. (Romans 12:1-2; 14:13; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; Galatians 5:16-26; 1 Thessalonians 5:22; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; 1 Peter 1:16; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11)
Creation
We believe that God created everything that is not Himself in six literal, consecutive 24-hour periods. We reject any unscriptural theories of origin including Evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-age Theory, Theistic Evolution, and Intelligent Design not attributed to God. (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11; Colossians 1:16-17; John 1:3)
Angels
We believe that God created an innumerable company of sinless, spiritual beings known as angels; that one, “Lucifer, son of the morning” – the highest in rank – sinned through pride, thereby becoming Satan; that a great company of the angels followed him in his moral fall, some of whom became demons and are active as his agents and associates in the prosecution of his unholy purposes, while others who fell are “reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day”. We believe that a greater company of angels kept their holy estate and are before the throne of God from where they are sent out as ministering spirits to believers. (Job 1:6; Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Luke 15:10; Hebrews 1:14; 1 Timothy 3:6; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6, Revelation 7:11,12)
The Lord’s Day
We believe, in keeping with the practice of the New Testament church, that Sunday is the best day for the regular gathering of the church for worship and fellowship. (John 20:19; Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; Colossians 2:16-17; Hebrews 10:24-25; Revelation 1:10)
Civil Government
We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced these responsibilities with the understanding that each institution has the right to influence without infringing upon another. The home, the church, and the state are sovereign in their respective Biblically-assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Acts 5:29; Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 5-6; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:13-14)
Human Sexuality
We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between one man (human that is born genetically male) and one woman (human that is born genetically female). We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery, hormonal therapy or appearance. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen. 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1: 26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess.4:l-8; Heb. 13:4) We believe that the only Scriptural marriage is the joining of one man and one woman, as defined above. (Gen. 2:24; Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor. 7:10; Eph. 5:22-23) The church will only allow for traditional marriages between one man and one woman to take place on the church property and its pastoral staff will only engage in moderating traditional marriages between one man and one woman.
- All people are welcome to attend our regular worship services
- All church, school and daycare policies are subject to this statement on human sexuality
- The enrollment of any student shall automatically terminate without notice if the student is actively involved in any conduct contrary to biblically ordained sexuality described in “Human Sexuality” above.
- The enrollment of any student or child shall terminate if the parents of that student or child are known to be actively involved in any conduct contrary to biblically ordained sexuality described in “Human Sexuality” above.
Family Relationships
We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in their position before God but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and in the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12) We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to the headship of Christ. Children are a gift from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values and leading them, through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. (Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalm 127:3-5; Proverbs 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mark 10:6-12; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-33; 6:1-4, Colossians 3:18-21; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1-7)
Divorce and Remarriage
We believe that God disapproves of divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. However, we believe that the church should promote all biblical marriages, and thus we will endeavor to establish, encourage and equip God-honoring marriages. Although divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service, they may not be considered for the offices of pastor, ministerial staff or deacon. (Malachi 2:14-17; Matthew 19:3-12; Romans 7:1-3; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)
Abortion
We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. We reject any teaching that abortions are acceptable. (Job 3:16; Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)
Lawsuits between Believers
We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (1 Corinthians 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)