User:Afaprof01/Sandbox

DOCTRINAL STATEMENT OF FAITH

We believe…


 * …in one true Living God, the Creator, eternally existing in three persons—eternally exists as Father, as Son, and as Holy Spirit.
 * …Jesus Christ is God. He became God in human form through His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. He is perfect Deity and true humanity in one Person.
 * …that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice; and that all who believe in Him are justified on the basis of His shed blood. He did this by living a sinless life and voluntarily atoning for our sins by dying on the cross as our substitute, accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone. Those who believe and trust in Jesus has eternal life. Those who do not will not see life, but God’s wrath remains on them.
 * …that Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after His death on the cross, thus confirming for all time the fact that He is the spotless Lamb of God, the one and only Son of the Living God.
 * …that Jesus ascended bodily into heaven. He will come again to the earth—personally, visibly and bodily—to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.
 * …that Jesus is the only way by which everlasting life can be experienced. He is the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by Him.
 * …that every person is in need of a personal salvation, because “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” A person’s salvation is wholly a work of God’s free grace and has nothing to do with any personal goodness or righteousness or religious ceremony. God bestows His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and thereby justifies them in His sight. Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and church membership or affiliation are acts of obedience.
 * …that at the very moment a person trusts Christ—believing and trusting in Him as their personal Savior, they experience “salvation,” or the “new birth.” This is when a person becomes a true Christian—a believer in and follower of Jesus Christ.
 * …that every Christian has the privilege of being assured of their salvation. This assurance is not based upon any kind of human merit, but is a gift from God, based upon the believer’s faith in Christ.
 * …that Christ commanded all believers to proclaim the gospel throughout the world and to make disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe all things which He has commanded us.