What we believe - OUR STATEMENT OF FAITH
- In essential beliefs – WE HAVE UNITY.
- This unity is a relational on, not just a theological one
- It’s based on this...
- We believe God put us together
- We believe God put us together to walk in the same direction and work towards the same goals
- We believe that God’s plan is best exemplified when we live as a settled group of believers. When we make up our minds to do life together
- And out of this unity of the believers
- comes our unity of beliefs
- and or unity of faith
- The most detrimental thing in the pursuit to obtain or maintain this kind of unity is this...
- To attack it or withdrawal from it
- To allow our opinions, stances and or convictions to become more important than our commitment to one another
Ephesians 4:4-6 (CEV)
4All of you are part of the same body. There is only one Spirit of God, just as you were given one hope when you were chosen to be God's people. 5We have only one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. 6There is one God who is the Father of all people. Not only is God above all others, but he works by using all of us, and he lives in all of us.
- In non-essential beliefs – WE HAVE LIBERTY.
- Non essential = Non specific / grey areas
- Have liberty = will not be judgmental
- This statement does not dismiss the responsibility of church leadership
- to make decisions in controversial areas
- to fight for the unity of the church
- to mediate towards a solution that will preserve the churches unity
Romans 14 (NLT)
1 Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. 4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him judge whether they are right or wrong. And with the Lord’s help, they will do what is right and will receive his approval. 10 So why do you condemn another believer? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 12 Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. 13 So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.
- In all our beliefs – WE SHOW LOVE
1 Corinthians 13:2 (NLT)
2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing.
What We Believe…
About God We believe there is only one God, He has existed forever and shows Himself to us in three ways: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
About Humanity We are made in the image of God, to be like Him in character. We are the supreme object of God’s creation. Although we have tremendous potential for good, everyone is marred by an attitude of rebellion toward God called sin. Sin separates people from God.
About Eternity People are created to exist forever. Every person will either (choose to) exist eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. God’s desire is that all people would choose Him. To be eternally separated from God is hell. To be eternally in union with Him is heaven. Heaven and hell are places of eternal existence.
About Jesus Christ (Jesus is the human face of God.) (He Jesus) is the Son of God: fully God and fully man. He is the visible image of the invisible God. He was miraculously born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and worked supernaturally in miracles and healing. He died in our place, and offers each man the forgiveness of their sins. He rose from the dead, returned to heaven, and will come again in power and glory to judge the nations and reward those who believe.
About Salvation Salvation is a gift from God to all people. Men and women can never make up for their sin by self-improvement or good works. (Sin is an attitude of rebellion towards God.) Only by trusting in Jesus Christ and accepting God’s offer of forgiveness can a person be saved from sin’s penalty. When God has begun a saving work in the heart of any person, our response to that work is faith and obedience. We don’t work to obtain God’s favor, we respond as a result of God’s favor. Our responses will include faith, repentance, baptism in Jesus name and the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Salvation is about receiving and experiencing Gods grace in obedience to God’s Word. God gives us assurance that He will keep right on helping us grow in his grace until his task within us is finally finished.
About God’s Dependability Because God gives man and woman eternal life through Jesus Christ, and adopts them as His own, salvation is received and maintained by the grace and power of God—not by the self-effort of the Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives believers the assurance of salvation. No power in the universe can separate God’s children from Him.
About the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is the active presence of God at work in our world. He is the promised gift from God that is experienced by each individual in a real and personal way. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth and guidance in doing what is right. The Christian seeks to live under His (direction, control) daily.
About the Bible The Bible, both Old and New Testaments, is God’s word to all. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Sprit. The Scriptures are inspired by God, and are infallible and inerrant in the original manuscripts. They are the unique, full and final authority on all matters of faith and practice, and there are no other writings similarly inspired by God.
About Faith and Practice Scripture is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice. This church recognizes that it cannot bind the conscience of individual members in areas where Scripture is silent. Rather, each believer is to be led in those areas by the Lord, to whom he or she alone is ultimately responsible.
The local church is for Christians to receive instruction and encouragement for their daily living and training to make disciples of all men
About The Church We believe God has individually equipped us and corporately gathered us as His body in this world so that we together can fulfil His purpose for our lives, which is to worship God, support the body and share the Gospel with the community in which we live. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:27; 18:22; 20:17; 1 Timothy 3:1–3; Titus 1:5–11). We believe in the autonomy of the local churches, free of any external authority and control (Acts 13:1–4; 15:19–31; 20:28; Romans 16:1,4; 1 Corinthians 3:9, 16; 1 Corinthians 5:4–7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1–4).