The Bible

 

The Bible is the authoritative and inerrant Word of God; it is God’s revelation about Himself to man. The Bible alone is the complete and final authority in settling all doctrinal truths. It is historically accurate and internally consistent, telling one story of redemption pointing to Jesus Christ.

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God used over 40 different authors to write the 66 books of the Bible, all being divinely directed by the Holy Spirit. The Bible is the living Word of God, applicable to all time, and is not only the measure and standard of truth, but truth itself.

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Numbers 23:19 | Psalm 12:6 | Proverbs 30:5 | John 17:17 | 2 Timothy 3:16 | 1 Peter 1:20-21 | 2 Timothy 3:16 | Hebrews 4:12

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The Trinity
 

There is only one God, who exists and has been revealed to us in three persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), yet is one in essence and being. Each fully-God and equal in every way.

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While the word “trinity” never appears in Scripture, it is an accepted doctrine based on the Bible’s teachings as a whole. We see throughout Scripture, evidence of the Trinity.

 

Genesis 1:26 | Psalm 45:6-7 | Psalm 110:1 | Isaiah 6:8 | Matthew 3:16-17 | Matthew 28:19 | John 1:1-5 | John 13:20 | 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 | 2 Corinthians 13:14 | Ephesians 2:18 | 1 Peter 1:2

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God the Father

 

The first member of the Trinity is God the Father. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all things. 

 

God is sovereign and infinite, meaning He has no limitations. God the Father can be intimately known but because of His infiniteness, He can never be fully known. 

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God the Father can only be known through Jesus.

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Genesis 1:1 | Colossians 1:16 | Acts 4:24 | Hebrews 1:3 | Revelation 4:11 | Psalm 145:3 | Jeremiah 9:23-24 | Romans 11:33 | Matthew 11:27 | John 14:6

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Jesus

 

Jesus is the second member of the Trinity and the Son of God. 

 

He is God incarnate as man, and He was both fully God and fully human. He was born of a virgin, Mary, and conceived by the Holy Spirit. He lived a perfect and sinless life in order to be a holy and worthy sacrifice. He was tempted as we are tempted, He suffered as we have suffered, yet He did not fall into sin. 

 

He came to serve and not to be served. Jesus was betrayed, beaten, mocked, and crucified on the cross where He died. Jesus’ life was not taken from Him by anyone; He gave it as a willing sacrifice for everyone. Three days later Jesus rose from the dead, conquering sin and death and showing His power over both.

 

After He rose from the dead, He was on earth for 40 days before He ascended into Heaven. Jesus will return one day to rule and reign forever, judge the world, and take those who follow Him to live in the presence of God for eternity.

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Luke 24:39 | John 1:1 | John 1:18 | Romans 9:5 | Colossians 1:19 | Colossians 2:9 | Matthew 1:18-20 | Luke 1:34-35 | John 15:10 | 2 Corinthians 5:21 | Hebrews 4:15 | Hebrews 9:26 | 1 Peter 3:18 | 1 John 3:5 | Hebrews 2:18 | Hebrews 7:26 | Philippians 2:5-11 | Matthew 27:27-30 | Mark 15:24 | Luke 23:26-49 | John 19:16-37 | John 10:18 | Matthew 28:1-20 | Mark 16:1-8 | Luke 24:1-53 | John 20:1-23 | 1 Corinthians 15:20 | Ephesians 1:19-20 | 1 Peter 1:3 | Luke 24:50-51 | Acts 1:9-11 | Matthew 25:31-46 | John 14:2-3

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Holy Spirit

 

The Holy Spirit is the third member of the Trinity.

 

The Holy Spirit is promised to those who profess faith in Jesus; the Holy Spirit is the presence of God living inside each follower of Christ. The Holy Spirit teaches and bears witness about Jesus.

 

He empowers those who follow Jesus in different forms of ministry; He gives different spiritual gifts to followers of Jesus for the purpose of ministry. He empowers prayer. He gives strength and empowers followers of Jesus to overcome spiritual opposition. He sanctifies followers of Jesus. He convicts the world of sin. He guides. He gives assurance of salvation to followers of Jesus.

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Acts 2:38 | Romans 8:9-11 | John 14:26 | John 15:26 | John 16:7-15 | Acts 1:8 | 1 Thessalonians 1:5 | 1 Peter 1:12 | 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 | Romans 8:26 | Ephesians 2:18 | Matthew 12:28 | Ephesians 6:10-18 | 1 Corinthians 6:11 | 2 Thessalonians 2:13 | Titus 3:4-7 | Romans 8:14 | Galatians 5:16-18 | Romans 8:16 | Ephesians 1:13-14

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Man
 

All humans were created by God, in his image, and were free from sin. Man chose to sin in the Garden of Eden, and thus separated himself from a perfect and holy God. As a result, all are born (Christ excluded), a sinner, and incapable of pleasing God on their own. The penalty for sin is death, both physically and spiritually.

 

Genesis 1:27 | Genesis 5:1-2 | Romans 3:23 | Romans 5:12 | 1 Corinthians 15:49 | Colossians 3:10

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Salvation
 

Salvation is a gift from God that can never be earned through good works or self-improvement. Salvation is only given by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, the redemption of our sin. Salvation is based on the work of Jesus on the cross where He sacrificially died, bearing the sin and punishment of all mankind, and paying the price required of sin for all those who believe in Him.

 

John 1:12 | John 3:16 | Ephesians 1:7 | Ephesians 2:8-9 | Romans 3:23-25 | Romans 5:6-9 | Romans 6:23

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The Church
 

Jesus is the Head of the Church, which is made up of a community of all true followers of Jesus Christ. The church is fixed on the command to go and make disciples of all people, and to love as he has loved us. All true disciples should be committed and active in a local body, where they are engaging others with the hope of Christ, and serving one another.

 

Ephesians 5:23 | Matthew 28:18-20 | Acts 1:8 | 1 Corinthians 12:12-14 | Ephesians 1:22-23 | Hebrews 10:25 | Colossians 3:16 | Ephesians 1:12 | Ephesians 5:16-20 | Psalm 9:10 | Jeremiah 9:24 | 2 Corinthians 4:6 | Phillipians 3:10 | Colossians 1:9-10 | 1 Thessalonians 5:17 | Matthew 28:19 | Matthew 20:26-28 | Luke 6:35-36 | Acts 14:21-22 | 1 Thessalonians 5:11 | Ephesians 4:12-13 | Colossians 1:28 | Hebrews 13:17

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Baptism

The Bible teaches that we are saved by grace through faith. Baptism is a public confession of that faith in Jesus to God, the church, and the world.

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Following our understanding of Scripture, we practice baptism by immersion; the Greek word used exclusively throughout the New Testament for baptism is “baptiso,” which means to plunge, dip, or immerse. Jesus modeled this form of baptism and commanded it, making baptism a symbolic act of obedience and faith. Baptism by immersion represents the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, symbolizing our old self dying, being buried in the water, and raised as a new creation in Christ Jesus.

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Anyone who has professed faith in Jesus Christ should be baptized.

 

Ephesians 2:8 | Matthew 10:32 | Matthew 3:13-17 | Matthew 28:19 | Romans 6:3-4 | 2 Corinthians 5:17 | Acts 2:38 | Acts 8:12 | Acts 8:36-38 | Acts 10:44-48

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Eternity
 

Man was created for eternal existence. Jesus will return in the last days as he has promised to establish his kingdom and to judge the living and the dead. Those who have rejected Jesus on earth will be separated from Him by their sin in a real place of eternal conscious punishment called Hell. Those who have trusted in Christ will be given new bodies and receive the reward of eternal life, in the presence of God in real places, the new Heaven and the New Earth.

 

Matthew 24:44 | John 14:3 | Acts 1:11 | 1 Thessalonians 4:16 | Hebrews 9:28 | Revelation 22:20 | Romans 14:10-12 | Revelation 20:11-15 | Romans 2:5-8 | 2 Corinthians 5:10 | Matthew 25:34 | Romans 8:1 | 2 Peter 3:13 | Matthew 25:41 | Matthew 25:46 | Revelation 14:9-11