ALL ABOUT JESUS
STATEMENT OF FAITH
- Revelation and the Word of God. The Bible is God‘s revelation, the Word of God. It is the ultimate authority for faith and practice.
- God. There is one true God existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is true God and man. He suffered as a substitutionary sacrifice to provide eternal salvation for mankind. He was buried and on the third day He rose again and ascended into heaven where he is now seated at God‘s right hand, ruling over all things and interceding for us as Advocate and High Priest, until He comes again to establish His kingdom upon the earth.
- The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a Divine Person, the Executive of the Godhead; the Comforter who indwells, guides and empowers the believers for victorious living and effective service. He calls and keeps the church in faith and holiness, and convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness and judgment.
- Man’s Sin and Guilt. Man was created in the image and likeness of God; hence, he is of infinite worth and dignity. Through disobedience, he fell into sin and incurred physical and spiritual death.
- Salvation. Salvation is by grace through the redemption provided by the Lord Jesus Christ and received by faith in Him. Upon repentance from sin and the exercise of faith in Christ, the believer is justified in God‘s sight, adopted into God‘s household, born again, and united in Christ.
- The Church. The church is the community of believers from all cultures, tribes and languages. It is called to belong to Christ, to confess and proclaim His lordship among peoples. Thus the church is commissioned to: (1) make disciples of all nations and integrate them into local congregations; (2) proclaim the uniqueness and finality of Christ; (3) manifest God‘s sovereign rule by proclaiming the Gospel through acts of justice, righteousness, mercy and peace. The sacraments/ordinances to be observed are Baptism and the Lord‘s Supper. 1) Baptism symbolizes the believer‘s identification with Christ in his death and resurrection, and expresses his resolve to die to sin, self and the world and be loyal to Christ. 2) The Lord‘s Supper is a proclamation of Christ‘s death, a remembrance of the Lord, and a renewal of commitment of the participants.
- The Ministry. The whole church is commissioned to continue and fulfill the mission of Christ. All believers serve God and their fellowmen in the church and in the world by the exercise of spiritual gifts and through their earthly occupations and stations in life. Within the ministry of the people of God are those who are called and ordained to perform special functions like Gospel proclamation, shepherding, equipping the body of believers and administration of the sacraments/ordinances.
- Sanctification and Power for Service. God wills the consecration and sanctification of all believers, thereby receiving power for holy living and effective service. Sanctification occurs after conversion, but it should be a continuing and growing experience. The believer the power of the Holy Spirit for service.
- Divine Healing and Health. In his mercy, power and sovereign will, God can heal the sick. Provision is made in the atoning death of Christ for the healing of the body. The anointing with oil and praying for the sick by the elders of the church, as set forth in James 5:13-16, is to be practiced.
- Christian Hope and the Life to Come. God will accomplish his eternal purpose in history and bring all things to their consummation in Christ. In the end, Christ will come again personally and visibly to establish God‘s rule over all things. At His coming, God will call believers to eternal life, and unbelievers will be judged for their sins and suffer everlasting punishment. See less
The Fourfold Gospel of The Christian and Missionary Alliance
We understand Jesus Christ is central throughout the Scriptures, and we express Him and His fullness in a fourfold way known as “the Fourfold Gospel.”
- Christ our Savior… we proclaim that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He died, the just for the unjust, and gave His life as a ransom for our lives. We teach that we are redeemed through His precious blood, justified by His death and resurrection, made righteous through His righteousness, and accepted by God in His Name. The man or woman who puts personal trust in Jesus Christ as Savior becomes a new creation. (Ephesians 2:8; 2 Corinthians 5:17)
- Christ our Sanctifier… we understand that sanctification is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself dwelling in our hearts and walking in our steps so that we live like Him. This means coming to the end of ourselves and our self-sufficiency to such an extent that we willingly receive Christ as Lord of all. The sanctified life is subsequently a matter of simple dependence, moment by moment, on Christ alone. We must yield ourselves completely to God and place full confidence in Christ as our Sanctifier to live His life through us each day. The divine agent in this experience is the Holy Spirit. It is His function to make the Lord Jesus known to us as our Sanctifier and then to reveal Him to us moment by moment for the supply of every need in our spiritual life. This experience of Christ as Sanctifier marks a definite and distinct crisis in the history of a person’s relationship with Christ. (I Corinthians 1:30; Romans 12:1-2)
- Christ our Healer… we affirm that the Lord Jesus Christ purchased and provided for His believing and obedient followers physical strength and healing. “He bore our sicknesses” as well as our sins. From His risen life and from His touch we by faith may draw strength and take health until our life’s work is done. The first condition of “the Lord for our physical bodies” is that we are completely yielded to Him, using the life He gives us for His glory and service. Second, we must believe, without a doubt, the promise of His Word for our own strength and healing. Third, we must abide in Him for our physical life and draw our strength moment by moment through personal dependence upon Him. “[He] healed all that were sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah.” (Matthew 8:16, 27)
- Christ our Coming King… we agree that the Lord Jesus is going to personally return to this earth again. This return will be as visible as when He went away. His coming will establish the millennium – His own glorious reign of righteousness and peace. He will be enthroned King of Kings and Lord of Lords before whom every knee will bow and confess that Jesus is Lord. Our hope of His return must be a mighty force motivating us to holiness, watchfulness, and to an earnest faithfulness in helping to send the gospel as a witness to all persons. We participate in His return as stated, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” (Matthew 24:14)