DECLARACIÓN DE FE, DOCTRINA Y CONDUCTA
I. HOLY SCRIPTURES
We believe the Holy Scriptures are the 39 books of the Old Testament (excluding the Apocrypha) and the 27 books of the New Testament. The 66 books of the Bible are verbally inspired of God and are without error in the original. The Holy Scripture is the complete revelation of God for the salvation of man and is the only divine and final authority for faith and conduct of the Christian life. [II Peter. 1:20-21, II Timothy. 3:16-17; Revelation. 22:18-19].
II. GOD
We believe in one God who is a living, spiritual being, the Creator of all things, infinite, perfect, eternal and immutable. God exists in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The three Persons are one in nature, attributes, purpose and essence, but have distinct personalities and functions. [Genesis. 1:1, Deuteronomy 6:4, John 4:24, John 10:30, Luke 3:22, John 15:26, II Corinthians. 13:14; Mathew. 28:19].
A. God the Father
God the Father reigns over His universe and His creatures with love, mercy and justice. He is the author and source of the redemption of man and the new creation. He is Father in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. [Psalms 47, Psalms 97, Psalms 103, 15-19; I Peter. 1:2; Revelation. 21:1, John 1:12].
B. God the Son
Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God the Father. He has no beginning or end. In person and in nature He is fully God. In God's plan for redemption, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, (Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:35, John 1:14, 1 Corinthians 15:47, Galatians 4:4, 1 John 5:20). Thus He became man and is both divine and human, God and man. We believe that He physically died on the cross, and that, being both God and man, was the perfect and complete sacrifice for the sins of mankind. He was the “Messiah” to come. We believe that He rose bodily and ascended into heaven where He is now seated at the right hand of God the Father. We believe that He lives to intercede for us as our High Priest, the only mediator between God and men. [John. 1:1-14, John. 8:54-59, John. 17:5, Hebrews. 1:8, Luke 1:30-35, Isaiah. 9:6, Philippians. 2:5-11, I Corinthians. 15:3-8, Luke 24:36-43, Hebrews. 4:14-16, I Timothy. 2:5].
C. God the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person of the Trinity, equal with God the Father and God the Son. He convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. He calls men to trust in the Savior and He regenerates them. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit once and forever baptizes, seals and indwells all believers. The Holy Spirit completely fills, guides, instructs and empowers believers for holy living and Christian service. [John. 16:7-14, Acts 1:8, Acts 5:3-4, Titus 3:5, I Corinthians. 2:9-12, I Corinthians. 3:16, I Corinthians. 12:13, Ephesians. 1:13-14, Ephesians. 4:30, Ephesians. 5:18, Romans. 8:9, 16, Romans. 5:3-5, Galatians. 3:13-14].
III. THE TOTAL DEPRAVITY OF MAN
We believe that man was created directly by God and in the image of God. He was created innocent and perfect but with freewill. By his will, man sinned against God, fell from his innocent standing (Genesis 3:1-6, Ezekiel 18:19-20, Romans 1:18,20,28,30, 3:10-19, 5:12,19, Galatians 3:22, Ephesians 2:1,3,12), thereby bringing sin into the world. Therefore, all men are born with a sinful nature, separated from God and under condemnation. The natural man by himself is totally unable to fix this condition. [Genesis. 1:26; Genesis 2:7; Romans. 3:10, 23; Romans. 5:12-21; Romans. 6:23; Ephesians. 2:1-2].
IV. SALVATION
We believe that salvation is solely and entirely by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ (Isaiah 53:4-7,11,12, Matthew 18:11, John 3:16, 10:18, Acts 15: 11, Romans 3:24-25, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 20, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 1:4, Ephesians 2:8-10, Philippians 2:6-7, Hebrews 2:14, 7 : 25, 9:12-15, 12:2, 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18, 1 John 2:2, 4:10) apart from any human work. God provides salvation through the precious blood of Jesus Christ. God offers salvation to all men who accept Christ as their only and all-sufficient Savior. Salvation involves regeneration, justification, assurance, sanctification and glorification. [Ephesians. 2: 8-10; Ephesians. 1:3-7, Colossians. 1:9-14].
A. Regeneration
The Regeneration or the new birth is the work of God's grace in the believer’s life, when he becomes a new creation receiving a new nature in Jesus Christ. It is a work of the Holy Spirit who convicts men of their sin. The response of Man to this work is to repent from his sin and believe in Jesus Christ. [John. 33-5, Titus 3:5].
B. Justification
Justification is the work of God in which He declares man, who repents and believes in Christ, righteous. Justification is not by the merits of man, but by the merits of Christ. [II Corinthians. 5:21, Acts 13:38-39, Romans. 3:24-26, Romans. 5:1].
C. The Security of the Believer
We believe that all who are regenerated by the Holy Spirit are eternally secure in Christ and will never come into judgment for their sins. This security does not depend on man, but on the nature and purpose of the Father, the work of the Son, and the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. Eternal security is not a license to sin or to satisfy the desires of the flesh. [Romans. 8:38-39, Ephesians. 1:13-14, John. 10:28-29, John. 6:37, Romans. 5:1-2].
D. Progressive Sanctification
We believe that sanctification is the consecration of the believer enabling him to depart from evil and remain faithful to God. It is the ongoing, maturing process of the believer conforming him to the image of Christ through the knowledge of God's Word. This growth continues throughout life and ends with the glorification of the believer in the Lord's presence. [Romans 8:29, I Corinthians. 1:1-2, II Corinthians. 7:1, I Thessalonians. 5:23-24, Philippians. 3:12-14, John. 17:17]
E. Glorification
We believe glorification is the culmination of salvation. It is the total transformation of the believer and his body in which He will be incorruptible and immortal. It is the final state of the redeemed making him perfect in God's presence. [Philippians. 3:20-21, I John. 3:2, I Peter. 1:8-9, I Corinthians. 15:52-54]
V. THE CHURCH
A. The Universal Church
We believe that the Universal Church is the spiritual body of Christ composed of all true believers of this age, of which Christ is the Head. Its purpose is to give a good testimony to all the world and make disciples for Christ. [I Corinthians.12:12-14; Ephesians. 1:22-23; Ephesians. 5:23-27; Matthew. 28:19-20].
B. The Local Church
We believe that the local church is a group of baptized believers who have voluntarily joined together agreeing in doctrine and administration. The Local Church is organized according to the teachings of the New Testament with the purposes of worship, teaching and service. The local church is an assembly operated autonomously under the Lordship of Jesus Christ in which all members have equal rights and responsibilities. Officials of the local church are pastors (elders/overseers) and deacons. [Acts. 8:1; Acts 13:1-3, Romans. 16:5; I Peter. 5:1-4; I Timothy. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; Acts 6:1-7]
VI. ORDINANCES
We believe there are two ordinances to be held in the church. These ordinances are water baptism and the Lord's Supper. The purposes of these ordinances are to obey Jesus and to witness to our faith.
A. Baptism
We believe that baptism is by immersion and is only for believers. It is not an act of salvation, but rather an act of obedience by faith testifying of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of the Savior; comparing it to the believer's death to sin, burial of the old nature, and the resurrection to new life. It is to be administrated in the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. [Matthew. 28:18-20, Acts 2:41, Acts 8:36-38, Romans. 6:1-14].
B. The Lord's Supper
We believe that the Lord's Supper should be administered by the church. It is not an act of salvation, but is an act of obedience and a testimony of believers which commemorates the death of Christ. In the Lord’s Supper His presence is announced as permanent and real, and it anticipates His physical Second Coming. [Acts 2:42, 46; I. Corinthians. 11:17-34]
VII. GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT
A. We believe that spiritual gifts are for the edification of the church. God gives spiritual gifts to all believers so that everyone takes part in the ministry of the church. Some gifts are permanent and are for the current use of the church. These include the gifts of preaching, serving, teaching, exhortation, giving, administering, comforting, evangelizing and pastoring. Other gifts were temporary and were given in the apostolic era for the purpose of founding the church. These include the gifts of new prophecies, miracles, healings, tongues and interpretation of tongues. We believe that temporary gifts ended with the completion of the New Testament. We believe that the Holy Spirit distributes the gifts as He wills. Salvation is not dependent on the use of any gift. [Romans. 12:3-8; I. Corinthians. 12:4-11, 28-31, I Corinthians. 13:8-13, Ephesians. 4:7-12]
B. We believe that God hears and answers the prayer of faith according to His will for the sick and afflicted. Diseases are not always because of sin or lack of faith. Healing is not always the will of God for His power and mercy can be manifested in the weakness of man. [James. 5:15, John 9:1-3, II Corinthians. 12:7-10].
VIII. THE ANGELS
We believe in the reality and personality of angels, both good and bad. We believe that angels are eternal but limited spiritual beings created by God. [Hebrews. 1:7].
A. Good Angels
Good angels are messengers of God who minister, serve and keep believers. There are also angels that are in the presence of God to praise and serve Him. [Hebrews. 1:14, Psalms 34:7, Psalms 91:11, Psalms 103:20, Isaiah. 6:2-3]
B. Evil Angels
We believe there are evil angels, including Satan, who have fallen from their first state. Satan is the great enemy of God and man. The opposition of Satan is constantly increasing but his ultimate destruction is certain. Evil angels cooperate with Satan in opposition to God, God's purposes, and God's people. Demons can possess and control unbelievers when they allow them. However, demons cannot possess believers in any way, but they can tempt and influence them. [Ezekiel. 28:11-19; Job 1:6-7, Matthew. 25:41; Revelation. 20:10, II Peter. 2:4, Jude 6, Ephesians. 6:12]
IX. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
A. Two Natures
We believe that all saved people have two natures and that by the power of the Holy Spirit the new nature can be victorious over the old nature if the believer submits full control of his life to Christ. [Romans. 6:13, Galatians. 5:16-25, Colossians 3:1-10, I Peter. 1:14-16, I John 3:5-9, II Corinthians. 5:17]
B. Separation from the world
a. We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as to not bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and separate from all religious apostasy, worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations that are commanded by God [2 Timothy 3:1-5; Romans 12:1-2; Romans 14:13; I John 2:15-17; 2 John 1:9-11; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1 James. 4:4].
b. We believe that sexual intimacy is a wonderful gift of God that is only to be expressed between one man and one woman (as genetically defined), within the love and bonds of marriage (Genesis 2:24-25; Matthew 19:4-6; 1 Corinthians 7:3-5; Hebrews 13:4). Therefore, we believe that any other form of sexual intimacy is both immoral and a perversion of God’s gift [Leviticus 18:1-30; Proverbs 6:32; 1 Corinthians 6:18; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8].
C. Communion with God and Brethren in Christ
We believe it is the responsibility of every believer to maintain a vital relationship with God through prayer, personal Bible study, obedience to God and regular attendance at church services. We believe that every believer should seek to serve the visible church of Christ. [I Thessalonians. 5:17, I Peter. 2:2, Joshua 1:8, I John 1:6-7, I John 2:3-11, Hebrews. 10:24-25.]
D. Evangelism
We believe that it is the duty of every believer to witness with his life and his words of the truths of Holy Scripture. We believe that it is the duty of believers to proclaim the gospel throughout the world. [Matthew. 28:16-20, Acts 1:8, II Corinthians. 5:19-20].
E. Stewardship
We believe it is the responsibility of every believer to support the work of the Lord with their gifts, skills, talents, time, goods and good works. [Ephesians. 4:11-16; I. Corinthians. 16:1-2, II Corinthians. 9:6-7, I Corinthians. 12, Ephesians. 2:10]
X. DISPENSATIONALISM
We believe that the Holy Scriptures are to be interpreted in the natural, literal sense in which they were written. The Scriptures reveal dispensations (periods of time) determined by God which define man's responsibilities in such times. The dispensations are not ways of salvation, but times when man's obedience is tested over a specific revelation of the will of God. The objectives of the dispensations are: (a) to reveal to man his sin and depravity, (b) to reveal to man his inability to save himself; (c) and to teach man the necessity of a vicarious sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin. We are now in the era of the church which began on the day of Pentecost and will end with the rapture of the church. (John 1:17; 1 Corinthians 9:17; 2 Corinthians 3:9-18; Galatians 3:13-25; Ephesians 1:10; Colossians 1:24,25; Hebrews 7:19; Revelation 20:2-6).
XI. PREMILLENNIAL ESCHATOLOGY
We believe in the personal and imminent coming of Christ in the clouds to meet and bring the redeemed to glory. In the rapture of the redeemed, the dead in Christ shall rise bodily and together with the living believers will be presented as an incorruptible body and live eternally in the glory of God. The rapture of the redeemed will be followed by seven years of tribulation on earth. After the tribulation, Christ will come again bodily to earth with the saints to establish His Millennial Kingdom. During this thousand year reign, Satan will be bound in the abyss. At the end of the Millennium, Satan will be loosed for a little time to deceive the nations around the world, gathering an army of them for the final battle against God. God will destroy His enemies and the devil will be cast into the lake of fire forever. Then, all unbelievers will be resurrected bodily into the Great White Throne Judgment where they will be eternally condemned to the torments of the lake of fire. [I. Thessalonians. 4:13-17; I. Corinthians. 15:51-54, Acts 1:11; I. Thessalonians. 1:10; Revelation. 3:10; Revelation. 4-19; Revelation. 19:11-20; Zacharias. 14:3-11; Revelation. 20, Revelation. 21:8, Matthew. 25:41-46].
