The fundamental doctrine of this Church is grounded in the Bible’s standard of full salvation, which includes repentance, baptism in water by immersion in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the initial sign of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance. We strive to maintain the unity of the Spirit and work towards unity of faith, while also admonishing all brethren not to contend for their different views to the disunity of the body.
We believe that the one true God, Yahweh, took upon Himself the form of man and was born of the virgin Mary. In His Son, Jesus Christ, the one true God was made known in the flesh. As it is written: “...God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them...” (2 Corinthians 5:19).
We affirm that “...in Him (Jesus) dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9). “For it pleased the Father that in Him should all the fulness dwell” (Colossians 1:19). Thus, Jesus, in His humanity, was man, and in His deity, was and is God. His flesh was the lamb, or the sacrifice of God. He is the only mediator between God and humanity. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5).
We believe in the oneness of the Father and the Son, as explained by Jesus in John 17:21-23. We understand that Jesus and the Father are one because they share the same Spirit. Similarly, as a Church, we become one by all being filled with the same Spirit. Jesus completes this thought by saying, “I (Jesus) in them (believers). You (Father) in me (Jesus).”
We, as a church, firmly believe in the one true God, who is ever-living, eternal, and infinite in power. God is holy in nature, attributes, and purpose, possessing absolute and indivisible deity.
We acknowledge the creed of Deuteronomy 6:4, affirming that Yahweh is who God is, and Yahweh is one. We profess that God is both one being and one person—Yahweh. We also embrace the teaching that there is “one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:6).
We acknowledge that the knowledge of God is universal (Romans 1:19, 21, 28, 32; 2:15). God is invisible, incorporeal, without parts or body, and therefore free from all limitations or the need for creation. He is Spirit (John 4:24), and as a spirit, He does not possess flesh and bones (Luke 24:39).
We wholeheartedly affirm that Jesus is God in the flesh.
We believe that the Bible is God’s inerrant Word. It is accurate, authoritative, and applicable to our everyday lives. In it, we have everything we need for life and godliness.
We acknowledge that in the beginning, God created man innocent, pure, and holy. However, through the sin of disobedience, Adam and Eve, the first of the human race, fell from their holy state, and God banished them from Eden. Consequently, sin entered the world through one man’s disobedience (Genesis 1:27, Romans 3:23, 5:12).
We firmly believe that pardon and forgiveness of sins are obtained through genuine repentance, confessing, and forsaking of sins, and justification by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1). The preaching of repentance by John the Baptist, proclaimed by Jesus, and emphasized by the Apostles to both Jews and Gentiles (Acts 2:38, 11:18, 17:30) holds significant importance. Repentance entails a change of views, purpose, heart, mind, and life—a transformative process. Jesus declared, “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3).
Water Baptism
We believe that the scriptural mode of baptism is immersion, and it is reserved for those who have fully repented, turning from their sins and a love of the world. It should be administered by a duly authorized minister of the Gospel, in obedience to the Word of God, and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, following the examples given in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:38, 8:16, 10:48, 19:5). In doing so, we fulfill the command of Jesus in Matthew 28:19.
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
As foretold by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:11, we believe that Jesus “shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.” In Acts 1:5, Jesus affirmed that His followers “shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” In Acts 2:4, Luke recorded that they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues (languages) as the Spirit gave them utterance. The terms “baptize with the Holy Ghost,” “filled with the Holy Spirit,” and the “gift of the Holy Ghost” are synonymous and used interchangeably in the Bible.
We affirm that it is scriptural to expect all who receive the gift, filling, or baptism of the Holy Spirit to manifest the same physical, initial sign of speaking with other tongues. This phenomenon of speaking with other tongues, as recorded in Acts 2:4, 10:46, 19:6, and the gift of tongues, as explained in 1 Corinthians chapters 12 and 14, are essentially the same but serve different purposes. Peter, in explaining this experience, stated that Jesus had poured out what they were witnessing (Acts 2:33). Furthermore, he proclaimed, “The promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call”(Acts 2:39).
We believe in the power and significance of the Church and the necessity of believers to meet regularly together as we are instructed in the Scriptures. The church is where we have a family of families, living in obedience to Christ. We do this by learning from His word, singing praises to Him, and praying with and for each other, bearing one another's burdens.
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