



We believe that God made a way of salvation which is by grace alone (Titus 3:4-7), through faith alone (Romans 3:28), in Christ alone (Acts 4:12), that man cannot merit the reconciliatory work of Christ and he is completely dependant on the grace of God (Ephesians 2:8-9). A faith that is effective unto salvation involves a belief in Christ's deity (John 20:31), atoning death, and resurrection (Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:14). Repentance and a complete trust in Christ for forgiveness and new life is also, without exception, included in a faith that saves. Regeneration: We believe that regeneration is a work of the Holy Spirit necessary because of the spiritually dead condition of all men. It is an act of the Holy Spirit, based on the sacrificial death of Christ, that gives man new life. This occurs simultaneously upon the repentant sinner's response to faith in God's provision of salvation. Man's sinful nature is not completely eradicated, but God now gives them spiritual life and a new nature (2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:5-6). Only upon this new life is the believer enabled to be progressively conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29). Justification: We believe that justification is the act of God's free grace whereby He declares a believing sinner to be righteous solely because the perfect righteousness of Christ has been imputed to the sinner's account (Romans 4:25; 5:9,18; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21). No one can be justified based on his or her own righteous deeds (Romans 3:20,28; Galatians 2:16; 3:11). Justification comes only by grace through faith. Sanctification: We believe that the Bible talks of two sanctifications in the believer's life. At the moment of salvation the believer is completely separated or sanctified from sin as a judicial standing before the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:2; 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 1:10-14). Now that he is positionally, or judicially, sanctified, God can then begin a process where the believer becomes more and more set apart from the world and more and more like Christ. We call this progressive sanctification. Security: We believe that once one becomes reconciled to God through the work of the Gospel, nothing can change his position with God (John 10:29; Romans 8:29-30,35-39). Glorification: We teach that the believer's old nature is still at work within them and that man does not ever attain sinless sanctification until he is taken to heaven. The Bible teaches that one day the believer will be completely free from the presence and influence of sin when he receives a new body and dwells in the presence of God for all eternity (Romans 8:18,30; 1 Corinthians 4:17; Ephesians 5:27; Colossians 1:27). At that moment we will be completely without sin as there can be no imperfections allowed in heaven. |