I. Of the Scriptures.
We believe that the Holy Bible as originally written was verbally inspired and the product of Spirit controlled men, and therefore is truth without admixture of error for its matter. We believe that it is the true center of Christian union and the only infallible rule for all human conduct, creeds, and opinions. II Tim. 3:16,17; II Peter 1:19-21.
II. Of the True God.
We believe that there is only one living and true God, infinite in every excellence, that in the unity of the Godhead there are three personal distinctions, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one in substance and equal in every divine perfection. Exodus 20:2,3; I Corinthians 8:6; I John 5:7. We believe in the absolute Deity of the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ; that He was divine as no other man can be, being God Himself, existing from all eternity co-equal with the Father and the Spirit; that He never ceased to be God for one instance and that His humiliation did not consist in laying aside His Deity; that as a man He was miraculously begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. I John 5:20; John 1:1,2; Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:26-38. We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine person, equal with the Father and Son and of the same substance and nature; that He convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment, bears witness to the truth, is the agent of the New Birth and that He seals, endues, guides, teaches, witnesses to, sanctifies, and helps the believer, indwelling every true child of God. II Corinthians 13:14; John 14:16,17; Romans 8:14-27; John 16:7-15.
III. Of the Devil. or Satan.
We believe that Satan is a distinct personality, that he is the god of this age, author of all the powers of darkness and sin, and is destined to the judgment of an eternal justice in the lake of fire. Matthew 4:1-3; II Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 20:10.
IV. Of the Creation.
We believe that God created the heavens and the earth, including all life, “each after its own kind,” by direct act and not by the process of evolution. Genesis 1, 2; Colossians 1:16, 17; John 1:3.
V. Of the Fall of Man.
We believe that man was created, in innocence and true holiness, under the law of his maker and in the image of God, but by voluntary transgression fell from his sinless and happy state in Adam’s sin, in consequence of which all men are found in a most helpless estate, totally depraved, wholly disposed toward evil, possessing neither the ability nor the inclination to seek God apart from the regenerating grace of the Holy Spirit; that all are sinners by nature and by conduct, and therefore are under just condemnation without defense or excuse. Genesis 3:1-6; Ephesians 4:23; Ecclesiastes 7:29; Genesis 1:26; Romans 5:12; Romans 3:10-19; Genesis 6:5; Ephesians 2:l; Romans 1:8; Ezekiel 18:19,20; Romans 1:32; Romans 1:20; Galatians 3:22.
VI. Of the Atonement for Sin.
We believe that the only escape from the condemnation of sin is through the atonement wrought by Jesus Christ, when He voluntarily took upon Him a human body and nature, yet without sin, and by His suffering, death and resurrection made full satisfaction to the justice of God for the sin of man; that the blessings of this salvation are given on the grounds of grace to all who believe and confess and that it is the immediate duty of all to accept these offers of mercy. John 1:1-3, 14; 3: 16,17.
VII. Of Grace and the New Birth.
We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be born again; that the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; that it is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the one dead in trespasses and sins is made a partaker of the divine nature and receives eternal life, the free gift of God; that the new creation is brought about in a manner above our comprehension by our Sovereign God, not by culture or the will of man, but solely by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection with the Word of God, so as to irresistibly draw men to Himself and secure their voluntary obedience to the gospel; that the proper evidence of the new birth appears in the holy fruits wrought by it: repentance, saving faith, and newness of life. John 3:3; II Corinthians 5:17; I John 5:1; John 3:6,7; Acts 16:20-33; II Peter 1:4; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:1; Galatians 5:22; II Corinthians 5:19; Colossians 2:13; John 3:8; John 1:12,13; Ephesians 5:9. We believe that true believers in Christ are distinguished from mere professors by their persevering attachment to the Savior made evident as the Holy Spirit unfailingly brings to completion His work within them; that, moreover, the saints are eternally secure, kept by the power of God through faith unto ultimate redemption. John 8:31; Psalm 37:24,28; I John 3:9; 2:27; 5:18; Hebrews 3:14; I John 2:19; John 17:12; Romans 8:28-39; Luke 10:42; 22:31,32; John 6:37-40; 10:28-30; Romans 11:29; I Corinthians 1:8,9; II Corinthians 1:21,22; Philippians 1:6; 2:12,13; Jude 24,25; I John 4:4; II Timothy 1:12; 4:18; I Peter 1:4,5; John 4:14; 5:24; Ephesians 1:14; 4:30.
VIII. Of the Church.
We believe that the Church, the Body of Christ, is a New Testament institution, established by Jesus Christ, Who is its sole Head; revealed through the holy Apostles; empowered and perpetuated by the Holy Spirit; composed of believers in Jesus Christ as Saviour, both Jew and Gentile, called out from the world and indwelt by the Holy Spirit; His “body” for service and His “bride” for glory. It began with the New Testament saints and will be consummated at the coming of Christ in the Rapture. Matthew 16:18; Acts 1:8; 2:1-13; 2:4-47; I Corinthians 12:12- 28; Ephesians 1:22; 3:21, 5:23-33; I Thessalonians 4:13-18. We believe that the Church is manifest through the local Church which is a congregation of immersed believers, associated by covenant of faith and fellowship of the Gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights and privileges invested in it by His work; that its officers are bishops (pastors) and deacons: that it has the absolute right of self-government directed by the Holy Spirit and it is answerable only to Christ, and that in all matters of membership, policy, government, discipline, and benevolence the will of the local church is final. Matthew 18:15-17; I Corinthians 1:2, 5:4,5; 7:17; 11:16; I Timothy 3.
IX. Of the Ordinances.
We believe that there are two church ordinances; Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the immersion of the believer in water and is properly called “Believer’s Baptism.” It sets forth in a beautiful and solemn way our faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, with its effect in our lives of death to sin and resurrection to a new life. Baptism is a prerequisite to the privileges of church relation. The Lord’s Supper is the commemoration of our Lord’s death until He comes, and our continual fellowship with Him; should be preceded by baptism and always by careful self-examination. Acts 8:36-39; Romans 6:3-5; I Corinthians 11:23-32. X. Of the Righteous and Wicked. We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that such only as through faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and sanctified by the Spirit of God, are truly righteous in God’s esteem; while all such who continue in impenitence and unbelief are in His sight wicked, and under the curse; and that this distinction holds among men both in and after death, in the everlasting felicity of the saved and the everlasting conscious suffering of the lost. Malachi 3:18; Romans 6:17-23; Matthew 25:34 41; Luke 6:23; Revelation 20:15.
XI. Of the Return of Christ.
We believe in the bodily, personal, premillennial, return of Jesus Christ; that He will come before the seven years tribulation period to catch away His church, coming only into the air, and that He will come with His church at the close of the tribulation to judge the living nations and to set up His kingdom. I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Matthew 24:31-46; Revelation 19:11-21.
XII. Of the Resurrection.
We believe in the resurrection of the bodies of the dead; that believers who sleep in Jesus will be raised at the coming of Christ for His church and caught up with transformed living saints to meet the Lord in the air, and that the unbelieving dead will be raised at the close of the Millennial Kingdom and stand in their bodies at the Great White Throne judgment to receive their final doom. John 5:21-30; I Thessalonians 4:16; Revelation 7:9-17; 20:11-15.
XIII. Separation of Church and State.
We believe that church and state must be completely independent of each other. Christ is the Head of the Church, which is a spiritual Body, without temporal power to rule in the world in a political sense. We believe the statement of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 22:21 put the church and state in two separate categories. The individual Christian has responsibility to each.
XIV. Priesthood of all Believers.
In the New Testament order every born-again Christian is a priest unto God. (l Peter 2:5-9; Revelation 1:5,6). This position of being a believer-priest under our one great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, puts every Christian on the same level of priesthood. The believer-priest in the pew has just as ready access into the presence of God the Father as does the believer-priest in the pulpit.
XV. Fellowship and Associations.
In as much as a New Testament Baptist Church cannot “Join” anything outside of itself, but only affiliate therewith on grounds of fellowship, this church may fellowship with such organizations or bodies of believers as are true to the Word of God and not contaminated by liberalism or apostasy. Such fellowship shall never be construed as a surrender of freedom or autonomy. Any attempt to dictate or coerce on the part of any fellowshipping body or its representatives shall immediately be sufficient cause for the severance of relationships. This church shall be answerable to no person, group, or organization for its decision to break or make fellowship. This church declares itself to be in fellowship with (upon meeting the requirements of such associations): The General Association of Regular Baptist Churches and the DELMARVA Regular Baptist Fellowship.
XVI. Grace to the Church.
We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowment of all His gifts; and, that the gifts of evangelists, pastors and teachers are sufficient for the perfecting of the saints today; and, that speaking in tongues and the working of sign miracles (such as healings, restoration of hearing, sight, etc., and raising from the dead) gradually ceased as the New Testament Scriptures were completed and their authority became established. I Corinthians 13:8-12; II Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12; I Corinthians 14. We believe that God does hear and answer the prayer of faith, in accord with His own will, for the sick and afflicted. John 15:7; James 5:14-16; I John 5:14,15. Note: We do believe in divine healing without a subsequent belief in “divine healers” per se.
XVII. The Home.
We believe that Jehovah God instituted the family unit and vested it with inviolate authority concerning the education, discipline, and welfare of its members. We further maintain that God created man and woman distinct in gender, purpose, and role within the home and that the relationship between man and wife is a most solemn picture of Christ and His church. We stand opposed to practices which violate the Biblical doctrine of the home, including: divorce, by which man puts asunder what God has joined together and corrupts a type of Christ; promiscuity and homosexuality, which substitute depraved and unnatural acts of lust for the holy and undefiled expression of marital love; the ordination of women, which denies the fulfillment of the woman within her divinely endowed role of helpmeet and supporter, and usurps the headship and authority of the man; abortion, which is the destruction of the fruit of the womb and indeed the taking of unborn life; and delinquency within the home, by which parents fail to exercise godly authority and discipline over the children whom God has entrusted them with.