Statement of Beliefs

Statement of Beliefs

 

  1. We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
     
  2. We believe that the God of the Bible, as revealed in Jesus Christ, is the only One in whom we may receive salvation (Acts 4:12; John 14:6).
     
  3. We believe that Jesus pre-existed creation (John 1:1, 2), that all things were created through Him (John 1:3), that He was born of the virgin Mary (Luke 1:34), having a heavenly Father and an earthly mother, that He died for the sin of the world (John 1:29), that He rose again for our justification (Rom. 4:20), and that He ascended to rule in His Father’s throne (Phil. 2:9-11).
     
  4. We believe that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-8) to indwell and empower His body to complete the work of bringing the earth under the dominion of His Kingdom. We believe that salvation is an ongoing process to bring all three parts of man’s nature—spirit, soul, and body (1 Thess. 5:23)—into perfection. Complete salvation, therefore, comes in three distinct levels: Justification (spirit), Sanctification (soul), and Glorification (body).
     
  5. We believe that the laws, statutes, and judgments in the Bible are the divine revelation defining sin and righteousness (1 John 3:4; Rom. 7:7), and that violation of these laws are cause for repentance or judgment. Other standards of righteousness, such as love (John 15:12) and faith (Rom. 14:23) are general principles which the specific statutes help us to define the will of God and apply the law in a more practical way.
     
  6. We believe that the law cannot justify sinners (Ex. 34:7; Rom. 3:19, 20), and that therefore, Justification before the law is only possible by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:8) who paid for our sins by His death on the cross.
     
  7. We believe that there will be a resurrection of the dead first for the overcomers (Rev. 20:1-6) and then for all men including the rest of the Church (Rev. 20:11-15). At that second resurrection the Church will receive due judgments (1 Cor. 3:15; Luke 12:47-49; John 5:28, 29) before being given immortality.
     
  8. We believe that in the “Ages of the Ages” following the general resurrection of the dead, the unbelievers will be judged by the divine law figuratively pictured as a “fire” (Deut. 33:2). They will be placed under the loving authority of the overcomers who “inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5). During that time, they will learn righteousness (Isaiah 26:9) by the example and teaching of those who rule over them. This final Age will have an end, as all ages do, for the purpose of God’s judgment is to correct sinners and restore them to Himself. Then at the end of that final age of judgment, the great Creation Jubilee will fully restore all humanity to Jesus Christ, that God may be “all in all” (1 Cor. 15:22-28).
     
  9. We believe that the overcomers are the true Israelites in the original meaning of the term as applied to Jacob (Gen. 35:10). He was not born an Israelite, but attained this name by overcoming. In later history the term came to be applied to his descendants who were called to imitate their father’s example. Only a remnant of grace did so, however (Rom. 11:7), and these, along with all others of the household of faith, are the true Israelites who are worthy of the title.
     
  10. During the Divided Kingdom, the term Israel was used to distinguish them from the people of Judah (i.e., “Jews”). Israel was divorced from God for their sin (Jer. 3:8) and sent out of God’s house (Deut. 24:1-4) as the law prescribed. The only way to regain the name Israel is through acceptance of Jesus Christ first as the King of Judah and then as the Heir of Joseph’s birthright.
     
  11. We believe that Judah was divided into two groups, pictured as two trees having either good fruit or evil fruit (Jer. 24). These two groups of Judahites (“Jews”) were defined in terms of their submitting to the judgment prescribed in the laws of tribulation. In Jeremiah’s day the evil figs refused to submit to the king of Babylon, whom God had raised up to judge Judah for their sins (Jer. 27). In Jesus’ day the evil figs refused to submit to Rome and were likewise destroyed. In modern times the Jews have again attempted to return to the old land and rebuild a nation while still in rebellion against Jesus Christ and with the same spirit which caused their destruction in the past. We believe that the Zionist nation will not repent, and that again Jerusalem will be destroyed—this time in such a manner that it will never again be rebuilt (Jer. 19:10, 11).
     
  12. We believe that the New Jerusalem has replaced the Old Jerusalem as the center or “Capital City” of the Kingdom of God, even as the New Covenant has replaced the Old Covenant (Gal. 4:22-31). “Zion” is no longer the old location but is associated with that Heavenly City (Heb. 12:22). When reading prophecy in the Old Testament regarding “Jerusalem,” one must discern whether it speaks of the Old Jerusalem or the New, recognizing that John quotes many Old Testament descriptions of “Jerusalem” and applies them to the New Jerusalem.