We hold fast to the ancient orthodoxy expressed through God’s divine words in scripture, through which He articulates who He is, what He has done, and who we are in light of these eternal truths. Most importantly, our beliefs guide and order our lives, urging us toward a deeper relationship with God and one another.
These are the fundamental beliefs that we hold as the Church.
God
We believe there is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. He has existed eternally in uninterrupted communion with the distinct members of the Trinity as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Matthew 28:18-19, 2 Corinthians 13:14, Hebrews 1:1-4
Jesus
We believe Christ is the eternal Son of God and in the fullness of both His humanity and deity. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ he was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself the demands and necessities of human nature and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, partaking of the nature of God and of man, and in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever-present Lord.
Philippians 2:5-8, Luke 2:40, John 1:1-5, Hebrews 4:15
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to understand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and brings about regeneration. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which they serve God through His church. He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the assurance of God to bring the believer into the fullness of the stature of Christ. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service. We believe in the ministry of the Holy Spirit who indwells every Christian’s life for the purpose of living a God-reflective life.
John 16:7-11, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 4:30
Bible
We believe in the authority and holy inspiration of Scripture. The Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is the record of God’s revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth for its matter. It reveals God’s character, illuminates His purposes and commands, provides instruction, encouragement, direction, and hope.
Ex 24:4; De 4:1-2; 17:19; Jos 8:34 Psa 19:7-10; 119:11, 89, 105, 140 Isa 34:16; 40:8; Jer 15:16; 36:1-32 Mat 5:17-18; 22:29; Lu 21:33; 24:44-46 Joh 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Ac 2:16; 17:11 Rom 15:4; 16:25-26; 2Ti 3:15-17 Heb 1:1-2; 4:12; 1Pe 1:25; 2Pe 1:19-21 2 Timothy 3:16, Romans 15:4, 2 Peter 3:1-2
Human Beings
Man and woman were created by the special act of God, in His own image, and is the crowning work of His creation. In the beginning, the first humans were innocent of sin and endowed by their Creator with freedom of choice. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Through the temptation of Satan man transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original innocence; whereby his posterity inherited a nature and an environment inclined toward sin, and as soon as they are capable of moral action become transgressors and are under condemnation. Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship and enable man to fulfill the creative purpose of God. The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in His own image, and in that Christ died for man; therefore every man possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
Gen 1:26-30; 2:5, 7, 18-22; 3; 9:6 Psa 1:1-6; 8:3-6; 32:1-5; 51:5; Isa 6:5; Jer 17:5 Matt 16:26; Acts 17:26-31 Rom 1:19-32; 3:10-18, 23; 5:6, 12, 19; 6:6 Rom 7:14-25; 8:14-18, 29; 1Co 1:21-31; 15:19, 21-22 Eph 2:1-22; Col 1:21-22; 3:9-11
Salvation
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, sanctification, and glorification.
Romans 5:6-9, Galatians 3:13-14, Philippians 3:8-1
Eternal Security
All true believers will endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, bring reproach on the cause of Christ, and temporal judgments on themselves, yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.
Gen 12:1-3; Ex 19:5-8; 1Sa 8:4-7, 19-22 Isa 5:1-7; Jer 31:31 Mat 16:18-19; 21:28-45; 24:22, 31; 25:34 Luke 1:68-79; 2:29-32; 19:41-44; 24:44-48 John 1:12-14; 3:16; 5:24; 6:44-45, 65; 10:27-29 John 15:16; 17:6, 12, 17-18; Acts 20:32 Rom 5:9-10; 8:28-39; 10:12-15; 11:5-7, 26-36 1Co 1:1-2; 15:24-28; Eph 1:4-23; 2:1-10; 3:1-11 Col 1:12-14; 2Th 2:13-14; 2Ti 1:12; 2:10, 19 Heb 11:39-12:2; 1Pe 1:2-5, 13; 2:4-10 1Jo 1:7-9; 2:19; 3:2
Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer’s death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and the Lord’s Supper. The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming.
Mat 3:13-17; 26:26-30; 28:19-20; Mk 1:9-11; 14:22-26 Luke 3:21-22; 22:19-20; John 3:23 Acts 2:41-42; 8:35-39; 16:30-33; 20:7 Rom 6:3-5; 1Co 10:16, 21; 11:23-29; Col 2:12
For more information about baptism, please contact Catherine Rhoades at chrhoades@pcbc.org