Statement of Faith
Grace Bible Church is a Christian church whose beliefs rest completely on the Word of God. We believe in salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Below you'll find our "statement of faith" from our church constitution. It is always challenging to summarize your beliefs briefly - so please feel free to contact us with any questions.
ARTICLE 4. STATEMENT OF FAITH
Scripture: The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are without error in the original manuscripts. God has preserved His Word for us through thousands of manuscripts and versions that have been copied and translated from the originals. Any translation which faithfully, reverently, and skillfully renders the words of the original languages into another language is God’s Word. (Num. 23:19; Ps. 12:6; Matt. 24:35; John 17:17) Scripture is powerful and sufficient for salvation and sanctification, and is the only absolute and infallible authority in matters of faith and practice. (Heb. 4:12-13; II Tim. 3:16-17; Rom. 10:13-17; II Cor. 3:18)
The Godhead: One God eternally exists in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus is fully God, the Holy Spirit is fully God, and yet there is only one God. (Micah 5:2; Rom. 9:5; Ps. 139:7-10; Deut. 4:35, 39; Is. 44:6; Is. 6:8; Matt. 9:37-38) Jesus was born of a virgin and became fully man. He possesses full humanity and deity in one person. He lived a sinless life, and His death was a sacrifice, substitution, and propitiation for sin. He reconciled man to God and is the perfect prophet, priest, and king. He was resurrected with a physical body. His resurrection insures the believer’s regeneration, justification, spiritual power, and perfect resurrection bodies. (John 1:1; Heb. 1:8; Matt. 1:18; Luke 2:40, 52; I Tim. 3:16; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 9:6-15; Is. 53:6; Rom. 3:25; 5:10; Luke 24:39; I Cor. 15:20; I Pet. 1:3; Rom. 4:25; Eph.1:19-20; I Cor. 6:14) The Holy Spirit is not merely a mode of the Godhead nor a power, but is a personal being. He was involved in creation and inspiration. Today He bears witness of Jesus Christ, and convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment. He brings new life to the believer, indwelling them and guaranteeing their inheritance. The believer can be filled with the Spirit and walk in the Spirit, experiencing His power and fullness. The Spirit gives spiritual gifts and intercedes for believers. The believer can grieve, tempt, and quench the Holy Spirit, though these actions do not result in the loss of the Spirit’s indwelling. (Heb. 9:14; Ps. 104:30; Rom. 8:11; I Cor. 12:11; II Pet. 1:21; II Thes. 2:6-8; John 16:8; 3:6; I Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:13; Eph. 5:18; Gal. 5:22; I Cor. 12:7-11; Rom. 8:26; Eph. 4:30; Acts 5:9; I Thes. 5:19; Rom. 8:9)
Creation: The triune God created the universe out of nothing for His glory. This creation occurred in six days. (Gen. 1:1; Rev. 4:11; I Cor. 8:6; Job 33:4)
Man: Man was created by God in His image, and remains in God’s image though marred by the fall. At death believers go immediately into God’s presence, while unbelievers go immediately into a place of conscious punishment (Gen. 1:27, 31; 9:6; 2:7).
Sin: Sin is any failure to conform to the moral law of God in act, disposition, or nature. God is not the author of sin, but He ordained sin through man’s willful choices. All humans are guilty because Adam’s sin is imputed to the human race and inherited by all. This sin makes man totally unable to please God and guilty before God from birth. (I John 3:4; Eph. 2:3; James 1:13; Acts 2:23; Rom. 5:8; Ps. 51:5; 14:3; Rom. 8:8; 1:18-3:24; Eph. 2:3)
Salvation: Salvation is a marvelous gift of God’s grace. The Bible teaches that God, through His efficacious, eternal, and free will chooses some men for salvation. It also teaches that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved, and those who refuse to obey the gospel will not be saved. While we cannot completely understand this paradox, we gladly believe these truths. (John 6:37; Eph. 1:4; Rom. 9:11, 23; Dan. 4:35; Rom. 10:13; Acts 2:21; II Thes. 1:9-10) The essence of salvation is union with Christ. Salvation also includes being declared righteous by God in His sight (justification) and being born into God’s family. (Ps. 33:11; Eph. 1:4-5; I Cor. 2:16; Acts 13:48; II Cor. 5:17; Col. 1:26-27; 12:13; Rom. 3:21-22; I John 3:1) Salvation occurs at the moment of conversion, when a sinner turns from sin and self towards God through Christ Jesus. It involves faith and repentance. Faith is placing one’s sole confidence in the person, work, and promises of Christ. Repentance is abandoning sin in order to come in full subjection to Christ. At conversion, God imparts new life to the believer (regeneration). Faith and repentance are the result of God’s grace and are not works that merit salvation. (I Thes. 1:9; Heb. 11:6; Gal. 3:2; Matt. 4:17; Rom. 4:5; 9:30; Gal. 3:2; John 3:3; Eph. 2:5) Sanctification is the process of our actual moral condition being gradually brought into conformity with our legal standing before God. It begins with our separation unto God at salvation, continues with our growth in holiness, and reaches for the goal of perfection which will only be attained when glorified. Sanctification is both our work and God’s. (I Cor. 6:11; 3:1-3; Eph. 4:13; I John 1:7-2:2; 8:9-13) No true believers will apostatize, but they will all finally be glorified. (Rom. 8:38-39; John 10:28; Col. 1:22)
The Church: The church consists of all genuine believers in this age. The church began at Pentecost, and exists to proclaim God’s excellencies, bring God glory, and make faithful followers of Christ. The term church as used in the NT can also refer to the professing believers in a city or a local group of professing believers. (Matt. 16:18; Acts 1; Col. 4:15; Acts 12:5; Acts 20:28; I Pet. 2:9; Eph. 3:21; Matt. 28:19-20) Church government begins with the headship of Christ (through His Word), and then balances congregational participation with authoritative leadership. (Eph. 5:23; Col. 1:18; Acts 6:5; 15:22; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 5:2) The Lord’s Supper reminds believers of Christ’s death, their union with Him, and the unity of the body. No one except believers may participate, nor should a believer who is in conflict with others in the church or in rebellion against Christ. (Luke 22:19; Acts 2:42, 26; I Cor. 11; Matt. 26:26) Baptism symbolizes union with Christ and is a biblical command. Baptism is a public confession of faith in Christ that should occur as soon as public opportunity is available. ( 6:3-4; Col. 2:12; Acts 2:38, 41)
Satan and Demons: Demons are angels who rebelled against God and now promote evil in the world. Satan, the head of the demons, fell from his place of prominence in Heaven and tempted Eve to commit the first sin. He is a liar and murderer who blinds people from the gospel. Though he is in control of much of the world, he can only do what God allows. Satan and his demons can be resisted by believers, and they will be finally judged at the end of the millennium. (II Pet. 2:4; Is. 14:12-15; Gen. 3:1-6; John 8:44; II Cor. 4:4; I John 5:19; James 4:7; Rev. 20:10)
Heaven and Hell: Christians will live with God forever in new heavens and a new earth. This is a kingdom prepared for the saints where no sin is present but only God’s perfect rule. They will fellowship with God and one another, rejoicing in the beauty of the New Jerusalem and reigning with God forever. They will enjoy and worship God perfectly. (Rev. 21:3-4; II Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:1; Rom. 8:19-21; Matt. 25:34; John 14:1-3; Rev. 22:3; Rev. 19:9; Luke 22:18; Rev. 21, 22:5; Ps. 16:11) Hell is a place of conscious torment, the final and eternal destination of the souls and bodies of the unsaved, the Antichrist, his prophet, his followers, and the Devil. (Matt. 5:22, 29; Rev. 19:20, 20:15)
Eschatology: We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead – of believers unto everlasting blessedness in the first resurrection and of unbelievers unto judgement and everlasting punishment in the second resurrection. At the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, we who are alive and remaining will be caught up to meet Him in the air. The partakers of the first resurrection will live and reign with Christ during the Millennium, and all the people of God will inhabit the New Jerusalem for eternity. (Job 19:25,26; Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2, 3; John 5:28, 29; I Corinthians 15:12-58; Matthew 25:41-46; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; I Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9; Revelation 6:1-19; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; 20:1-21:5)
Separation and unity: Because of the pure character of God, believers are commanded to pursue this holiness for their own lives. They must separate from the places, appearances, sounds, and possessions clearly identified with the sins of the world, its idols, and its ambitions. They must obey biblical commands to separate from false teachers and clearly disobedient brethren. However, they must also value the eager pursuit of unity with faithful brethren in the body of Christ. (Rom. 12:2; Lev. 20:7; James 1:27; II Cor. 6:14-18; Gal. 1:9; I Cor. 5:1-13; II Thes. 3:6, 14-15; Matt. 18:15-18)
Charismatic Movement: We do not believe that there is a second baptism of the Spirit after salvation, or that the sign gifts that were available for the early church are normative for the church today. We do not believe that the charismatic movement in general has rested upon solid biblical footing or has generally acted according to biblical guidelines. (II Cor. 12:12; Heb. 2:4; II Pet. 1:19-21; II Tim. 3:16-4:2)
Human Sexuality: We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. Any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, incest, fornication, adultery, bestiality, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex (Gen. 2:24; 19:5, 13; 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1:26-29; I Cor. 5:1; 6:9; I Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4).
Lawsuits Between Believers: We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. The church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. (I Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)
ARTICLE 4. STATEMENT OF FAITH
Scripture: The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are without error in the original manuscripts. God has preserved His Word for us through thousands of manuscripts and versions that have been copied and translated from the originals. Any translation which faithfully, reverently, and skillfully renders the words of the original languages into another language is God’s Word. (Num. 23:19; Ps. 12:6; Matt. 24:35; John 17:17) Scripture is powerful and sufficient for salvation and sanctification, and is the only absolute and infallible authority in matters of faith and practice. (Heb. 4:12-13; II Tim. 3:16-17; Rom. 10:13-17; II Cor. 3:18)
The Godhead: One God eternally exists in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus is fully God, the Holy Spirit is fully God, and yet there is only one God. (Micah 5:2; Rom. 9:5; Ps. 139:7-10; Deut. 4:35, 39; Is. 44:6; Is. 6:8; Matt. 9:37-38) Jesus was born of a virgin and became fully man. He possesses full humanity and deity in one person. He lived a sinless life, and His death was a sacrifice, substitution, and propitiation for sin. He reconciled man to God and is the perfect prophet, priest, and king. He was resurrected with a physical body. His resurrection insures the believer’s regeneration, justification, spiritual power, and perfect resurrection bodies. (John 1:1; Heb. 1:8; Matt. 1:18; Luke 2:40, 52; I Tim. 3:16; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 9:6-15; Is. 53:6; Rom. 3:25; 5:10; Luke 24:39; I Cor. 15:20; I Pet. 1:3; Rom. 4:25; Eph.1:19-20; I Cor. 6:14) The Holy Spirit is not merely a mode of the Godhead nor a power, but is a personal being. He was involved in creation and inspiration. Today He bears witness of Jesus Christ, and convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment. He brings new life to the believer, indwelling them and guaranteeing their inheritance. The believer can be filled with the Spirit and walk in the Spirit, experiencing His power and fullness. The Spirit gives spiritual gifts and intercedes for believers. The believer can grieve, tempt, and quench the Holy Spirit, though these actions do not result in the loss of the Spirit’s indwelling. (Heb. 9:14; Ps. 104:30; Rom. 8:11; I Cor. 12:11; II Pet. 1:21; II Thes. 2:6-8; John 16:8; 3:6; I Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:13; Eph. 5:18; Gal. 5:22; I Cor. 12:7-11; Rom. 8:26; Eph. 4:30; Acts 5:9; I Thes. 5:19; Rom. 8:9)
Creation: The triune God created the universe out of nothing for His glory. This creation occurred in six days. (Gen. 1:1; Rev. 4:11; I Cor. 8:6; Job 33:4)
Man: Man was created by God in His image, and remains in God’s image though marred by the fall. At death believers go immediately into God’s presence, while unbelievers go immediately into a place of conscious punishment (Gen. 1:27, 31; 9:6; 2:7).
Sin: Sin is any failure to conform to the moral law of God in act, disposition, or nature. God is not the author of sin, but He ordained sin through man’s willful choices. All humans are guilty because Adam’s sin is imputed to the human race and inherited by all. This sin makes man totally unable to please God and guilty before God from birth. (I John 3:4; Eph. 2:3; James 1:13; Acts 2:23; Rom. 5:8; Ps. 51:5; 14:3; Rom. 8:8; 1:18-3:24; Eph. 2:3)
Salvation: Salvation is a marvelous gift of God’s grace. The Bible teaches that God, through His efficacious, eternal, and free will chooses some men for salvation. It also teaches that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved, and those who refuse to obey the gospel will not be saved. While we cannot completely understand this paradox, we gladly believe these truths. (John 6:37; Eph. 1:4; Rom. 9:11, 23; Dan. 4:35; Rom. 10:13; Acts 2:21; II Thes. 1:9-10) The essence of salvation is union with Christ. Salvation also includes being declared righteous by God in His sight (justification) and being born into God’s family. (Ps. 33:11; Eph. 1:4-5; I Cor. 2:16; Acts 13:48; II Cor. 5:17; Col. 1:26-27; 12:13; Rom. 3:21-22; I John 3:1) Salvation occurs at the moment of conversion, when a sinner turns from sin and self towards God through Christ Jesus. It involves faith and repentance. Faith is placing one’s sole confidence in the person, work, and promises of Christ. Repentance is abandoning sin in order to come in full subjection to Christ. At conversion, God imparts new life to the believer (regeneration). Faith and repentance are the result of God’s grace and are not works that merit salvation. (I Thes. 1:9; Heb. 11:6; Gal. 3:2; Matt. 4:17; Rom. 4:5; 9:30; Gal. 3:2; John 3:3; Eph. 2:5) Sanctification is the process of our actual moral condition being gradually brought into conformity with our legal standing before God. It begins with our separation unto God at salvation, continues with our growth in holiness, and reaches for the goal of perfection which will only be attained when glorified. Sanctification is both our work and God’s. (I Cor. 6:11; 3:1-3; Eph. 4:13; I John 1:7-2:2; 8:9-13) No true believers will apostatize, but they will all finally be glorified. (Rom. 8:38-39; John 10:28; Col. 1:22)
The Church: The church consists of all genuine believers in this age. The church began at Pentecost, and exists to proclaim God’s excellencies, bring God glory, and make faithful followers of Christ. The term church as used in the NT can also refer to the professing believers in a city or a local group of professing believers. (Matt. 16:18; Acts 1; Col. 4:15; Acts 12:5; Acts 20:28; I Pet. 2:9; Eph. 3:21; Matt. 28:19-20) Church government begins with the headship of Christ (through His Word), and then balances congregational participation with authoritative leadership. (Eph. 5:23; Col. 1:18; Acts 6:5; 15:22; Heb. 13:17; I Pet. 5:2) The Lord’s Supper reminds believers of Christ’s death, their union with Him, and the unity of the body. No one except believers may participate, nor should a believer who is in conflict with others in the church or in rebellion against Christ. (Luke 22:19; Acts 2:42, 26; I Cor. 11; Matt. 26:26) Baptism symbolizes union with Christ and is a biblical command. Baptism is a public confession of faith in Christ that should occur as soon as public opportunity is available. ( 6:3-4; Col. 2:12; Acts 2:38, 41)
Satan and Demons: Demons are angels who rebelled against God and now promote evil in the world. Satan, the head of the demons, fell from his place of prominence in Heaven and tempted Eve to commit the first sin. He is a liar and murderer who blinds people from the gospel. Though he is in control of much of the world, he can only do what God allows. Satan and his demons can be resisted by believers, and they will be finally judged at the end of the millennium. (II Pet. 2:4; Is. 14:12-15; Gen. 3:1-6; John 8:44; II Cor. 4:4; I John 5:19; James 4:7; Rev. 20:10)
Heaven and Hell: Christians will live with God forever in new heavens and a new earth. This is a kingdom prepared for the saints where no sin is present but only God’s perfect rule. They will fellowship with God and one another, rejoicing in the beauty of the New Jerusalem and reigning with God forever. They will enjoy and worship God perfectly. (Rev. 21:3-4; II Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:1; Rom. 8:19-21; Matt. 25:34; John 14:1-3; Rev. 22:3; Rev. 19:9; Luke 22:18; Rev. 21, 22:5; Ps. 16:11) Hell is a place of conscious torment, the final and eternal destination of the souls and bodies of the unsaved, the Antichrist, his prophet, his followers, and the Devil. (Matt. 5:22, 29; Rev. 19:20, 20:15)
Eschatology: We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead – of believers unto everlasting blessedness in the first resurrection and of unbelievers unto judgement and everlasting punishment in the second resurrection. At the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, we who are alive and remaining will be caught up to meet Him in the air. The partakers of the first resurrection will live and reign with Christ during the Millennium, and all the people of God will inhabit the New Jerusalem for eternity. (Job 19:25,26; Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2, 3; John 5:28, 29; I Corinthians 15:12-58; Matthew 25:41-46; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; I Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9; Revelation 6:1-19; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; 20:1-21:5)
Separation and unity: Because of the pure character of God, believers are commanded to pursue this holiness for their own lives. They must separate from the places, appearances, sounds, and possessions clearly identified with the sins of the world, its idols, and its ambitions. They must obey biblical commands to separate from false teachers and clearly disobedient brethren. However, they must also value the eager pursuit of unity with faithful brethren in the body of Christ. (Rom. 12:2; Lev. 20:7; James 1:27; II Cor. 6:14-18; Gal. 1:9; I Cor. 5:1-13; II Thes. 3:6, 14-15; Matt. 18:15-18)
Charismatic Movement: We do not believe that there is a second baptism of the Spirit after salvation, or that the sign gifts that were available for the early church are normative for the church today. We do not believe that the charismatic movement in general has rested upon solid biblical footing or has generally acted according to biblical guidelines. (II Cor. 12:12; Heb. 2:4; II Pet. 1:19-21; II Tim. 3:16-4:2)
Human Sexuality: We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. Any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, incest, fornication, adultery, bestiality, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex (Gen. 2:24; 19:5, 13; 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1:26-29; I Cor. 5:1; 6:9; I Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4).
Lawsuits Between Believers: We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. The church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. (I Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)
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