STATEMENT OF FAITH
These statements are a guide to help you understand the function of this local church and as a guide to lead you into all truth. No creed, statement of faith or church leader carries any authority apart from being in total and utter agreement with the written Word of God. These brief overview statements are placed here to help establish you in sound doctrine and to keep you from all error. We have added a few Scriptures as an aid to study further on each of these points.
THE BIBLE
We believe that the Bible, made up of the 39 Books of the Old Testament and the 27 Books of the New Testament, is the inspired Word of God, in the sense that holy men of God were moved perfectly by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture, while at the same time not losing the personal human touch of the penman. The written Word of God is the infallible, all sufficient rule for faith and practice which is to be taken literally. None may add to it or take away from it, except at their eternal peril.
II Tim.3:15-17; I Thess.2:13; II Pet.1:20-21; Mt.24:35; Isa.40:8; Ps.119:160; Mt.5:17-18; 22:29; Rom.16:26; Lk.24:27, 44; Deut.4:2; Rev.22:18-19
Confidence in the written Word of God is vital to true Christianity. Any undermining of our confidence in the accuracy, purity and preservation of the Bible undermines faith, hope, obedience and indeed will have a radical impact upon your whole Christian life as well as the function and order of the local church. When a Christian is fully persuaded that the Bible is the perfectly and accurately inspired Word of God it moulds his whole manner of thinking as well as all of his actions. The Word of God is the one and only final court of appeal. No man or church system has any right to change, contradict or challenge what God has said. The Bible is the highest written authority which reveals the thought, desire and will of God. True Christians who believe this are radically different from those who profess to follow Christ but who do not believe this vital and essential truth.
THE GODHEAD
We believe that there is only one God who eternally and unchangeably exists in three persons—Father, Son and Holy Ghost—and that these three are one in plan, purpose, thought, word and deed. The Father planned redemption, Christ accomplished it, and the Holy Spirit now applies it. God is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing) and omnipresent (present everywhere at the same time). Although uniquely individual as persons they are eternally and inseparably joined as one eternal and faithful God.
Deut.6:4; Isa.43:10; Mt.3:16, 17; 5:48; 28:19; Mk.12:29; Lk.3:22; Jn.1:14; 10:30; 14:16, 28; 15:26; 16:28; II Cor.3:14; Phil. 2:6
The Word ‘trinity’ simply means three in unity. The Bible is clear in stating that there is only one true God. However “one” does not mean one person but three persons in unity. These three are one. We cannot think of the oneness of God without considering the threeness of God. Being one does not deny that He is three; neither does being three deny that He is indeed one God. The tri-unity and oneness of God are clearly and constantly inferred, stated and reaffirmed in the New Testament. In I John 5:7, we are told, “there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost; these three are one.” By this we see that there is no contradiction in calling the Father, the Word (Jesus) and the Holy Ghost ‘one’ as well as ‘three.’ God is just as much three as He is one.
JESUS CHRIST
We believe in the deity, virgin birth, the humanity, the sinless life, the miraculous ministry, the substitutionary atoning death (in the place of another), the bodily resurrection, the triumphant ascension and the abiding present intercession (prayer life) of the Lord Jesus Christ and in His pre-millennial, physical and visible return as the blessed hope set before all Believers.
Jn.1:1, 14; Phil.2:6, 7; Isa.7:14; Mt.1:23; Rom.5:6, 8; Heb.7:26; I Pet.2:22; 3:18; Acts 2:22, 10:38; II Cor.5:21; I Cor.15:3-4; Lk.24:39; Acts 1:9; Eph.4:8-10; Rom.8:34; Heb.7:25; 9:12; I Thess.4:16; Mt.25:31; Rev.20:1-6
Most heresy and false teaching in the Church is connected to the person of Jesus Christ. To be wrong concerning what the Bible teaches about Christ is to be wrong about everything. The person of Christ and sound doctrine (teaching) concerning Him and His work on the Cross is absolutely critical, foundational and central to the Christian life and the health of the local church. To believe the wrong thing concerning the person of Christ, His work on the cross and His teachings will lead to eternal damnation. The great mark of a true Christian is that he knows Christ, loves Him, obeys Him, worships Him and seeks to live his entire life to glorify Him alone.
CREATION
We believe in the inspired account of the origin of all things as recorded in the Book of Genesis. We believe that all things were created by God, in six literal days and that man was created perfect and sinless in the image of God. In the New Testament Jesus Christ proclaimed and taught that Genesis was to be understood literally as historic fact and that it was accurate and reliable in every detail. There is no room in biblical Christianity for evolution.
Gen.1:1-31; 2:7; 5:1-2; John 1:1-3; Ex.20:8-11; Mt.19:4; Mk.10:6; I Cor.8:6; I Tim.2:13; Acts 4:24; Col.1:16-17; Heb. 1:2-3; 11:3; Rev.4:11
In the Gospels Christ refers to at least twenty people from the Old Testament with an utter confidence that these were actual real people and that the story of their lives reflected true history. He also quoted 36 different verses from 24 different OT books and used the term “…it is written” eighteen times. Amongst all these statements He accepted that the first five books of the OT, including Genesis, were written by Moses and were accurate history. He accepted and preached that the creation of all things had a beginning (Mk.13:19; 10:6) and that Adam and Eve were created physically at this beginning point as the first man and woman (Mt.19:4-6; Mk.10:6-8). He speaks of the murder of their righteous son Abel (Mt.23:35), the days of Noah (Mt.24:37; Lk.17:27), and of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Lk.17:29; Mt.10:15; 11:23). Christ’s simple acceptance of the text of Scripture, including Genesis, as dependable, literal and perfect is beyond doubt. We as a church stand where Christ stood and believe as He believed. A belief in a literal creation is fundamental to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and any denial of it is heresy (false teaching).
MAN, HIS FALL AND REDEMPTION
We believe that through Adam’s sin humanity was totally and utterly ruined. A covenant made between God and man in the Garden of Eden which depended upon man’s perfect obedience was broken when Adam, who was the head of the whole race, sinned. From that time all men have been born in a state of sin having inherited a sinful nature and a broken covenant from Adam. As a result man has been left in a state of utter depravity (sinfulness) unable to save himself and so must look to a Saviour. The one and only answer for man is what Christ accomplished when He died on the cross. Through His sacrifice and His precious shed blood men can now be redeemed, recovered and reconciled to a relationship with God the Father. Adam is the head of the old creation but Christ is the head of the new creation.
Rom.5:12-21; Gen.2:17; 3:6; 3:1-7; Rom.3:10-19, 23; Jer.17:9; Jn.14:6; Acts 4:12; I Tim.2:5-6; I Jn.2:2; 4:10; I Pet.2:24; 3:18; Rom.5:17-21; I Cor.15.21-22; Eph.1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col.1:18: Phil.3:9
Man is unable to save himself, recover himself or to even come to God unless the Holy Spirit draws him. Without a genuine drawing of the Holy Spirit no man would seek after God. It is Christ the Shepherd who first goes seeking after sinners before they have any thought of seeking after Him. Man outside of Christ is absolutely fallen in every area of life including his will, desires and knowledge. If man could save himself through good deeds or through some remnant of perfection inherited from Adam then Christ would never have needed to die upon the Cross. Christ’s work on the Cross was only performed for lost sinners who had no hope of attaining perfect righteousness by their own works because of the fall of Adam.
THE NEW BIRTH
We believe that the Bible teaches that the only way a man can receive forgiveness for his sins is by the new-birth or the born-again experience. Salvation is received through repentance from dead works, and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. It is by faith in Christ alone and His shed blood that sinners are justified, forgiven, made clean, accepted, adopted and made perfectly righteous before God. At the new birth the Holy Spirit comes to indwell the new Christian and by the same Spirit Christ dwells in their heart by faith. The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the Holy Spirit and the outward evidence to all men is a changed life lived in righteousness and true holiness.
Jn.3:1-8; Tit.2:11-12; 3:5; Jm.1:18; I Pet.1:3, 23; I Jn.5:1; Heb.6:1; Rom.4:25; Lk.24:47; Acts 2:38-39; 20:21; 17:30; Rom.10:8-15; Eph.2:8; Gal.3:22, 26; Eph.2:8-9; Rom.8:16; I Jn.5:10-13; Eph.4:24; I Pet.2:24; Isa.55:7; II Cor.5:17-18
The new-birth is a supernatural experience in which God makes dead men alive. We were all born in sin. All of us were born into a state of spiritual death with no desire for the true God. Spiritual death means that a man cannot see God, hear God, desire God, have faith in God, seek after God or know God in a radical life changing way unless the Holy Spirit draws him, opens his heart and then makes him alive. In the new-birth a man has an experience of a second birth which is both spiritual and miraculous. He is made alive through the renewing of the Holy Spirit and the quickening influence of the preaching of God’s Word. His dead spirit is suddenly made alive in order that he may believe and live in Christ Jesus. He is suddenly made a new creature and a new person with a new heart, a new spirit, with new desires and new convictions.
SANCTIFICATION
We believe in living a life of holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. Sanctification is a definite, instantaneous, yet progressive, work of grace commencing at the time of the new birth and continuing until we see Christ face to face. Every true believer in Christ will walk in holiness which is revealed through the progressive growth of the nine fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. A true Christian is known by his perseverance in a walk of holiness and the manifestation of such fruit.
Rom.6:1-14; I Thess.5:22-23; II Cor.7:1; Eph.4:24; Heb.12:14; Lk.1:74-75; Eph.1:4; 5:27; II Tim.1:9; I Pet.1:15-16; Gal.5:22-23
The word ‘Sanctification’ simply means to be set apart for God’s purpose. It is the unique work of God to make a person pure and holy but we must walk in agreement with this work of God by working out our salvation in fear and trembling. The Lord’s primary will for all of our lives is sanctification (I Thess.4:3). This ought to be our first desire and goal in seeking God’s will for our lives above all else. Everything else in God’s will flows from this one desire to live holy before God. God only uses holy vessels to fulfil His will and purpose. The grace of God, the Word of God and the Spirit of God all work together in the heart of a genuine believer to change them and make them more like Jesus Christ. Ultimately holiness is Christ-likeness.
BAPTISM IN WATER
We believe that all who have truly repented and believed in Christ as Lord and Saviour are commanded to be baptised by full immersion in water. It is an outward act of obedience to Christ’s clear command and the answer of a good conscience toward God but has no power in itself to save a person. By baptism the believer is identifying with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. By baptism in water a believer declares publicly that they have been crucified with Jesus by baptism into His death and that they have been raised with Him to walk in newness of life.
Mk.1:4-5; 16:16; Mt.3:16; 28:19-20; Jn.3:22-23; 4:1-2; Acts 2:38, 41; 8:12-13, 16, 36-38; 9:18; 10:47-48; 16:15, 33; 18:8; 19:5; 22:16; Rom.6:3-4; Col.2:12; Heb.6:2; I Pet.3:21
Baptism in water was the first outward act and response of a genuine convert towards God in the New Testament. This is the first act of obedience by the new disciple. Only those who had repented of their sins and who had put faith in God were baptised in water. We find no infants or children of believers being baptized in the early church that had not personally experienced Christ and professed obedience to the Gospel. Infant baptism is no baptism at all. Believer’s baptism by being fully submerged in water is the only true Biblical baptism commanded by Christ. Baptism in water is not left to personal choice. It is a command from God and the natural response of those birthed of God who follow the example of Christ.
BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that after a man is born-again and indwelt by the Holy Ghost, it is his right and privilege to earnestly seek for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, according to the command of the Lord Jesus who is the Baptizer in the Holy Ghost. The purpose of this infilling, baptism and outpouring is to receive power to be a witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, or power for service. The initial physical (first outward) and biblical sign of receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in other tongues as the Holy Spirit gives the utterance. This is followed and confirmed by the manifestation of spiritual power in public testimony and service.
Rom.8:9, 13-16; I Jn.4:13; Jn.3:5; 14:16-17; I Cor.3:16; 6:19; Lk.11:9-13; Mt.3:11, 12; Jn.1:33; 7:37-39; Lk.24:49; Acts 1: 5, 8; 2:1-4, 38-39; 8:12-17; 9:17; 10:44-47; 11:14-17; 19:1-7; Eph.1:13; 5:18-19; I Cor.14:18
The baptism in the Holy Spirit is spoken of in the Bible as a mantle (enduement) which comes upon us like a cloak. It is also an infilling of the Spirit when out of our innermost being rivers of water flow out of us. It is also an outpouring of the Holy Spirit when He falls upon us individually or corporately as a gathering of God’s people. This is a beautiful personal experience of Christ filling us with the promise of the Father. This promise has been given to us in order to create faith, expectation and desire. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell us at conversion but He comes to empower us at our baptism. To be baptised in the Spirit is to be immersed in Him, drenched in Him, engulfed in Him and to live our life walking in step with Him. There is one baptism but many fillings. That means there are numerous continuing experiences of being refilled with the Spirit.
THE CHURCH
We believe the Church is only made up of true believers in Christ which is His body and He alone is the Head of it, as well as its foundation and its only builder. The Church is the habitation of God through the Spirit Who guides all of its affairs. All believers are commanded to gather together regularly as the local church. It is to be a corporate gathering for the purpose of worshipping God and for mutual fellowship. Believers are to dwell together in unity of faith and spirit that all may grow into the likeness of Christ. All true believers must also separate from all false, apostate church systems which deny the fundamentals of the faith. God’s plan for the local Church is that she should endeavour to be self-governing, self-financing and self-propagating.
Mt.16:18; Acts 2:47; Eph.1:22-23; 4:15-16; 5:23-27; Col.2:10; Eph.2:21-22; I Pet.2:4-5; Acts 11:26; 14:27; Rom.16:5; Heb 10:25; Mt.18:20; Jude 1:19; I Cor.1:2; 10:32; 14:4, 12, 19, 23, 26; Jn.17:11, 21-23; Eph.4:3; Phil.1:27; Col.3:12-14; I Pet.3:8; Rev.2 & 3
The word “church” (ekklesia) which is used in the New Testament literally means ‘to be called out of and then to gather together in an assembly.’ It is a gathering together of those who have been called out of the world into Christ. The Church is not a building; it is a gathering of God’s people. It is when all the believers in a specific assembly gather together into one place. Although it is possible to be a Christian without being in a local church it is impossible to fulfil the commands and teachings of the New Testament without regularly meeting with the same group of believers who you know, and who know you. Belonging to a local gathering of God’s people is vital for your spiritual health, growth, encouragement, edification and also in order to be able to function as a member of Christ’s body.
THE CHURCH’S MISSION
We believe that the mission of the church is three-fold: First, it is called to edify itself. This involves doing all in its power to encourage and build up every member of the body in pressing on to perfection and maturity in Christ Jesus. Second, it is called to evangelize the lost. The church is the only vehicle by which the Lord fulfils His great commission both locally and in distant lands. Third, it’s most vital, fundamental and primary goal is to glorify the person of Christ in all that it does and to express and manifest His divine character and truth to the world through itself as His living body.
Rom.14:19; I Cor.14:12, 26; Eph.4:12, 16; I Tim.1:4; Mt.28:19-20; Mk.16:15-16; Lk.24:46-48; Rom.10:13-15; I Cor.9:16; Eph.6:15; Rom.15:6, 9; Mt.5:16; I Cor.6:20; 10:31; I Pet.2:9; Rom.12:1; Gal.2:20; II Cor.4:10-11
Every member of the local body (church) is to be caught up in this divine calling. We all have a part to play in this task as we dwell together. We must make Christ real in our own midst and reveal Him as a risen Lord through our lives to a lost world outside. We are not called to entertain the world, to be user-friendly, contemporary or relevant. We are called to preach the everlasting and unchanging Gospel to every person. The great commission is the only commission given to the church and everything else is secondary to this great task. This commission not only includes the initial evangelization of sinners but also the discipling, teaching and establishing of those new converts. In preaching the Gospel we love Christ, win souls, and build up the church.
THE MINISTRY
We believe that the leadership of the local church (called elders, bishops or overseers), are to be appointed by the wise choice of mature godly leaders in accordance with biblical qualifications of godly character and in agreement with the good report of those in the church. These are to be set apart for ministry by prayer and fasting. The primary ministry of local leadership is three-fold: i) to feed the flock by teaching the Word of God, ii) to rule and lead the flock, iii) and to warn and protect the flock. The church must maintain a right heart towards leadership by being willing to be taught, led and admonished.
Acts 11:30; 14:23; 15:2, 4, 6, 22-23; 16:4; 20:17-18, 28-31; I Tim.3:1-13; 5:17; Tit.1:5-14; I Pet.5:1-4; II Tim:2:2; I Tim.5:17; Heb.13:7, 17; Eph.4:8-15; I Cor.12:28; Rev.2:2; 18:20; Acts 11:27; 13:1; 15:32; 21:8, 10-11; I Cor.14:37; II Tim.1:10
We believe that Christ has also given the five distinct gifted ministries of apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd, and teacher, for the perfecting of the saints, until Jesus returns. These five gifted ministries cannot be appointed as positions, or used as titles, but only recognised as Christ grants such to the body of Christ. Elders may or may not be gifted in one of these ways for local ministry, while others may be gifted in a similar way and then sent forth by the local church for itinerant ministry. All these ministries are to be submitted to the written Word of God and the whole church has the right to test any local or travelling ministries. Aiding the elders in the local church are deacons who are not called to spiritual leadership, but to help in serving practically for the good of all.
THE LORD’S SUPPER
We believe the Lord’s Supper is a symbolic memorial and celebration of the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. The early church gathered together each Lord’s Day using the emblems and symbols of bread and a cup filled with the fruit of the vine (grape juice) to symbolize the body and blood of Christ. At the Lord’s Table which is also called the breaking of bread each believer should look in three different directions, i) he should look back to the death of Jesus Christ for his sins, ii) look inward to discern and judge his own heart, iii) and look forward to the day when Jesus shall return and when he shall drink the fruit of the vine with Christ in His eternal kingdom.
Mt.26:26-28; Mk.14:22-24; Lk.22:19-20; I Cor.11:23-34; Acts 2:42, 46; 20:7, 11; I Cor.16:2; 10:4-5, 16-17, 21; 5:7-8; Gal.3:1; Prov.9:1-6
We follow the example of the early church in gathering together to break bread on the first day of the week—Sunday. By this memorial we show forth Christ’s death in our midst until He comes back for us. This is a time and place of exhortation through the Word of God, as well as a place of rejoicing and celebration through our prayers and of singing as we stir up our minds to remember what Christ has done for us and provided for us at Calvary. It is also a sober and serious time in which we search our hearts before we partake of these emblems in order to be sure that our heart is right before God. We are warned in the scriptures that some were sick and others died who had not taken heed to this warning when they broke bread.
NINE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe in the public operation of the supernatural, spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit which are granted and imparted according to the will of the Spirit to those who earnestly seek for them for the edification, exhortation and comfort of the whole body when it gathers together. These are nine in number: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healings, the working of miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, divers kinds of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. By these nine gifts the Holy Spirit who dwells in the midst of the spiritual body of the church shines forth and manifests Himself in the midst. These gifts and manifestations must be tested and weighed in the public gathering of the assembly when in operation. These are not toys to be used privately and secretly but openly in a way that can be tested by all.
I Cor.12-14; Heb.2:4; Mk.16:15-20; Rom.1:11; 12:4-6
The Scriptures encourage us three distinct times that we are to covet and burn with zeal in seeking for these nine gifts (I Cor.12:31; 14:1, 12, 39). Like any gift they can be abused. But when sought for with faith, operated in with love in accordance with the written Word of God and with a desire to edify, they build up and encourage the whole body in growing into conformity to Christ. These gifts are not natural human gifts which are taught or learnt; they are spiritual and supernatural gifts which are imparted by the Holy Spirit and received and operated in by the faith of the individual as the Spirit works through them. They are not restricted to preachers but are for every member of the body. Anyone who is not willing to have the operation of the gifts tested by the written Word of God or restricted to its clear boundaries, is not spiritually mature or led of the Spirit.
DIVINE HEALING AND DELIVERANCE
We believe that physical healing is provided for in the atonement of Christ. That on the cross Jesus Christ bore the sicknesses and carried the pains of His people in order that they might have faith to believe God for healing. He has made provision for us that by His stripes we may be healed from any physical or mental illness. It is the responsibility of the sick person to call for the elders of the church to pray the prayer of faith over them, with the laying on of hands and the anointing of oil in Jesus name. Provision has also been made in the work of the cross for those who are not saved to be delivered from demon possession and sickness as a means of them coming to Christ as Saviour and Lord and is a part of Christ’s commission to the Church.
Ex.15:26; Isa.53:4-5, Mt.8:14-17; 4:23-25; 8:8; 12:15, 22; 14:14; 15:30-31; 21:13-14; Mk.3:10-11; 5:23-29; 6:5-6, 12-13; Lk.4:40-41; 5:15; 6:16-16; Acts 3:1-11; 5:16; 8:6-8; 14:8-10; Mk.16:17-18; Jm.5:14-15
Healing is not just something the Lord does: He is a Healer by nature. In both the Old and New Testaments He revealed His desire and willingness to heal the sick. We read in the gospels that faith was vital to Christ healing the sick. The early church operated in the same ministry and this will continue until the return of Christ. We believe in the power of Jesus name to see any individual delivered from demonic influence. However we reject all false teachings such as the demonization of true Christians, the need for the breaking of hereditary curses, teachings on soul ties, inner healing of memories and past experiences, Christian psychology, positive confessions, and any other such similar teachings not supported by God’s written Word.
REVIVAL
We believe that the promise, hope and vision of personal, local and national revivals have been given in both the Old and New Testaments to raise up a spirit of prayer and of faith in the local church. We believe that genuine revival is a sovereign, supernatural and sudden act of God. We believe that it is God’s will and desire to pour out His Holy Spirit in revival in order to rescue His church from spiritual decline, deadness and ineffectiveness and to restore it to its former glory as seen in the Book of Acts.
II Chron.7:14; Ps.85:6; Isa.44:3; 57:15; 64:1-4; Jer.33:3; Jer.5:24; Hos.6:3; Joel 2:23, 28-31; Zech.10:1; Acts 2:1-2, 18-19; 3:19-21; 4:29-32;10:44-46; 11:5; 19:26; Amos 4:7; Eze.37; Hab.3:2
Revival is the means God uses to quickly restore the church to His own pattern and order. Revival is not the normal state of the Church but what revival produces is normal. The Bible clearly teaches that He will periodically pour out His Spirit in mighty ways during which great multitudes of people will be saved. This will continue until He returns for His church. We as a church believe that God will again send another mighty revival in these last days before the return of Christ and it is our hearts desire that such will happen across Ireland.
APOSTASY
We believe that the Bible clearly predicts and prophesies that in the last days, just before Jesus returns, there will be a great apostasy by which many professing Christians will rebel against the clear teaching of God’s written Word and the faithful preaching of truth but they will still call themselves Christians. At the heart of this apostasy will be the harlot church of Revelation chapter 17. This apostasy will involve a great coming together and uniting of many religious systems which call themselves the church but which reveal themselves to be harlot churches by their doctrines and lifestyle.
II Thess.2:1-3; II Tim.4:3; Mt.24:4-14; Mk.13:22; II Cor.11:13-15; II Pet.2:1-3; I Jn.4:1; Rev.17
The word apostasy comes from the Greek word apostasia meaning a defection or falling away from truth or a separation and divorce from truth. The two teachings of scripture concerning revival and apostasy are reconciled by the knowledge that as we approach the end of the age the apostate church will grow darker but the true church will experience a spiritual revival to bring in a last harvest of souls before God’s judgement and wrath is poured out upon the cities and nations of our world.
BLESSED HOPE AND MILLENIAL REIGN
We believe in the literal return of Christ to the sky; then His visible and physical return to the earth when He shall set His feet upon the Mt. of Olives. The second Coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints (catching away), which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one thousand years. We also believe that the Bride of Christ is to make herself ready for translation. All date–setting, annual predictions or surmising concerning the date of Christ’s return and the identity of Antichrist is to be avoided at all costs.
I Thess.4:16-18; 5:2-9; Mt.26:64; Mk.13:26; II Thess.2:1-3; Mt.24:30; Acts 1:7, 11; Rev.1:7; Zech.12:10; Dan.7:9-14; Rev.19:11-21; Job 19:25-27; Zech.14; Rev.22; 11:15; 16:15; Mt.24:42, 44; Rev.3:3; Mt.24:36
The key biblical emphasis in the New Testament, when discussing the return and coming of Christ, is always the life, conduct and heart of the individual believer. This has very often been neglected because of disputes, arguments and disagreements over when and how everything will happen in the last days. Sadly this has often taken the focus off of a personal preparation of the heart and an earnest watching over the life in expectation of the soon return of Christ— of which no man knows the hour.
RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men. For those who are saved it will be a resurrection of life leading unto everlasting conscious joy and blessing in a new heaven and a new earth. To those who are lost it will be a resurrection of damnation leading into everlasting conscious punishment in the Lake of Fire. At the first resurrection the saved will appear at the Judgment Seat (bema) of Christ which is a judgement for rewards for works accomplished in this life. The lost will appear at the Great White Throne judgment which is a judgment of condemnation without hope or mercy.
Heb.6:2; 9:27; Job 19:25-27; Acts 17:18, 31-32; 24:15; II Tim.4:1; Jude 15; Dan.12:2; I Cor.15:51-54; Mt.5:22, 29-30; 10:28; 24:15; 25:46; Lk.16:19-31; Jn.5:28-29; Rom.2:5; 14:9-12; II Cor.5:8-11; Rev.20:6, 11-15
There are those today in Evangelical circles who are teaching that Hell is not everlasting [aionios] and that sinners will be annihilated after a short space of time, but we consider that such teachings are heretical which utterly contradict the written Scriptures. This word “everlasting” is referred to 69 times in the New Testament: 7 times regarding Heaven, 6 times regarding the Gospel, 3 times regarding God, 2 times regarding Eternity before creation, 44 times regarding Eternal life and 7 times regarding the punishment of the wicked. From this it is evident that the Lake of Fire and the punishment of sinners will last for all eternity as will the reward and blessing of the righteous. To deny that the fire and punishment of the Lake of Fire is not eternal is to undermine the eternal aspect of these other teachings. For the genuine Christian the resurrection and eternal glory of all believers is a magnificent and awe-inspiring promise and hope that aids us through every trial, temptation and circumstance of life.
We believe that the Bible, made up of the 39 Books of the Old Testament and the 27 Books of the New Testament, is the inspired Word of God, in the sense that holy men of God were moved perfectly by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture, while at the same time not losing the personal human touch of the penman. The written Word of God is the infallible, all sufficient rule for faith and practice which is to be taken literally. None may add to it or take away from it, except at their eternal peril.
II Tim.3:15-17; I Thess.2:13; II Pet.1:20-21; Mt.24:35; Isa.40:8; Ps.119:160; Mt.5:17-18; 22:29; Rom.16:26; Lk.24:27, 44; Deut.4:2; Rev.22:18-19
Confidence in the written Word of God is vital to true Christianity. Any undermining of our confidence in the accuracy, purity and preservation of the Bible undermines faith, hope, obedience and indeed will have a radical impact upon your whole Christian life as well as the function and order of the local church. When a Christian is fully persuaded that the Bible is the perfectly and accurately inspired Word of God it moulds his whole manner of thinking as well as all of his actions. The Word of God is the one and only final court of appeal. No man or church system has any right to change, contradict or challenge what God has said. The Bible is the highest written authority which reveals the thought, desire and will of God. True Christians who believe this are radically different from those who profess to follow Christ but who do not believe this vital and essential truth.
THE GODHEAD
We believe that there is only one God who eternally and unchangeably exists in three persons—Father, Son and Holy Ghost—and that these three are one in plan, purpose, thought, word and deed. The Father planned redemption, Christ accomplished it, and the Holy Spirit now applies it. God is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing) and omnipresent (present everywhere at the same time). Although uniquely individual as persons they are eternally and inseparably joined as one eternal and faithful God.
Deut.6:4; Isa.43:10; Mt.3:16, 17; 5:48; 28:19; Mk.12:29; Lk.3:22; Jn.1:14; 10:30; 14:16, 28; 15:26; 16:28; II Cor.3:14; Phil. 2:6
The Word ‘trinity’ simply means three in unity. The Bible is clear in stating that there is only one true God. However “one” does not mean one person but three persons in unity. These three are one. We cannot think of the oneness of God without considering the threeness of God. Being one does not deny that He is three; neither does being three deny that He is indeed one God. The tri-unity and oneness of God are clearly and constantly inferred, stated and reaffirmed in the New Testament. In I John 5:7, we are told, “there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost; these three are one.” By this we see that there is no contradiction in calling the Father, the Word (Jesus) and the Holy Ghost ‘one’ as well as ‘three.’ God is just as much three as He is one.
JESUS CHRIST
We believe in the deity, virgin birth, the humanity, the sinless life, the miraculous ministry, the substitutionary atoning death (in the place of another), the bodily resurrection, the triumphant ascension and the abiding present intercession (prayer life) of the Lord Jesus Christ and in His pre-millennial, physical and visible return as the blessed hope set before all Believers.
Jn.1:1, 14; Phil.2:6, 7; Isa.7:14; Mt.1:23; Rom.5:6, 8; Heb.7:26; I Pet.2:22; 3:18; Acts 2:22, 10:38; II Cor.5:21; I Cor.15:3-4; Lk.24:39; Acts 1:9; Eph.4:8-10; Rom.8:34; Heb.7:25; 9:12; I Thess.4:16; Mt.25:31; Rev.20:1-6
Most heresy and false teaching in the Church is connected to the person of Jesus Christ. To be wrong concerning what the Bible teaches about Christ is to be wrong about everything. The person of Christ and sound doctrine (teaching) concerning Him and His work on the Cross is absolutely critical, foundational and central to the Christian life and the health of the local church. To believe the wrong thing concerning the person of Christ, His work on the cross and His teachings will lead to eternal damnation. The great mark of a true Christian is that he knows Christ, loves Him, obeys Him, worships Him and seeks to live his entire life to glorify Him alone.
CREATION
We believe in the inspired account of the origin of all things as recorded in the Book of Genesis. We believe that all things were created by God, in six literal days and that man was created perfect and sinless in the image of God. In the New Testament Jesus Christ proclaimed and taught that Genesis was to be understood literally as historic fact and that it was accurate and reliable in every detail. There is no room in biblical Christianity for evolution.
Gen.1:1-31; 2:7; 5:1-2; John 1:1-3; Ex.20:8-11; Mt.19:4; Mk.10:6; I Cor.8:6; I Tim.2:13; Acts 4:24; Col.1:16-17; Heb. 1:2-3; 11:3; Rev.4:11
In the Gospels Christ refers to at least twenty people from the Old Testament with an utter confidence that these were actual real people and that the story of their lives reflected true history. He also quoted 36 different verses from 24 different OT books and used the term “…it is written” eighteen times. Amongst all these statements He accepted that the first five books of the OT, including Genesis, were written by Moses and were accurate history. He accepted and preached that the creation of all things had a beginning (Mk.13:19; 10:6) and that Adam and Eve were created physically at this beginning point as the first man and woman (Mt.19:4-6; Mk.10:6-8). He speaks of the murder of their righteous son Abel (Mt.23:35), the days of Noah (Mt.24:37; Lk.17:27), and of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Lk.17:29; Mt.10:15; 11:23). Christ’s simple acceptance of the text of Scripture, including Genesis, as dependable, literal and perfect is beyond doubt. We as a church stand where Christ stood and believe as He believed. A belief in a literal creation is fundamental to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and any denial of it is heresy (false teaching).
MAN, HIS FALL AND REDEMPTION
We believe that through Adam’s sin humanity was totally and utterly ruined. A covenant made between God and man in the Garden of Eden which depended upon man’s perfect obedience was broken when Adam, who was the head of the whole race, sinned. From that time all men have been born in a state of sin having inherited a sinful nature and a broken covenant from Adam. As a result man has been left in a state of utter depravity (sinfulness) unable to save himself and so must look to a Saviour. The one and only answer for man is what Christ accomplished when He died on the cross. Through His sacrifice and His precious shed blood men can now be redeemed, recovered and reconciled to a relationship with God the Father. Adam is the head of the old creation but Christ is the head of the new creation.
Rom.5:12-21; Gen.2:17; 3:6; 3:1-7; Rom.3:10-19, 23; Jer.17:9; Jn.14:6; Acts 4:12; I Tim.2:5-6; I Jn.2:2; 4:10; I Pet.2:24; 3:18; Rom.5:17-21; I Cor.15.21-22; Eph.1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col.1:18: Phil.3:9
Man is unable to save himself, recover himself or to even come to God unless the Holy Spirit draws him. Without a genuine drawing of the Holy Spirit no man would seek after God. It is Christ the Shepherd who first goes seeking after sinners before they have any thought of seeking after Him. Man outside of Christ is absolutely fallen in every area of life including his will, desires and knowledge. If man could save himself through good deeds or through some remnant of perfection inherited from Adam then Christ would never have needed to die upon the Cross. Christ’s work on the Cross was only performed for lost sinners who had no hope of attaining perfect righteousness by their own works because of the fall of Adam.
THE NEW BIRTH
We believe that the Bible teaches that the only way a man can receive forgiveness for his sins is by the new-birth or the born-again experience. Salvation is received through repentance from dead works, and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. It is by faith in Christ alone and His shed blood that sinners are justified, forgiven, made clean, accepted, adopted and made perfectly righteous before God. At the new birth the Holy Spirit comes to indwell the new Christian and by the same Spirit Christ dwells in their heart by faith. The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the Holy Spirit and the outward evidence to all men is a changed life lived in righteousness and true holiness.
Jn.3:1-8; Tit.2:11-12; 3:5; Jm.1:18; I Pet.1:3, 23; I Jn.5:1; Heb.6:1; Rom.4:25; Lk.24:47; Acts 2:38-39; 20:21; 17:30; Rom.10:8-15; Eph.2:8; Gal.3:22, 26; Eph.2:8-9; Rom.8:16; I Jn.5:10-13; Eph.4:24; I Pet.2:24; Isa.55:7; II Cor.5:17-18
The new-birth is a supernatural experience in which God makes dead men alive. We were all born in sin. All of us were born into a state of spiritual death with no desire for the true God. Spiritual death means that a man cannot see God, hear God, desire God, have faith in God, seek after God or know God in a radical life changing way unless the Holy Spirit draws him, opens his heart and then makes him alive. In the new-birth a man has an experience of a second birth which is both spiritual and miraculous. He is made alive through the renewing of the Holy Spirit and the quickening influence of the preaching of God’s Word. His dead spirit is suddenly made alive in order that he may believe and live in Christ Jesus. He is suddenly made a new creature and a new person with a new heart, a new spirit, with new desires and new convictions.
SANCTIFICATION
We believe in living a life of holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. Sanctification is a definite, instantaneous, yet progressive, work of grace commencing at the time of the new birth and continuing until we see Christ face to face. Every true believer in Christ will walk in holiness which is revealed through the progressive growth of the nine fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. A true Christian is known by his perseverance in a walk of holiness and the manifestation of such fruit.
Rom.6:1-14; I Thess.5:22-23; II Cor.7:1; Eph.4:24; Heb.12:14; Lk.1:74-75; Eph.1:4; 5:27; II Tim.1:9; I Pet.1:15-16; Gal.5:22-23
The word ‘Sanctification’ simply means to be set apart for God’s purpose. It is the unique work of God to make a person pure and holy but we must walk in agreement with this work of God by working out our salvation in fear and trembling. The Lord’s primary will for all of our lives is sanctification (I Thess.4:3). This ought to be our first desire and goal in seeking God’s will for our lives above all else. Everything else in God’s will flows from this one desire to live holy before God. God only uses holy vessels to fulfil His will and purpose. The grace of God, the Word of God and the Spirit of God all work together in the heart of a genuine believer to change them and make them more like Jesus Christ. Ultimately holiness is Christ-likeness.
BAPTISM IN WATER
We believe that all who have truly repented and believed in Christ as Lord and Saviour are commanded to be baptised by full immersion in water. It is an outward act of obedience to Christ’s clear command and the answer of a good conscience toward God but has no power in itself to save a person. By baptism the believer is identifying with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. By baptism in water a believer declares publicly that they have been crucified with Jesus by baptism into His death and that they have been raised with Him to walk in newness of life.
Mk.1:4-5; 16:16; Mt.3:16; 28:19-20; Jn.3:22-23; 4:1-2; Acts 2:38, 41; 8:12-13, 16, 36-38; 9:18; 10:47-48; 16:15, 33; 18:8; 19:5; 22:16; Rom.6:3-4; Col.2:12; Heb.6:2; I Pet.3:21
Baptism in water was the first outward act and response of a genuine convert towards God in the New Testament. This is the first act of obedience by the new disciple. Only those who had repented of their sins and who had put faith in God were baptised in water. We find no infants or children of believers being baptized in the early church that had not personally experienced Christ and professed obedience to the Gospel. Infant baptism is no baptism at all. Believer’s baptism by being fully submerged in water is the only true Biblical baptism commanded by Christ. Baptism in water is not left to personal choice. It is a command from God and the natural response of those birthed of God who follow the example of Christ.
BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that after a man is born-again and indwelt by the Holy Ghost, it is his right and privilege to earnestly seek for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, according to the command of the Lord Jesus who is the Baptizer in the Holy Ghost. The purpose of this infilling, baptism and outpouring is to receive power to be a witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, or power for service. The initial physical (first outward) and biblical sign of receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in other tongues as the Holy Spirit gives the utterance. This is followed and confirmed by the manifestation of spiritual power in public testimony and service.
Rom.8:9, 13-16; I Jn.4:13; Jn.3:5; 14:16-17; I Cor.3:16; 6:19; Lk.11:9-13; Mt.3:11, 12; Jn.1:33; 7:37-39; Lk.24:49; Acts 1: 5, 8; 2:1-4, 38-39; 8:12-17; 9:17; 10:44-47; 11:14-17; 19:1-7; Eph.1:13; 5:18-19; I Cor.14:18
The baptism in the Holy Spirit is spoken of in the Bible as a mantle (enduement) which comes upon us like a cloak. It is also an infilling of the Spirit when out of our innermost being rivers of water flow out of us. It is also an outpouring of the Holy Spirit when He falls upon us individually or corporately as a gathering of God’s people. This is a beautiful personal experience of Christ filling us with the promise of the Father. This promise has been given to us in order to create faith, expectation and desire. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell us at conversion but He comes to empower us at our baptism. To be baptised in the Spirit is to be immersed in Him, drenched in Him, engulfed in Him and to live our life walking in step with Him. There is one baptism but many fillings. That means there are numerous continuing experiences of being refilled with the Spirit.
THE CHURCH
We believe the Church is only made up of true believers in Christ which is His body and He alone is the Head of it, as well as its foundation and its only builder. The Church is the habitation of God through the Spirit Who guides all of its affairs. All believers are commanded to gather together regularly as the local church. It is to be a corporate gathering for the purpose of worshipping God and for mutual fellowship. Believers are to dwell together in unity of faith and spirit that all may grow into the likeness of Christ. All true believers must also separate from all false, apostate church systems which deny the fundamentals of the faith. God’s plan for the local Church is that she should endeavour to be self-governing, self-financing and self-propagating.
Mt.16:18; Acts 2:47; Eph.1:22-23; 4:15-16; 5:23-27; Col.2:10; Eph.2:21-22; I Pet.2:4-5; Acts 11:26; 14:27; Rom.16:5; Heb 10:25; Mt.18:20; Jude 1:19; I Cor.1:2; 10:32; 14:4, 12, 19, 23, 26; Jn.17:11, 21-23; Eph.4:3; Phil.1:27; Col.3:12-14; I Pet.3:8; Rev.2 & 3
The word “church” (ekklesia) which is used in the New Testament literally means ‘to be called out of and then to gather together in an assembly.’ It is a gathering together of those who have been called out of the world into Christ. The Church is not a building; it is a gathering of God’s people. It is when all the believers in a specific assembly gather together into one place. Although it is possible to be a Christian without being in a local church it is impossible to fulfil the commands and teachings of the New Testament without regularly meeting with the same group of believers who you know, and who know you. Belonging to a local gathering of God’s people is vital for your spiritual health, growth, encouragement, edification and also in order to be able to function as a member of Christ’s body.
THE CHURCH’S MISSION
We believe that the mission of the church is three-fold: First, it is called to edify itself. This involves doing all in its power to encourage and build up every member of the body in pressing on to perfection and maturity in Christ Jesus. Second, it is called to evangelize the lost. The church is the only vehicle by which the Lord fulfils His great commission both locally and in distant lands. Third, it’s most vital, fundamental and primary goal is to glorify the person of Christ in all that it does and to express and manifest His divine character and truth to the world through itself as His living body.
Rom.14:19; I Cor.14:12, 26; Eph.4:12, 16; I Tim.1:4; Mt.28:19-20; Mk.16:15-16; Lk.24:46-48; Rom.10:13-15; I Cor.9:16; Eph.6:15; Rom.15:6, 9; Mt.5:16; I Cor.6:20; 10:31; I Pet.2:9; Rom.12:1; Gal.2:20; II Cor.4:10-11
Every member of the local body (church) is to be caught up in this divine calling. We all have a part to play in this task as we dwell together. We must make Christ real in our own midst and reveal Him as a risen Lord through our lives to a lost world outside. We are not called to entertain the world, to be user-friendly, contemporary or relevant. We are called to preach the everlasting and unchanging Gospel to every person. The great commission is the only commission given to the church and everything else is secondary to this great task. This commission not only includes the initial evangelization of sinners but also the discipling, teaching and establishing of those new converts. In preaching the Gospel we love Christ, win souls, and build up the church.
THE MINISTRY
We believe that the leadership of the local church (called elders, bishops or overseers), are to be appointed by the wise choice of mature godly leaders in accordance with biblical qualifications of godly character and in agreement with the good report of those in the church. These are to be set apart for ministry by prayer and fasting. The primary ministry of local leadership is three-fold: i) to feed the flock by teaching the Word of God, ii) to rule and lead the flock, iii) and to warn and protect the flock. The church must maintain a right heart towards leadership by being willing to be taught, led and admonished.
Acts 11:30; 14:23; 15:2, 4, 6, 22-23; 16:4; 20:17-18, 28-31; I Tim.3:1-13; 5:17; Tit.1:5-14; I Pet.5:1-4; II Tim:2:2; I Tim.5:17; Heb.13:7, 17; Eph.4:8-15; I Cor.12:28; Rev.2:2; 18:20; Acts 11:27; 13:1; 15:32; 21:8, 10-11; I Cor.14:37; II Tim.1:10
We believe that Christ has also given the five distinct gifted ministries of apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd, and teacher, for the perfecting of the saints, until Jesus returns. These five gifted ministries cannot be appointed as positions, or used as titles, but only recognised as Christ grants such to the body of Christ. Elders may or may not be gifted in one of these ways for local ministry, while others may be gifted in a similar way and then sent forth by the local church for itinerant ministry. All these ministries are to be submitted to the written Word of God and the whole church has the right to test any local or travelling ministries. Aiding the elders in the local church are deacons who are not called to spiritual leadership, but to help in serving practically for the good of all.
THE LORD’S SUPPER
We believe the Lord’s Supper is a symbolic memorial and celebration of the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. The early church gathered together each Lord’s Day using the emblems and symbols of bread and a cup filled with the fruit of the vine (grape juice) to symbolize the body and blood of Christ. At the Lord’s Table which is also called the breaking of bread each believer should look in three different directions, i) he should look back to the death of Jesus Christ for his sins, ii) look inward to discern and judge his own heart, iii) and look forward to the day when Jesus shall return and when he shall drink the fruit of the vine with Christ in His eternal kingdom.
Mt.26:26-28; Mk.14:22-24; Lk.22:19-20; I Cor.11:23-34; Acts 2:42, 46; 20:7, 11; I Cor.16:2; 10:4-5, 16-17, 21; 5:7-8; Gal.3:1; Prov.9:1-6
We follow the example of the early church in gathering together to break bread on the first day of the week—Sunday. By this memorial we show forth Christ’s death in our midst until He comes back for us. This is a time and place of exhortation through the Word of God, as well as a place of rejoicing and celebration through our prayers and of singing as we stir up our minds to remember what Christ has done for us and provided for us at Calvary. It is also a sober and serious time in which we search our hearts before we partake of these emblems in order to be sure that our heart is right before God. We are warned in the scriptures that some were sick and others died who had not taken heed to this warning when they broke bread.
NINE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe in the public operation of the supernatural, spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit which are granted and imparted according to the will of the Spirit to those who earnestly seek for them for the edification, exhortation and comfort of the whole body when it gathers together. These are nine in number: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healings, the working of miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, divers kinds of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. By these nine gifts the Holy Spirit who dwells in the midst of the spiritual body of the church shines forth and manifests Himself in the midst. These gifts and manifestations must be tested and weighed in the public gathering of the assembly when in operation. These are not toys to be used privately and secretly but openly in a way that can be tested by all.
I Cor.12-14; Heb.2:4; Mk.16:15-20; Rom.1:11; 12:4-6
The Scriptures encourage us three distinct times that we are to covet and burn with zeal in seeking for these nine gifts (I Cor.12:31; 14:1, 12, 39). Like any gift they can be abused. But when sought for with faith, operated in with love in accordance with the written Word of God and with a desire to edify, they build up and encourage the whole body in growing into conformity to Christ. These gifts are not natural human gifts which are taught or learnt; they are spiritual and supernatural gifts which are imparted by the Holy Spirit and received and operated in by the faith of the individual as the Spirit works through them. They are not restricted to preachers but are for every member of the body. Anyone who is not willing to have the operation of the gifts tested by the written Word of God or restricted to its clear boundaries, is not spiritually mature or led of the Spirit.
DIVINE HEALING AND DELIVERANCE
We believe that physical healing is provided for in the atonement of Christ. That on the cross Jesus Christ bore the sicknesses and carried the pains of His people in order that they might have faith to believe God for healing. He has made provision for us that by His stripes we may be healed from any physical or mental illness. It is the responsibility of the sick person to call for the elders of the church to pray the prayer of faith over them, with the laying on of hands and the anointing of oil in Jesus name. Provision has also been made in the work of the cross for those who are not saved to be delivered from demon possession and sickness as a means of them coming to Christ as Saviour and Lord and is a part of Christ’s commission to the Church.
Ex.15:26; Isa.53:4-5, Mt.8:14-17; 4:23-25; 8:8; 12:15, 22; 14:14; 15:30-31; 21:13-14; Mk.3:10-11; 5:23-29; 6:5-6, 12-13; Lk.4:40-41; 5:15; 6:16-16; Acts 3:1-11; 5:16; 8:6-8; 14:8-10; Mk.16:17-18; Jm.5:14-15
Healing is not just something the Lord does: He is a Healer by nature. In both the Old and New Testaments He revealed His desire and willingness to heal the sick. We read in the gospels that faith was vital to Christ healing the sick. The early church operated in the same ministry and this will continue until the return of Christ. We believe in the power of Jesus name to see any individual delivered from demonic influence. However we reject all false teachings such as the demonization of true Christians, the need for the breaking of hereditary curses, teachings on soul ties, inner healing of memories and past experiences, Christian psychology, positive confessions, and any other such similar teachings not supported by God’s written Word.
REVIVAL
We believe that the promise, hope and vision of personal, local and national revivals have been given in both the Old and New Testaments to raise up a spirit of prayer and of faith in the local church. We believe that genuine revival is a sovereign, supernatural and sudden act of God. We believe that it is God’s will and desire to pour out His Holy Spirit in revival in order to rescue His church from spiritual decline, deadness and ineffectiveness and to restore it to its former glory as seen in the Book of Acts.
II Chron.7:14; Ps.85:6; Isa.44:3; 57:15; 64:1-4; Jer.33:3; Jer.5:24; Hos.6:3; Joel 2:23, 28-31; Zech.10:1; Acts 2:1-2, 18-19; 3:19-21; 4:29-32;10:44-46; 11:5; 19:26; Amos 4:7; Eze.37; Hab.3:2
Revival is the means God uses to quickly restore the church to His own pattern and order. Revival is not the normal state of the Church but what revival produces is normal. The Bible clearly teaches that He will periodically pour out His Spirit in mighty ways during which great multitudes of people will be saved. This will continue until He returns for His church. We as a church believe that God will again send another mighty revival in these last days before the return of Christ and it is our hearts desire that such will happen across Ireland.
APOSTASY
We believe that the Bible clearly predicts and prophesies that in the last days, just before Jesus returns, there will be a great apostasy by which many professing Christians will rebel against the clear teaching of God’s written Word and the faithful preaching of truth but they will still call themselves Christians. At the heart of this apostasy will be the harlot church of Revelation chapter 17. This apostasy will involve a great coming together and uniting of many religious systems which call themselves the church but which reveal themselves to be harlot churches by their doctrines and lifestyle.
II Thess.2:1-3; II Tim.4:3; Mt.24:4-14; Mk.13:22; II Cor.11:13-15; II Pet.2:1-3; I Jn.4:1; Rev.17
The word apostasy comes from the Greek word apostasia meaning a defection or falling away from truth or a separation and divorce from truth. The two teachings of scripture concerning revival and apostasy are reconciled by the knowledge that as we approach the end of the age the apostate church will grow darker but the true church will experience a spiritual revival to bring in a last harvest of souls before God’s judgement and wrath is poured out upon the cities and nations of our world.
BLESSED HOPE AND MILLENIAL REIGN
We believe in the literal return of Christ to the sky; then His visible and physical return to the earth when He shall set His feet upon the Mt. of Olives. The second Coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints (catching away), which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one thousand years. We also believe that the Bride of Christ is to make herself ready for translation. All date–setting, annual predictions or surmising concerning the date of Christ’s return and the identity of Antichrist is to be avoided at all costs.
I Thess.4:16-18; 5:2-9; Mt.26:64; Mk.13:26; II Thess.2:1-3; Mt.24:30; Acts 1:7, 11; Rev.1:7; Zech.12:10; Dan.7:9-14; Rev.19:11-21; Job 19:25-27; Zech.14; Rev.22; 11:15; 16:15; Mt.24:42, 44; Rev.3:3; Mt.24:36
The key biblical emphasis in the New Testament, when discussing the return and coming of Christ, is always the life, conduct and heart of the individual believer. This has very often been neglected because of disputes, arguments and disagreements over when and how everything will happen in the last days. Sadly this has often taken the focus off of a personal preparation of the heart and an earnest watching over the life in expectation of the soon return of Christ— of which no man knows the hour.
RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men. For those who are saved it will be a resurrection of life leading unto everlasting conscious joy and blessing in a new heaven and a new earth. To those who are lost it will be a resurrection of damnation leading into everlasting conscious punishment in the Lake of Fire. At the first resurrection the saved will appear at the Judgment Seat (bema) of Christ which is a judgement for rewards for works accomplished in this life. The lost will appear at the Great White Throne judgment which is a judgment of condemnation without hope or mercy.
Heb.6:2; 9:27; Job 19:25-27; Acts 17:18, 31-32; 24:15; II Tim.4:1; Jude 15; Dan.12:2; I Cor.15:51-54; Mt.5:22, 29-30; 10:28; 24:15; 25:46; Lk.16:19-31; Jn.5:28-29; Rom.2:5; 14:9-12; II Cor.5:8-11; Rev.20:6, 11-15
There are those today in Evangelical circles who are teaching that Hell is not everlasting [aionios] and that sinners will be annihilated after a short space of time, but we consider that such teachings are heretical which utterly contradict the written Scriptures. This word “everlasting” is referred to 69 times in the New Testament: 7 times regarding Heaven, 6 times regarding the Gospel, 3 times regarding God, 2 times regarding Eternity before creation, 44 times regarding Eternal life and 7 times regarding the punishment of the wicked. From this it is evident that the Lake of Fire and the punishment of sinners will last for all eternity as will the reward and blessing of the righteous. To deny that the fire and punishment of the Lake of Fire is not eternal is to undermine the eternal aspect of these other teachings. For the genuine Christian the resurrection and eternal glory of all believers is a magnificent and awe-inspiring promise and hope that aids us through every trial, temptation and circumstance of life.