STATEMENT OF FAITH[1]

Sovereign Grace Bible Church

September 2008

• We believe that the Bible is sufficient and the only authority for faith and living.

• We believe that there is only one living and true God, who is infinite and sovereign over all His creations. 

• We believe in the tri-unity of the Godhead, which consists of three persons existing in one substance: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Deut. 6:4; Ps. 90:2; John 4:24; Rom. 1:7; Heb. 1:8; Acts 5:3-4).

• We believe that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, having been conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life and did many miracles (John 1:1, 14; Philip. 2:5-8; Luke 1:34, 35; 2 Cor. 5:21). 

• We believe that Jesus Christ is the Lord and Savior of mankind. His death was substitutionary, propitiatory, and redemptive (John 10:15; Rom. 3:24, 25; 5:8; 1 Pet. 2:24).    

• We believe in His bodily resurrection, and in His physical ascension to the right hand of the Father, where He now is our High Priest and Advocate making intercession for us and ruling as the Head of the Church (Luke 24:39; Acts 1:3, 11; Heb. 8:1; 1 John 2:1; Heb. 7:25; Eph. 5:23). 

• We believe in His personal, physical, and imminent return to earth (Rev. 22:20).

• We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity. And thus He was involved in creation (Gen. 1:2), the incarnation of Jesus (Matt. 1:18), the inspiration of the Bible (2 Tim. 3:16), and the work of salvation (John 3:5-7).   

• We believe that the present ministry of the Holy Spirit includes convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and of judgment (John 16:7-9). He is the sovereign God who works in regeneration and baptizing all believers into the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13). He also indwells, sanctifies, empowers the believers for service, and seals them unto the day of redemption (Rom. 8:9; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14). 

• We believe that man was created in the image of God to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever, and to accomplish the purpose of God in the world (Gen. 2:7, 15-25; Is. 43:7; Col. 1:16). 

• We believe that Adam’s sin has been transmitted to all men of all ages, except for Jesus Christ. Thus all men are sinners by nature, by choice, and by divine declaration (Jer. 17:9; Rom. 3:9-18, 23; 5:10-12).

• We believe that salvation is wholly of God by grace on the basis of the redemption of Jesus Christ, the merit of His death and resurrection, and not on the basis of human merit or works (John 1:12; Eph. 1:4-7; 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:18, 19). 

• We believe that salvation encompass election, regeneration, justification, sanctification and glorification, which will evidence by faith and repentance (Eph. 1:4-11; John 6:37-40; 3:3-8; Titus 3:5; Rom. 8:30, 33; 1 Thes. 4;3, 4).

• We believe that Christ is the head of the catholic (universal) church and local churches. 

• We believe that local church is made of baptized Christians, who exists to exalt the Lord (Philip. 2:9), edify one another (1 Cor. 14:12, 26; Eph. 4:29), equip the saints (Eph. 4:12), and to evangelize the lost (Mark 16:16; Matt. 28:19, 20). 

• We believe that there are two biblically defined groups or offices that are to serve Christ’s church: elders (pastors) and deacons, both of whom must meet biblical qualifications (1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Pet. 5:1-5).

• We believe that all the followers of Christ will be with the Lord forever (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Philip. 1:23); and all the unrepentant sinners will suffer forever in hell (Dan. 12:2; John 5:29; Rev. 20:13-15).