Our Beliefs
The Bible is our all-sufficient
rule for faith and practice. This Statement of Fundamental Truths
is intended simply as a basis of fellowship among us (i.e., "That
we all speak the same thing"
1 Cor. 1:10;
Acts 2:42). The phraseology
employed in this Statement is not inspired or contended for, but
the truth set forth is held to be essential to a Full-Gospel
ministry. No claim is made that it contains all Biblical truth,
only that it covers our need as to these fundamental doctrines.
The Scriptures, both the Old and
New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are the
revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative rule of
faith and conduct (2
Tim. 3:15-17;
I Thess. 2:13;
2 Peter 1:21).
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2) The One True God
The one true God has revealed
Himself as the eternally self-existent "I AM," the Creator of
heaven and earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further
revealed Himself as embodying the principles of relationship and
association as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deut.
6:5;
Isaiah 43:10-11;
Matthew 28:19;
Luke 3:22).
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3) The Adorable
Godhead
Terms Defined
The terms "Trinity" and "persons", as related to the Godhead,
while not found in the Scriptures, are words in harmony with
Scripture, whereby we may convey to others our immediate
understanding of the doctrine of Christ respecting the Being of
God, as distinguished from "gods many and lords many." We
therefore may speak with propriety of the Lord our God, who is One
Lord, as a trinity or as one Being of three persons, and still be
absolutely scriptural. (Matthew
28:19;
II Corinthians 13:14;
John 14:16-17).
Distinction and Relationship
in the Godhead:
Christ taught a distinction of Persons in the Godhead which he
expressed in specific terms of relationship, as Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, but that this distinction and relationship, as to its
mode is inscrutable and incomprehensible, because unexplained. (Luke
1:35;
I Corinthians 1:24;
Matthew 11:25- 27;
28:19;
II Corinthians 13:14;
I John 1:3-4).
Unity of the One Being of
Father, Son and Holy Ghost:
Accordingly, therefore, there is that in the Son which constitutes
Him the Son and not the Father; and there is that in the Holy
Ghost which constitutes Him the Holy Ghost and not either the
Father or the Son. Wherefore the Father is the Begetter, the Son
is the Begotten, and the Holy Ghost is the one proceeding from the
Father and the Son. Therefore, because these three persons in the
Godhead are in a state of unity, there is but one Lord God
Almighty and His name one. (Zechariah
14:9; John
1:18;
15:26;
17:11,
21).
Identity and Cooperation in
the Godhead:
The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are never identical as
to Person; nor confused as to relation, nor divided in respect to
the Godhead; nor opposed as to cooperation. The Son is in the
Father and the Father is in the Son as to relationship. The Son is
with the Father and the Father is with the Son, as to fellowship.
The Father is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father, as
to authority. The Holy Ghost is from the Father and the Son
proceeding, as to nature, relationship, cooperation and authority.
Hence, neither Person in the Godhead either exists or works
separately or independently of the others. (John
5:17-30,
32,
37; John
8:17-18).
The Title, Lord Jesus Christ:
The appellation, "Lord Jesus Christ," is a proper name. It is
never applied, in the New Testament, either to the Father or to
the Holy Ghost. It therefore belongs exclusively to the Son of
God. (Romans
1:1-3,
7; II
John 3).
The Lord Jesus Christ, God
with Us:
The Lord Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature, is
the proper and only Begotten of the Father, but as to His human
nature, He is the proper Son of Man. He is, therefore,
acknowledged to be both God and man; who because He is God and
man, is "Immanuel," God with us.
(Matthew
1:23;
I John 4:2,
10,
14;
Revelation 1:13,
17).
The Title, Son of God:
Since the name "Immanuel" embraces both God and man in the one
Person, our Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the title, Son of
God describes His proper deity, and the title Son of Man, His
proper humanity. Therefore, the title, Son of God, belongs to the
order of eternity, and the title, Son of Man, to the order of
time. (Matthew
1:21-23;
II John 3;
I John 3:8;
Hebrews 1:1-13,
7:3)
Transgression of the Doctrine
of Christ:
Wherefore, it is a transgression of the Doctrine of Christ to
say that Jesus Christ derived the title, Son of God, solely from
the fact of the incarnation, or because of His relation to the
economy of the redemption. Therefore, to deny that the Father is a
real and eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and eternal
Son, is a denial of the distinction and relationship in the Being
of God; a denial of the Father and the Son; and a displacement of
the truth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. (John
1:1-2,
14,
18,
29,
49;
2:22-23,
4:1-5;
Hebrews 12:2,
II John 9).
Exaltation of Jesus Christ as
Lord:
The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by Himself
purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on
high; angels and principalities and powers having been made
subject unto Him. And having been made both Lord and Christ, He
sent the Holy Ghost that we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our
knees and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God
the Father until the end, when the Son shall become subject to the
Father that God may be all in all. (Acts
2:32-36;
Romans 14:11;
I Corinthians 15:24-28;
Hebrews 1:3;
I Peter 3:22).
Equal Honor to the Father and
to the Son:
Wherefore, since the Father has delivered all judgment unto
the Son, it is not only the express duty of all in heaven and on
earth to bow the knee, but it is an unspeakable joy in the Holy
Ghost to ascribe unto the Son all the attributes of Deity, and to
give Him all the honor and the glory contained in all the names
and titles of the Godhead (except those which express
relationship. See paragraphs b, c, and d), and thus honor the Son
even as we honor the Father. (John
5:22-23;
Philippians 2:8-9;
Revelation 4:8-11;
5:6-14;
7:9-10).
The Deity of the Lord Jesus
Christ
The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The
Scriptures declare:
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4) The Fall of Man
Man was created good and
upright; for God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness." However, man by voluntary transgression fell and
thereby incurred not only physical death but also spiritual death,
which is separation from God (Genesis
1:26-27;
2:17;
8:6;
Romans 5:12-19).
5) The Salvation of
Man
Man's only hope of redemption is
through the shed blood of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
Conditions to Salvation
Salvation is received repentance toward God and faith toward
the Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing to regeneration and renewing
of the Holy Ghost, being justified by grace through faith, man
becomes an heir of God, according to the hope of eternal life (Luke
24:47;
John 3:3;
Romans 10:13-15;
Ephesians 2:8;
Titus 2:11;
3:5-7).
The Evidences of Salvation
The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the
Spirit (Romans
8:16). The outward
evidence to all men is a life of righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians
4:24;
Titus 2:12).
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6) Ordinances
of the Church
Baptism in Water:
The ordinance of baptism by immersion is commanded in the
Scriptures. All who repent and believe in Christ as Savior and
Lord are to be baptized. Thus they declare to the world that they
have died with Christ and that they also have been raised with Him
to walk in newness of life (Matthew
28:19;
Mark 1:16;
Acts 10:47-48;
Romans 6:4).
Holy Communion:
The Lord's Supper, consisting of the elements - bread and the
fruit of the vine - is the symbol expressing our sharing the
divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ (II
Peter 1:4); a memorial
of His suffering and death (I
Corinthians 11:26); and a
prophecy of His second coming
(I
Corinthians 11:26); and
enjoined on all believers "till He come!"
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7) The
Baptism in the Holy Ghost
All believers are entitled to
and should ardently expect and earnestly seek the promise of the
Father, the baptism in the Holy Ghost and fire, according to the
command of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the normal experience
of all in the early Christian Church. With it comes the endowment
of power for life and service, the bestowment of the gifts and
their uses in the work of the ministry (Luke
24:49;
Acts 1:4-8;
I Corinthians 12:1-31). This
experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of
the new birth (Acts
8:12-17;
10:44-46;
11:14-16;
15:7-9) With the baptism in the
Holy Ghost come such experiences as an overflowing fullness of the
Spirit (John
7:37-39;
Acts 4:8), a deepened reverence
for God (Acts
2:43;
Hebrews 12:28), and intensified
consecration to God and dedication to His work (Acts
2:42), and a more active love
for Christ, for His Word and for the lost (Mark
16:20).
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8) The Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy Ghost
The baptism of believers in the Holy Ghost is
witnessed by the initial physical sign of speaking with other
tongues as the Spirit of God gives them utterance (Acts
2:4). The speaking in tongues in this
instance is the same in essence as the gift of tongues (I
Corinthians 12:4-10,
28), but different in purpose and use.
9) Sanctification
Sanctification is an act of separation from that
which is evil, and of dedication unto God (Romans
12:1-2;
I Thessalonians 5:23;
Hebrews 13:12). The Scriptures teach a life of
"holiness without which no man shall see the Lord" (Hebrews
12:14). By the power of the Holy Ghost we are
able to obey the command: "Be ye holy, for I am holy" (I
Peter 1:15-16). Sanctification is realized in
the believer by recognizing his identification with Christ in His
death and resurrection, and by faith reckoning daily upon the fact
of that union, and by offering every faculty continually to the
dominion of the Holy Spirit (Romans
6:1-13;
8:1-2,
13;
Galatians 2:20;
Philippians 2:12-13;
I Peter 1:5).
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10) The
Church and Its Mission
The Church is the Body of
Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine
appointments for the fulfillment of her great commission. Each
believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of the General
Assembly and the Church of the First-born, which are written in
heaven (Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:22; Hebrews 12:23). Since God's
purpose concerning man is to seek and to save that which is lost,
to be worshipped by man, and to build a body of believers in the
image of His Son, the priority reason-for-being of the Assemblies
of God as part of the Church is:
- To be an agency of God for
evangelizing the world (Matthew 28:10, 20; Mark 16:15-16; Acts
1:8).
- To be a corporate body in
which man may worship God (I Corinthians 12:13).
To be a channel of God's purpose
to build a body of saints being perfected in the image of His Son
(I Corinthians 12:28; 14:12; Ephesians 4:11-16).
The Assemblies of God exists
expressly to give continuing emphasis to this reason-for-being in
the New Testament apostolic pattern by teaching and encouraging
believers to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. This experience:
Enables them to evangelize in the power of the Spirit with
accompanying supernatural signs. (Mark 16:15-20; Acts 4:29-31;
Hebrews 2:3-4). Adds a necessary dimension to worshipful
relationship with God. (I Corinthians 2:10-16; 12:13-14). Enables
them to respond to the full working of the Holy Spirit in
expression of the fruit and gifts and ministries as in New
Testament times for the edifying of the body of Christ. (I
Corinthians 12:28; 14:12; Galatians 5:22-26; Ephesians 4:11-12;
Colossians 1:29).
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11) The Ministry
A divinely called and
scripturally ordained ministry has been provided by our Lord for
the threefold purpose of leading the Church in: (1) Evangelization
of the world (Mark 16:15-20), (2) Worship of God (John 4:23-24),
(3) building a body of saints being perfected in the image of His
Son (Ephesians 4:11-16).
12) Divine Healing
Divine healing is an integral
part of the gospel. Deliverance from sickness is provided for in
the atonement, and is the privilege of all believers (Isaiah
53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; James 5:14-16).
13) The Blessed Hope
The resurrection of those who
have fallen asleep in Christ and their translation together with
those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is the
imminent and blessed hope of the church (Romans 8:23; I
Corinthians 15:21, 52; I Thessalonians 4:16-17; Titus 2:13).
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14) The
Millennial Reign of Christ
The second coming of Christ
includes the rapture of the saints, which is our blessed hope,
followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign
on the earth for one thousand years (Zechariah 14:5; Matthew
24:27-30; Revelation 1:7; 19:11-14; 20:1-6). This millennial reign
will bring the salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21- 22;
Zephaniah 3:19-20; Romans 11:26-27) and the establishment of
universal peace (Isaiah 11:6-9; Psalm 72:3-8; Micah 4:3-4)
15) The Final
Judgment
There will be a final judgment
in which the wicked dead will be raised and judged according to
their works. Whosoever is not found written in the Book of Life,
together with the devil and his angels, the beast and the false
prophet, will be consigned to everlasting punishment in the lake
which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death
(Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 19:20; 20:11-15; 21:8).
16)
The New Heavens and the New Earth
"We, according to His promise,
look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth
righteousness" (II Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:22).
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