GBC Purpose: To Bring Glory to God by prayerfully
- Exhalting our risen Christ as Lord of all
- Edifying the church family to grow and excel in Christ
- Encouraging all people as God gives opportunity
- Equipping believers for ministry and service
- Evangelizing both here and abroad
Grace Baptist Church holds the following Articles of Faith as being a summary of Christian doctrine whose authority consists solely in its agreement with the Word of God.
1. THE BIBLE: We believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament in their entirety to be the Word of God(1) given by inspiration of God(2), in the sense that the Holy Ghost gave the very words of the sacred writings to holy men of old(3) (verbal inspiration), and that His divine inspiration extends fully and equally to all parts of these writings historical, poetical, doctrinal, and prophetic (plenary inspiration)(4). We further believe that every portion of both the Old and New Testaments was ordained of God for our instruction(5), that they were totally without error as originally given, that they have been singularly preserved by God throughout all ages(6), and that they are altogether sufficient in themselves as our only infallible rule of faith and practice(7).
(1)1 Thessalonians 2:13
(2)2 Timothy 3:16
(3)2 Peter 1:19-21
(4)1 Corinthians 2:13
(5)2 Timothy 3:16-17
(6)Psalm 12:6-7
(7)Psalm 119:105
2. GOD: We believe in the only one(1) true God(2), eternally existing in three persons as the incomprehensible Trinity(3) Father, Son, and Holy Spirit(4) each possessing divine perfection and worthy of equal homage and obedience(5); He, as Creator(6) and sovereign ruler(7) of the universe, is righteous in all His ways(8) and holy in all His works.
(1)Mark 12:29
(2)Isaiah 45:22
(3)John 15:26
(4)Matthew 28:19
(5)Revelation 4:11
(6)John 1:3
(7)Hebrews 1:1-3
(8)Deuteronomy 32:4
3. JESUS CHRIST: We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God(1), who became man(2) without ceasing to be God(3), having been conceived of the Holy Spirit(4) and born of the Virgin Mary, and that He lived a sinless life(5) that He might reveal God. We believe He accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice and full propitiation for our sins(6), and that our redemption is made sure to us by His literal, bodily resurrection from the dead(7). We further believe that He is now in heaven, exalted at the right hand of God, where as the High Priest for His people, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate on the behalf of all believers(8).
(1)John 1:1-2
(2)John 1;14
(3)Philippians 2:6-8
(4)Luke 1:35
(5)Hebrews 4:15
(6)Romans 3:24-25
(7)1 Peter 1:3-5
(8)Hebrews 4:14-16
4. HOLY SPIRIT: We believe that the Holy Spirit is a Person who convicts mankind of sin(1) and who enables sinners to place genuine trust in Jesus Christ(2), baptizing them into the Body of Christ at the moment of saving faith(3), indwelling them for godly living(4), and forever sealing them to glory(5). We further believe that it is the duty of every believer to be continually filled (controlled) by the Holy Spirit(6), as commanded in the Scriptures, thereby bearing the fruit of the Spirit(7) and exercising such gifts as the Spirit may grant in His sovereign will(8).
(1)John 16:7-11
(2)John 3:5-6
(3)1 Corinthians 12:12-14
(4)Romans 8:9, 11; 1 Corinthians 3:16
(5)Ephesians 1:13-14
(6)Ephesians 5:18
(7)Galatians 5:22-23
(8)1 Corinthians 12:4-12
5. SATAN: We believe in the literal existence of Satan, who was originally created a holy and perfect being, but through pride and wicked ambition(1) rebelled against God(2), thus becoming utterly depraved in character, the great adversary of God and His people(3), leader of all other evil angels and spirits(4), the deceiver(5) and god of this present world(6). We further believe that his powers are vast, but strictly limited by the permissive will of God who overrules all his wicked devices for good(7); that he was defeated at the cross(8), and therefore his final doom is certain(9); and that we are able to resist(10) and overcome him only in the armor of God(11).
(1)Ezekiel 28:14-16
(2)Isaiah 14:12-15
(3)1 Peter 5:8
(4)Ephesians 2:2; 6:12
(5)Revelation 12:9
(6)2 Corinthians 4:4
(7)Job 1:9-12; 2:4-6
(8)1 John 3:8
(9)Revelation 20:10
(10)James 4:7
(11)Ephesians 6:10-20
6. ANGELS AND DEMONS: We believe in the personal existence of unseen spirits in the world(1) who contend for the souls of men(2), some furthering the purposes of God(3) (angels), and others, under Satan(4), opposing the purposes of God(5) (demons).
(1)Colossians 1:16
(2)1 Peter 5:8
(3)Hebrews 1:7
(4)2 Corinthians 11:14
(5)Revelation 12:9-12
7. MAN AND SIN: We believe that man was directly created(1) by God in His own image(2) in seven literal twenty-four hour days(3) and that he was created holy and upright; that through the historic fall into sin, man came under God's condemnation(4), and that in consequence, the whole human race is dead in trespasses and sins(5) and subject to God's just wrath and judgment(6) death and hell. We believe that this sin nature(7) extends to every child of Adam because he is born into this world with a sinful nature which possesses no spark of divine life. We further believe that without God's provision for salvation in His Son(8), Jesus Christ, no one can enter the Kingdom of God(9), and that no degree of reformation, no educational attainment, no cultural or philanthropic achievement, and no religious ordinance can help a sinner toward the Kingdom of God(10).
(1)Genesis 2:7
(2)Genesis 1:26
(3)Genesis 1:1-2:3
(4)Romans 5:12
(5)Ephesians 2:1
(6)Hebrews 9:27
(7)Romans 3:10-12
(8)John 3:18
(9)John 3:5
(10)Isaiah 64:6
8. SALVATION: We believe that salvation from sin is a free gift offered by God through His grace(1) and received by personal penitent faith in the Lord Jesus Christ(2), whose precious blood was shed for the forgiveness of our sins, and that no penance, no work, no resolution nor sincere effort, no membership in nor submission to any church or its rules or regulations, can in the very least add to the value of that precious blood or to the merit of the redemptive work wrought on Calvary(3). We further believe that it is the privilege of all who are born again by the Spirit through faith in Christ(4) to be assured of their salvation from the time of their conversion(5), and that this confidence is based upon the testimony of God in His written Word(6).
(1)Ephesians 2:8-9
(2)John 1:12
(3)1 Peter 1:18-23
(4)1 John 5:10-13
(5)Romans 8:1
(6)Romans 8:38-39
9. FREENESS OF SALVATION: We believe that the blessings of salvation are made free to all(1) by the Gospel; that it is the immediate duty of all to accept them by faith(2) and that nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the Gospel(3), which rejection involves him in an aggravated condemnation(4).
(1)1 Timothy 2:5-6; Revelation 22:17
(2)John 3:15-16; 8:24
(3)John 5:40
(4)John 3:18-19, 36
10. ETERNAL SECURITY: We believe that all true believers in Jesus Christ are sealed by the Holy Spirit for all eternity(1), that they are preserved in a state of permanent saving grace forever(2), that God will finish the work of salvation begun them(3) without exception(4), that Jesus will for no reason cast a true child of God out His Kingdom(5), and that believers are kept in such state of preservation in eternal salvation, not by any works, effort, service or sacrifice on the part of the believer, but solely and wholly by the power of God(6).
(1)Ephesians 4:30
(2)Psalm 37:28; Jude 1
(3)Philippians 1:6
(4)John 6:39
(5)John 6:37
(6)1 Peter 1:4-5
11. LAST THINGS: We believe that the next great event in the fulfillment of prophecy is the rapture of the church by the Lord Jesus Christ to receive to Himself His own(1) who are alive and also all those who have died saved(2), this being our blessed hope(3) ; that this event will be followed by the Tribulation(4), after which Christ will return to earth with His saints(5) to begin His millennial reign(6). We further believe that the prophecies concerning Israel being restored to her own land(7) and apostasy in the professing church(8) are being fulfilled, thereby indicating the imminence of our Lord's Second Coming(9).
(1)John 14:3; Acts 1:11
(2)1 Cor. 15:23-24; 1 Thess. 4:13-17
(3)Titus 2:13
(4)Matthew 24:21-28
(5)Matthew 24:29-31
(6)Revelation 20:4
(7)Jeremiah 23:7-8; Amos 9:14-15; Romans 11:25
(8)2 Thess. 2:3-8; Matthew 24:12
(9)Mark 13:32-33
12. HEAVEN AND HELL: We believe in the bodily resurrection(1) and everlasting conscious blessedness of believers(2), and in the bodily resurrection of unbelievers to final judgment and everlasting conscious punishment(3). By this we mean that the souls of those who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation do at death immediately pass into His presence and there remain in conscious bliss until the resurrection of the body at His second coming(4) and that the souls of unbelievers remain after death in conscious misery(5) until the final judgment(6), when soul and body shall be united and cast into the lake or fire to be separated from God and punished forever(7).
(1)1 Corinthians 15:12-21
(2)2 Corinthian 5:1
(3)John 5:29
(4)2 Corinthian 5:8
(5)Luke 16:19-31
(6)Revelation 20:11-15
(7)2 Thessalonians 1:6-9
13. THE UNIVERSAL BODY OF CHRIST AND THE LOCAL CHURCH: We believe that the Holy Spirit incorporates all true believers into the body of Christ(1). The visible manifestation on earth of the universal Body is the local New Testament church(2) which is a congregation of baptized believers associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the Gospel(3), observing the ordinances of Christ(4), governed by His laws, and exercising the gifts, rights and privileges invested in it by God's Word, that its only scriptural officers are bishops (elders or pastors) and deacons, whose qualifications, claims and duties are defined in the Epistles of Timothy(5), Titus(6) and Hebrews(7) and that it is free to govern itself without any ecclesiastical interference, as Christ alone is its Head and Shepherd(8). We further believe that members of a local church ought to represent our Lord and spread His Gospel throughout the world(9), keep the unity of the Spirit in the bonds of peace(10), and love one another with a pure heart fervently(11).
(1)1 Corinthians 10:16-17; 12:27
(2)1 Timothy 3:15
(3)Acts 2:41-42
(4)1 Corinthians 11:2
(5)1 Timothy 3
(6)Titus 1
(7)Hebrews 13:7, 17, 24
(8)Ephesians 5:23
(9)Mark 16:15
(10)Ephesians 4:3
(11)1 Peter 1:22
14. LOCAL CHURCH ORDINANCES: We believe that there are only two scriptural church ordinances Christian Baptism and the Lord's Supper; that scriptural Christian Baptism is the total immersion in water(1) of a born-again believer(2), in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Ghost(3) to show forth in a solemn and beautiful emblem of faith(4) in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior(5); and that the Lord's Supper is to commemorate the death of Christ for our sins by use of bread to symbolize the body of our Lord which was given for us(6), and grape juice to symbolize the blood of Christ shed for the remission of our sins(7). We categorically reject false, unscriptural notions concerning the church ordinances, including infant baptism, baptism by sprinkling or pouring, the Romanist doctrine of transubstantiation, or the belief that there is any saving merit in either ordinance. We further believe that the partakers of the Lord's Supper should be only those who are scripturally baptized believers in close fellowship with God, and who have solemnly examined themselves and diligently sought to make sure to have a clear conscience with both God and man, lest they partake of the Lord's Table unworthily and thereby bring judgment upon themselves(8).
(1)Acts 8:36-38
(2)Acts 2:41
(3)Matthew 28:19
(4)1 Corinthians 11:26
(5)Romans 6:3-5
(6)1 Corinthians 11:24
(7)1 Corinthians 11:25
(8)1 Corinthians 11:27-32
15. CHRISTIAN LIFE: We believe that Christians are called with a holy calling to walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit(1). Because believers have become new creatures in Christ Jesus(2) and are indwelt by the Holy Spirit(3), we believe we should recognize that we are pilgrims in this world(4) and should not love the world(5), neither should we be of the world(6). Rather we have a mission to proclaim Christ(7) and live a life consistent with a Christian testimony(8).
(1)Romans 8:5-9
(2)2 Corinthians 5:17
(3)John 14:16-17
(4)Colossians 3:1-3
(5)1 John 2:15-17
(6)John 15:19
(7)Matthew 28:19-20
(8)1 Peter 1:14-16
16. RESPONSIBILITIES OF BELIEVERS B We believe that God has appointed prayer(1), Bible reading(2), worship(3), fellowship(4), giving(5), and witnessing(6) as means of grace and growth for His children(7). The ultimate responsibility for every believer that transcends all others is to bring glory to God(8). We further believe that, as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ, we will give account to God for our service on this earth.
(1)James 5:16
(2)Colossians 3:16
(3)John 4:24
(4)Hebrews 10:24-25
(5)Malachi 3:10Acts 1:8
(6)2 Peter 3:18
(7)1 Corinthians 10:31
(8)2 Corinthians 5:10
17. SPIRITUAL GIFTS: We believe that there are three categories of spiritual gifts, namely 1) gifts given by Christ to the church for its edification and growth(1); 2) gifts given to believers for ministry and service(2); and 3) sign gifts(3) given in the early church to testify and verify to unbelieving Jews, who required a sign(4), the veracity and divine origin of the testimony and revelation of the Apostles. We further believe that the sign gifts were for the infancy of the church and thus ceased with the completion of the Bible(5), as the need for them ended when the Bible was finished.(6) We reject the doctrines that teach that there is a second work of grace subsequent to salvation, erroneously called the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but we believe that the baptism with the Spirit was a historical event that took place once on the Day of Pentecost,(7) never to be repeated again, when all believers of the church age were baptized with the Spirit(8), that tongues in the Bible were known human languages,(9) and that the modern tongues movement is both unscriptural and unwholesome, contributing nothing to godliness or spirituality.
(1)Ephesians 4:11-14
(2)Romans 12:6-8
(3)1 Corinthians 12:7-10
(4)John 4:48; 1 Cor. 1:22; 14:22
(5)1 Corinthians 13:8-10
(6)1 Corinthians 13:11
(7)Acts 1:5; 2:1-13
(8)1 Corinthians 12:13
(9)Acts 2:7-11
Welcome to
Grace Baptist Church
