Word

I believe that that the Bible is the word of God and  that it is fit for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. The Bible is composed of sixty-six books and epistles composed at many times and diverse manners and that the written revelation of God ceased after the writing of the Apocalypse of John.

All Christians should strive to understand and interpret the Bible, trying to disregard all biases and human error, examining Scripture in light of Scripture first and with additional guidance from the tradition of the church and reason. I believe that all that is necessary for salvation is contained within the Bible.

God

There is but one only, living, and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection, spirit, invisible, simple, immutable, incomprehensible, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will for his own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek him; and most just, and terrible in his judgments, hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty.

I believe that this God exists in the three persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, all united in one essence, consubstantial with each other.

Son

I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, eternally begotten of the Father before all worlds. He is God of God, Light from Light and is consubstantial with the Father, and by him were all things made. I believe that Christ is the means of our salvation, having accomplished this by being incarnated of the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit and having been made flesh, he dwelt among us, enduring the full burden of temptation and was found perfect and through death fulfilled God’s divine plan for the salvation of humanity.

I believe that having been found perfect under the law, Christ was condemned to the cross where he willingly became the propitiation of our sins. He suffered and was buried, descended into hell, and on the third day rose again according to the scriptures thereby making one full, perfect, and sufficient oblation and satisfaction for the sins of the world. I believe that Jesus Christ now sits at the right hand of the Father, working to reconcile all things to himself. Christ shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Holy Spirit

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life. I believe that the Holy Spirit is both co-equal and consubstantial with God and eternally proceeds from the mouth of the Father and of the Son. The Holy Spirit has been sent by Christ to the whole of the elect to act as a guide and helper to all that believe and by this also helps to sanctify the believer from sin.

Humanity

I believe that humanity was created, male and female, equally in the image of God to glorify and to love God and to live in perfect communion with God. I believe that by being in the image of God, humanity was created replete with an immortal and immaterial soul, with the ability to reason and to think, and with the law of God written into their hearts. And also having also a capacity to reject the good and perfect plan of God, humanity acted selfishly and placed themselves over God, alienating themselves from God and destroying the perfect communion once held with God.

I believe that Adam’s sin has imparted an indelible stain upon the human spirit, rendering it unable to turn of its own will to God, being made spiritually dead by original sin. I believe that this rebellion continues to the present day and that it is only by the effective work of the Holy Spirit that any person can become regenerated and reunited with Christ. I believe that this regeneration can only be accomplished through faith in the effective work of Christ on the cross.

Sin

I believe that sin is any act that places the will of the individual over the will of God. Every sin, is an act that violates the divine law and imputes guilt onto the unrepentant sinner. By this guilt, people incur the wrath of God and are then made subject unto death both temporal and eternal.

Salvation

I believe that God, in his inscrutable will and infinite mercy has chosen to provide a way to save the Church through his Son, Jesus Christ. I believe that salvation is given by God by grace, and that no person can merit salvation through his or her own works apart from faith and that the grace of God is received through faith.

I believe that the result of salvation is eternal life, a life filled with the bliss and joy of communion with God in heaven. It is ultimately grace through faith that allows Christians the ultimate victory over sin and death, sharing in Christ’s defeat of death at his resurrection.

Church

I believe that there is one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church that consists of the whole number of the elect that believe and call upon the name of Christ, all constituting the invisible body of Christ.

I believe that Christ has instituted two sacraments (holy and visible signs) for the church to continue in until the coming of Christ Jesus our Lord: Baptism and the Eucharist. I believe that baptism is an act administered as a sign and seal of the covenant. It is done to mark the death of our old selves and our rebirth in Christ. I believe that the Eucharist, or Lord’s Supper / Communion, has been instituted to remember the atoning work of Christ in the Cross whereby we mark in remembrance the body and blood of Christ.

Christian life

I believe that following the justification of the soul in Christ and the rebirth found through the baptism of the Spirit, the Christian must continue in the Word and that good works will form an evidence of the salvation found in Christ. Indeed, the old self has been crucified with Christ and the dominion of the body of sin is destroyed and the Spirit dwells in the justified as a helper. Then, having been justified, the Christian must undergo continual sanctification until called again to God in the fullness of time. This sanctification is accomplished by a continual warring against the lust of the eyes and of the flesh and the pride of life with the aid of the Spirit, continually separating ourselves from sin on a daily basis.

I believe it is by grace that the Christian is able to continue in full surrender and faith to the workings of God, with the Spirit delivering us from continued rebellion from the remnants of the old body of sin. This grace does not make the individual sinless or unable to fall into sin, but nevertheless sustains the Christian in the present age through continued separation, introspection, and confession of sin to Christ our mediator.

I believe that all Christians are called to be in, but apart from the world, abstaining from sin. It is the responsibility of the Christian to try as best as they can to proclaim the good news in word and deed so that through our lives the Spirit may act and call others to reconciliation with Christ.

I believe that each person is subject to his or her own conscience in matters of faith and practice, in light of the Word. I believe that each person should be wholly convicted of what they believe, but to also work for the unity of all believers as one body in Christ, that is to say, “in necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas” (in essentials, unity; in uncertain things, liberty; in all things, charity).