 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
| Fellow |
ship > What We Believe |
|
|
 |
|
What Saith the Scripture?
What We Believe
"But without faith it is impossible
to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is
a Rewarder of them that diligently seek Him."
(Hebrews 11:6)
by Tom Stewart
We Believe, concerning...
1. The
Word of God
In the Inspiration of the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments.
- "All Scripture is given by inspiration of
God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction
in righteousness" (2Timothy 3:16).
"Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4).
- "Scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:35).
2. Creation
That God created all things by a direct act through His Son.
- "In the beginning God created the heaven
and the earth" (Genesis
1:1).
"In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made" (John 1:1-3).
3. Sin
That all men have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.
- "For all have sinned, and come short of the
glory of God" (Romans
3:23).
That sin is a voluntary act of the human will in
rebellion against the Law of God.
- "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also
the law: for sin is the transgression of the law"
(1John 3:4).
4. Salvation
That all men need the salvation that comes only from God the Father through Jesus
Christ, the Son.
- "For God so loved the world, that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,
but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).
"Neither is there salvation in any other:
for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).
That willingness to obey Christ is to be a Christian.
- "He that doeth the will of God abideth for
ever" (1John
2:17).
5. The Security of the Saint, and Insecurity
of the Sinner
That only those who walk in obedience can know, and have a right to know-- by virtue
of the testimony of the Spirit and the Word-- that they are saved.
- "And hereby we do know that we know Him,
if we keep His Commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His Commandments,
is a liar, and the Truth is not in him"
(1John 2:3-4).
"All liars, shall have their part in the
lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death" (Revelation 21:8).
6. Sanctification
That holiness must be practiced for men to see God.
- "Follow peace with all men, and holiness,
without which no man shall see the LORD"
(Hebrews 12:14).
That practiced sanctification is entire.
- "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly;
and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the
coming of our LORD Jesus Christ" (1Thessalonians 5:23).
That God will work, in a willing heart, to will
and to do of His good pleasure.
- "For it is God which worketh in you both
to will and to do of His good pleasure"
(Philippians 2:13).
That our past failures in sin cause us to limit
what we believe God can accomplish in us.
- "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver
me from the body of this death?" (Romans 7:24).
That the same power of Christ's Resurrection causes
us to rise from the power of sinning.
- "That I may know Him, and the power of His
resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His
death" (Philippians
3:10).
"For sin shall not have dominion over
you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace"
(Romans 6:14).
That the Gospel experience is the comfort of the
Holy Spirit.
- "I will not leave you comfortless... But
the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name, He
shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever
I have said unto you" (John 14:18,26).
That obedience is no longer legalistic or burdensome.
- "For this is the love of God, that we keep
His Commandments: and His Commandments are not grievous
[burdensome, i.e., impossible]" (1John 5:3).
That the promises of God are designed to make us
participants in God's holiness.
- "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great
and precious Promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the Divine Nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust" (2Peter 1:4).
That those who watch and pray have been promised
escape from ALL the events of the Tribulation Week.
- "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that
ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and
to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:36).
7. Jesus Christ
That Jesus, by virtue of the Virgin Birth is both God and man.
- "Therefore the LORD Himself shall give you
a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name
Immanuel" (Isaiah
7:14).
"For unto us a Child is born, unto us
a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall
be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince
of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6).
That He lived a sinless life.
- "Who did no sin, neither was guile found
in His mouth" (1Peter
2:22).
That He substituted Himself for all mankind on
the Cross.
- "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away
the sin of the world" (John 1:29).
That
- "He was buried, and that He rose again the
third day according to the Scriptures"
(1Corinthians 15:4).
That He ascended back into Heaven and gave the
Church His Holy Spirit as promised in the New Covenant.
- "And, being assembled together with them,
commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise
of the Father, which, saith He, ye have heard of Me... Ye shall be baptized with
the Holy Ghost not many days hence... But ye shall receive power, after that the
Holy Ghost is come upon you... And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld,
He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts 1:4-5,8-9).
"A new heart also will I give you, and
a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your
flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you,
and cause you to walk in My Statutes, and ye shall keep My Judgments, and do them" (Ezekiel 36:26-27).
8. The Great Commission
That all men are to be preached the Gospel of repentance from sin, and faith in Jesus
Christ, until Jesus returns the Second time.
- "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am
with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen"
(Matthew 28:19-20).
That intercessory prayer is the greatly neglected
tool of the Body of Christ to cast down the strongholds of Satan and set the sinner
free.
- "And He saw that there was no man, and wondered
that there was no intercessor: therefore His arm brought salvation unto Him; and
His righteousness, it sustained Him" (Isaiah 59:16).
"(For the weapons of our warfare are not
carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down
imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of
God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (2Corinthians 10:4-5).
9. The Church
That the Church is the Body of Christ.
- "What? know ye not that your body is the
temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your
own?" (1Corinthians
6:19).
"Now ye are the body of Christ, and members
in particular" (1Corinthians
12:27).
That the individual Believers should seek out the
support and fellowship of Fellow Believers.
- "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves
together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more,
as ye see the day approaching" (Hebrews 10:25).
That the body should not be unequally yoked with
unbelievers.
- "Be ye not unequally yoked together with
unbelievers: for what fellowship hath Righteousness with unrighteousness? and what
communion hath Light with darkness?" (2Corinthians 6:14).
That discipline should be enforced by believers,
withdrawing fellowship from those stubbornly walking in known sin.
- "To deliver such an one unto Satan for the
destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the LORD Jesus" (1Corinthians 5:5).
"And if any man obey not our word by this
Epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet
count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother" (2Thessalonians 3:14-15).
10. Love, Faith, and Obedience
That love is demonstrated by the Saints through obedience to the Saviour.
- "He that hath My Commandments, and keepeth
them, he it is that loveth Me: and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father,
and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him"
(John 14:21).
That faith only comes from the Word of God.
- "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17).
That faith is the means and love is the motivation--
a faith that worketh by love.
- "For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision
availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love" (Galatians 5:6).
That obedience is not optional, if we would walk
in the love of God.
- "But whoso keepeth His Word, in him verily
is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him" (1John 2:5).
That the parable of the Ten Virgins warns us that
only the professed body that is walking wisely, i.e. without known sin, will enter
into the Marriage.
- "Then shall the kingdom of Heaven be likened
unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the Bridegroom.
And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their
lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their
lamps. While the Bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight
there was a cry made, Behold, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet Him. Then
all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise,
Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not
so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell,
and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the Bridegroom came; and they
that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward
came also the other virgins, saying, LORD, LORD, open to us. But He answered and
said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know
neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh" (Matthew 25:1-13).
11. The
Rapture of the Church
That two Rapture events will take place. The 1st "Come
Up Hither" is the Pre-Tribulational Rapture
of the Church.
- "After this I looked, and, behold, a door
was opened in Heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet
talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must
be hereafter" (Revelation 4:1).
And, the 2nd "Come
Up Hither" is the Pre-Wrath Rapture of
the Tribulation Saints.
- "And they heard a great voice from Heaven
saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to Heaven in a cloud; and
their enemies beheld them... And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great
voices in Heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our
LORD, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever" (Revelation 11:12,15).
That Jesus will reward the Righteous at the Bema
Seat Judgment.
- "For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according
to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad"
(2Corinthians 5:10).
12. The Second Coming of Jesus Christ
That Jesus Christ will come bodily.
- "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up
into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come
in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven"
(Acts 1:11).
That He will come in plain view of the entire world.
- "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every
eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth
shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen"
(Revelation 1:7).
That He will Judge the Nations of the World.
- "When the Son of man shall come in His glory,
and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory:
And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from
another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats" (Matthew 25:31-32).
That He will cast Antichrist and the False Prophet
into the Lake of Fire.
- "And the beast was taken, and with him the
false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that
had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both
were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Revelation 19:20).
That He will chain Satan in the Bottomless Pit
for 1,000 years.
- "And I saw an angel come down from Heaven,
having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold
on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand
years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon
him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be
fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season" (Revelation 20:1-3).
13. The Millennium
That the LORD Jesus Christ will reign with the Church Age Saints on planet Earth
for 1,000 years over the Millennial Saints-- those who enter the Millennium in the
flesh.
- "Of the increase of His government and peace
there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it,
and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this"
(Isaiah 9:7).
"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon
them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worshipped the
beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or
in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years" (Revelation 20:4).
That Satan will be loosed and man will again rebel,
only to be destroyed by God.
- "And when the thousand years are expired,
Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations
which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together
to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the
breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the Beloved
City: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them" (Revelation 20:7-9).
That Satan will then be cast into the Lake of Fire.
- "And the devil that deceived them was cast
into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and
shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever"
(Revelation 20:10).
And that the Wicked will be judged at the White
Throne Judgment and also cast into the Lake of Fire.
- "And I saw a Great White Throne, and Him
that sat on it, from Whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was
found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and
the books were opened: and another Book was opened, which is the Book of Life: and
the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according
to their works... And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast
into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:11-12,15).
14. The New Heavens and New Earth
That God will cause the first Heaven and first Earth to pass away, and replace them
with a New Heaven and a New Earth.
- "And I saw a New Heaven and a New Earth:
for the first Heaven and the first Earth were passed away; and there was no more
sea" (Revelation
21:1).
That this is God's New Creation
- "wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2Peter 3:13).
.
For additional reading related to this
topic, please see our pages:
---New Window
---New Window
and
A Little Leaven ---New
Window
("From the Editor's Desktop"
---New Window)
by Tom Stewart
"Church history has seen innumerable controversies concerning all of its major
doctrines, from the Divinity of Christ to the Second Coming of the Messiah; but,
the neglect of the Church to return to its First Love is our most serious failure.
'Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast
left thy First Love' (Revelation 2:4). Falling away
from a loving obedience of the LORD Jesus Christ is evidence that we are close to
the appearing of the Antichrist. 'Let no man deceive you by
any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and
that Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition' (2Thessalonians
2:3). Rejecting our necessity to love our neighbour as ourself, has caused
so much confusion that the Church resorts to the world's psychology rather than the
Word of God for answers to the problems of human relationships. 'If
a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not
his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?'
(1John 4:20). Our doctrine will soon betray our deficiency
of a 'faith which worketh by love' (Galatians
5:6), if when the Saviour returns, our claim to orthodoxy outweighs our proof
of loving obedience. 'If ye keep My Commandments, ye shall
abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's Commandments, and abide in His
love' (John 15:10)."
Section Index for Fellowship
Readers are permitted and encouraged to copy
and freely share this article with others.
Holy Bible
