Scripture

We believe the Bible is the Word of God, comprising the totality of Holy Scripture, is verbally inerrant in the original text, and remains inerrant, inspired, infallible, and sufficient in all its substance for salvation, sanctification, life and practice. Therefore, it is the supreme, final, and authoritative standard for faith, theology, and moral decisions. We seek to teach the Word of God in such a way that its message can be applied to an individual’s life, leading that person to greater maturity in Christ.

The 66 books of the Old and New Testament are as follows:

• • Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth,
    1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther,
    Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, The Song of Songs, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations,
    Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah,
    Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi
  •  New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, The Acts of the Apostles, Romans, 1
    Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2
    Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon,

The Nature and Unity of the Godhead

We believe that the triune God eternally exists in one essence and three distinct persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit; that He is essentially Spirit, personal, transcendent, sovereign, life, love, truth, almighty, simple (i.e., essentially one without parts), timelessly eternal, unchangeable, wise, just, holy, relational, pure actuality, dynamic, infallible in all things, including His foreknowledge of all future decisions and events, and that He created all things by the power of His Word.

The Father

We believe that the Father is the first person of the God-head and that He has His being from Himself. His fatherhood is eternal as He is the Father of the eternal Son, Jesus Christ. He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men. While man was still marked as His enemies, His love was demonstrated in the giving of His Son for their redemption. The Father hears and answers prayer and He saves from sin and death all who come to Him by faith through Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ is the second person of the God-head and is eternally one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. In accordance to the will of the Father, He was willingly made in the likeness of men through the miraculous conception of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, possessing two distinct natures which are co-joined in one person (God and Man); As the fulfilment of the promised messiah, He lived a sinless and miraculous life, provided for the atonement of our sins by His vicarious substitutionary death on the Cross, was physically resurrected in the same body that was buried in the tomb by the power of the Holy Spirit; Subsequently, Jesus Christ physically
ascended back to the right hand of God the Father in heaven, and ever lives to make intercession for the saints.

The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead who seals, indwells, sanctifies, baptizes, teaches, comforts, empowers, reveals, and guides the believer into all truth. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is to testify of Jesus, and, as such, is at work in the world through the Church to achieve this end. After Jesus ascended to Heaven, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the believers in Jerusalem, enabling them to fulfill His command to preach the gospel to the entire world. Further, this obligation is shared by believers today. Thus, the Holy Spirit continues to empower and give gifts to whom He wills. These gifts are demonstrated and are to be exercised within scriptural guidelines. We, as believers, are to earnestly desire the best gifts, seeking to exercise them in love so that the whole
Body of Christ might be edified. We believe that love is more important than the most spectacular gifts, and without this love all exercise of spiritual gifts are worthless.

Creation

God is the Creator and Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and of every basic form of life according to the six historic days described in the book of Genesis. The creation account is factual, historical, and is the foundation of our understanding of the created universe, God’s power, and His glory. Additionally, creation serves as the general revelation of God and demonstrates his divine attributes to all humanity, leaving no excuse for ignorance or rejection of Him. Further, God exercises providential care for every life form in His creation and Christ is the conserving cause of all things.

Mankind & Sin

We believe that man is created in the image of God and that the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Man is created with the capacity to choose and the opportunity to exercise their will. To the extent that man chose to walk in harmony with God in the beginning, there was a realisation of their purpose; However, in exercising their will in opposition to God, Adam and Eve fell and were sent away from their intended place of relationship with God as they suffered the consequences of their sin. After the fall of Adam and Eve, all people are by nature separated from God and responsible for their own sin. This separation from God is the consequence of sin, and because of humanity being guilty, they are under the wrath of God. This wrath is fully realized in an
eternal separation from the comforting presence of God in a state of eternal torment.

 Salvation

Salvation is initiated, attained, and procured by God through the death of Christ on the cross for our sins and His resurrection from the dead. The salvation Christ offers is available to all and is received freely by grace alone and through faith in Christ alone, apart from good works, thereby justifying and sealing the believer by the Holy Spirit. When a person repents of sin and places their faith in Jesus Christ as personal Saviour and Lord, that person is immediately born again, and that person becomes a child of God, secured in Him.

The Church

The Church is the body of people, both living and dead, whom God has separated from the world by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. All regenerate persons are members of the universal Church of God which takes local form wherever groups of believers unite for worship, fellowship and service in accordance with scriptural principles. All believers are called to a priestly ministry in the offering of spiritual sacrifices and sent into the world to be witnesses. God calls individuals to positions of oversight and leadership or to special ministries. The Church recognises such by ordaining pastors, commissioning missionaries, appointing elders/deacons and other leaders, following New Testament practice.

Baptism

In obedience to the example and direction of Jesus, the believer participates in the ordinance of baptism. Water baptism is not necessary for salvation, and cannot remove sins, but is a picture of the salvation already received by
the believer. They are lowered into the water, which is symbolic of being buried with Christ in His death. In the lifting out of the water, the symbol is of being raised to the newness of life in Christ.

Communion

The Lord’s Supper is an ordinance of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was instituted by Him to be celebrated
with the elements of the bread and the fruit of the vine by believers in Him until the end of the age. It
commemorates and declares our thanks for the Lord’s substitutionary death, as well as looking
forward to the time we partake with Him again. The celebration of the ordinance expresses our
fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ as members of the Body, of which He is the Head.

Marriage & Sexuality / Gender

We believe marriage is instituted by God and is between one biological man and one biological
woman only. The marriage bed is undefiled. Sexual relationships outside the bonds of heterosexual
marriage are both unbiblical and immoral. We also believe that the intentional confusion/blurring of
genders and functions/manners naturally and uniquely given to men and women distort God’s
established order – which functionally places man as the head of woman, Christ the head of man, and
God the Father the head of Christ.

Satan & Spiritual Warfare

We believe there is a real personal devil of great malevolence, cunning and power, who seeks to deceive, tempt, kill, steal and destroy, yet his power is limited by God to only what God permits him to do; that the devil has been defeated positionally at the cross of Christ, and will be defeated practically at Christ’s glorious second coming which will eventuate in the permanent quarantine and punishment of the Devil, Beast, and False Prophet, in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone. We believe that Satan and all the powers of darkness now seek to deceive people and defeat the work of God. However, they can be resisted by believers, as they are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, protected by God, and interceded for by the Lord Jesus.

Eschatology

We await the pre-tribulational rapture of the church, and we believe that at the Second Coming of
Christ He will visibly set up his throne on earth and personally rule with His saints for 1000 years. This
motivates us to holy living, heartfelt worship, committed service, diligent study of God’s Word, regular
fellowship, evangelism and participation in baptism by immersion and in Holy Communion. We
believe that the nation of Israel still has a special place in God’s plan and that all the promises of the
God of Israel will be fulfilled.

Eternity

We believe those who are saved by Jesus Christ will spend eternity in the presence of God in a
conscious state of blessedness, reward, and satisfaction; that those who do not personally receive the
finished work of Christ by faith will spend eternity separated from the comforting presence of God in a
state of conscious torment.