A. Holy Scriptures
We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, supernaturally inpsired so that it is inerrant in the original manuscripts, and has been preserved by God, so that it is the divinely authoritative standard for every age and every life (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21).
B. The Godhead
We believe that there is one God eternal, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7), manifesting Himself in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; one in nature, equal in attributes, essence, power, and glory. (1 Corinthians 8:6; John 1:1-5; Hebrews 1:1-4; 1 Corinthians 2:10; 12:11)
- God the Father: We believe that God the Father, the first Person of the Trinity, orders and disposes all things according to His own purpose and grace (1 Corinthians 8:6). As the only absolute and omnipotent Ruler in the universe, He is sovereign in creation, providence, and redemption (Psalm 103:19; Romans 11:33-36
- God the Son: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is God incarnate, very God and very man, that He was begotten by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and offered Himself on the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice, suffering the full penalty for sinners. He was raised bodily on the third day and ascended to the right hand of the Father, there to intercede for us as our advocate and High Priest (Colossians 1:15-17; Matthew 1:23; Philippians 2:5-8; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
- God the Holy Spirit: We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person, eternal, un-derived, possesing all the attributes of personality and diety, including intellect (1 Corinthians 2:10-13), emotions (Ephesians 4:30), will (1 Corinthians 12:11), eternality (Hebrews 9:14), omnipotence (Romans 15:13), and truthfullness (John 16:13). In all the divine attributes He is coequal and consubstantial with the Father and the Son.
C. Man
We believe that man, as a consequence of Adam's sin, is subject to the wrath of God, justly condemned in His sight wholly unable to save himself. Although man was originally created in the image of God, apart from God's salvation through Christ, man is eternally lost (John 3:36; Romans 3:23; 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-3).
D. Salvation
We believe that salvation is wholly by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and entirely apart from any ordinance, ritual, human merit or works. Salvation is the free gift of God, and once it is recieved, it cannot, by any means, be lost. While sin may interrupt the joy of a believer's fellowship with God and bring the loving discipline of the Father, the true believer is eternally secure (Ephesians 2:8-9; John 3:16; 1 Peter 1:18-19; John 10:28).
E. Spiritual Gifts
We believe that Christ gives to each believer at conversion, by the ministry of the Holy Spirit, some gift or gifts to equip him to serve the Lord and edify other believers (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11).
F. The Church
We teach that the universal Church consists of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ from Pentecost to the Rapture. Each local assembly or church should be a miniature of the universal Church, expressing the great truths of the latter. The local assembly consists of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ who meet regularly for teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, prayer, and evangelism to maintain the Great Commission (Acts 2:42; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Ephesians 5:23-32).
G. The Ordinances
We teach that there are two Christian ordinances: water baptism and the Lord's Supper. Baptism is the testimony of a believer showing forth in solemn and beautiful emblem his faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, and his union and identification with Him in death to sin and ressurection to a new life (Acts 8:36-38; Romans 6:1-11; Galatians 2:20). We teach that the Lord's Supper serves as a commemoration and proclamation of Jesus' death until He comes (1 Corinthians 11:23-34).
H. Marriage and Sexuality
- We believe that according to the Holy Bible, marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant committment for a lifetime. It is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and His Church, and to provide for the man and the woman in marriage in the framework for intimate companionship, the channel of sexual expression according to biblical standards, and the means for procreation of the human race.
- We believe that sexual intimacy is a wonderful gift of God that is only to be expressed between one man and one woman (as genetically defined) within the love and bonds of marriage. (Genesis 2:24-25; Matthew19:4-6; Ephesians 5:21-33; 1 Corinthians 7:3-5; Hebrews 13:4).
- We believe that any form of sexual intimacy outside of marriage is both immoral and a perversion of God's gift (Leviticus 18:1-30; Proverbs 6:32; 1 Corinthians 6:18; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8). Furthermore, we believe that any form of sexual immorality such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography, cohabitation (regardless of the age of the individuals involved), any attempt to change one's gender in disagreement with one's genetically defined gender, is sinful and offensive to God (Leviticus 18:20; Romans 1:1-32).
I. Last Things
We believe the following future events: the personal, imminent coming of the Lord Jesus to rapture the Church (Matthew 25:1-13; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18; Titus 2:13), the tribulation period (Matthew 24:4-28), the second coming of Christ (Matthew 24:29-31), the millenial reign of Christ (Revelation 20:1-3), the judgement of the lost (John 5:22; Revelation 20:11-15; Matthew 25:31-46), and the eternal state (Revelation 21:1-27).
J. Redemption and Restoration
We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ (Romans 8:1-39). And we believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior, attitudes, or speech directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrine and practice of Calvary Bible Church (1 Peter 2:13-25; 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12).
If you have questions about anything you've read here we would love to talk with you. Please feel free to reach out to us at (208) 788-9174 or email Pastor Ron directly at Ron@CalvaryBibleWR.org.