What We Believe
We believe and teach the historic doctrines of the Christian faith. These are summed up, briefly, in the Apostles’ Creed, printed below, and in such marvellous distillations of the faith as the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. We are evangelical (keen to share our faith with others), fundamentalist (believing the Bible to be the inspired word of God), trinitarian (believing that there is but one true God, who yet exists in three equal divine persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit), baptist (baptising by immersion in water those who profess faith in Jesus Christ), presbyterian (having our local fellowship led by male elders) and independent (non-denominational).
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen
In addition to, and in explanation of, the above essential building blocks of the Christian faith, we would add:
We believe that the whole human race is at enmity with God and is, therefore, disobedient to God and His Word by nature and by choice; that the one true God, who is by nature holy, just and righteous, must punish this sin and rebellion; that this one, true God, who is also by nature love, mercy and grace, chose to forgive sinners who repent of their sin and turn to Him in sorrow and in faith; that, in order to save such sinners, the Father sent His only-begotten Son into the world as man, to die for men; that this Son, Jesus Christ, willing died as a substitute for sinners upon a cross, bearing their sin in His own body and suffering the just judgement of God for their sin so that He provided the basis upon which God can and will forgive sin; and that the claims of Christ to be the Son of God and the Saviour of sinners were corroborated by His resurrection from the dead.
We believe that sinners are spiritually dead to God, unable to see, know or hear Him without His intervention, and unable to earn God’s favour or to save themselves; that any work of God in the heart of a sinner is a work of grace that comes entirely and completely from the sovereign will and choice of God; and that though God is sovereign in choosing to work in and with sinners, all are ultimately held responsible for their own lives and decisions.
We believe that, in saving sinners from the power and penalty of their sin, it is the work of the Father to call sinners to Himself, the work of the Son to save them by His death for them upon the cross and the work of the Holy Spirit to open their eyes to their need, to convict them of their sin and to draw them to repentance and faith; that the sinner’s response to the gospel is that he must repent of his sins, believe in the word of God, and trust in Christ and His death upon the cross. All who hear the gospel are charged to obey it and to show ‘repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.’ Then, having been born again of the Spirit of God upon repentance faith and conversion, the new believer is in-dwelt by the Spirit of God and begins his/her spiritual life as a new disciple; that signs of this conversion will be seen in the life of such a believer; and that, by reading the Scriptures, by prayer, by fellowship with other fellow-believers, by personal discipline in daily living to please God, and with the keeping power of the Father, the prayerful intercession of the Son and the help of the Spirit, all such believers will eventually find their way through this life into the next life and to the throne of God in the glory.
We believe that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, is God from before the foundation of the earth, became man to die for men, lay down His life for sinners upon the cross of Calvary, was buried, rose again, ascended to the right hand of the Father in heaven, intercedes for His beloved, believing people, will one day return to take them to see His glory, to be in His glory and to be part of His glory, and will one day be the Judge of all who do not know Him and have never bowed the knee to Him.
Soli Deo Gloria!
(Glory to God alone!)