Beliefs
“Faith comes from hearing,
Romans 10:17
and hearing by the word of Christ.”
What We Believe
At Believers Chapel, our beliefs are based on Scripture and include an emphasis on Biblical Preaching, Sovereign Grace and Principles of the New Testament Church.
Biblical Preaching
We believe that preaching from the Bible is God’s way of revealing Himself to us and saving us by grace. The purpose of preaching is to present the Gospel of salvation in Christ and to help believers grow in spiritual maturity. The aim of Biblical preaching is the salvation of the unsaved, the sanctification of believers and ultimately the glory of God.
Sovereign Grace
We believe that saving grace is God’s sovereign grace. Man is lost apart from the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, which irresistibly draws believers to faith in the atoning sacrificial death of Christ Jesus for their sins. This saving grace will enable believers to have newness of life in Christ and will help them to persevere to the end.
New Testament Church
We believe in following the principles of the New Testament church: There is one body, one universal church. Every believer is a member of the church. Jesus Christ is the head of the church. The Holy Spirit is Christ’s representative of the church. The church of Jesus Christ is holy. Every believer is a priest of God. The ordinances of the church (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) were instituted by Christ, its head. The work of God was supported by the people of God. The New Testament is the sufficient and authoritative constitution of the church.
“AND THEY CONTINUED STEADFASTLY IN THE APOSTLES’ DOCTRINE AND
FELLOWSHIP AND IN BREAKING OF BREAD AND PRAYERS.”
(ACTS 2:42)
Statement of Faith
The Bible
1. The Bible in all sixty-six books is the inspired Word of God. It is inerrant (without error) in the original autographs (writings) and is our only authority for faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).
God
2. There is one God who exists in three persons, the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:20). The triune God is the Creator of the universe. He created it out of nothing and sustains it by His power.
Man
3. Man was created by God in God’s image, male and female and made perfect. But mankind fell when the first man Adam sinned. All men inherited Adam’s guilt and his sinful nature (Psalm 51:5). As a result, the human race is born into this world separated from God, incapable of pleasing God and in need of a Savior (Romans 5:12; 8:7-8).
Christ
4. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the only Savior. He is fully God and fully man, born of a virgin, born without sin or guilt and lived a perfect life under the Law. He was crucified by sinful men but died according to God’s plan to save the elect. He was raised bodily from the dead on the third day and ascended into heaven as proof that His Father accepted His sacrifice as the Substitute for His people (John 8:46; 18:38; Galatians 4:4-5; Romans 4:25; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8; 17).
Salvation
5. The salvation Christ obtained by His death is free for all who believe in Him. It is not the result of human works or merit. Faith itself is the gift of God imparted by the Holy Spirit through the new birth of regeneration (Ephesians 2:1-8).
Spiritual Life
6. Believers in Jesus Christ are justified at the moment of faith. They are fully forgiven and forever accepted by God so that their salvation can never be lost. Still, all believers continue to have a sin nature and will struggle with sin as long as they are in this world. But they are presently being sanctified by the Holy Spirit to transform their souls so that they can live holy lives (John 10:29-30).
The Future
7. The souls of all believers enter heaven at death (2 Corinthians 5:8). When Christ returns for His church they will be resurrected and those who are alive will be raptured. After seven years, He will return to defeat evil and establish His Kingdom on the earth where believers will reign with Him for a thousand years and then enter the eternal state of the New Heavens and New Earth (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Revelation 20-21). All who do not believe the gospel of salvation live in spiritual death under God’s wrath and upon physical death enter hell and ultimately the lake of fire where they will suffer justly for all eternity (John 3:36; Revelation 20:10,14).
The Church
8. God’s great work in the present age is the church. Christ is building it. He began it on the Day of Pentecost when God the Father and God the Son sent God the Holy Spirit. The universal church is organized into local congregations. The local church is governed by male leadership, which is structured according to a plurality of elders and deacons under the headship of Jesus Christ who is the Chief Shepherd of the sheep (Philippians 1:1; Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 5:4).
Spiritual Gifts
9. All believers, male and female, are priests and equal in Christ. The Holy Spirit has given every believer a spiritual gift to be used for the edification of the church and the evangelization of the world. Some Biblical gifts are no longer extant, such as the gifts of tongues, prophecy and healing (Ephesians 4:11-12).
Ministry
10. Ministry at Believers Chapel is centered on the Bible and the observance of the two ordinances of the church, believer’s baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Books of the Bible are taught Sunday mornings systematically and expositionally. The Lord’s Supper is observed every Sunday (1 Corinthians 11:24; Acts 2:42).
Membership
11. A member of Believers Chapel is one who confesses faith in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and his or her Savior; acknowledges the authority of the Bible, attends the meeting of the church regularly and submits to the governance and authority of the elders.
Discipline
12. When sin is exposed in the church, discipline is carried out according to Matthew 18:15-18. The person disciplined is not put out of the church but is prohibited from taking the Lord’s Supper. The purpose is correction and restoration.
Family
13. The family is the basic unit of the church and society. It is based on marriage. Marriage is between one man and one woman (Genesis 1:27-28; Mark 10:6). Christian marriage represents the relationship between Christ and His church (Ephesians 5:25-33). Therefore, only marriage between one man and one woman is permitted at Believers Chapel. One or both of the couple must be a member of Believers Chapel and in good standing or a family member of Believers Chapel member(s) and in good standing; and all wedding ceremonies at Believers Chapel are subject to the approval of the Trustees/Elders of Believers Chapel.