One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism
Ephesians 4:1-6
1) I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
2) with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3) endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
4) There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;
5) one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6) one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
The Word of God
The Bible, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, alone is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and having supreme authority in all matters of faith and life.
The Trinity
There is One living and true God, eternally existing in three Persons. They are equal in every divine perfection and They execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.
God the Father
God the Father is the infinite, eternal and almighty personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love, and is the first Person of the Trinity. He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of people, He hears and answers prayers, and He saves from sin and death all who come to Him in repentance and faith through Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is God's only begotten Son, was conceived by the Holy Spirit and is the second Person of the Trinity. He was miraculously born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and performed miracles. We affirm His incarnation, teachings, substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and His personal, visible return to earth.
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity and is sent from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. At the moment of salvation the Holy Spirit, as the abiding Helper, Teacher and Guide, indwells every believer in Christ and endows each believer with spiritual gifts for ministry to the family of God and the world.
Salvation
The central purpose of God's revelation in the Bible is to call all people into awareness of their sin, the availability of God's marvelous grace, and the need for repentance and faith that results in complete forgiveness and fellowship with God. All people are sinners by nature and by choice and are, therefore, under the judgment of God. Those who call on the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness, believe in His resurrection and receive Him as their Savior are granted salvation, forgiveness of their sin and are regenerated by the Holy Spirit into a new life in Christ. This act of salvation is based solely on the grace and mercy of God, and is not the result of human deeds or goodness.
The Church
The Church consists of a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members, and exists as both a world-wide fellowship of the family of God as well as in specific local congregations consisting of a community of believers in Jesus Christ who are committed to obedience to Him. Believers in a local church are called by God to gather together to devote themselves to worship, prayer, the teaching of the Word of God, observance of baptism and communion as ordinances established by Jesus Christ, and to fellowship and to minister to one another through the development and use of talents and spiritual gifts. God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world, beginning in their own communities and reaching cross-culturally to the ends of the earth.
The Ordinances
The Lord Jesus Christ has instituted two ordinances for obedient observance by the local church: baptism and the Lord's Supper. These two ordinances are to be observed and administered by God's family until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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