STATEMENT OF FAITH---- WHAT WE BELIEVE

We are so excited that you have made the decision to make Church on the Rock your home church! We agree to cover you in prayer and believe that as God has planted you here for a purpose, you will fulfill your destiny and flourish as you grow and develop in His Word. Please read carefully our following Statement of Faith. You may also pick up a copy at the Information Counter or Visitor Center in the Lobby.

The Holy Scriptures: We believe that the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbal and plenarily inspired Word of God. The scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and therefore the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to man. (II Timothy 3:16-17, II Peter 1:20-21)

The Person and Work of Jesus Christ: We believe that God is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one and only true God—All knowing, all powerful, all present—complete in Himself, having always existed. We believe the Lord Jesus Christ to be the only begotten Son of God. Born of the virgin, He died on the cross for the sins of mankind. He was raised from the dead and ascended into Heaven to sit at the right hand of God (Psalm 90:2, Isaiah 43:10, Matthew 1:23, John 1:14, Acts 1:9-11, I Cor. 15:3-4, Phil. 2:13, Col. 1:1-2, Hebrews 7:26, Hebrews 9:18).

The Holy Spirit: We believe the Holy Spirit to be the divine third person of the Trinity—God as Spirit. We believe that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is for every believer distinct from salvation with speaking in tongues being the initial accompanying evidence of being baptized and that the gifts of the Spirit are manifested for the purpose of meeting the needs of the people. (Joel 2:28, Matt. 28:19, Luke 24:49, John 14:16, Acts 1:4-8, Acts 2:4, Acts 13:1-2, Romans 8:14-16 and 26-28, I Cor. 12:1-11, I Cor. 14:26-40, I Cor. 24:2,4,5,39).

The Godhead: We believe the Holy Trinity to be God revealing Himself in three Divine Persons, each distinct in office from the other, yet perfectly one—constituting One God, not three Gods. (Matt. 28:19, Luke 3:22, John 14:9, 16, John 17:3).

Salvation and the Forgiveness of Sins: We believe that all of us are sinners in need of a Savior, unable to earn our salvation through doing good works and thereby destined for eternal separation and judgment from God. However, we also believe here is Good News! That salvation is the free gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This abundant, everlasting life with God and the forgiveness of sins is available through Jesus Christ alone and is offered to all who confess their sins and believe and trust in His death on the cross. (Isaiah 53:1-10, Luke 8:6, John 3:16, John 10:10, Acts 4:12, Romans 3:23, Eph. 2:8-10, I Thess. 5:23, I John 1:9).

Healing: We believe divine healing was provided to the believer through Christ’s finished work on the cross, and it is God’s will for us to be healed—in spirit, soul and body (Isaiah 53:4-5, Matt. 8:17, Acts 10:38, I Peter 2:24).

Water Baptism: We believe water baptism is for all believers, and is to be practiced by immersion. It symbolizes our being buried with Christ unto death of self, and as Christ was raised from the dead so shall we too, walk in newness of life. (Matt. 28:19, Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Romans 6:4-5, Col. 2:12).

The Lord’s Supper: We believe the Lord’s Supper (Communion) using the physical elements of the bread and the fruit of the vine, is to be done in remembrance of the shed blood and body of Christ proclaiming His death on the cross for us. (Luke 22:19, I Cor. 11:17-30, II Peter 1:4).

Giving: We believe that every Christian is a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him and is obligated to support the local church financially. We believe God established the tithe (10% of the gross income—the first fruits) as a basis for giving, and that every Christian should also give other offerings, both sacrificially and cheerfully, to the support of the Church, the relief of those in need, and to spread the Gospel. We believe that Christians relinquish all rights to direct the use of the tithes and offerings once the gifts have been made. (Proverbs 3:9-10, Malachi 3:10-11, Matt. 23:23, Luke 11:42, I Cor. 10:11).

Christ’s Second Coming: We believe Christ’s Second Coming includes a pre-tribulation rapture of the church—the sudden catching away of believers on the Earth and those who have died in Christ (Our Blessed Hope). This is followed by a literal 7-year period of unparalleled tribulation and judgment on the Earth, then the final judgment of the wicked dead resulting in everlasting punishment in the lake of fire, which is the second death. (Daniel 12:11, Matt. 24:15, 21, 29, Matt. 25:46, Mark 9:43-48, Luke 21:36, John 14:2-3, I Thess. 4:13-17, Revelation 3:10, Revelation 7:14, Revelation 10:11-15, Revelation 19:20, Revelation 21:8).

Human Sexuality: We believe that God commanded that no intimate sexual activity should be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. The Good News, however, is that as with all sins, these too can be forgiven through the heartfelt admission of our sins and belief in the shed blood of Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross for us. (Genesis 2:24, Genesis 19:5, 13, Genesis 26:8-10, Lev. 10:1-30, Romans 1:26-29, I Cor. 5:1, I Cor. 6:9, I Thess. 4:1-8, Hebrews 13:4, 1 John 1:9).

Divorce and Remarriage: We believe that God hates divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Divorce and remarriage is regarded as adultery except on the grounds of fornication or if an unsaved mate wants to leave. If you’ve been divorced, there is Good News! We have God’s promise that this sin, like all others, will be forgiven through the heartfelt admission of our doing wrong and belief in the shed blood of Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross for us. (Malachi 2:14-17, Matt. 19:3-12, Romans 7:1-3, I Cor. 7:1-39, I Timothy 3:2,12, Titus 1:16, I John 1:9).

Abortion: We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of an unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching which states that abortions performed because of rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth control, population control, or the mental well being of the mother are acceptable. (Job 3:26, Psalms 51:5, Psalms 139:14-16, Isaiah 44:24, Isaiah 49:1,5, Jeremiah 20:15-16, Luke 1:44).

Lawsuits Between Believers: We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the Church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the Church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (I Cor. 6:1-8, Eph. 4:22-32).