About Him

There is only One True God!

The statue of Liberty in New York harbor is one of the most recognizable icons of our country. In another country, such a large statue might become an object of worship. Some of the largest statues in the world are monuments depicting false deities. China for example, has five huge statues of Buddha, each of which rival the Statue of Liberty in height. Generations of humanity have felt compelled to make a statue to bow down to. There are numerous examples of this in the Bible. Sometimes the statue depicts a mythical creature, like the statues of Baal and Molech worshipped by pagans in the OT.

Sometimes the statues were depictions of real people, like the giant gold colossus of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon described in the book of Daniel. The King had a ninety foot high statue of himself constructed, and he demanded that everyone bow down to it. You’d have to have a pretty healthy ego to make such a huge image of yourself, then make everyone bow down and worship it!

We tend to scoff and say “That’s ridiculous! I’d never worship to a statue!” We tend to think of idol worship as something that superstitious, ignorant cultures do, and we think ourselves beyond primitive practices like that. But are we?

The Ten Commandments represent God’s measure of holiness. It’s the standard by which all of us will be judged. In the first commandment God says “You shall have no other gods before me.” In the second commandment He says “You shall not make for yourself an idol.” Hold onto that thought.

You’re probably familiar with some of the other commandments:
“You shall not steal.”
“You shall not murder.”
“You shall not commit adultery.” etc, etc, etc.

These are God’s laws. Tell me this; Have you broken any of them? Before you answer, consider this: in Matthew chapter 6, Jesus said that hating someone is the same kind of sin as murdering them. He also said that to lust after someone is the same kind of sin as adultery. So, have you broken God’s laws? If you answer is yes (which, if you’re honest, it has to be!), then consider: If God judges you by the ten commandments on Judgement Day, will you be innocent or guilty? Every one of us stands guilty before a Holy God, because we have all fallen short of His Holy standard. Are you worried about that? Jesus declared that, on Judgement Day, multitudes will hear God say “Depart from me, I never knew you.” They will be removed from God’s presence and cast into outer darkness, into hell, for all eternity. Does that concern you?

Many people say something like:
“No it doesn’t, because I think God is kinder than that. I know that the Bible says that God punishes sin, but when it comes right down to it, I think God will forgive me, even though I never sought forgiveness, or turned from my sin.”

Do you know what you’ve just done? You’ve broken both of the first two commandments. You’ve constructed an idol in your mind, and you’ve put it before the One True God. The god you’re trusting in, the one who will overlook your sin without any repentance on your part, doesn’t exist. It’s a false god.

•Acts 17:30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.

He’s calling you to repent, to turn away from your sin, to turn from all pride, and lust and addiction, and thievery and dishonesty. The penalty for those things is death and Hell, and we’ve already committed the crimes. We’ve already earned the sentence. But God loves you and I so much, that He allowed His only Son, Jesus, to die in our place, and take the punishment for us.

But Jesus did more than die for our sin. He rose from the dead after three days, and because of that, we have the confidence that He has conquered death.

And now He’s calling you to put your trust in Him, to let go of all of your sin, turn from it, and trust the Savior. By doing so, your sins will be forgiven, and you will gain the assurance of everlasting, eternal life with God in Heaven, instead of eternal separation from Him in hell. He will also give you His own Spirit, which takes the form of a new nature a nature that has the desire and ability to turn from sin and live for righteousness.

Don’t fall back on the familiar excuses to avoid making a decision. Follow Christ today. If your heart and conscience is convicting you, then simply talk to God.

•Tell him that you’re aware that you are guilty of sin, and have broken His Holy Laws. Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

•Tell Him you know you deserve judgement and punishment. Romans 6:23 The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord

•Even though you know this is true, tell HIm that you believe that Jesus, His Son, became a man, and suffered and died to pay for your sin. 1 Peter 2:24 He Himself bore our sins in His Body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.”

•Tell Him that you want to receive the forgiveness that Jesus offers, and that you want to turn from your sin and become His follower for the rest of your life.

•Start reading your Bible and doing what it says. Find a Christ-centered church that teaches the Bible, and start attending regularly, as often as you possibly can. Worship God and serve Him and His people, and right away, begin telling others about what God has done in your life!

Don’t deceive yourself into thinking you can worship a god created in your own mind. Know and worship the One True God. He loves you, and will be faithful to guide you all your days!

God


We believe that there is one true, sovereign, holy God, who is the author of creation. He is all-powerful, all-knowing, and unchanging. (Deut. 6:4) He eternally exists in three persons — Father (Isaiah 26:4), Son (John 10:30), and Holy Spirit (Heb. 9:14) — each possessing equally all the attributes of deity and the characteristics of personality. God continues to sustain His creation and is operating throughout history to fulfill His redemptive purposes.

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the eternal second Person of the Trinity, who was united forever with a true human nature by a miraculous conception and virgin birth (John 1:1-3). He lived a life of perfect obedience to the Father and voluntarily atoned for the sins of all by dying on the cross as their substitute, thus satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone (Phil. 2:9). He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died (1 Cor. 15:20). He ascended into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of the Father, where He, the only Mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own (Eph. 1:20). He shall come again to earth, personally and visibly, to rightfully reclaim it for God the Father, to consummate history and complete the eternal plan of God (Acts 1:11).

The Holy Spirit

The confirmation of a genuine saving faith in Jesus Christ is a life ever-increasingly characterized by holiness and obedience to God. This is accomplished as the believer submits to the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity (Rom. 8:9). He enlightens the minds of sinners, awakens in them a recognition of their need of a Savior and regenerates them. He indwells all true believers at the point of salvation, becoming their source of assurance, strength and wisdom and uniquely endowing them with gifts for the edification of the body of believers. The Holy Spirit guides believers in understanding and applying the Scriptures. His power and control are appropriated by faith, making it possible for the believer to lead a life of Christ-like character and to bear fruit to the glory of the Father (Gal. 5:22-23).

Human Condition

Man was created in the image of God to fellowship with Him and give Him glory (Gen. 1:27). Adam and Eve, the first humans, chose to go their own independent way. As a result, the fellowship was broken, the image distorted, and the sin nature passed on to all their progeny (Rom. 5:12). All humans, in their unregenerate state, are utterly sinful and unable to please God (Rom. 3:23).


Redemption

The central purpose of God’s revelation in Scripture is to call all people back into fellowship with Himself (1 Tim. 2:4). This can only be accomplished through a sovereign act of His free grace and cannot be accomplished, in whole or in part, through human works or goodness (Eph. 2:5). Redemption for the individual is appropriated through personal repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, as the Son of God, crucified to ultimately pay the penalty for sin, and resurrected from the dead (Rom. 10:9).



Scripture

The Bible, composed of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament, gives the true and trustworthy Word of God to humanity, written in the words and literary style of individuals (2 Tim. 3:16). It says everything God intended to say as He inspired men to write it, and He has provided ample evidence of its complete reliability — historical, scientific, and spiritual. We hold that the Scriptures are inerrant in the original manuscripts, and therefore are the supreme and final authority in matters of faith and conduct. The scriptures are to be taken literally unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

The Church


The corollary of union with Jesus Christ is that all believers become members of His body, the church. There is one true church universal, comprised of all who truthfully acknowledge Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Scripture commands the church to be the vehicle through which the gospel is spread to the world (Mt. 28:19-20). Believers are commanded to gather together to devote themselves to worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, fellowship, and service to the body through the development and use of talents and gifts. The church is also commanded to observe the baptism of new believers, and the observance of communion in remembrance of the Lord Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection (1 Cor. 11:23-26). Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to this command, there is a local expression of the church. Under the watchful care of elders and other supportive leadership, its members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the one ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ.

The Second Coming

The events of Christ’s first coming, including His miraculous birth, sinless life, His death, and resurrection were prophesied in scripture and fulfilled literally. The events leading up to and accompanying His second coming, including the rise of the anti-christ (2 Thes. 2:3-4), the persecution of the redeemed by Satan (Rev. 12:17), the rapture of the church (Mt. 24:31; 1 Thes. 4:16-18) the pouring out of God’s wrath upon the wicked (Rev. 6:17), the salvation of national Israel (Rom. 11:26), and the inauguration of Christ’s thousand-year millennial reign upon the earth (Rev. 20:6), are likewise attested to by Scripture. Believers are commanded to understand, wait, watch for, and live in the light of this blessed event.

Human Destiny


Death seals the eternal destiny of each person (Heb. 9:27). For all mankind, there will be a resurrection of the body into the spiritual world, and a judgment that will determine the fate of each individual. Unbelievers, having chosen to be separate from God in their lifetimes, will be separated from God for eternity. Believers, saved through faith in Jesus Christ, will be received into eternal communion with God, and will be rewarded for works done in their lifetime.

Faith and Practice

Scripture is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice (2 Tim. 3:16). This church recognizes that it cannot bind the conscience of individual members in areas where Scripture is silent. Rather, each believer is to be led in those areas by the Lord, to whom he or she is ultimately responsible.