God

The Bible reveals God to be the Creator and Sustainer of all things. He dwells in the heavens in unapproachable light. He is all-powerful, all-wise, a God of love, mercy, holiness, righteousness, and truth. God is a unity. Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Corinthians 8:6.

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, was born of the virgin Mary. He had the same nature as us, was tempted in the same way we are, but did not sin. By his obedience, death, and resurrection, God will remove all of the evil resulting from Adam's disobedience. Matthew 1:20-21; Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 15:21. With his ascension to heaven, Jesus now possesses an immortal nature. He now superintends, through his angels, all of Creation on behalf of God his Father. Matthew 28:18; Acts 1:9-11.

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the power of God directed to fulfil His purpose. The prophets by the Holy Spirit revealed God's word. Jesus' conception was by "the power of the Highest" and it was by the Holy Spirit he perfomed miracles and spoke his Father's words. After Christ's ascension to heaven, the Holy Spirit descended on many in the early church empowering them to spread the Gospel message. The Holy Spirit allowed the apostles to speak God's word authoritatively and to perform miracles to confirm that authority. These gifts are not available to us today. 2 Peter 1:21; Luke 1:35; John 14:26; Acts 1:5,8; 2:4; 10:38

The Bible

The Bible is the Word of God. The original text is inspired, infallible, authoritative, and true. 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21

Mankind

God made the first man, Adam, from the dust. Adam broke God's commandment, and as a result man is mortal, subject to death. Death is a state of unconsciousness, where we cease to exist. Following death, our body corrupts and returns to the dust. No part of us continues. Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3:19; Ezekiel 18:4; Ecclesiastes 9:5; 12:7; Romans 5:12

Immortality

Immortality is available as a gift from God to those who believe in Jesus Christ and follow his example. It is not something we possess now. At the return of Jesus, the responsible (dead and living) will be judged. The faithful will be given immortality. The unfaithful will be consigned to "the second death." John 3:16-18; 10:28; 1 John 5:11-12; Romans 6:23; 2 Timothy 1:10; 1 Corinthians 15:11-12

Soul

In the Bible, the word "soul" refers to a living being or creature, rather than to an immortal part of a person that continues to live after death. When God created Adam, he "became a living soul" when God breathed into him the breath of life. The Bible also describes both people and animals as living souls. We therefore believe that human beings are mortal and that immortality is not something we currently possess. In death there is no conscious existence; instead our hope is in the resurrection of the dead and the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Genesis 2:7; Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, 10; Ezekiel 18:4; Psalm 146:4; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, 53-54

God's Promises

God's purpose is to reconcile mankind to Himself through the work and sacrifice of His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. This was clearly established in a series of promises. Peter calls these "His precious and very great promises" by which we might become "partakers of the divine nature."

The first promise was made after Adam had broken God's Law in Eden. It reveals that one would be born (Christ) who would overcome sin, and through whom all the evil that resulted from sin would be abolished. The promise is made by God to the tempter of Eve, the serpent, whom He condemns:

"I will put enmity between you (the serpent) and the woman (Eve, mother of mankind), and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head (a mortal blow), and you shall bruise his (Christ's) heel (crippling, but not fatal)." Genesis 3:15 ESV

God's Promises to Abraham

God called Abraham to journey to a new land, now known as Israel, where God made a series of remarkable promises to him: a national promise (Genesis 12:2), an international promise (Genesis 12:3; 22:18), a personal promise (Genesis 12:2), a territorial promise (Genesis 13:14), and an ancestral promise (Genesis 22:17; Galatians 3:16).

God's Kingdom and the Promise to David

When Abraham's descendants had become established as God's Kingdom in the land of Israel, and David ruled over them, God revealed the last link of His purpose concerning the future of mankind. A descendant of David, the Son of God, would eventually reign over David's restored and glorified kingdom forever.

"When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever." 2 Samuel 7:12-13 ESV

The heir to David's throne is Jesus Christ, which is why the New Testament opens with: "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham." In the New Testament, God's purpose is set out as the gospel, which means good news, and Paul refers to it as "the hope of Israel" (Acts 28:20). This demonstrates the single thread of God's purpose in the Lord Jesus Christ, from Eden through Abraham and David, as revealed in God's great promises.

Baptism

"Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." Mark 16:16 (ESV)

Baptism is the response God asks of those who come to believe the gospel. It is a symbolic process to indicate you have reached a turning point in your life. It involves a brief immersion in water as an allegory of death and resurrection. When we go underneath the water we are symbolically being baptised into the death of Jesus. When we come up out of the water, just as Jesus was raised to life, so we are raised to a new way of life. It is an acknowledgement of our association with Jesus' death and resurrection (Romans 6).

Biblical baptism requires an understanding of the gospel, and for this reason only adults are described as being baptised in Scripture. An example is given to us in the Acts of the Apostles, when Philip baptised the Ethiopian eunuch following his declaration of belief (Acts 8:36-38).

The word used to describe baptism in the Bible comes from the idea of fabric dyeing, which involves fully immersing the material in the dye solution. Biblical baptism follows the same process. Individuals are taken into the water and submerged. Jesus was baptised in this way by John in the river Jordan, and taught his disciples to do the same (Matthew 3:13-17; 28:19). In our hall we have a baptistery built into the floor for this purpose, but some of our members choose to be baptised in a local river or the sea.

Steps to Salvation

1. Belief in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord (John 3:16)

2. Repentance from past sin (Mark 1:15; Acts 3:19)

3. Baptism for the remission of sins (John 3:5; Mark 16:16)

4. Patient continuance in well-doing (Romans 2:7)

If you are interested in learning more about baptism, or would like to study the Bible with someone before taking this step, please get in touch.