Our Beliefs

“We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done… that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God…”

Psalm 78:4-7

bible

Bible Teaching

The Bible is the word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, speaking to us about Jesus. It is therefore our highest authority, able to make us wise for salvation and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:14-16).

 

dove

Living with integrity

To follow Jesus with integrity means not just listening to God’s word but obeying it in our lives (James 1:22). With the help of the Holy Spirit, we seek to apply the gospel of grace to every area of our lives, to worship God in both spirit and in truth (John 4:23) by connecting our hearts and minds, our emotions and wills, and our attitudes and actions.

 

send 1

God’s mission

Being a true disciple of Jesus means telling others about him. We are part of God’s mission to take the gospel to the ends of the world (Acts 1:8) so that others may hear of Jesus and be saved.

Basic Beliefs

swipe

1. God

There is one God, who exists eternally in three distinct but equal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is unchangeable in His holiness, justice, wisdom and love. He is the almighty Creator; Saviour and Judge who sustains and governs all things according to His sovereign will for His own glory.

2. The Bible

God has revealed Himself in the Bible, which consists of the Old and New Testaments alone. Every word was inspired by God through human authors, so that the Bible as originally given is in its entirety the Word of God. It is without error and is fully reliable in fact and doctrine. The Bible alone speaks with final authority and is always sufficient for all matters of belief and practice.

3. The Human Race

All men and women, being created in the image of God, have inherent and equal dignity and worth. Their greatest purpose is to obey, worship and love God. As a result of the fall of our first parents, every aspect of human nature has been corrupted and all men and women are without spiritual life, guilty sinners and are hostile to God. Every person is therefore under the just condemnation of God and needs to be born again, forgiven and reconciled to God in order to know and please Him.

4. The Lord Jesus Christ

The Lord Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life in obedience to the Father. He taught with authority and all His words are true. On the cross He died in the place of sinners, bearing God’s punishment for their sin, and redeeming them by his blood. He rose from the dead and in His resurrection body ascended into heaven where He is exalted as Lord of all. He intercedes for His people in the presence of the Father.

5. Salvation

Salvation is entirely a work of God’s grace and cannot be earned or deserved. It has been accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ and is offered to all in the gospel. God in His love forgives sinners whom he calls, granting them repentance and faith. All who believe in Christ are justified by faith alone, adopted into the family of God and receive eternal life.

6. The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit has been sent from heaven to glorify Christ and to apply His work of salvation. He convicts sinners, imparts spiritual life and gives a true understanding of the Scriptures. He indwells all believers, brings assurance of salvation, and produces increasing likeness to Christ. He builds up the Church and empowers its members for worship, service and mission.

7. The Church

The universal Church is the body of which Christ is the head and to which all who are saved belong. It is made visible in local churches, which are congregations of believers who are committed to each other for the worship of God, the preaching of the Word, the administering of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, for pastoral care and discipline, and for evangelism. The unity of the body of Christ is expressed within and between churches by mutual love, care and encouragement. True fellowship between churches exists only where they are faithful to the gospel.

8. Baptism and the Lord's Supper

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper have been given to the Church by Christ as visible signs of the gospel. Baptism is a symbol of union with Christ and entry into His Church but does not impart spiritual life. The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of Christ’s sacrifice offered once for all, and involves no change in the bread and wine. All its blessings are received by faith.

9. The Future

The Lord Jesus Christ will return in glory. He will raise the dead and judge the world in righteousness. The wicked will be sent to eternal punishment and the righteous will be welcomed into a life of eternal joy in fellowship with God. God will make all things new and will be glorified forever.

Theological Distinctives

Whilst we hold dear and immovable these basic orthodox beliefs, longing to work with other churches for the proclamation of The Gospel and the welfare of our communities, we do as a church have theological distinctives that would distinguish us from other churches. Whilst we welcome people from different traditions and backgrounds, our leaders uphold these distinctives and preach them as God’s Word.

crown

1. The sovereignty of God in salvation

God elects and He alone saves; it is entirely God. This is something He has done before the “creation of the world” where He first “chose us” “in accordance with His pleasure and will”. It’s not that we cannot choose, but that we do not want to choose because we are dead in our sin and do not desire God. Faith (to respond), is a gracious gift from God (Rom. 3; 8:29-30; Eph. 1:4-6; 2:1-3)

couple

2. Complementarian

Men and women are created absolutely equal in dignity and value. Yet from creation God has assigned gender specific roles for the flourishing of the home and the spiritual oversight of a church. We want to distance ourselves from all examples where this has been abused but rather look to the example of Jesus who willingly submitted to the father. As complementarians our highest goal is to reflect the Godhead and point to the gospel. (Gen. 2:18-25; 1 Cor. 11:2-16; Eph. 5:22-33; Col. 3:18-19; 1 Tim. 2:8-15; 1 Pet. 3:1-7)

water drop

3. Baptism by immersion

We believe Baptism follows faith and repentance and is a public declaration from someone of age, choosing to follow Jesus as Lord. Baptism signifies the death of self and new life in Christ! (Rom. 6:1-14; Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16)

fire

4. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

The gifts have not ceased neither with the death of the last Apostle, nor with the canonisation, but continue for the furtherance of the Gospel and the building up of Christ’s Church. The Apostle Paul’s warnings and ordering of church services still likewise apply. (John 1: 33; 1 Cor. 12:1-11)

 

You can find out even more about our basic beliefs and theological distinctives, here in our Doctrinal Statement Document, produced by the elders at ECC.

Emmanuel Community Church is an FIEC church