| Our Distinctives |
| "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is
the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the
Greek." Rom. 1:16 |
| We as a church are confident that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes (Rom. 1:16), and that the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are inspired by God (2 Tim. 3:16f) and are the only rule to direct us how we glorify and enjoy Him (1 Cor. 10:31). |
| "For of him, and through him, and to him, are
all things; to whom be glory for ever. Amen" Rom. 11:36 |
| We as a church seek to glorify God by preaching the whole counsel of God's Word, both publicly, and from house to house (Acts 20:20&27), to the end that sinners would call upon the name of the Lord and be saved, be united to the visible church through baptism, and be built up in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. |
| "Let all things be done decently and in order." 1 Cor. 14:40 |
| We as a church are committed doing all things decently and in order, being convinced that God's work, done in God's way, will never lack God's blessing. To this end we seek to bring all our activities to the touchstone of the Word of God. |
| "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not
according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Isa. 8:20 |
| We as a church are Presbyterian in Order and Reformed in Doctrine. |
| PRESBYTERIAN IN ORDER |
| "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a
spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God
by Jesus Christ." 1 Pet. 2:5 |
| We believe that the only acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted by Himself, and so limited by His own will, that He may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions of Satan, under any visible representation, or any other way not prescribed in the holy Scriptures. We believe the ordinary elements of corporate worship are prayer, the reading and preaching of the Word of God, the singing of psalms, and the administration of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. |
| We believe that all those in the covenant community are enjoined by God to perform private worship (Mt. 6:5-8), and that it is the duty of fathers to make sure that all those in their family do not neglect private worship. |
| We believe that it is incumbent upon fathers to lead family worship including reading of the Scriptures, singing of psalms, and prayer (Deut. 6:4-9). Our elders seek to assist each father in carrying out his duties of leading family worship and catechizing his children in the true reformed religion. |
| We believe that the first day of the week is the Christian Sabbath, on which we are commanded to rest from our worldly employments and recreations and to spend the whole time in the public and private exercises of God's worship, except so much as is taken up in the works of necessity and mercy (Isa. 58:13&14). |
| "These things write I
unto thee ... that thou mayest know how thou ought to behave thyself
in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar
and ground of the truth." 1 Tim. 3:14&15 |
| We believe that the ascended Christ has commissioned the Church, and no other institution to carry out the three-fold task of making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them to observe all the commands of God (Mt. 28:18f). These tasks can only be carried out by the Church as it sounds forth the gospel from its pulpits through called men of God (Rom. 10:13). |
| We believe that God has called certain men to the office of overseer of the flock, to shepherd the church which the Lord has purchased (Acts 20:28). Our elders routinely visit every home (Acts 20:20) to ascertain the spiritual condition of every member of the family. We also believe that presbyteries (councils of elders from confederate local congregations) are to order worship and government, to determine controversies of faith, cases of conscience, and to receive appeals against the discipinary rulings of the elders of local congregations (Acts 15). |
| We believe that the Church and the Church alone is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15). We believe that it is the duty of the Eldership to commit the form of sound words to able and faithful men who will be able to teach others (2 Tim. 2:2). |
| We believe that fathers are responsible for the spiritual welfare of all within their household (1 Cor. 14:34f) and must be taught by precept and example to love their wives (Eph. 5:22f) and to nurture their children in the chastening and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4). We also believe that all academic disciplines must be taught from a biblical perspective and therefore support Christian education. |
| REFORMED IN DOCTRINE |
| "By grace are ye save through faith;
and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man
should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works,
which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Eph. 2:8-10 |
| We believe, that, being fallen in Adam, we are by nature children of wrath, under the condemnation of God and corrupted in body and soul, prone to evil and liable to eternal death; from which dreadful state we cannot be delivered except through the unmerited grace of God our Savior. |
| We believe that God the Father has not left the world to perish in its sin, but has from all eternity graciously chosen unto himself a multitude which no man can number, to deliver them out of their sin and misery, and to bring them into the state of salvation by a Redeemer. |
| We believe that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of God's elect; who, though he is eternally co-existent with the Father and the Holy Spirit, became man and so was and continues to be God and man and so continues to be God and man in two distinct natures and one person for ever. He bore the penalty due to us for our sins, and fulfilled in his own person the obedience we owe to the righteousness of God, and now at the right hand of the Father, presents us to his Father as his purchased possession, to the praise of the glory of His grace. |
| We believe that the Holy Spirit
effectually applies the redemption purchased by Christ to us by convincing us
of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds, renewing our wills, and enabling
us to repent of our sins and embrace Jesus Christ. All those who by the grace of
God come to faith in Jesus Christ are justified, adopted, sanctified, and
ultimately glorified in body and soul at the return of Christ to earth to judge
the world. |