The following comprise of the Scriptural beliefs of Calvary Baptist Church and its members.
The Holy Scriptures. We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenarily inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed and, therefore, are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning, and all issues of the interpretation and meaning shall be determined by the pastor. Therefore, the King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by Calvary Baptist Church. 2 Tim 3: 16 - 17, 2 Peter 1: 20 - 21, Matt 5:18, John 16:12
Dispensationalism. We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations of rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Three of these dispensations—the law, the church, and the kingdom—are the subjects of detailed revelation in Scripture. Gen 1: 28, 1 Cor 9:1 7, 2 Cor 3: 9 - 17, Gal 3: 13 - 25, Eph 1: 10, Eph 3: 2 – 10, Col 1: 24 – 27, Rev 20: 2 - 6.
The Godhead. We believe in one triune God, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, coequal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. Deut 6 :4, Matt 28: 19, John 14: 10; 14: 26, 2 Cor 13: 14.
The Person and Work of Christ. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. Is 7: 14, Is 9: 6, John 1: 1 - 17, Gal 4: 4 - 5, Phil 2: 5 - 8
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead.
Acts 2: 18 - 36, Rom 3: 24 – 25, Eph 1: 7, 1 Peter 2: 24, 1 Peter 1: 3 - 5
We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate.
Acts 1: 9 – 10, Rom 8: 34, Heb 9: 24, Heb 7: 25, 1 John 2: 1 - 2.
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit. We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. John 16: 8 - 11, Rom 8: 9, 1 Cor 12: 12 - 14, 2 Cor 3: 6, Eph 1: 13 - 14.
We believe that He is the divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit. Eph 1: 17 - 19, Eph 5: 18, 1 John 2: 20; 2: 27.
We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely equips believers to be evangelists, pastors, teachers and other gifts taught in the Scripture in order that they can do the work of the ministry, thus functioning effectually within the body of Christ. Rom 12: 3 - 8, 1 Cor 12: 4 – 11; 4: 28, Eph 4: 7 – 12.
We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit. Ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. 1 Cor 1: 22; 13: 8; 14: 21 - 22
The Total Depravity of Man. We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God; but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. Gen 1: 26 - 27, Rom 3: 10 – 12; 3: 22 – 23, Rom 5: 12, Rom 6: 23, Eph 2: 1 - 3, Eph 4: 17 - 19
Salvation. We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable. Matt 12: 31 – 32, John 1:12, Eph 1: 7, Eph 2: 8 – 10, 1 Peter 1: 18 – 19, 1 John 1: 9
The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers. We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. John 6: 37 - 40, Rom 8: 1; 8: 38 - 39, 1 Cor 1: 4 - 8, 1 Pet 1: 4 - 5.
We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh.
Rom 13: 13 - 14, Gal 5: 13, Titus 2: 11 – 13.
The Church We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. 1 Cor 12: 12 - 14, 2 Cor 11: 2., Eph 1: 22 - 23, Eph 5: 25 - 27
We believe that the establishment, continuance, and qualifications for leadership of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. Acts 14: 27, Acts 20: 17 - 20; 20: 28 - 29, 1 Tim 3: 1 - 13, Titus 1: 5 - 11.
We believe in the autonomy of the church free of any external authority or control. Acts 13: 1-4, Acts 20: 28,Romans 16: 1,1 Cor 3: 9; 3: 16, 1 Cor 5: 4-13, 1 Peter 5: 1-5
We recognize water baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. Matt 28: 19 - 20, Acts 2: 41 - 42, Acts 8: 36 - 38, Romans 3: 3 – 5, 1 Cor 11: 23 – 26.
The Second Coming of Christ. We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ, who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel. Ps 89: 3 - 4,Dan 2: 31 - 45,Zech 14: 4 - 11,1 Thess1; 10,1 Thess 4: 13 - 18,Titus 2: 13,Rev 3: 11, Rev 19: 11 - 16, Rev 20: 1 - 6.
The Eternal State. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting damnation. Matt 25: 46, John 5: 28 - 29, John 11: 25 - 26, Rev 20: 5 - 6
We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord.
Luke 23: 43,2 Cor 5: 8,Phil 1: 23,Phil 3: 21,1 Thess 4: 16 - 17,Rev 20: 4 - 6
We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when the soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. Matt 25:41-46,Mark 9:43-48,Luke 16:19-26,2 Thess 1:7-9,Jude 6-7,Rev 20:11-15.
Creation. We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution and believe that they are unscriptural theories of origin. Gen 1 & 2, Ex 20: 11
Love. We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward both those who are not believers, those who oppose us, and those who engage in sinful actions. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or the use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions. Lev 19: 8, Matt 5: 44 - 48, Matt 22: 37 - 40, Luke 6: 31, John 13: 34 - 35, Rom 12: 9 - 10; 12: 17 - 21, Rom 13: 8 - 10, 1 Corinthians 13, Phil 2: 2 - 4, 2 Tim 2: 24 -26, Titus 3: 2, 1 John 3: 17
Missions. We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ, we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us. Matt 28: 19 - 21, Mark 16: 15, Luke 24: 46 - 48, John 20: 21, Acts 1: 8, 2 Cor 5: 20
Giving. We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to financially support his local church. We believe that God has established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully in support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. In the event the church goes through a financial crisis all designated offerings will be used in the general budget. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of his tithe or offering once the gift has been made. Gen 14: 20, Prov 3: 9, Acts 4: 34 – 37, 1 Cor 16:2, 2 Cor 9: 6 - 7, Gal 6: 6, Eph 4: 28, 1 Tim 5: 17 - 18, 1 John 3: 17