DOCTRINE
The final authority for all things related to our faith and practice as Christians is the Bible. Italone is able to make us “wise for salvation”, and “thoroughly equipped for every good work”. (2Timothy 3:15-17)
Doctrinal statements are an attempt to set down in an orderly and concise way what the Bible teaches concerning important matters. They are also a rule by which we measure both what we believe as individuals and what we stand for as a church. Created by sinful men and not by God, they are, at best, imperfect.
The eleven sections of the FBC Doctrinal Statement are as follows:
1. We believe in one God, eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; and these three are the same in substance, equal in power and glory. (Deut. 6:4; Job 33:4; Mt. 28:18-19; Jn. 1:14; Acts 5:3-4; 2Cor. 13:14, Col. 1:9; Heb. 1:1-3)
2. We believe in the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament as verbally and plenarily inspired by God, and inerrant in the original writings, and that they are of supreme and final authority in faith and life. (Ps. 119:160; Mt. 5:18; Lk. 24:27,44; Acts 17:2-3; 26:22-23; Ro. 15:4; 1Cor. 2:13; 10:11; 2Tim. 3:16-17; Heb. 4:12; 2Pe. 1:20-21, 3:15-16)
3. We believe that JESUS CHRIST was begotten by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, and is true God and true man. (Mt. 1:18-25; Lk. 1:30-35; Jn. 1:1,2,14,18; 10:30; Phil. 2:5-8, Col. 2:9; 1Tim. 2:5; Heb. 2:9-18)
4. We believe that man was created in the image of God but through Adam’s sin, is born with a sinful nature, carries the guilt of both original and individual sin and is deserving of spiritual death which is separation from God. (Gen. 1:26; 2:17; 3:6; 6:5; 9:6; Ps. 14:1-3; 51:5; Jer. 17:9; Jn. 3:6; 5:40; Ro. 3:10-19, 23; 5:12-14, 19; 6:23; 8:6-7; 1Cor. 15:22; Eph. 2:1-3; 1Tim. 5:6)
5. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice; and that all who believe in Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood. (Is. 52:13-53:-12; 27:33-50; Jn1:12; Rom. 3:24-25; 5:1 11; 1Cor. 15:3; Gal. 3:13; Heb. 9:11-15; 11:6; 1Pe. 2:24)
6. We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His ascension into Heaven, and in His present life there for us, as High Priest and Advocate. (Mt. 28:1-10; Lk 24; Jn. 20:20; Acts 1:9-11; 2:24; 4:33; Ro. 8:34; 1Cor. 15:1-4; Heb. 2:17-3:1; 4:14-5:10; 9:24)
7. We believe in the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit, who convicts the sinner, regenerates, indwells, enlightens and guides the believer. (Jn. 3:5; 14:17,26; 16:8-14; Acts 5:3-4; Ro. 8:9-11; 1Cor. 2:9-13; 12:3,11; Eph. 4:30)
8. We believe that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ are born again of the Holy Spirit, and thereby become children of God. (Jn. 1:12; 3:5-8,16,36; Ro. 1:16,17; 4:5; Gal. 3:22; Eph. 2:8,9)
9. We believe in the eternal security of the believers; that God, by His sovereign good pleasure, will keep them safe until the day of redemption. (Jn. 5:24; 10:27-29; Ro. 6:5; 8:1,29-39; Phil. 1:6; Heb. 7:25; 1Pe. 1:3-5; Jude 24)
10. We believe in “that blessed hope”, the personal and pre-millennial and imminent return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. (Dan. 7:13; Mt. 24:30; Mk. 13:26; Jn. 14:1-3; Acts 1:11; Phil. 3:20; Rev. 1:7)
11. We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust; the everlasting blessedness of the saved, and the everlasting punishment of the lost. (Mt. 25:41,46; Jn. 3:15,16; 5:28,29; 6:39,40; Acts 24:15; Ro. 8:11; 1Cor. 15:42-54; 2Th. 1:8,9)
DISTINCTIVES
In addition to the doctrines listed above, we are committed to the following distinctives that guide us in doctrine and ministry philosophy:
12. We embrace God’s sovereignty in saving sinners (God’s elect). (Ps. 115:3; Prov. 19:21; Rom. 8:29-30, 9:11-13; Eph. 1:4-5)
13. Man and woman were made to complement each other in a one-flesh union that establishes the only normative pattern of sexual relations for men and women, such that marriage ultimately serves as a type of the union between Christ and his church. In God’s wise purposes, men and women are not simply interchangeable, but rather they complement each other in mutually enriching ways. (Gen. 1:27-28, 2:18; Matt. 19:4-6; 1 Cor. 11:13; Eph. 5:22-25; Col. 3:18-19; 1 Pet. 3:1-7)
14. We are committed to the fundamental, spiritual, and complementary equality of male and female and to men as responsible servant-leaders in the home and church. As such, the roles of Elder and Pastor are filled by men of humility, with both men and women serving in the role of Deacon/Deaconness. (Gen. 1:27, 2:18; 1 Tim. 2:11-13; 3:1-2; Titus 1:5-6)
15. We embrace a missionary understanding of the local church and its role as the primary means by which God chooses to establish his kingdom on earth including the sending out of capable and spiritually qualified vocational missionaries around the world while also promoting the missionary efforts of all members of His local church. (Acts 13:2-3, 14:26-27; Rom. 10:14-15; 3John 1:5-8; Phil. 4:15-16)
