"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine;
but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers,
having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth,
and shall be turned unto fables." (2Tim.4:3,4)
We believe that "all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works." (2Tim 3:16)
We believe that this inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the scripture: historical, doctrinal and prophetic.
We believe that the God who inspired the scriptures, is powerful enough also to preserve them in the manner for which he intended us to have them.(Psm 12:6,7)
We believe in the providential preservation of the true word of God, as well as the providential inspiration of the true word of God; and that the purpose of this, is to preserve the infallibility of the original text.
We believe that the greek text known as "Textus Receptus" (Received Text), which came through The Reformation, is the providentially preserved text. [The old testament Hebrew text is best represented by the Ben Chayyim text, not the Ben Asher (BHK or BHS) revisions.]
We believe that the final and outstanding representative of this text is The Authorized Version of 1611 (available in current editions), commonly called The King James (Authorized) Version. [Not to be confused with the falsely so-called "New King James Version" or "New Authorized Version" or any other corrupt version that is not "conformable" to the text of 1611.]
We believe that the Authorized Version of 1611 (AV1611) is absolute in authority, complete in revelation, final in content, without any error in teaching, thus it has supreme authority in all matters pertaining to faith, conduct, the Christian life and the Christian church.
We believe that the devil has a hatred for the word of God and has particularly sought to attack it by the introduction of so-called modern translations which we reject.
We believe that the scriptures were given primarily for doctrine (2Tim 3:16) and that reproof, correction and instruction must never be placed before sound doctrine.
We further believe that NO prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. (2Pet.1:20).
We believe in the existence of ONE, and only ONE, living and true GOD, having no beginning and no ending, definite and distinctive in personality, the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth, inexpressibly glorious in holiness and worthy of all possible honor, confidence, adoration, allegiance, love, worship and thanksgiving.
We believe that in the unity of the Godhead there are three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; the same in essence, equal in attributes and in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption and salvation.
We believe that "the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Mat.28:19p) - the name (singular) by which the three are known is: THE LORD. The Father is "The LORD" (Mat.22:44p) - "Jesus is the Lord" (1Cor.12:3p) - and "the Lord is that Spirit". (2Cor.3:17p)
We believe that God created an innumerable company of holy, spiritual beings, known as "angels" and that an angel is an "appearance", but not always a messenger. We further believe that contrary to popular fable, angels do NOT have wings, but appear as MEN.
We believe that certain of the original angels left their first estate and fell from holiness and became devils. We believe that they are reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
We believe that besides the holy angels which are in heaven, that there are also unholy spiritual beings known variously as devils, evil spirits, unclean spirits, and that these are the agents of Satan.
We believe that God also created special spiritual beings known as Cherubims and Seraphims; and that there were originally created an as yet unrevealed number of seraphims and 5 cherubims. We believe that the cherubims and seraphims DO have wings and that the fifth cherub, Lucifer, sinned through pride and fell, and became The Devil.
We believe in the reality and personality of that being known as Satan, the devil, the fifth cherub, that old serpent, who, together with his angels, fell from his first estate to become the enemy of God, of man, and of all righteousness. We believe that the devil is the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience; blinding, deceiving and enticing them through subtlety in order to lead them to follow him in his rebellion against God and to reject the FREE salvation offered through the Lord Jesus Christ.
We further believe that the devil, his angels, and all who follow him, will ultimately be cast into the lake of fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels. We believe that although God's holy angels do not appear with wings, the Devil's angels may appear as men (or women) with wings.
We believe that only one man, Adam, was originally created in the image and after the likeness of God, from the dust of the earth, by a direct act of God, and not by any evolutionary process, and that the first woman was made by God, from a rib taken from the side of the first man.
We believe that the first man, Adam, through dis-obeying the word of God, sinned, and subsequently fell. We believe that as a result of this fall, he lost his spiritual life, becoming dead in trespasses and sins, subject to the power of the devil.
We believe that all descendents of Adam who are born of the seed of man are begotten, not after the image and likeness of God, but in the likeness and after the image of the fallen man Adam (Gen 5:3). We believe that the entire "human" race of man on earth, has been rendered helpless, hopeless of salvation, depraved and unable to attain to salvation by his own efforts or works.
We believe that, as provided and proposed by God and as pre-announced in the prophecies of the scriptures, the eternal Son of God came into this world that he might manifest God to men, to bear witness to the truth, to fulfill prophecy, and become the Saviour of lost and doomed sinners.
We believe that to accomplish this end, he was born of the virgin and was not born of the seed of man, therefore he received a human body and a sinless human nature as had Adam before the Fall. We believe that he is the "seed of the woman" prophesied in Genesis 3:15.
We believe that he remained a perfect man, and that he never sinned throughout his life yet retained his absolute deity, being at the same time very God and very man. We believe that sometimes his earth-life functioned within the sphere of that which was human and sometimes within the sphere of that which was divine.
We believe that he came first to Israel as its Messiah-King according to the prophecies and that he was rejected of that nation according to the scriptures. We believe that after that, according to the eternal counsels of God, he gave his life as a ransom for all, whether Jew or Gentile.
We believe that in infinite love for the lost, the Lord Jesus Christ voluntarily accepted his Father's will and became the divinely provided sacrificial Lamb and took away the sin of the world; bearing the holy judgments against sin which the righteousness of God must impose. his death was, therefore, substitutionary in the most absolute sense, the just for the unjust, and by his death, he became the Saviour of all lost and condemned sinners.
We believe that his death, burial and resurrection were according to the scriptures. We believe that his blood was poured out on Calvary's cross once for sinners, that he was buried according to the scriptures and that he remained in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights (from sunset on Wednesday, until sunset the following Saturday).
We believe that his resurrection was according to the scriptures and that it took place "in the end of the sabbath", (sunset Saturday), the beginning of the first day of the week according to Jewish time. We believe that after his resurrection from the dead, he showed himself to be alive by "many infallible proofs" and that he was seen by more than five hundred eye-witnesses.
We believe that he arose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which he had lived and died, and that his resurrection body is the pattern of the body which will ultimately be given to all who receive him as their Saviour.
We believe that Jesus is THE LORD and that forty days after his resurrection, he was carried up into heaven in a cloud and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. We believe that in this position, he never ceases to intercede for saved sinners as their advocate.
We believe that "God was manifest in the flesh" in the person of Jesus Christ, according to the scriptures (1Tim.3:16p). We believe that the blood that was shed on the cross for our sins, was GOD's "blood" (Acts 20:28p) and that this blood is eternal and never needs to be poured out again for sins, but is an eternal sacrifice for sins and sinners according to the eternal redemption which God himself provided for lost and condemned SINNERS. (Heb.9:12,14,28; 10:11-14)
We believe that due to the fact that all men born into this world of the seed of Adam, are born "dead in trespasses and sins", that they therefore cannot enter into the kingdom of God. We believe that "Ye must be born again."
We believe that ONLY THE LORD can cause a person to be BORN AGAIN and that it is through no effort of any man. We believe that it takes place when a sinner puts his trust in THE LORD to save him and stops counting on anything that he himself could do. We believe that THE LORD will save any sinner ("all have sinned" - Rom.3:23p) who calls on the name of the LORD, believing in his heart that God has raised him from the dead, and confessing with his mouth: the Lord Jesus.
We believe that NO degree of reformation however great, NO attainments in morality however high, NO culture however attractive, NO baptism or other ordinance however administered, can help the sinner to take even one step toward heaven. We believe that it is necessary for a new nature to be imparted from above, a new life implanted by the Holy Sprit through the word of God.
We believe also, that our redemption has been accomplished solely by the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, who was made to be sin and a curse for us, dying in our room and stead; and that no repentance, no feeling, no faith, no good resolutions, no sincere efforts, no submission to the rules and regulations of any church that now exists or that has ever existed, can in the very least degree add to the value of THAT BLOOD, or to the merit of the "FINISHED" (John 19:30) work that was wrought for us by HIM who united in his person true and proper deity with perfect and sinless humanity.
We believe that the new birth of the believer comes only by the GRACE of God through faith, and that THAT faith is the gift of God, and not of ourselves.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph.2:8,9)
We believe that the new birth of the believer comes only through believing ON the Lord Jesus Christ and that repentance is a vital part of believing, but that it is in no way, in itself, a separate and independent condition of salvation; nor are any other ACTS, such as confession, baptism, prayer, to be added to believing as a CONDITION of salvation.
"And brought them out, and said,
Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." (Acts 16:30,31)
We believe that when an unsaved person exercises "that faith" (Gal.3:25p) in Christ which is illustrated and described as such in the new testament, he passes immediately out of spiritual death into spiritual LIFE, from darkness into light, from the old creation into the new; being justified from all things, accepted before the Father according as his Son Jesus Christ is accepted, loved as Jesus is loved, having his place and portion linked as ONE with HIM for ever.
We believe that though a saved person may have occasion to grow in the realization of his blessings and to know a fuller measure of divine power through the yielding of his life (Rom.6:1,2) more fully to God, he is, as soon as he is saved, in possession of every spiritual blessing (Eph.1:3) and absolutely "complete" IN CHRIST (Col.2:10), and is, therefore, in no way required by God to seek a so-called "second blessing", or a "second work of grace." (John 5:24; 17:23; Acts 13:39; Rom.5:1; 1Cor.3:21-23; 1John 4:17; 5:11,12).
We believe that sanctification, which is a setting-apart unto God, is threefold: It is already complete for every saved person because his position toward God is the same as Christ's position. Since the believer is IN Christ, he is set apart unto God in the measure in which Christ is set apart unto God.
We believe, however, that since the believer's body is NOT changed when he is born again, that he retains his sin nature, which cannot be eradicated in this present life. Therefore, while the standing of the Christian in Christ is perfect, his present state is no more perfect than his experience in daily life.
There is, therefore, a progressive sanctification wherein the believer is to grow in grace, and to be "changed" by the unhindered power of the Holy Spirit. We also believe that the child of God will be completely sanctified, when he shall see the Lord and shall be "like him." (John 17:17; 2Cor.3:18; 7:1; Eph.4:24; 5:25-27; 1Thes.5:23; Heb.10:10,14; 12:10).
We believe that, because of the eternal purpose of God toward the objects of his love, because of his freedom to exercise grace toward the meritless on the ground of the propitiatory blood of Christ, because of the very nature of the divine gift of eternal life, because of the present and un-ending intercession and advocacy of Christ in heaven, because of the immutability of the unchangable covenants of God, because of the regenerating, abiding presence of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all who are saved, we and all true believers everywhere, once saved and given the gift of eternal life, shall be kept saved by THE LORD himself who by his very nature, CANNOT take away the gift of eternal life, once given.
We believe, however, that God is a holy and righteous Father and that, since he cannot overlook the sin of his children, he will chasten them and correct them in infinite love if they persistently sin; but having undertaken to save them and keep them for ever, apart from all human merit, he, who cannot fail, will in the end, present every one of them faultless before the presence of his glory and conformed to the image of his Son. (John 5:24; 10:28; 13:1; 14:16,17; Rom.8:29; 1Cor.6:19; Heb.7:25; 1John 2:1,2; 5:13; Jude 1:24).
We believe it is the privilege, not only of some, but of all who are born again by the word of God, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, as revealed in the scriptures, to be assured of their salvation from the very day they receive HIM as their Saviour and that this assurance is not founded upon any fancied discovery of their own worthiness or fitness, but completely upon the testimony of GOD in his WRITTEN WORD, exciting within his children filial love, gratitude, and obedience. (Luke 10:20; 22:23; 2Cor.5:1; 5:6-8; 2Tim.1:2; Heb.10:22; 1John 5:13).
We further believe that any FEELING affecting the body of the believer is not to be accepted as any kind of assurance, since their body has NOT been saved.
We believe that the Holy Spirit, the third [personality] of the Godhead, though omnipresent from eternity, took up his abode in the world in a special sense on the day of Pentecost as recorded in the book of Acts, according to the divine promise of God, and since then, dwells in EVERY believer, uniting them to Christ in one body by the baptism of the Holy Ghost, which occurs whenever a sinner first trusts the Lord Jesus Christ to save him.
We believe that he never takes his departure from the church, nor from the weakest of saints, but is ever present to testify of the Lord Jesus Christ and is seeking to occupy believers with JESUS and not with themselves, nor with their experiences. We believe that his abode in the world in this special sense will cease when the Lord comes to receive his own at the completion of the church. (John 14:16,17; 16:7-15; 1Cor.6:19; Eph.2:22; 2Thes 2:7).
We further believe that the Holy Spirit is the promised comforter and the Spirit of truth and that he shall teach us all things, and we need not that any man should teach us.
We believe that the true church of Jesus Christ are all those who are united with HIM: All those who are united to the risen and ascended Son of God are "members" of the church which is the body and bride of Christ, which is completely distinct from Israel.
We believe that even as Adam's bride who was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh, began when the rib was taken from his side; so also was Christ's bride begun when Christ's side was pierced at the same rib while hanging on the cross, and that Christ's bride, which is his body, is bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh.
We believe that true believers are constituted as members in the true church regardless of membership or non-membership in the organized churches of this world. We believe that by ONE Spirit are we all baptized into ONE body and that true believers should rise above all sectarian differences, loving one another with a pure heart fervently. (Matt.16:16-18; Acts 2:42-47; Rom.12:5; 1Cor.12:12-27; Eph.1:20-23; Eph.4:3-10; Col.3:14,15).
We believe further, that the church which is the body of Christ, though eternally complete IN HIM, is not yet complete from our temporal viewpoint, even as Adam's rib was not yet a woman until God made it into a woman. We believe that since there was a definite period of time between the taking of the rib until the presenting of the woman, that so also shall be the church. We believe that the body of Christ will soon be complete and that we will be presented to him at the catching away of the church (mentioned later in section 17), at which time there will be a marriage in heaven, and so shall we ever be with the Lord!
We believe that although the church did not begin on the day of Pentecost, nevertheless God did at this time begin the process by which that which was taken from Christ's side is made into a bride.
We believe that on that day of Pentecost following the resurrection of Christ, God gave the Holy Ghost to the church to begin the work of building and perfecting it.
We believe that when the Lord Jesus Christ ascended on high, that he gave gifts unto men, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.
We believe that, in this age, certain well-defined ministries are committed to the Holy Spirit, and that it is the duty of Christians to understand them and to be adjusted to them in their own life and experience. These ministries are: The restraining of evil in the world to the measure of God's will; the convicting of the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment; the regenerating of all who believe in the Lord Jesus, and joining them to his body; the indwelling and anointing of all who are saved, thereby sealing them unto the day of redemption; and the continued filling for power, teaching, and service of those among the saved, who are yielded to God and who are subject to God's will. (John 3:6; 16:7-11; Rom.8:9; 1Cor 12:13; Eph.4:30; 5:18; 2Tess.2:7; 1John 2:20-27; Eph.4:1-13).
We further believe that some gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and healing, are temporary, due to the fact that they were given as SIGNS for the un-believing Jews. We believe that when God stopped his dealings with Israel for the time being, that the sign gifts were also stopped until that time when God again begins to deal with Israel when the fullness of the Gentiles is come.
We believe that speaking in tongues was NEVER the common or necessary evidence of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, nor of the filling of the Spirit, and that the complete deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection.
We do believe that God heals people in answer to the prayers of saints, but that the special sign gift of healing is not now being given for the same reason as mentioned above concerning tongues.
We believe that God himself still heals people according to his own will and his own purposes. (Acts 3:1-8; 4:8-10; Rom.8:23; 1Cor.1:22; 1Cor.14:22,28,37; Acts 28:25-28).
We believe that all whom the Lord Jesus Christ has saved have also been sent forth into the world as strangers and pilgrims, ambassadors and witnesses, and that their PRIMARY purpose in this life is to make the Lord Jesus Christ known to the whole world by the preaching of the word of God and witnessing with the spoken word and printed word. We believe the gospel to be preached in this age is that of 1Corinthians chapter 15. (Matt.28:18,19; John 17:18).
We believe that we are called with an holy calling, to walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit, and so to live in the power of the indwelling Spirit that we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. But the flesh with its fallen, Adamic nature, which in this life is never eradicated, being with us to the end of our earthly pilgrimage, needs to be kept by the Spirit constantly in subjection to Christ, or it will surely manifest its presence in our lives to the dishonour of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We believe that divine, enabling gifts for service are bestowed by the Spirit upon all who are saved and that while there is a diversity of gifts, each believer is energized by the same Spirit, and each is called to his own divinely appointed service as the Lord wills.
We believe also that there are still some men who are especially called of God to be evangelists, pastors and teachers, and that it is to be the fulfilling of God's will and his eternal glory, that these shall be sustained and encouraged in their service for God.
We believe that, completely apart from salvation benefits which are FREELY given to all who believe, rewards for service are promised according to the faithfulness of each believer's service to the Lord, and that these rewards will be bestowed at the judgment seat of Christ after he comes to receive his own to himself. (Rom.6:1-13; 8:2,4,12,13; Gal.5:16-23; Eph.4:22-24; Col.2:1-10; 1Pet.1:14-16; 1John 1:4-7; 3:5-9; Rom.12:6; 1Cor.12:4-11; Eph.4:11; 1Cor.3:9-15; 9:18-27; 2Cor.5:10).
We believe that scriptural marriage for this present age is the joining together of one man and one woman, so that the man is "the husband of one wife." We believe that there are three scriptural grounds for divorce: (1) Fornication, (2) Abandonment, (3) Death; whereby the innocent or surviving party is free to remarry according to the scriptures and is not to be unrighteously discriminated against in matters concerning the offices of the church.
We further believe that any divorce or remarriage between unbelievers before they are saved is covered by the BLOOD of Christ upon salvation and they are not under bondage according to the scriptures. (Matt.19; 1Cor.7; Rom.7; 1Tim.3:2,12).
We believe that according to the word of God, the next great event in the fulfillment of prophecy will be the coming of the LORD in the air to receive to himself those that are his, both those that sleep in Christ and those that are alive and remain at his coming, and that this event is "the blessed hope" set before us in the scriptures, and for this we should be earnestly and patiently looking. This pre-event is commonly called "The Rapture", and we believe that it will occur before the "great tribulation." (John 14:1-3; 1Cor.15:51,52; Phil.3:20; 1Thes.4:13-18; Rev.4:1).
We believe that following the catching away of the true church, an event commonly called "The Tribulation" will take place, also called Daniel's seventieth week and the time of Jacob's trouble, during which time the church will be in heaven with the Lord Jesus Christ.
We believe that The Tribulation will be a time of judgment on the whole earth and that the "times of the Gentiles" will be brought to a close.
We believe that the last three and one half years (42 months) of this period is what our Lord referred to when he said, "then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened."
We believe that universal peace and righteousness will NOT be realized previous to the LITERAL Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but that the world is day by day waxing worse and worse and all the nations of the world will be eventually united, not to bring in peace but to oppose the Lord Jesus Christ when he returns to RULE this present earth with a rod of iron for a "thousand years."
We believe also, that before the Second Coming of Christ, there shall arise a COUNTERFEIT CHRIST, pretending to be Christ, called "the Beast," and that the whole world will be deceived by him and controlled by him through an international banking system, whereby everyone will be required to receive a mark in their right hand or in their forehead according to Revelation chapter 13, and the number of the Beast is "six hundred THREE SCORE and six." (Rev.13:18; Dan.2; 7; 8; 9; 11; 12; Matt.24; 2Thes.2:1-12; Jude; Revelation).
We believe that at the climax of the period known as the great tribulation, the Lord Jesus Christ HIMSELF (!) will return to this earth in like manner as he was seen to leave, in person, on the clouds of heaven, and with power and great glory, to introduce the millenial age, to bind Satan and place him in the bottomless pit for a thousand years, to lift the curse which now rests upon the whole creation, to restore Israel to her own land and to give Israel the realization of God's covenant promises, to bring the whole world to the knowledge of God and his holy word, and to rule the governments of this world with a rod of iron. (Deut.30:1-10; Isa.11:9; Ezk.37:21-28; Matt.24:15-25:46; Acts 15:16,17; Rom.8:19-23; 11:25-27; 1Tim 4:1-3; Rev.20:1-3).
"Even so, COME, Lord Jesus!"
We believe that at death, the spirits and souls of all who have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation pass immediately into his presence and there they remain in conscious bliss until the resurrection of the glorified body when Christ comes for his own, whereupon soul and body re-united shall for ever be with the LORD.
We believe that the spirits and souls of the un-believing remain after death conscious of condemnation and in misery until the final judgment of the "great white throne" at the close of the thousand year long period of time known as the millennium, when soul and body re-united shall be cast into the eternal lake of fire, not to be annihilated, but to be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the LORD, and from the glory of his power. (Luke 16:19-26; 23:42; 2Cor.5:8; Phil.1:23; 2Thes.1:7-9; Jude 1:6,7; Rev.20-22; Isa.66).
We believe in absolute separation of church and state according to the scriptures. We believe that individual Christians may be subject to personal tax according to Romans 13:6, but that no church, Assembly of believers, Christian Ministry or Organization ought to be required to pay any money to a local, state, Federal (or other designation) government or agency, and that NO Christian assembly or ministry should receive money from any governmental agency.
We believe that NO governmental agency should in any way govern or regulate a local assembly of believers and that NO church is to interfere in any way with the lawful functions of government that are not contrary to the word of God.
We believe that individuals should be subject to the powers that be, obeying all laws, ordinances, regulations, etc., as long as in so doing they will not violate a clear command of God written in the scriptures.
We believe that all Christians are to be witnesses for the Lord Jesus Christ, passing out tracts, preaching the Gospel (1Cor.15), and magnifying the holy and pure word of God, and that no local, state, or federal agency should in any way regulate or hinder the Christian from carrying out his Lord's will which is according to the absolute authority of God's word.
We further believe that all public witnessing should be done in an orderly manner and subject to any ordinance that is not clearly contrary to the word of God, and we believe that Christians, that are "ambassadors for Christ" (2Cor.5:20) in a ministry of reconciliation, should be afforded the same diplomatic immunities granted to any ambassador that is properly performing his duties. (Rom.13; 1Pet.2:13-17).
We believe that the end of all correct doctrine is correct practice.
We believe that Christians who do not practice correct doctrine in word or actions, are reprobate and in need of forgiveness and cleansing in the BLOOD of Christ.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. --Richard
URL of this page: http://www.avbtab.org/rc/read/doctrine.htm