The Bible Every word in the original manuscripts of the Bible was inspired by God and was without error; therefore, the Bible is our supreme and final authority for faith and practice (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:21; Jn.17:17).
God There is only one God, existing eternally as three equal and distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14). God became flesh in Jesus Christ who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He is true God and perfect man (Jn. 1:1, 14, 18; Matt. 1:18-25). The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Godhead who convicts the world; regenerates, indwells, baptizes, and seals all believers; and fills those yielded to Him (Matt. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; Jn. 3:8, 16:7-11; 1 Cor. 6:19, 12:11; Eph. 4:30, 5:18).
Humanity Humans were created by God in His own image. Through Adam and Eve, humanity fell into sin with the result that every human being is born in sin and commits acts of sin. Therefore, humanity is separated from God (i.e., is spiritually dead) (Gen. 1:27; Rom. 3:23, 5:12; Eph. 2:1-3).
Salvation Humans are declared righteous by God in grace when they by faith, apart from works, believe in Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:1; Eph. 2:8-9; Acts 16:31). Jesus Christ died for the sins of humankind as a penal substitutionary sacrifice and bodily rose from the dead, guaranteeing redemption (Rom. 4:25, 5:8-9; Mark 10:45). All who are born of the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ can have assurance of salvation and are eternally secure in Christ (Jn.10:27-29; Rom. 8:1, 38-39; 1 Jn. 5:13).
The Christian Life Every believer is set apart unto God in Christ at the moment of salvation (1 Cor. 6:11; Heb. 10:10). Every believer continues to sin in this life but is to be, by the help of the Holy Spirit, growing more like Christ (Jn. 17:17; 1 Thess. 4:3-4; 2 Cor. 3:18). Every believer will be completely set apart from sin in practice as his is now in position (i.e., will be like Christ) when he meets the Lord Jesus (Phil. 3:20-21; Eph. 5:25-27;1 Jn. 3:2).
The Church The church is a spiritual organism, the Body and Bride of Christ, invisible in its universal form, being made up of all believers of this age, and manifest in local assemblies voluntarily joined together for worship, evangelism, and edification (Col. 1:18; Acts 2:42-47). The church began on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit began baptizing individuals into the Body of Christ (Acts 1:5; 11:15, 16; 1 Cor. 12:13). The ordinances of the church are water baptism, an outward symbol of the identification of the believer with Christ and His Body, and the Lord’s Supper, a memorial in remembrance of Christ’s death until He comes again (Matt. 28:19; 1 Cor. 11:24-26). The church is led by elders and deacons selected by the congregation and functions as each individual carries out the role for which they have been gifted and enabled by the Holy Spirit (with the miraculous gifts apparently being intended primarily for the first century) (Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Eph. 4:12-16; Rom. 12:4-8; Heb. 2:3-4).
Angels Angels are spirit beings created by God as sinless personalities but now existing in fallen and unfallen states (Ps. 148:2, 5; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:14; 2 Pet. 2:4). Satan is a fallen angel, the originator of sin and enemy of God and man, whom fallen angels serve and who is doomed (Is. 14:12-14; Gen. 3:1-19; 2 Cor. 11:14; Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).
End Times The imminent, personal return of Christ for His church will be followed by the tribulation, the second coming of Christ to set up a 1000-year reign on earth, the eternal punishment of the unsaved and the eternal bliss of the saved (1 Thess. 4:13-18; Rev. 3:10; Matt. 24:21, 29-30, 25:46; Rev. 20:1-6, 11-15). The souls of the saved and unsaved await bodily resurrection in respective states of bliss and torment (Luke 16:19-26; Phil. 1:23).