Statement of Faith

 

God

We believe that there is one, and only one, living and true God. He is the maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth; inexpressibly glorious in holiness and worthy of all possible honor, confidence, and love; that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious office in the great work of redemption.

Exodus 20:2-3, Genesis 17:1, 1 Corinthians 8:6, Ephesians 4:6, John 4:24, Psalms 147:5; Psalms 83:18; Psalms 90:2; Jeremiah 10:10; Exodus 15:11; Revelation 4:11; 1 Timothy 1:17; Romans 11:33; Mark 12:30; Matthew 28:19; John 15:26; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 1 John 5:7; John 10:30; John 17:5; Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 2:10-11; Philippians 2:5-6; Ephesians 2:18; 2 Corinthians 13:14

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Jesus Christ

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity. Eternally begotten from the Father, He is God. He was conceived by the virgin Mary through a miracle of the Holy Spirit. He lives forever as perfect God and perfect man; two distinct natures inseparably united in one person.

Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:35; Mark 1:1; John 1:14; Psalms 2:7; Galatians 4:4; 1 John 5:20; 1 Corinthians 15:47

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Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, proceeding from the Father and the Son and equal in deity. He is the giver of all life, active in the creating and ordering of the universe. He is the agent of inspiration and the new birth. He restrains sin and Satan, and He indwells and sanctifies all believers.

John 14:16; Matthew 28:19; Hebrews 9:14; John 14:26; Luke 1:35; Genesis 1:1-3; 2 Thessalonians 2:7; John 16:8-11; John 15:26-27; Acts 5:30-32; John 3:5-6; Ephesians 1:13-14; Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33; Acts 11:16; Luke 24:49; John 16:13; John 14:26; Romans 8:16; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Corinthians 13:14

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Scripture

We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit. It has God as its author, salvation for its end, and it is truth without any mixture of error for its matter; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the age, the only complete and final revelation of the will of God to man. By the Bible, we mean the collection of sixty-six books, from Genesis to Revelation, which as originally written does not only contain and convey the Word of God but is the very Word of God. By inspiration, we mean that the books of the Bible were written by holy men of old, as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, in such a definite way that their writings were supernaturally and verbally inspired and free from error, as no other writing have ever been or ever will be inspired.

2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21; Acts 1:16; Acts 28:25; Psalms 119:160; Psalms 119:105; Psalms 119:130; Luke 24:25-27; John 17:17; Luke 24:44-45; Psalms 119:89: Proverbs 30:5-6; Romans 3:1; 1 Peter 1:2-3; Revelation 22:19; John 12:48; Isaiah 8:20; Ephesians 6:17; Romans 15:4; Luke 16:31; Psalms 19:7,11; John 5:45-47; John 5:39

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Sin

We believe that Adam, the first man, willfully disobeyed God, bringing sin and death into the world. As a result, all persons are sinners from conception, which is evidenced in their willful act of sin; and they are therefore subject to eternal punishment, under the just condemnation of the Holy God.

Genesis 3:1-6; Genesis 3:24; Romans 5:12; Romans 3:10-19; Ephesians 2:1-3; Romans 1:18; Ezekiel 18:19-20; Romans 1:32; Romans 1:20; Romans 1:28; Galatians 3:22

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Salvation

We believe that in God’s grace the blessings of Salvation are made free to all. That it is the immediate duty of all to accept them by a cordial, penitent, and an obedient faith; and nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the gospel which results in condemnation.

I Thessalonians 1:4; Colossians 3:12; I Peter 1:2; Titus 1:1; Romans 8:29-30; Matthew 11:28; Isaiah 55:1; John 3:15-16; I Timothy 1:15; I Corinthians 15:10; Ephesians 2:4-5; John 5:40; John 3:18; John 3:36

We believe that salvation in its broadest sense includes justification, sanctification, and glorification. Justification includes the pardon of sin, and the gift of eternal life based on the principles of righteousness that is given to us, not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done, but solely through faith in the work of Christ on the Cross because of which we have righteousness imputed to us. Sanctification is the experience by which the believer is set apart to God’s purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual perfection through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Growth in grace should continue throughout a person’s life. Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.

Acts 13:39; Isaiah 53:11; Zechariah 13:1; Romans 8:1; Romans 5:1,8; Titus 3:5-7; Romans 1:17; Hebrews 2:4; Galatians 3:11; Romans 4:1-8; Hebrews 10:38

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The Church

We believe that a church is a local assembly of baptized believers, under the discipline of the Word of God and the Lordship of Christ, led by the pastoral leadership and organized to carry out the great commission to evangelize, to teach, and to administer the ordinances of believer’s baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

Acts 2:41-42; I Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:22-23; Ephesians 4:11; I Corinthians 12:4, I Corinthians 12:8-11; Acts 14:23; Acts 6:5-6; Acts 15:23; Acts 20:17-28; I Timothy 3:1-7; I Timothy 3:8-13; Matthew 28:19-20; Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 5:23-24; I Peter 5:1-4; Acts 15:22; Jude 3-4; II Corinthians 8:23-24; I Corinthians 16:1; Malachi 3:10; Leviticus 27:32; I Corinthians 16:2; I Corinthians 6:1-3; I Corinthians 5:11-13

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Baptism and the Lord’s Supper

We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer, in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, performed under the authority of the local church. Baptism is a beautiful emblem of our identification with the buried and risen Savior, which is reflected in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life. Baptism is also a prerequisite to the privileges of church relation and serves as an identification with that local body along with its doctrinal teachings.

We believe that the Lord’s Supper is a symbolic ceremony commemorating the giving of Christ’s body and blood on our behalf. It is a special time of worship that is shared within the family of a local body.

Acts 8:37-39; Matthew 3:6; John 3:23; Romans 6:4-5; Matthew 3:16; Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12; Acts 2:41-42; Matthew 28:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-28

 

Church Covenant

Having been led, as we believe, by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, and on profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of our Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, we do now, in the presence of God, angels, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter in covenant with one another, as one body in Christ.

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We engage, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this church in knowledge, holiness, and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines; to give it a sacred preeminence over all institutions of human origin; to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church, the relief of the poor, and the spread of the Gospel through all nations.

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We also engage to maintain family and private devotions; to religiously educate our children; to seek salvation of our kindred, acquaintances, and all others; to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful to our engagements, and exemplary in our deportment; to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from worldly amusements that are detrimental to our Christian life; and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Savior.

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We also adhere to the truth of God’s Word in the establishment of families based on a monogamous relationship between one man and one woman beginning at the time of marriage; to live in this relationship by the pattern and principles established by God’s Word; to hold as holy this institution as the only legitimate fulfillment of sexual intimacy, making all others to be sinful; to recognize the responsibility to nurture children into our families as living human creations of God from the time of conception, to be loved and protected and recognizing that any deliberate termination of this life by human intervention as being contrary to God’s Word. We will recognize, based upon God’s Word, that an individual’s physical gender is determined by God at the time of that individual’s conception, and that an individual should refrain from attempts to change, alter or disagree with that individual’s God-given physical gender established at the time of conception.

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We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy of speech; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Savior, to secure reconciliation without delay.

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We moreover engage, that when we remove from this place, we will as soon as possible, unite with some other church where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God’s Word.

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What We Believe

1. We believe the whole Bible from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21, as the verbally inspired and infallible Word of God. 

2. We believe Jesus Christ was born of Mary the Virgin, and is the Son of God, and God the Son. 

3. We believe that Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures, the Just for the unjust that He might bring us to God. 

4. We believe that He rose from the grave the third day according to the Scriptures.

5. We believe that He, only, is the great High Priest, and we need not the intercession of any man, but that Christ ever lives to make intercession for us. 

6. We believe that Christ will come again in Person, bodily, visibly, to establish His Kingdom on the earth. 

7. We believe that in order to be saved, the soul must be born again - "You Must Be Born Again."

8. We believe that every truly born again soul should declare his faith by the act of baptism (immersion in water) setting forth the Lord’s death, burial and resurrection. 

9. We believe that the church is a body of baptized believers whose only mission is not to "Reform the world", but to preach and teach the Gospel of Salvation to the individual soul.

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Mission Giving

As an Independent Baptist Church, Kelview Heights has the freedom to seek the direction of its missions involvement by individually selecting and supporting those missionaries and projects that the pastor sees as the greatest investment in reaching the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Members are challenged to give by faith, above their regular giving for the purpose of supporting these various missions efforts. Regular reports are shared with Bible Classes from individual missionaries about their ministries.