Our BELIEFS: The Church

We believe in both the universal and the local church.  The universal church (Matthew 16:18) is comprised of all believers from Pentecost to the Rapture. We believe that the local church is God’s mode of operation for this present age.  It is a voluntary association of baptized believers (immersion - Acts 2:26-31) who are equal in rank and privilege.  While the local church is to function under the headship of Christ (Ephesians 1:22,23), the offices of pastor and deacon are divinely ordained (Philippians 1:1; Acts 6; I Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-8).  We believe that the local church should be congregational in government with no responsibility towards outside ecclesiastical bodies (Acts 6:3-6; Matthew 18:15-17).  We believe in the local church ordinances of The Lord’s Table and Baptism (Matthew 28:19,20; I Corinthians 11:24).  The Lord’s Table commemorates for the believer the Lord’s death until He returns.  Water baptism is an emblem of the believer’s faith, and of his identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.  It represents the believer’s desire to walk in newness of life.  We believe it to be the responsibility of the local church to evangelize the world (Matthew 28:19,20; Acts1:8).