Our Beliefs

DOCTRINE:
"And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers." (Acts 2:42)

"Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. (16) Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.." (1 Timothy 4:13, 16)

" Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers." (Titus 1:9)

Some Christians today are convinced that doctrine is harmful to a church's unity. Admittedly, it seems to get people's emotions raised for the wrong reasons. It is perceived to be divisive. But is this due to some inherent quality in the doctrine itself, or is it only the pride of the people interacting with, or using the doctrine in an ungodly way? We at Lighthouse Baptist Church believe that doctrine - if handled with the humility commanded in the scriptures - is essential to any New Testament church. A quick survey of the word 'doctrine' throughout the New Testament (see some verses listed above) reveals how pivotal a role doctrine plays to the health and defence of the church. Because of this conviction, we have no reservations in making our church's core doctrines available for public viewing. In fact, we encourage you to take the time to read through the portions of our church covenant below. Please keep in mind that these beliefs were not written under the banner of tradition, or church authority as in many denominations. As an independent and local church family, we have formed this organized list of beliefs straight from the pages of God's Holy Word, the Bible.

STATEMENT OF DOCTRINE:

I. The Scriptures

We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, (consisting of the sixty-six books from Genesis to Revelation) as originally written, were both verbally and plenarily inspired. We believe that the Holy Bible is the truth without any mixture or error and is and shall remain to the end of the age the only complete and final revelation of the will of God to men; that it is the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds and opinions should be tried. We believe that the scriptures are to be studied and interpreted: literally (with the words and sentences understood in their normal meaning), grammatically (with laws and relationship of grammar), and historically (within the framework of time and the historical context). By “inspiration” we mean that the books of the Bible were written by the original authors as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, in such a definite way that their writings were supernaturally in-breathed with life by God and are free from error, as no other writings have been or ever will be. (II Tim. 3:15-17; II Pet. 1:19-21; Luke 21:33) For the sake of uniformity and accuracy, the King James Translation shall be used in all church sponsored ministries.

II. The Trinity

We believe that there is only one true and living God, an infinite Spirit, the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth; that He is inexpressibly glorious in holiness, and worthy of all 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 offices in the work of redemption. We believe that each member of the Godhead possess the absolute attributes of spirituality, self-existence (independent in being), immutability (devoid of all change), unity, love, and holiness; that they have the relative attributes of eternality, immensity (transcending all limitations of space), omnipresence (everywhere present), omniscience (all knowing), omnipotence (all powerful, able to do all things that are in accordance with their nature and person), truth, mercy, grace (undeserving favor to those under condemnation), and justice. Matt. 28:19-20; Deut. 6:4; I Tim. 2:5; John 4:24; 10:30; I Cor. 8:6; James 1:17; I John 5:7; Rev. 4:11)

III. The Father

We believe in God the Father, the First Person of the eternal Trinity, being the Father because of His personal relationship to the Son, whom He sent into the world, and who, together with the Son, sent the Holy Spirit. While these three persons are identical in essence and equal in every divine perfection, there is an order to priority of function among them. In this sense there are the First, Second, and Third Persons of the Triune Godhead. The Father is the ultimate source of all things, the sustainer of all things, and the controller of all things. He enters into a Fatherhood relationship with men spiritually through the new birth, forgives their sins, and answers their prayers. (John 17:5; Rom. 16:26; Ps. 2:7; 2 John 3; John 3:16-17; 1 John 4:10, John 14:26; John 15:26; John 14:28; 1 Cor. 11:3; 1 Cor. 8:6; Eph. 3:9; Neh. 9:6; Ps. 104;19-22; John 5:17; Ps. 103:19; Ps. 148:8; Prov. 19:21; 1 Cor. 10:13; John 1:12; Gal. 3:26; Gal. 4:5-6; John 14:23; 1 John. 1:9; John. 16:23)

IV. The Son

We believe that Jesus Christ of Nazareth is the eternal Son of God, that He is both fully God and fully man, the two natures being inseparably united in one glorious Person through the incarnation. We believe in His virgin conception and birth, His vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind, His bodily resurrection from the tomb, and His ascension into heaven as the believer’s High Priest and Advocate before the throne of God. (Is. 9:6; Matt. 16:16; John 10:36; John 17:5; John 1:1; Rom. 9:5; Tit. 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 1 John. 5:20; Matt. 20:28; John 8:40; 1 Tim. 2:5; John 1:14; Rom. 1:3-4; Heb. 10:5; Is. 7:14; Matt. 1:18-25; Is. 53:1-12; John 1:29; 1 John 2:2; Matt. 28:5-7; Luke 24:1-7; 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Rev. 1:18; Luke 24:51; Acts 1:2, 9-11; 1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 1:3; Heb. 4:14-16; 1 John 2:1; Rev. 3:21)

V. The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity, a divine person equal with God the Father and God the Son, and the divine Agent in nature, revelation, and redemption; that He convicts the world concerning sin, that He seals and indwells all who have been saved. He further fills, empowers, guides, teaches, and sanctifies believers who surrender to Him; and that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to every believer. We believe there is a distinction between the ministry of the Holy Spirit of the Old Testament and the New Testament, that there is a new and unique work in relation to the Body of Christ and the formation of the church.
We believe that the spiritual gifts bestowed by the Holy Spirit are given both to the individual and to the church; that some of the gifts were meant to be limited, such as the gift of the apostle and foretelling prophet with their God-given ability to use the gifts of miracles, healing, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. This sets us at odds with the current charismatic movement, which advocates emotional frenzy and clearly violate biblical rules set for the use and practice of tongues. Because of our belief that the gift of tongues has ceased, we take no part in speaking of tongues, the charismatic movement, or any form thereof (John 15:26, 16:12-15; Rom. 8:9-16; I Cor. 2:12-15, 3:16, 12:1-31; Eph. 4:30)

VI. The Devil or Satan

We believe in the reality and personality of Satan, the devil; that he was created by God as an angel but through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, he fell and drew with him a host of angels; that he is now the prince of the power of the air, the unholy god of this world, the ruler of all the powers of darkness, the enemy of God, the great tempter of mankind, the destroyer, the accuser of the saints; that he is destined to final defeat at the hands of the Son of God; that he will suffer everlasting punishment in the lake of fire prepared for him and his angels. (Isa.14:12-14; Ezek. 28:14-19; John 12:31; I Pet. 5:8; Rev. 12:7-10; 20:10)

VII. The Creation

We believe in the Biblical account of creation; that it was by direct, immediate creative acts of God without evolutionary changes or development, in six literal, 24-hour days; that Adam was created in God’s own image and after His own likeness; and that all mankind is descended from the historical Adam and Eve, the first parents of the entire human race. (Gen. 1:1- 27; 2:7; John 1:1-3; Col. 1:16,17)

VIII. The Fall of Man

We believe that Adam and Eve were created innocent of sin, but by voluntary disobedience fell from their sinless state; that the consequence of this fall is that they became sinners, depraved in nature and subject to Satan’s power; that all descendants are sinful by nature, choice, and practice and are guilty before God, possessing within themselves no means of salvation. (Gen. 3:1-6, 24; Rom. 3:10-23; 5:12-19; Eph. 2:2,3)

IX. The Virgin Birth

We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten of the Holy Ghost in a miraculous manner; that as it had been prophesied, He was born of Mary while she was a virgin; that His virgin birth was as no other man ever was born or ever could be born of woman; and that Christ was God, the second person of the Trinity, Incarnate (God in human flesh), at His birth (Is. 7:14; Matt. 1:17-25; Luke 1:30-38; Phil. 2:5-10).

X. The Atonement for Sin

We believe that salvation is totally by grace through Jesus Christ alone, Who, by the appointment of God the Father voluntarily took upon Himself our nature yet without sin, honored the divine law by perfect personal obedience, and through the merits of His shed blood and His death made full and satisfactory payment for our sins; that His atonement was the voluntary substitution of Himself in the sinner’s place, bearing the penalty of God’s holy law against the disobedient, the Just dying for the unjust, Christ the Lord bearing our sins in his own body on the cross; that having risen from the dead, He is now enthroned in heaven, a living Savior, the believer’s High Priest, Mediator and Advocate. (Is. 53:4-6,10; John 14:6; Eph. 1:7: 2:8,9; Phil. 2:6-9; Heb. 4:14-16; I John 2:2; Titus 3:5)

XI. Jesus Christ: His resurrection and return

We believe that Christ rose bodily from the grave on the third day according to the scriptures; that after manifesting Himself for forty days to the disciples, He ascended and is now at the right hand of the throne of God; that He alone is our merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to our need before God. We believe that this same Jesus which was taken up from earth will so come in like manner: imminently, personally, quickly, visibly, and bodily; that the saved shall be caught up together with Him in the clouds; that this return shall precede the tribulation and millennium; that He shall return to earth at the end of the tribulation; that He shall pour out the righteous judgments of God upon Satan and the unbelieving world, put down all His enemies, and triumph over sin; and that He will then take up the throne of David, rule the world with a rod of iron, and give the world an example of a righteous government during His thousand years of personal reign on earth (Matt. 24:42-47; 25:31-34; 28:1-8; Mark 16:19,20; Acts 1:9-11; I Cor. 15:3-8, 51-54; I Thess. 4:13-18; 5:1-4).

XII. Eschatology - (Doctrine of the End Times)

We believe in the pretribulational return of Christ to have the church caught up to be with Him, an event referred to as the rapture; that this event can occur at any moment, the dead in Christ shall be raised in glorified bodies and the living in Christ shall be given glorified bodies without tasting death, and all these shall meet the Lord in the air. The church will then appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ to receive rewards according to what each person has done in his earthly body. We believe that the seven-year tribulation period, which follows the rapture of the church, will culminate with the millennial coming of Christ in great power and glory to destroy the religious and political systems of this world and to set up the throne of David and to establish His visible, literal, millennial reign upon this earth. We believe that the end of the world is approaching; that at the last day Christ will raise the dead from the grave uniting both soul and resurrected body to final retribution; that a solemn separation will then take place: the wicked will be judged to endless punishment at the Great White Throne Judgment; and that this final judgment will fix forever the final state of unrepentant man, on principles of righteousness. (John 6:39, 40; 1 Cor. 15:51-54; Phil. 3:20-21; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Heb. 9:27-28; 2 Pet. 3:3-14; Rev. 3:10; Rev. 20:11-15, Rev 22:1).

XIII. Grace and the New Birth

We believe that sinners must be born again in order to receive the blessings of heaven; that the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; that salvation is the free reconciliatory gift of God, neither merited nor secured in any part by any virtue of the past or future work of man, but received only by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; that apart from the vicarious (substitutionary), propitiatory (complete turning away of wrath), justifying (declaring righteous) work of Christ on the cross there is no possible salvation. We believe that salvation is instantaneous and not a process; that in the new birth the one dead in trespasses and sins is made a partaker in the divine nature and receives eternal life as the gift of God; that such are safely kept by the power of God through faith unto eternal salvation and shall never perish; that the new birth is brought about in a manner above our comprehension, solely by the power of the Holy Spirit in connection with divine truth; so as to secure our personal voluntary obedience in believing the Gospel and receiving the gift of salvation; and that its proper evidence appears in the fruits of repentance, faith and newness of life. (John 1:11-14, 3:1-21, 36; Acts 4:12, 16:30-33; Rom. 6:23; II Cor. 5:17-19; Eph. 2:1; Col. 2:13)

XIV. Repentance and Salvation

We believe that repentance is part of a complete faith, wrought in our souls by the regenerating Spirit of God; whereby, being deeply convinced and sorrowful over our personal sinful choice, danger, and helplessness, and of the singular way of salvation by Christ, we turn to God through Christ alone. Repentance is the change of one’s mind about what saves him from the penalty of sin and what his personal accountability is for his sin; that the blessings of salvation are made free only to those who repent; that nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the gospel; and that rejection involves him in an aggravated divine condemnation (Mark 1:14,15; Luke 18:13,14; Acts 2:37,38; II Cor. 7:10; II Pet. 3:9)

XV. Regeneration and Salvation

We believe that in order to be saved, lost sinners must be regenerated, or born again; that regeneration is a recreative act, far beyond comprehension, wrought by the direct personal ministry of the Holy Spirit; that it is instantaneous, miraculous, and not a process or cultural; that it cleanses and pardons the soul from its just penalty for sin; that the spiritually dead sinner is made to live through the new spiritual birth, becoming thereby regenerated, possessing eternal life as a gift of God; that the new birth comes after the Holy Spirit secures voluntary repentance as to a “Jesus only” salvation; that it is the actual impartation of the divine life, being just as real as a physical birth; that it is not a mere transformation of the human life; and that the proper evidence of regeneration appears in the holy fruits of obedient followers of the Lord Jesus (John 1:11-13, 3:5-7; II Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:1-6; Titus 3:5-7).

XVI. Justification and Salvation

We believe that the great declaration and benefit of those who truly believe in Christ is justification; that justification is declared because of a divine pardon of sin; that it is bestowed, not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done, but solely through faith in Christ’s blood which covers all our sin; that by virtue of such faith God imputes Christ’s perfect righteousness to us; and that we are brought into a state of peace and favor with God, securing every blessing needful for eternal life with God (Acts 13:38,39; Rom. 3:23-26, 4:23-25, 5:1, 8-9; Titus 3:57).

XVII. Faith

We believe that faith is a gift of God; by which man comes to know and believe the truth of the Scriptures, and the excellency of them above all other writings; that they clearly teach the sinful condition of man and the excellency of Christ in His nature and offices; that it enables discernment of all doctrines that are contrary to truth (the Scriptures); that when Christ is accepted as Savior it is the completion of saving faith: the three steps being accepting information, sincerely repenting, and honestly confessing; and that if tempted by Satan and failure results, God is still the same and the true believer shall be kept by the power of God unto salvation. The same faith that converts to Christ is able to carry the soul through all duties, temptations, conflicts, and sufferings. All believers who are progressively sanctified by faith will experience the love of God manifested in their souls and find their strength increased through faithfulness in sufferings and temptations (Rom. 1:16, 4:5, 10:9-14; Eph. 2:8,9).

XVIII. Eternal Security

We believe that those who are born again become a new creation in Christ Jesus through a salvation offered to man totally of God; that salvation is secure in the grace of God alone; that those who have accepted Christ are forever sealed and will never come into the condemnation of the lost; that a special Providence watches over their welfare; that they are securely held in both the hand of the Father and the hand of the Son through faith unto eternal salvation; and that the age-old summary of salvation security, “Once in grace, always in grace; Once saved, always saved,” is heavenly and gloriously true (John 5:24, 10:27-30; Rom. 8:38,39; II Tim. 1:9-12).

XIX. Sanctification

We believe that sanctification is a progressive work by which, according to the will of God and the dedication in our life, we are made partakers of His holiness (Christ-likeness);that it is begun in salvation; that it is carried on in the hearts of believers by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit (the Sealer and Comforter) through continual surrender to self-examination by the Word of God, good works, self-denial, watchfulness, and prayer; and that sanctification is not a state of sinless perfection, a state of special preparation for the giving of apostolic gifts, a “second blessing”, nor a special “Baptism of the Holy Ghost.” (John 17:13-21; Phil. 3:13, 14; I Thess. 4:1-5; Ps 139:23-24)

XX . The Church

We believe that a church is a congregation of immersed believers associated by a covenant of faith and fellowship of the Gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His laws; and exercising the gifts, rights and privileges invested in them by his word; that its officers are pastors and deacons, whose qualifications, claims and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures; that the true mission of the church is found in the Great Commission: first, to teach or disciple all nations, i.e. to preach the gospel in all the world and make disciples; secondly, to baptize; thirdly, to teach and instruct as He has commanded and thus to build up the church. We believe that a local church has the absolute right of self government, free from any interference of any hierarchy of individuals of organizations; and that the one and only superintendent is Christ. We believe in and practice separation in these three areas: The world; False Teaching; and the Erring Brother. As a church, we have a responsibility to stand against these without compromise, yet in the spirit of love and meekness. These principles must be applied to specific issues as they come up. Our church will be committed to the fundamentals of the faith, insulating ourselves in the world and not isolating ourselves from it. (Eph. 5:1-11; I John 2:14-16; II Cor. 6:14-17; Matt. 7:15; II Cor. 11:13-15; II Peter 2:1-3; II Tim. 6:1-3; Gal. 1:1-9; II John 9-11; I Tim. 1:18-20; I Tim. 5: 17-25; Matt. 18:15-35; II Thess. 3:6-18; Titus 3:9-11) We believe that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate with each other in the furtherance of the gospel and in contending for the faith; that each church is the sole judge of the measure and method of cooperation, that on matters of membership, of polity, of government, of discipline, of benevolence, the will of the local church is final. ( Acts 1:8, 2:41-42, 14:21-23, 15:13-20; I Cor.; 12:13; Eph. 4:7- 13; 5:23,24)

XXI. The Ordinances

A. Baptism
We believe that the Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, to show forth our union with the crucified, buried and risen Christ, also, our death to sin and our resurrection to a new life; that it is not a means of grace for salvation; and that it is a condition for membership. (Matt. 3:16; 28:19; Acts 8:12-13,16:30-34; Rom. 6:3-5)
B. The Lord’s Supper
We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by our Lord as the commemoration of His death until He comes; that it is the privilege and obligation of all obedient believers; and that it should be preceded by solemn examination. (I Cor. 10:16-22; 11:23- 29)

XXII. The Believer

We believe that every saved person possesses two natures, with provision made for victory over the old nature through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit and that all claims to the eradication of the old nature, in this life are unscriptural.( Rom. 7:15-25; Gal. 5:16-25). We believe that the Scriptures teach that every believer should walk in Christian love and holiness, through the inward energizing of the Holy Spirit, exhibiting qualities of honesty, integrity, forgiveness and spirituality; that any achievements in these characteristics will be evidenced by sincere humility and genuine zeal for the advancement of the cause of Christ and for the contending for the faith. (Rom. 6:13; 8:12,13; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:10; I Pet. 1:14-16 ).

XXIII. The Righteous and the Wicked

We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that only those who are saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are truly righteous in His esteem; that all those who continue in willful disobedience and unbelief are in His sight wicked and under the curse; that this distinction continues, both in and after death, in the everlasting holiness and the bliss of the saved in heaven and the everlasting conscious suffering of the lost in the Lake of Fire (Deut. 25:1; Prov. 10:16, 14:32; Matt. 13:36-43, 25:34-46; Rev. 21:8).

XXIV. The Lord’s Day

We believe that the first day of the week is to be observed as the Lord’s day, and is a day of rest, Christian fellowship, worship and communion with God. (John 20:19; Heb. 10:24-25; Acts 20:7; I Cor.16:1, 2).