Our Beliefs

What should I know about the “Church?”

The church is the body of Christ and the family of God. It is made up of saved and baptized believers, who regularly join together on the Lord’s Day for worship, fellowship, and ministry (Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Hebrews 10:25). The church meets but also goes into the “world” to proclaim the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ.

What do we base our beliefs upon?

Accepting the Bible to be the very Word of God to man through men, and understanding the importance of knowing and obeying its truths, our church is committed to study and teach with diligence and authority. We strongly seek to learn the Scriptures and to teach them to people that they may know God, accept God’s Son, Jesus Christ, as personal Savior, and serve Him in worship and ministry.

For over 125 years, this fellowship of believers (First Baptist Church) has come to foundational convictions concerning the major theological truths of the Bible. The following overview outlines these important doctrines (truths). We believe these to be the primary doctrines of the Christian faith, and reflect the teaching of First Baptist Church.

What are the “Scriptures?”

We believe and teach the entire Bible (Scriptures), all 66 books of the combined Old and New Testaments are verbally inspired by God and are inerrant in the original writings. Through the providence of God, the Word of God has been protected and preserved, and is the only infallible and authoritative rule of faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

Who is God?

In the world today, not unlike the past, there is a lot of misunderstanding about who God really is! Scripture shows us that there is only one true, living sovereign, holy, and eternally existent God. He exists in three co-equal persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each being a distinct person and with a distinct function, but all of one essence and all possessing the same nature, perfection, and attributes. The triune God is the creator and sustainer of all things, the source of all truth, and is worthy of worship, confidence, and obedience (Deuteronomy 6:4-5; Genesis 1:31).

Who is Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ is God. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed many miracles, shed His blood on the cross as a vicarious substitute, was buried, bodily resurrected, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return literally, visibly, and personally in glory and power. Is the one and only Savior for all mankind (John 1:1-3, 14; Matthew 1:18-25; Philippians 2:5-9; Colossians 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, Acts 1:11).

What does Scripture say about the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is God, co-equal and co-existent with the Father and the Son. He is the chief convictor of sin, the chief agent of regeneration and sanctification. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer and empowers every believer to live a godly life. Through His gift of the Holy Spirit, God graces every believer with spiritual gifts, which are sovereignly-given abilities graciously bestowed upon every believer at salvation to enable him to perform a function effectively within the church, the Body of Christ. (John 14:16-19; 16:7-15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 8:9, 11; Titus 3:5; Eph. 4:11-16).

Who Is Mankind?

God’s Word teaches us what we pass along to others, in the beginning God created mankind in His image, and is not in any sense the product of evolution. Mankind was originally created with the ability to live perfectly for God’s glory (Genesis 1:17, 31).

What do we believe about Sin?

The Bible is very clear in its teaching that Adam, the first man, sinned by disobedience. This act resulted in the fall of all mankind, therefore, all people have sinned and lost their ability to live for the glory of God. Mankind’s fall has incurred both physical and spiritual death on all until there is forgiveness and salvation by the grace of God (Genesis 3:1-24; Romans 3:10-23; 5:12-21; 6:23).

How does Salvation take place?

Salvation for lost and sinful mankind is a free gift of God’s grace apart from human works, based solely upon Christ’s vicarious and atoning death, effected by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, and received only through faith in the person and finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. In addition, we teach that God is sovereign in salvation. He not only desires that all be saved, but He also knows who will be saved. The Bible teaches there is an election of individuals to salvation. Reconciling the biblical doctrines of God’s election and man’s responsibility may be humanly impossible. Somehow God’s sovereign election and a person’s responsibility to have faith are both required in the salvation of an individual. Since God’s Word clearly teaches both, we must somehow accept that tension as divine mystery (Ephesians 1:4; 2:8-10; Romans 8:28-30; 10:9-10, 13; 2 Peter 3:9, John 3:16).

Is Salvation eternal ?

The Bible shows us since God gives us eternal life through Christ, the believer is secure in that salvation forever. Our salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the efforts of the believer (John 10:29-30; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 5:11-13).

Why is Evangelism so important?

Evangelism is the responsibility and privilege of every Christian to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ and to seek to make growing disciples. Evangelism describes the many ways Christians introduce Jesus Christ to those who are not followers of Christ. Followers of Christ realize the benefits or having a personal relationship with Jesus that provides “new life.” Christians are passionate about sharing this joy with others in order for them to have the same life-changing experience (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8).

Does everyone exist forever?

God created man to exist forever. He will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or in union with God through salvation. To be eternally separated from God is hell. To be eternally with God is heaven. Heaven and hell are real places of eternal existence (John 3:16; Romans 6:23; Revelation 20:15).

Why do Christians perform Baptism and The Lord’s Supper?

Jesus instructed His followers to remember His death and resurrection. He gave the church two visible symbols (called “ordinances”) as reminders. These two ordinances are baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Neither of these ordinances are necessary for salvation but are practiced in obedience to and in remembrance of our Lord Jesus Christ. Baptism by immersion is a one-time act of obedient identification with Jesus as Lord. It serves as an outward sign of conscious confession of repentance and faith. The Lord’s Supper is an ongoing symbol remembering our Lord’s death, burial, resurrection, and promised return (Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 26:26-29; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32).

What is different about a Christian home?

In addition to the important beliefs stated above, we also teach that God has given the parents and the home the responsibility to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4; Proverbs 22:6). We believe that a consistent and whole education will occur when home, church, and school work closely together and are in agreement on the basic concepts of life.