1.
THE SCRIPTURES INSPIRED
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are
verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible,
authoritative rule of faith and conduct.
2.
THE ONE TRUE GOD
The one true God has revealed Himself as the eternally
self-existent "I AM," the Creator of heaven and earth and the
Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed Himself as embodying the principles
of relationship and association as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
THE
ADORABLE GODHEAD
a. Terms Defined
The terms "Trinity" and "persons" as related to the
Godhead, while not found in the Scriptures, are words in harmony with
Scripture, whereby we may convey to others our immediate understanding of the
doctrine of Christ respecting the Being of God, as distinguished from
"gods many and lords many." We therefore may speak with propriety of
the Lord our God who is One Lord, as a trinity or as one Being of three
persons, and still be absolutely scriptural.
b. Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead
Christ taught a distinction of Persons in the Godhead which He expressed in
specific terms of relationship, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but that this
distinction and relationship, as to its mode is inscrutable and
incomprehensible, because unexplained.
c. Unity of the One Being of Father, Son and Holy Spirit
Accordingly, therefore, there is that in the Father which constitutes him the
Father and not the Son; there is that in the Son which constitutes Him the Son
and not the Father; and there is that in the Holy Spirit which constitutes Him
the Holy Spirit and not either the Father or the Son. Wherefore the Father is
the Begetter, the Son is the Begotten, and the Holy Spirit is the one
proceeding from the Father and the Son. Therefore, because these three persons
in the Godhead are in a state of unity, there is but one Lord God Almighty and
His name one.
d. Identity and Cooperation in the Godhead
The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are never identical as to Person; nor
confused as to relation; nor divided in respect to the Godhead; nor opposed as
to cooperation. The Son is in the Father and the Father is in the Son as to
relationship. The Son is with the Father and the Father is with the Son, as to
fellowship. The Father is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father, as
to authority. The Holy Spirit is from the Father and the Son proceeding, as to
nature, relationship, cooperation and authority. Hence, neither Person in the Godhead
either exists or works separately or independently of the others.
e. The Title, Lord Jesus Christ
The appellation, "Lord Jesus Christ," is a proper name. It is never
applied in the New Testament, either to the Father or to the Holy Spirit. It
therefore belongs exclusively to the Son of God.
f. The Lord Jesus Christ, God with Us
The Lord Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature, is the proper and
only Begotten of the Father, but as to His human nature, He is the proper Son
of Man. He is therefore, acknowledged to be both God and man; who because He is
God and man is "Immanuel," God with us.
g. The Title, Son of God
Since the name "Immanuel" embraces both God and man in the one
Person, our Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the title, Son of God, describes
His proper deity, and the title, Son of Man, His proper humanity. Therefore,
the title Son of God, belongs to the order of eternity, and the title, Son of
Man, to the order of time.
h. Transgression of the Doctrine of Christ
Wherefore, it is a transgression of the Doctrine of Christ to say that Jesus
Christ derived the title, Son of God, solely from the fact of the incarnation,
or because of His relation to the economy of redemption. Therefore, to deny
that the Father is a real and eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and
eternal Son, is a denial of the distinction and relationship in the Being of
God; a denial of the Father, and the Son; and a displacement of the truth that
Jesus Christ is come in the flesh.
i. Exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord
The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by Himself purged our sins, sat
down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; angels and principalities and
powers having been made subject unto Him. And having been made both Lord and
Christ, He sent the Holy Spirit that we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our
knees and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father
until the end, when the Son shall become subject to the Father that God may be
all in all.
j. Equal Honor to the Father and to the Son
Wherefore, since the Father has delivered all judgment unto the Son, it is not
only the express duty of all in heaven and on earth to bow the knee, but it is
an unspeakable joy in the Holy Spirit to ascribe unto the Son all the
attributes of Deity, and to give Him all honor and the glory contained in all
the names and titles of the Godhead except those which express relationship
(see Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead, Unity of the One Being of
Father, Son and Holy Spirit , and Identity and Cooperation in the Godhead) and
thus honor the Son even as we honor the Father.
3.
THE DEITY OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The
Scriptures declare:
His virgin birth,
His sinless life,
His miracles,
His substitutionary work on the cross,
His bodily resurrection from the dead,
His exaltation to the right hand of God.
4.
THE FALL OF MAN
Man was created good and upright; for God said, "Let
us make man in our own image, after our likeness." However, man by
voluntary transgression fell and thereby incurred not only physical death but
also spiritual death, which is separation from God.
5.
THE SALVATION OF MAN
Man's only hope of redemption is through the shed blood
of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
Conditions to Salvation
Salvation is received through repentance toward God and
faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing of regeneration and renewing
of the Holy Spirit, being justified by grace through faith, man becomes an heir
of God, according to the hope of eternal life.
The Evidence of Salvation
The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of
the Spirit.
The outward evidence to all men is a life of
righteousness and true holiness.
6.
THE ORDINANCES OF THE CHURCH
BAPTISM
IN WATER
The ordinance of baptism by immersion is commanded by the
Scriptures. All who repent and believe on Christ as Saviour and Lord are to be
baptized. Thus they declare to the world that they have died with Christ and
that they also have been raised with Him to walk in newness of life.
HOLY
COMMUNION
The Lord's Supper, consisting of the elements --bread and
the fruit of the vine-- is the symbol expressing our sharing the divine nature
of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:4 [KJV/NIV]), a memorial of his suffering and
death (1 Corinthians 11:26 [KJV/NIV]), and a prophecy of His second coming
(1 Corinthians 11:26 [KJV/NIV]), and is enjoined on all believers "till
He come!"
7.
THE BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT
All believers are entitled to and should ardently expect
and earnestly seek the promise of the Father, the baptism in the Holy Spirit
and fire, according to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the
normal experience of all in the early Christian Church. With it comes the
enduement of power for life and service, the bestowment of the gifts and their
uses in the work of the ministry.
This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the
experience of the new birth.
With the baptism in the Holy Spirit come such experiences
as:
- an
overflowing fullness of the Spirit, John 7:37-39 [KJV/NIV], Acts 4:8 [KJV/NIV]
- a deepened
reverence for God, Acts 2:43 [KJV/NIV], Hebrews 12:28 [KJV/NIV]
- an
intensified consecration to God and dedication to His work, Acts 2:42 [KJV/NIV]
- and a more
active love for Christ, for His Word and for the lost, Mark 16:20 [KJV/NIV]
8.
THE INITIAL PHYSICAL EVIDENCE OF THE BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT
The baptism of believers in the Holy Spirit is witnessed
by the initial physical sign of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit of
God gives them utterance.
The speaking in tongues in this instance is the same in
essence as the gift of tongues, but is different in purpose and use.
- 1
Corinthians 12:4-10 [KJV/NIV]
- 1
Corinthians 12:28 [KJV/NIV]
9.
SANCTIFICATION
Sanctification is an act of separation from that which is
evil, and of dedication unto God.
The Scriptures teach a life of "holiness without
which no man shall see the Lord."
By the power of the Holy Spirit we are able to obey the
command: "Be ye holy, for I am holy."
Sanctification is realized in the believer by recognizing
his identification with Christ in His death and resurrection, and by the faith
reckoning daily upon the fact of that union, and by offering every faculty
continually to the dominion of the Holy Spirit.
10.
THE CHURCH AND ITS MISSION
The Church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God
through the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of her great
commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of the
General Assembly and Church of the Firstborn, which are written in heaven.
Since God’s purpose concerning man is to seek and to save
that which is lost, to be worshipped by man, to build a body of believers in
the image of His Son, and to demonstrate His love and compassion for all the
world, the priority reason for being of the Assemblies of God as part of the
Church is:
To be an agency of God
for evangelizing the world.
Acts 1:8 [KJV/NIV]
Matthew 28:19,20 [KJV/NIV]
Mark 16:15,16 [KJV/NIV]
To be a corporate body in
which man may worship God.
1 Corinthians 12:13 [KJV/NIV]
To be a channel of God’s
purpose to build a body of saints being perfected in the image of His Son.
Ephesians 4:11-16 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 12:28 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 14:12 [KJV/NIV]
To be a people who
demonstrate God’s love and compassion for all the world.
Psalms 112:9 [KJV/NIV]
Galatians 2:10; 6:10 [KJV/NIV]
James 1:27 [KJV/NIV]
The Assemblies of God exists expressly to give continuing
emphasis to this reason for being in the New Testament apostolic pattern by
teaching and encouraging believers to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. This
experience:
Enables them to
evangelize in the power of the Spirit with accompanying supernatural signs.
Mark 16:15-20 [KJV/NIV]
Acts 4:29-31 [KJV/NIV]
Hebrews 2:3,4 [KJV/NIV]
Adds a necessary
dimension to worshipful relationship with God.
1 Corinthians 2:10-16 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 12 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 13 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 14 [KJV/NIV]
Enables them to respond
to the full working of the Holy Spirit in expression of fruit and gifts and
ministries as in New Testament times for the edifying of the body of Christ and
care for the poor and needy of the world.
Galatians 5:22-26 [KJV/NIV]
Matthew 25:37-40 [KJV/NIV]
Galatians 6:10 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 14:12 [KJV/NIV]
Ephesians 4:11,12 [KJV/NIV]
1 Corinthians 12:28 [KJV/NIV]
Colossians 1:29 [KJV/NIV]
11.
THE MINISTRY
A divinely called and scripturally ordained ministry has
been provided by our Lord for the fourfold purpose of leading the Church in:
Evangelization of the world.
Worship of God.
Building a body of saints being perfected in the image of
His Son.
Meeting human need with ministries of love and
compassion.
12.
DIVINE HEALING
Divine healing is an integral part of the gospel.
Deliverance from sickness is provided for in the atonement, and is the
privilege of all believers.
13.
THE BLESSED HOPE
The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in
Christ and their translation together with those who are alive and remain unto
the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed hope of the church.
14.
THE MILLENNIAL REIGN OF CHRIST
The second coming of Christ includes the rapture of the
saints, which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of Christ
with His saints to reign on earth for one thousand years.
This millennial reign will bring the salvation of
national Israel,
and the establishment of universal peace.
15.
THE FINAL JUDGMENT
There will be a final judgment in which the wicked dead
will be raised and judged according to their works. Whosoever is not found
written in the Book of Life, together with the devil and his angels, the beast
and the false prophet, will be consigned to the everlasting punishment in the
lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
16.
THE NEW HEAVENS AND THE NEW EARTH
"We, according to His promise, look for new heavens
and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness."