Sandiegobiblechurch

STATEMENT OF FAITH

The Bible

We believe the Bible says all Scripture is given by inspiration
of God (lit. God-breathed), that holy men of God were moved by
the Holy Spirit using their own individual style and
vocabulary to write the very words of Scripture so that what
was written was exactly what God wanted written. This divine
inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the Bible (2
Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

The Scriptures in their entirety are without error, and
incapable of error in their original writings (John 10:35). We
believe that these writings (divided into 66 books in our
English Bible tradition) have been handed down and
effectively preserved throughout the centuries (in keeping
with the implications of the prophecy in Matthew 5:18).
The Bible is our final authority in all matters of truth and
practice in our lives and in the Church (John 17:17; Romans
15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11).

The Godhead

We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These three are identical in
essence and equal in power and glory; they possess the same
nature, attributes, and perfections, and are worthy of the
same worship, confidence, and obedience (Historically this has
been called the Trinity (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 12:29; John
1:1-4; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

The Person and Work of Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, is fully
God and became fully man, being conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary. He came to reveal God and to
redeem sinful mankind by giving Himself as a sinless sacrifice
on the cross of Calvary on our behalf, satisfying God's
righteous judgments against sin.
He then arose bodily from the dead and ascended to the
Father's right hand where He intercedes on the believer's
behalf. All the Scriptures, from first to last, testify of Him
(Luke 1:34-35; 24:27; John 1:1-2, 14, 18; Romans 3:24-26; 8:34).

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Divine Person who
convicts the world of sin, gives eternal life to those who place
their trust in Christ, unites all believers to Christ in one body
by His baptizing ministry, indwells them permanently, seals
them unto the day of redemption, fills (controls) those who
are yielding to Him, and empowers them for service.
He seeks to direct their attention not to themselves nor to
their experience, but to Christ (John 3:5-8; 14:16-17; 16:7- 11;
16:13-14; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18).

The Condition of Man

We believe that man was originally created in the image and
after the likeness of God, free from sin. He subsequently fell
into sin by a voluntary act of personal disobedience to the
revealed will of God, lost his spiritual life, and became dead in
sins and corrupt in nature. These effects of sin have been
transmitted to the entire human race, Jesus Christ
excepted, and thus every person born into the world is
alienated from the life of God and unable to save himself apart
from God's divine grace (Genesis 1:26; 3:1-24; 6:5; Psalms 51:5;
Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-18; 5:12; Ephesians 2:1-3).

The Means of Salvation

We believe that salvation from sin is possible only by the gift
of God's grace. This unmerited favor is a free gift that
liberates us from the guilt and condemnation of sin. Salvation
cannot be gained by good works, sincere efforts, nor
submission to the rules, regulations, or ordinances of any
church, but is freely bestowed on all who put their faith in
Christ alone. This simple act of faith is often referred to as
"believing in" Jesus throughout Scripture. All who so trust the
Savior pass from death unto life, are forgiven of their sins,
accepted by the Father, and born into His family by the
regenerating work of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God
(John 5:24; Ephesians 1:6-7; 2:8-9; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:23; John
3:16).

The Believer's Assurance and Responsibility

We believe that all who have been born again by God's
transforming grace are secure in Christ forever. It is their
privilege to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation, not on
the basis of their own worthiness, but on the basis of God's
faithfulness, and the testimony of His Word. However, this
assurance must not become an occasion for sin. The reality of a
believer's faith in Christ should be demonstrated by subjecting
their fleshly natures to the power of the Holy Spirit, becoming
a fully devoted follower of Christ while personally making
other disciples and by doing the good works for which He saved
them, especially by demonstrating a Christ-like love for one
another (Matthew 7:20, 28:19; John 10:27-29; 13:34-35; Romans
6:13; 8:28-39; Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 2:10; 1 John 3:14,23; 5:13).

The Church

We believe that all who have placed their faith in Christ are
united by the Holy Spirit into one spiritual body, the Church,
of which Christ is the Head. This body was formed on the day
of Pentecost and will be completed at the coming of Christ for
His own. The members of this one spiritual body are directed
to associate themselves together in local assemblies for
discipleship, instruction, worship, expressing love for God and
others, prayer, fellowship, service, and the administration of
the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper. They are
likewise to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26;
12:13; Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:3; Matthew 22:37-39).

The Gifts of the Spirit

We believe that enabling gifts for service are bestowed
according to God's own will upon all believers by the Spirit of
God to be exercised for the edification or common good of the
Church and for the glory of the Lord. These gifts are
sovereignly bestowed by God in order to fulfill specific
purposes according to His plan. We believe that, as a sign to
unbelievers, the Biblical gift of speaking of tongues in public
was speaking in existing languages, which the speaker had
never learned and that it was never the common, or
necessary sign of the baptism (or filling) of the Spirit. We also
believe that while God may choose to heal supernaturally,
especially though the prayers of His people, the healing of the
temporal body is not assured by Christ's atoning work on the
cross; the complete deliverance of the body from sickness
awaits the consummation of our salvation in the
resurrection (Romans 8:23; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 27-31; 13:8-10;
14:21-22; 2 Corinthians 12:7-9; Ephesians 4:7-13; Hebrews 2:3- 4;
1 Peter 4:10-11; 2 Timothy 4:20).

The Second Coming of Christ

We believe that the next great event in the fulfillment of
prophecy is the personal return of Christ to remove from the
earth His Church, both dead and living believers, and to
reward each individual believer according to his or her works
at the judgment (BEMA) seat of Christ. After the removal of
the Church the righteous judgments of God will be poured out
on the unbelieving world, climaxed by the glorious return of
Jesus Christ to the earth with His saints to establish His
millennial kingdom (1 Corinthians 3:11-13; 2 Corinthians 5:10;
Romans 14:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3;
Revelation 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6).

The Eternal State

We believe that at death the souls of believers pass
immediately into the presence of Jesus Christ. When Christ
returns for the Church they will be reunited with their
glorified bodies and associated with Him forever in glory. At
death the souls of unbelievers pass immediately into torment.
At the close of the millennium they will be reunited with their
bodies, judged before the great white throne, then cast into the
lake of fire, (prepared for Satan and fallen angels) not to be
annihilated, but to be separated from God forever in conscious
punishment (Luke 16:19-26; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 2
Thessalonians 1:7-9; Revelation 20:11-15).

Ordinances

We believe that Christ has commanded us to observe the two
New Testament ordinances of water baptism and the Lord's
Supper. These two ordinances are observed in obedience to our
Lord Jesus Christ as acts of love and devotion, and are not set
forth in Scripture as a condition of salvation. We teach and
practice immersion as the form of baptism for believers. We
view the Lord's Supper as a memorial of our Lord's death, and
the elements as symbols of His body and blood (Matthew 28:19;
Acts 10:47-48; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26).