Ridgecrest
Baptist Church Beliefs ::
Ridgecrest is not a
building ... we are a group of people. We are a group of people
who have experienced the grace of God, and we have been changed by it! That
same grace is offered freely for any who would believe. In short,
we exist to glorify God and enjoy Him to the fullest. We believe
that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him!
Below is a more in-depth discussion of what we believe as referenced in
the Baptist Faith & Message.
I. The Scriptures
The Holy Bible was
written by men divinely inspired and is God's revelation of Himself
to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for
its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of
error, for its matter. Therefore, all Scripture is totally true and
trustworthy. It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore
is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian
union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds,
and religious opinions should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony
to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.
Exodus 24:4; Deuteronomy 4:1-2;
17:19; Joshua 8:34; Psalms 19:7-10; 119:11,89,105,140; Isaiah 34:16;
40:8; Jeremiah 15:16; 36:1-32; Matthew 5:17-18; 22:29; Luke 21:33; 24:44-46;
John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Acts 2:16ff.; 17:11; Romans 15:4; 16:25-26;
2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12; 1 Peter 1:25; 2 Peter 1:19-21.
II. God
There is one and only
one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal
Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe.
God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. God is all powerful
and all knowing; and His perfect knowledge extends to all things, past,
present, and future, including the future decisions of His free creatures.
To Him we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience. The eternal
triune God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with
distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence,
or being.
A. God the Father
God as Father reigns
with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow
of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace.
He is all powerful, all knowing, all loving, and all wise. God is Father
in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Jesus
Christ. He is fatherly in His attitude toward all men.
Genesis 1:1; 2:7; Exodus 3:14; 6:2-3;
15:11ff.; 20:1ff.; Leviticus 22:2; Deuteronomy 6:4; 32:6; 1 Chronicles
29:10; Psalm 19:1-3; Isaiah 43:3,15; 64:8; Jeremiah 10:10; 17:13; Matthew
6:9ff.; 7:11; 23:9; 28:19; Mark 1:9-11; John 4:24; 5:26; 14:6-13; 17:1-8;
Acts 1:7; Romans 8:14-15; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians
4:6; Colossians 1:15; 1 Timothy 1:17; Hebrews 11:6; 12:9; 1 Peter 1:17;
1 John 5:7.
B. God the Son
Christ is the eternal
Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ He was conceived of the
Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and
did the will of God, taking upon Himself human nature with its demands
and necessities and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet
without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and
in His substitutionary death on the cross He made provision for the
redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified
body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before
His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right
hand of God where He is the One Mediator, fully God, fully man, in whose
Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return
in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive
mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present
Lord.
Genesis 18:1ff.; Psalms 2:7ff.;
110:1ff.; Isaiah 7:14; 53; Matthew 1:18-23; 3:17; 8:29; 11:27;
14:33; 16:16,27; 17:5; 27; 28:1-6,19; Mark 1:1; 3:11; Luke 1:35; 4:41;
22:70; 24:46; John 1:1-18,29; 10:30,38; 11:25-27; 12:44-50; 14:7-11;
16:15-16,28; 17:1-5, 21-22; 20:1-20,28; Acts 1:9; 2:22-24; 7:55-56;
9:4-5,20; Romans 1:3-4; 3:23-26; 5:6-21; 8:1-3,34; 10:4; 1 Corinthians
1:30; 2:2; 8:6; 15:1-8,24-28; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21; 8:9; Galatians
4:4-5; Ephesians 1:20; 3:11; 4:7-10; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians
1:13-22; 2:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 3:16; Titus
2:13-14; Hebrews 1:1-3; 4:14-15; 7:14-28; 9:12-15,24-28; 12:2; 13:8;
1 Peter 2:21-25; 3:22; 1 John 1:7-9; 3:2; 4:14-15; 5:9; 2 John 7-9;
Revelation 1:13-16; 5:9-14; 12:10-11; 13:8; 19:16.
C. God the
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is
the Spirit of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write
the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to understand truth.
He exalts Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.
He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration. At the moment
of regeneration He baptizes every believer into the Body of Christ.
He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the
spiritual gifts by which they serve God through His church. He seals
the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian
is the guarantee that God will bring the believer into the fullness
of the stature of Christ. He enlightens and empowers the believer and
the church in worship, evangelism, and service.
Genesis 1:2; Judges 14:6; Job 26:13;
Psalms 51:11; 139:7ff.; Isaiah 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-32; Matthew 1:18; 3:16;
4:1; 12:28-32; 28:19; Mark 1:10,12; Luke 1:35; 4:1,18-19; 11:13; 12:12;
24:49; John 4:24; 14:16-17,26; 15:26; 16:7-14; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4,38; 4:31;
5:3; 6:3; 7:55; 8:17,39; 10:44; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6; 19:1-6; Romans 8:9-11,14-16,26-27;
1 Corinthians 2:10-14; 3:16; 12:3-11,13; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:13-14;
4:30; 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; 1 Timothy 3:16; 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:14;
3:16; Hebrews 9:8,14; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 John 4:13; 5:6-7; Revelation 1:10;
22:17.
III. Man
Man is the special
creation of God, made in His own image. He created them male and female
as the crowning work of His creation. The gift of gender is thus part
of the goodness of God's creation. In the beginning man was innocent
of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice. By his
free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race.
Through the temptation of Satan man transgressed the command of God,
and fell from his original innocence whereby his posterity inherit a
nature and an environment inclined toward sin. Therefore, as soon as
they are capable of moral action, they become transgressors and are
under condemnation. Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy
fellowship and enable man to fulfill the creative purpose of God. The
sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in
His own image, and in that Christ died for man; therefore, every person
of every race possesses full dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian
love.
Genesis 1:26-30; 2:5,7,18-22; 3;
9:6; Psalms 1; 8:3-6; 32:1-5; 51:5; Isaiah 6:5; Jeremiah 17:5; Matthew
16:26; Acts 17:26-31; Romans 1:19-32; 3:10-18,23; 5:6,12,19; 6:6; 7:14-25;
8:14-18,29; 1 Corinthians 1:21-31; 15:19,21-22; Ephesians 2:1-22; Colossians
1:21-22; 3:9-11.
IV. Salvation
Salvation involves
the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept
Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal
redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes
regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. There
is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.
A. Regeneration, or the new birth,
is a work of God's grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ
Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction
of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences
of grace.
Repentance is a genuine turning
from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment
of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior.
B. Justification is God's gracious
and full acquittal upon principles of His righteousness of all sinners
who repent and believe in Christ. Justification brings the believer
unto a relationship of peace and favor with God.
C. Sanctification is the experience,
beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to God's
purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual maturity
through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Growth
in grace should continue throughout the regenerate person's life.
D. Glorification is the culmination
of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
Genesis 3:15; Exodus 3:14-17; 6:2-8;
Matthew 1:21; 4:17; 16:21-26; 27:22-28:6; Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32; John
1:11-14,29; 3:3-21,36; 5:24; 10:9,28-29; 15:1-16; 17:17; Acts 2:21;
4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31; 17:30-31; 20:32; Romans 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25;
4:3ff.; 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18,29-39; 10:9-10,13; 13:11-14; 1 Corinthians
1:18,30; 6:19-20; 15:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Galatians 2:20; 3:13;
5:22-25; 6:15; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-22; 4:11-16; Philippians 2:12-13;
Colossians 1:9-22; 3:1ff.; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Timothy 1:12;
Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 2:1-3; 5:8-9; 9:24-28; 11:1-12:8,14; James 2:14-26;
1 Peter 1:2-23; 1 John 1:6-2:11; Revelation 3:20; 21:1-22:5.
V. God's Purpose
of Grace
Election is the gracious
purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies,
and glorifies sinners. It is consistent with the free agency of man,
and comprehends all the means in connection with the end. It is the
glorious display of God's sovereign goodness, and is infinitely wise,
holy, and unchangeable. It excludes boasting and promotes humility.
All true believers endure to the
end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit,
will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to
the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation,
whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, and
bring reproach on the cause of Christ and temporal judgments on themselves;
yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.
Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:5-8; 1
Samuel 8:4-7,19-22; Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 31:31ff.; Matthew 16:18-19;
21:28-45; 24:22,31; 25:34; Luke 1:68-79; 2:29-32; 19:41-44; 24:44-48;
John 1:12-14; 3:16; 5:24; 6:44-45,65; 10:27-29; 15:16; 17:6,12,17-18;
Acts 20:32; Romans 5:9-10; 8:28-39; 10:12-15; 11:5-7,26-36; 1 Corinthians
1:1-2; 15:24-28; Ephesians 1:4-23; 2:1-10; 3:1-11; Colossians 1:12-14;
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; 2 Timothy 1:12; 2:10,19; Hebrews 11:39–12:2;
James 1:12; 1 Peter 1:2-5,13; 2:4-10; 1 John 1:7-9; 2:19; 3:2.
VI. The Church
A New Testament church
of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized
believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the
gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws,
exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His
Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each
congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic
processes. In such a congregation each member is responsible and accountable
to Christ as Lord. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons.
While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office
of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.
The New Testament speaks also of
the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed
of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people,
and nation.
Matthew 16:15-19; 18:15-20; Acts
2:41-42,47; 5:11-14; 6:3-6; 13:1-3; 14:23,27; 15:1-30; 16:5; 20:28;
Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 3:16; 5:4-5; 7:17; 9:13-14; 12; Ephesians
1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:8-11,21; 5:22-32; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:18;
1 Timothy 2:9-14; 3:1-15; 4:14; Hebrews 11:39-40; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Revelation
2-3; 21:2-3.
VII. Baptism
and the Lord's Supper
Christian baptism is
the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the
Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the
believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer's
death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk
in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in
the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is
prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord's
Supper.
The Lord's Supper is a symbolic
act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of
the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer
and anticipate His second coming.
Matthew 3:13-17; 26:26-30; 28:19-20;
Mark 1:9-11; 14:22-26; Luke 3:21-22; 22:19-20; John 3:23; Acts 2:41-42;
8:35-39; 16:30-33; 20:7; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 10:16,21; 11:23-29;
Colossians 2:12.
VIII. The Lord's
Day
The first day of the
week is the Lord's Day. It is a Christian institution for regular observance.
It commemorates the resurrection of Christ from the dead and should
include exercises of worship and spiritual devotion, both public and
private. Activities on the Lord's Day should be commensurate with the
Christian's conscience under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Exodus 20:8-11; Matthew 12:1-12;
28:1ff.; Mark 2:27-28; 16:1-7; Luke 24:1-3,33-36; John 4:21-24; 20:1,19-28;
Acts 20:7; Romans 14:5-10; I Corinthians 16:1-2; Colossians 2:16; 3:16;
Revelation 1:10.
IX. The Kingdom
The Kingdom of God
includes both His general sovereignty over the universe and His particular
kingship over men who willfully acknowledge Him as King. Particularly
the Kingdom is the realm of salvation into which men enter by trustful,
childlike commitment to Jesus Christ. Christians ought to pray and to
labor that the Kingdom may come and God's will be done on earth. The
full consummation of the Kingdom awaits the return of Jesus Christ and
the end of this age.
Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 9:6-7; Jeremiah
23:5-6; Matthew 3:2; 4:8-10,23; 12:25-28; 13:1-52; 25:31-46; 26:29;
Mark 1:14-15; 9:1; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 9:2; 12:31-32; 17:20-21; 23:42; John
3:3; 18:36; Acts 1:6-7; 17:22-31; Romans 5:17; 8:19; 1 Corinthians 15:24-28;
Colossians 1:13; Hebrews 11:10,16; 12:28; 1 Peter 2:4-10; 4:13; Revelation
1:6,9; 5:10; 11:15; 21-22.
X. Last Things
God, in His own time
and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end. According
to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory
to the earth; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge all men
in righteousness. The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place
of everlasting punishment. The righteous in their resurrected and glorified
bodies will receive their reward and will dwell forever in Heaven with
the Lord.
Isaiah 2:4; 11:9; Matthew 16:27;
18:8-9; 19:28; 24:27,30,36,44; 25:31-46; 26:64; Mark 8:38; 9:43-48;
Luke 12:40,48; 16:19-26; 17:22-37; 21:27-28; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:11;
17:31; Romans 14:10; 1 Corinthians 4:5; 15:24-28,35-58; 2 Corinthians
5:10; Philippians 3:20-21; Colossians 1:5; 3:4; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18;
5:1ff.; 2 Thessalonians 1:7ff.; 2; 1 Timothy 6:14; 2 Timothy 4:1,8;
Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:27-28; James 5:8; 2 Peter 3:7ff.; 1 John 2:28;
3:2; Jude 14; Revelation 1:18; 3:11; 20:1-22:13.
XI. Evangelism
and Missions
It is the duty and
privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord
Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations. The new birth
of man's spirit by God's Holy Spirit means the birth of love for others.
Missionary effort on the part of all rests thus upon a spiritual necessity
of the regenerate life, and is expressly and repeatedly commanded in
the teachings of Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ has commanded the preaching
of the gospel to all nations. It is the duty of every child of God to
seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by verbal witness
undergirded
by a Christian lifestyle, and by other methods in harmony with the gospel
of Christ.
Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:5-6; Isaiah
6:1-8; Matthew 9:37-38; 10:5-15; 13:18-30, 37-43; 16:19; 22:9-10; 24:14;
28:18-20; Luke 10:1-18; 24:46-53; John 14:11-12; 15:7-8,16; 17:15; 20:21;
Acts 1:8; 2; 8:26-40; 10:42-48; 13:2-3; Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians 3:1-11;
1 Thessalonians 1:8; 2 Timothy 4:5; Hebrews 2:1-3; 11:39-12:2; 1 Peter
2:4-10; Revelation 22:17.
XII. Education
Christianity is the
faith of enlightenment and intelligence. In Jesus Christ abide all the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge. All sound learning is, therefore,
a part of our Christian heritage. The new birth opens all human faculties
and creates a thirst for knowledge. Moreover, the cause of education
in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions
and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal
support of the churches. An adequate system of Christian education is
necessary to a complete spiritual program for Christ's people.
In Christian education there should
be a proper balance between academic freedom and academic responsibility.
Freedom in any orderly relationship of human life is always limited
and never absolute. The freedom of a teacher in a Christian school,
college, or seminary is limited by the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ,
by the authoritative nature of the Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose
for which the school exists.
Deuteronomy 4:1,5,9,14; 6:1-10;
31:12-13; Nehemiah 8:1-8; Job 28:28; Psalms 19:7ff.; 119:11; Proverbs
3:13ff.; 4:1-10; 8:1-7,11; 15:14; Ecclesiastes 7:19; Matthew 5:2; 7:24ff.;
28:19-20; Luke 2:40; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians
4:8; Colossians 2:3,8-9; 1 Timothy 1:3-7; 2 Timothy 2:15; 3:14-17; Hebrews
5:12-6:3; James 1:5; 3:17.
XIII. Stewardship
God is the source of
all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are we owe
to Him. Christians have a spiritual debtorship to the whole world, a
holy trusteeship in the gospel, and a binding stewardship in their possessions.
They are therefore under obligation to serve Him with their time, talents,
and material possessions; and should recognize all these as entrusted
to them to use for the glory of God and for helping others. According
to the Scriptures, Christians should contribute of their means cheerfully,
regularly, systematically, proportionately, and liberally for the advancement
of the Redeemer's cause on earth.
Genesis 14:20; Leviticus 27:30-32;
Deuteronomy 8:18; Malachi 3:8-12; Matthew 6:1-4,19-21; 19:21; 23:23;
25:14-29; Luke 12:16-21,42; 16:1-13; Acts 2:44-47; 5:1-11; 17:24-25;
20:35; Romans 6:6-22; 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 4:1-2; 6:19-20; 12; 16:1-4;
2 Corinthians 8-9; 12:15; Philippians 4:10-19; 1 Peter 1:18-19.
XIV. Cooperation
Christ's people should,
as occasion requires, organize such associations and conventions as
may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the Kingdom of
God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the
churches. They are voluntary and advisory bodies designed to elicit,
combine, and direct the energies of our people in the most effective
manner. Members of New Testament churches should cooperate with one
another in carrying forward the missionary, educational, and benevolent
ministries for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. Christian unity in
the New Testament sense is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation
for common ends by various groups of Christ's people. Cooperation is
desirable between the various Christian denominations, when the end
to be attained is itself justified, and when such cooperation involves
no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to Christ and His
Word as revealed in the New Testament.
Exodus 17:12; 18:17ff.; Judges 7:21;
Ezra 1:3-4; 2:68-69; 5:14-15; Nehemiah 4; 8:1-5; Matthew 10:5-15; 20:1-16;
22:1-10; 28:19-20; Mark 2:3; Luke 10:1ff.; Acts 1:13-14; 2:1ff.; 4:31-37;
13:2-3; 15:1-35; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17; 3:5-15; 12; 2 Corinthians 8-9;
Galatians 1:6-10; Ephesians 4:1-16; Philippians 1:15-18.
XV. The Christian
and the Social Order
All Christians are
under obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in our own
lives and in human society. Means and methods used for the improvement
of society and the establishment of righteousness among men can be truly
and permanently helpful only when they are rooted in the regeneration
of the individual by the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ. In the
spirit of Christ, Christians should oppose racism, every form of greed,
selfishness, and vice, and all forms of sexual immorality, including
adultery, homosexuality, and pornography. We should work to provide
for the orphaned, the needy, the abused, the aged, the helpless, and
the sick. We should speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the
sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death. Every Christian
should seek to bring industry, government, and society as a whole under
the sway of the principles of righteousness, truth, and brotherly love.
In order to promote these ends Christians should be ready to work with
all men of good will in any good cause, always being careful to act
in the spirit of love without compromising their loyalty to Christ and
His truth.
Exodus 20:3-17; Leviticus 6:2-5;
Deuteronomy 10:12; 27:17; Psalm 101:5; Micah 6:8; Zechariah 8:16; Matthew
5:13-16,43-48; 22:36-40; 25:35; Mark 1:29-34; 2:3ff.; 10:21; Luke 4:18-21;
10:27-37; 20:25; John 15:12; 17:15; Romans 12–14; 1Corinthians 5:9-10;
6:1-7; 7:20-24; 10:23-11:1; Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians
3:12-17; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; Philemon; James 1:27; 2:8.
XVI. Peace and
War
It is the duty of Christians
to seek peace with all men on principles of righteousness. In accordance
with the spirit and teachings of Christ they should do all in their
power to put an end to war.
The true remedy for the war spirit
is the gospel of our Lord. The supreme need of the world is the acceptance
of His teachings in all the affairs of men and nations, and the practical
application of His law of love. Christian people throughout the world
should pray for the reign of the Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 2:4; Matthew 5:9,38-48; 6:33;
26:52; Luke 22:36,38; Romans 12:18-19; 13:1-7; 14:19; Hebrews 12:14;
James 4:1-2.
XVII. Religious
Liberty
God alone is Lord of
the conscience, and He has left it free from the doctrines and commandments
of men which are contrary to His Word or not contained in it. Church
and state should be separate. The state owes to every church protection
and full freedom in the pursuit of its spiritual ends. In providing
for such freedom no ecclesiastical group or denomination should be favored
by the state more than others. Civil government being ordained of God,
it is the duty of Christians to render loyal obedience thereto in all
things not contrary to the revealed will of God. The church should not
resort to the civil power to carry on its work. The gospel of Christ
contemplates spiritual means alone for the pursuit of its ends. The
state has no right to impose penalties for religious opinions of any
kind. The state has no right to impose taxes for the support of any
form of religion. A free church in a free state is the Christian ideal,
and this implies the right of free and unhindered access to God on the
part of all men, and the right to form and propagate opinions in the
sphere of religion without interference by the civil power.
Genesis 1:27; 2:7; Matthew 6:6-7,24;
16:26; 22:21; John 8:36; Acts 4:19-20; Romans 6:1-2; 13:1-7; Galatians
5:1,13; Philippians 3:20; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; James 4:12; 1 Peter 2:12-17;
3:11-17; 4:12-19.
XVIII. The Family
God has ordained the
family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed
of persons related to one another by marriage, blood, or adoption.
Marriage is the uniting of one man
and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. It is God's unique
gift to reveal the union between Christ and His church and to provide
for the man and the woman in marriage the framework for intimate companionship,
the channel of sexual expression according to biblical standards, and
the means for procreation of the human race.
The husband and wife
are of equal worth before God, since both are created in God's image.
The marriage relationship models the way God relates to His people.
A husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the church. He has the
God-given responsibility to provide for, to protect, and to lead his
family. A wife is to submit herself graciously to the servant leadership
of her husband even as the church willingly submits to the headship
of Christ. She, being in the image of God as is her husband and thus
equal to him, has the God-given responsibility to respect her husband
and to serve as his helper in managing the household and nurturing the
next generation.
Children, from the moment of conception,
are a blessing and heritage from the Lord. Parents are to demonstrate
to their children God's pattern for marriage. Parents are to teach their
children spiritual and moral values and to lead them, through consistent
lifestyle example and loving discipline, to make choices based on biblical
truth. Children are to honor and obey their parents.
Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15-25; 3:1-20;
Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Joshua 24:15; 1 Samuel 1:26-28; Psalms
51:5; 78:1-8; 127; 128; 139:13-16; Proverbs 1:8; 5:15-20; 6:20-22; 12:4;
13:24; 14:1; 17:6; 18:22; 22:6,15; 23:13-14; 24:3; 29:15,17; 31:10-31;
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; 9:9; Malachi 2:14-16; Matthew 5:31-32; 18:2-5;
19:3-9; Mark 10:6-12; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians
5:21-33; 6:1-4; Colossians 3:18-21; 1 Timothy 5:8,14; 2 Timothy 1:3-5;
Titus 2:3-5; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1-7.
