ARTICLES OF FAITH
The following Articles of Faith reflect the core beliefs of our church.
A. ONE TRUE GODWe believe in one true God who is infinite, all knowing, everywhere present, all-powerful, the creator of heaven and earth, inexpressibly glorious in holiness, and worthy of all possible honor. In the unity of the Godhead there are three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of redemption. (Genesis 1:1-2; Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1-14, 5:26, 14:6-13; Galatians 4:4-6; Ephesians 1:13-14; 1 John 5:6-7)
B. FALL OF MANMan was created in the image of God, but by voluntary transgression rebelled against Him and thus has fallen under God’s judgment. Man inherited this sinful nature since his fall and is in absolute need of a Savior. Those who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and are unrepentant will be judged by God in His perfect judgment and doomed to eternal punishment. (Genesis 1:26, 3:1-24; Romans 3:23, 5:12, 19; Revelation 20:11-15)
C. WAY OF SALVATIONAlthough man openly transgressed the laws of God, the Lord put into effect a plan of redemption through Christ’s voluntary action to suffer death as punishment for man’s sin even though He himself was sinless. Salvation of sinners is wholly by God’s grace. Salvation can be experienced only by confession and repentance of sin, by simple faith accepting the free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Once a person is “born again,” he or she is forgiven of sin, is justified in God’s sight, receives the Holy Spirit and becomes a child of God. (John 1:12; Acts 2:38; II Corinthians 7:10, 3:3; Ephesians 2:8-9)
D. BELIEVER’S BAPTISMBaptism is a testimony of one’s salvation through Christ and is only for believers. Baptism is a symbol of the death and burial of the old sinful nature and the birth of the new forgiven child of God. As Baptists, we believe immersion is the true way of illustrating “the New Birth” as taught in the New Testament. (Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:9-11, 16:16; John 3:23; Acts 8:12-13, 36-39, 18:8; Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12)
E. THE LORDSHIP OF JESUS CHRISTChrist, the Son of God, was born of a virgin, walked on the earth, died on the cross, was buried, and rose the third day for the salvation of all mankind. Christ alone is our Savior and Lord and the ultimate authority in all matters of life and faith for the believer. (Matthew 1:18-23, 3:17, 11:27, 14:33, 16:16, 28:1-6, 18; Mark 1:1; John 11:25-27; Acts 2:22-24, 7:55-56; Romans 1:3-4, 3:23-26; Colossians 1:13-18; Philippians 2:9-11)
F. SUPREMACY OF THE SCRIPTURESThe Bible is the revelation of God’s Eternal Truth. It can be read and understood by all mankind with guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Bible has been given to us by the inspiration of God and is the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions shall be tried. (II Timothy 3:14-17; Hebrews 4:12; II Peter 1:19-21)
G. CHURCH MEMBERSHIPThe membership of the Church is only for those who have confessed Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. A person is baptized as a testimony of that experience. (Matthew 10:32-33; Acts 2:47, 16:30-34; Romans 10:9-10)
H. PRIESTHOOD OF BELIEVERSEvery believer can directly approach God through Christ without the aid of human priests. (Ephesians 2:18; Hebrews 4:14-16, 7:26-27; I Peter 2:5; Revelations 1:5-6)
I. CHRIST-LIKE LIVINGJesus Christ has not only come to save us but has also called each believer to a “holy calling” through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Each member must seek to live a life worthy of that calling through faith and obedience to Christ. All believers must strive to perfect their faith so that the love of Jesus may abound in their hearts while the Holy Spirit guides, instructs, disciplines, and enables each individual believer to partake of God’s holiness. Living our “holy calling” is a progressive act that begins at conversion and continues until God calls believers home to heaven. (II Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 4:1; II Thessalonians 1:11; II Peter 1:5-8; Philippians 1:6, 2:12-13)
J. SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATEWe believe in the separation of Church and State, and we recognize the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. The State should protect all religious groups but favor none. The Church must not dictate to the State or the State to the Church. (Mark 12:17; Romans 13:1-7; John 18:36; I Peter 2:12-17)
K. AUTONOMY OF THE LOCAL CHURCHEach local Church is self-governing and shall be democratic and autonomous in its government. Each local Church will choose its own Pastor and manage its own affairs. (Acts 14:23, 20:28; Titus 1:5; I Peter 5:2)
L. THE LORD’S SUPPERThe Lord’s Supper is a sacred ordinance. In symbolic form, through the elements of the bread and the cup, it depicts the death of Christ and the shedding of His blood for the remission of our sins. According to Scripture, the practice of this ordinance is preceded by a time of self-examination. (I Corinthians 11:26-30)
M. EVANGELISM OF THE WORLDOur Church takes seriously the Great Commission of Christ. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, our purpose as a Church and as individuals shall be to win people to Christ at home and abroad. (Matthew 28:18-20)
N. SECOND COMINGWe believe in the personal return of Jesus Christ to receive His believers into heaven and eternal life. The time of His return is unknown to us, but may occur at any moment. (Matthew 25:31-36; I Thessalonians 4:13-18)
O. THE CHURCH COVENANTA Covenant is an agreement between two or more persons. The Covenant of First Baptist Church of Augusta, Kansas shall be The New Testament.
P. MARRIAGEThe word “marriage” is limited to those legal unions which are between one biological man (the “husband”) and one biological woman (the “wife”). Unions of other gender combinations are not recognized as marriages. “Biological” man or woman refers to a person’s gender at birth. Gender is considered immutable, regardless whether a person’s body has been physically or chemically altered to gain the appearance of the other gender. The word “wedding” means the worship service in which a marriage is solemnized and celebrated, and does not include ceremonies which may meet the requirements for civil unions but do not involve a marriage as defined above. It is our conviction that it is God who has instituted marriage, that God has done so only in the context of a relationship between one biological man and one biological woman, and that as a matter of fidelity to our faith, the Church will not participate in, nor put its approval upon, unions that may be legally accepted but are not marriages as defined above. (Genesis 1:26-28, 2:18-25; Matthew 19:1-12; Mark 10:1-12; I Corinthians 6:12-20; Ephesians 5:21-33)