our Beliefs....
....on
Scripture ~
''....all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works'' – second Timothy chapter three verse sixteen.
~ Holy Writ was prepared for the Lord at His direction by Spirit-filled and Spirit-led men who were divinely inspired, and it is God’s full revelation of Himself to man. If God spoke out of Heaven today, He would quote the Bible. God's Word will remain to the end of the world, is the true center of Christian union, and is the only Authoritative Supreme Standard by which all human conduct, creed, and religious opinion should be tested. Scripture is the only truth and wisdom this world has ever known, knows – or ever will know. It reveals principles by which God judges, and the only means by which man can be saved ~
....on
the Gospel ~
….the Gospel is the good news that Jesus died for your sins on the cross, and He rose from the dead for your justification, granting eternal life. If you confess with your mouth and believe with your heart that this good news is true, you will be forgiven of sin and saved into a secure relationship with God Himself ~
....on
the Trinity ~
….the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are three Persons of the Godhead - the Trinity - but only one God. The Trinity is a profound and enigmatic mystery that is almost impossible to explain. The word ''Trinity'' isn't in the Bible, but the Bible teaches the Trinity. Explanation of the Trinity is not conducive to this ''instant'' age, though. It cannot be explained in just a few moments. Like Holy Writ itself, it must be thoroughly examined from myriad angles in all of the differing sections of the Bible. For example, God said, at the Tower of Babel, ''let ‘’us’’ go down....'' - but it also says ''the Lord'' scattered them at Babel! We have only One God; not three - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. All three possess the same nature. Three Persons – One God!
Let me give you a few very poor examples of how this works out in creation and how God existing in the three Persons of the Godhead is meaningful in our everyday lives: (1) the same way music is made. There are only three structural tones from which ALL music come: tonic, subdominant and dominant. That’s the harmony of Heaven – it’s all your ears hear - and the Bible speaks of that harmony (2) water exists in three states: steam, ice and flowing liquid. It's all water. Steam is the Holy Spirit because of the power it holds. Ice is the rigidity of the Father and Christ is the Living Water of life which quenches our thirsty souls (3) when we pass light through a prism we have three primary colors: red, yellow and blue. Push them back through the prism and you get one white light! Without light, there would be no color; technically, everything is colorless in this world, but we can comprehend color based on what can or cannot absorb light (4) Man was made in the likeness of God and in His image - and man is also a trinity: body, soul and spirit. If we understood ourselves, then we could better understand the Trinity – but – we don’t.
Further, this universe exists in only three dimensions: time, space and matter. Some scientists would include energy; and I would agree – but only with certain conditions and caveats – energy is not a constant. When the switch is turned off, there is no energy on the ‘’off’’ side. So, (1) Time is broken up into only three aspects: past, present and future (2) Space consists in only three measurements: length, width and height (3) Matter can only be explained in three principles: solid, liquid, and gas. In extreme environments, three other states may be present: plasma, Bose-Einstein condensates, and neutron stars; but any way you cut it – everything is divisible by three! Of course, I realize that even my explanation here is totally and wholly inadequate, too, but it may at least help to put us on the same page concerning the Trinity ~
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Moreover, the revelation of Deity in the Old Testament falls into three classes: (1) Primary (2) Compound, with ‘’El’’ / God - and (3) Compound, with ‘’Jehovah’’ – Lord. The English form for each of those three categories falls into three sub-categories: (1) a. God, b. LORD, c. Lord (2) a. Almighty God, b. Most High God, c. everlasting God – and (3) a. LORD God, b. Lord God, c. Lord of Hosts. The Hebrew equivalent for each of those three English forms is: (1) a. El, Elah and Elohim, b. Jehovah, c. Adon or Adonai (2) a. El Shaddai, b. El Elyon, c. El Olam – and (3) a. Jehovah Elohim, b. Adonai Jehovah, c. Jehovah Sabaoth.
So, the Trinity is suggested by three groups of threes. This is not some arbitrary arrangement; it inheres in the Old Testament itself. This revelation of God by His Names is invariably made in connection with some particular need of His people; and there can be no need of mankind to which these Names do not answer. Man’s true and only resource is the Lord Jesus Christ – the Son of God. Even our human failure and sin but evoke new and fuller revelations of His divine fulness. The Old Testament Scriptures reveal the existence of a Supreme Being, the Creator of this universe and of mankind. God is the source of all life and of all intelligence. He is to be worshipped and served by both men and angels ~
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....on the
RAPTURE ~
….wrath on this world begins when the first seal is opened in Revelation chapter six; and it is the Lamb of God – the Lord Jesus Christ – opening the seals. The church – the body of Christ – isn't appointed to wrath according to first Thessalonians chapter five verse nine – and other passages. The fourteenth chapter of the Gospel of John is set on the basis of a Jewish Wedding; and Jesus says He is going away now but will return for His bride. Jesus doesn’t say He is going to test His bride and burn her wedding dress; but that He will have prepared a place for her. Paul says when Christ returns for the church bride we shall be ‘’caught up’’ to meet Him in the air – first Thessalonians chapter four. The Greek word for ‘’caught up’’ is ‘’harpazo’’ – it means raptured. ‘’Harpazo’’ is also found in Revelation chapter four verse one.
The church is not Israel; and the first seven years of the Day of the Lord is called the Great Tribulation period – and it is a completion of the seventy weeks prophecy given to Daniel in Daniel chapter nine; which involves Israel - not the church. God set Israel aside in the book of Acts on the Day of Pentecost and picked up the church. When the age of grace is over, God will remove the church in the rapture, and pick Israel back up to begin the final seven years of His dealings with them as His witness in the world. When the prophets say, ‘’IN THAT DAY’’ they are referring to the ‘’Day of the Lord,’’ which begins with the rapture of the church, continues through the Great Tribulation period, and then on into the Millennial Kingdom and into eternity.
Also, a basic study into the identity of the twenty-four elders in Revelation chapters four and five reveals that they are wearing white raiment; which is the robe of righteousness we receive for being in Christ. The elders are wearing crowns, too; and only one group of people in the entire Word of God is promised crowns, the church. Also, Revelation chapter four specifically states the elders are sitting on seats; and in Ephesians chapter two, the Bible says we have been raised to SIT together with Christ in Heavenly places. Finally, they praise the Lord Jesus for redeeming them with His blood – all of which only fits the church – as angels are not redeemed. The twenty-four elders absolutely and unmistakably represent the church; and they are seen in Heaven with Christ before the first seal is opened beginning the Great Tribulation period. In other words: RAPTURED before the Great Tribulation Period begins.
Paul said, ’’much more then, being now justified by His Blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him’’ – that’s Romans chapter five verse nine. The Great Tribulation period is specifically called that ‘’great day of wrath’’ by all of the prophets. That’s also in Revelation chapter six verse seventeen. So, our Biblical conclusion demands that the serious student of Scripture embrace no other theory of eschatology aside from the Futurist Theory; as none of the other three theories - Preterist, Historical, Historical-Spiritual – or any other wild and weird prophecy mongering theory - can even be remotely supported with Scripture. May God bring you all wisdom, judgment and discernment in His Word forevermore ~
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....on
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; glorifying Him, observing the ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend His Gospel to the ends of the earth. The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed throughout all ages, all believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation who glorify Christ Jesus by trusting and obeying Him ~
