The Bible Is Our Guide In Serving God:
Therefore we have no man-written creed books to follow.
We are governed in faith and conduct by the Bible alone. While recognizing
and heeding the guiding principles of the Old Testament, we seek to conform
to the teachings of the New Testament (1Cor. 10:4; Heb. 1:1-2; 1Pet. 4:11).
We accept the Bible as being both verbally inspired and infallible in content
(2 Pet. 1:20; 1 Cor. 2:11-13). Consequently, when the Bible speaks
upon any given subject, it's pronouncement is accepted as final. By it's
own testimony, no one may add or take away a single word of it.
(Deut. 4:2; Prov. 30:6; Rev. 22:18-19)
Our Emphasis Is Spiritual, Not Material Or Social:
Our building is designed to facilitate our work and worship.
We place little emphasis on luxurious surroundings. While as individual
Christians we seek each others' association socially, the church is not
a social club or agency and therefore the Lord's money is used to promote
teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost. Our aim is spiritual
(Matt. 28:18-20; 1 Pet. 2:5; 1 Tim. 3:15).
We Strive To Be The Same Church Described In The New Testament:
It is our purpose to be completely identified with the
Christians of the first century. We believe this to be possible to all
who will learn, believe and be guided by the plain teaching of the word
of God. Jesus declared such to be "the seed of the kingdom"(Lk. 8:11).
A fundamental truth in nature is that a specific kind of seed, when planted
in the hearts of honest people, and obeyed will produce Christians-- just
as it did in the first century--- nothing more and nothing less. We are
human, and therefore subject to error, so we recognize the possibility
that we may be wrong in our application of the scriptures. But if we can
be shown where we are wrong---by the scriptures --- we are willing and
anxious to change.
We Have No Human Authority:
There is no man, or group of men who legislate for the
church. We have no one to answer to but Christ. He is the head of the church
(Eph. 1:22). As was true in the first century, there is no inter congregational
organization, but rather independent congregations in different locations
with Christ as Lord and Master. According to the authority of Christ, when
a congregation matures to the point where men meet the qualifications,
overseers (also called bishops, elders, or pastors) are appointed to look
after the spiritual welfare of the congregation, such men are appointed
only when the congregation determines that they meet all of the qualifications
listed by Paul in 1Tim. 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9, They then have the responsibility
to "feed the flock" with the spiritual food found in the scriptures, and
to be living examples for others to see (1Pet. 5:1-3).
We Are Not A Denomination:
Neither are we inter-denominational. It is our sincere
desire to be un-denominational. It is our wish and purpose to wear no other
name than Christ's and to be known simply as Christians, members of the
body of Christ - the church of Christ. Such was clearly true of the Lord's
people in the first century (Acts 11:26; 1Pet. 4:16; Eph. 1:22-23; Col.
1: 18; Rom. 16:16). We refer to ourselves as the church of Christ, the
Lord's church, or some other scriptural description, not in an attempt
to be "sectarian," but on the contrary, to identify ourselves as the church
belonging to Christ.
Our Plea Is For Unity:
We plead for unity among all who obediently respond to
the doctrines and commandments given in the New Testament. Such is
in harmony with the prayer of Jesus and the pleadings of the apostle, Paul
(Jn. 17:20-21; 1Cor. 1:10; Eph. 4:1-6). We consider such unity to be possible,
or Jesus would not have prayed for it. We also note that unity and love
for each other was a mark of discipleship in the early churches (Jn. 13:34-35;
Acts 2:44-46; Acts 4:32). And since division has always been the result
of departure from "the faith which was once delivered unto the saints"
(Jude 3), we believe that division can be healed by a return to the revealed
word of God.