Manitou Evangelical Free Church

Statement of Faith

 

WE BELIEVE 

SCRIPTURES
The Scriptures both Old and New Testament, to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men, and the divine and final authority for all Christian faith and life.

TRINITY
In one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

JESUS CHRIST
That Jesus Christ is true God and true man, having been conceived of the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary. He died on the cross a sacrifice for our sins according to the Scriptures. Further, He arose bodily from the dead, ascended into Heaven, where at the right hand of the Majesty on high, He is now our High Priest and Advocate.

HOLY SPIRIT
That the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and during this age to convict men, regenerate the believing sinner, indwell, guide, instruct, and empower the believer for Godly living and service.

SPIRITUAL REALM
In the personality of Satan and other evil spirit beings as the enemies of God, of the saints and the Holy Angels.

MAN
That man was created in the image of God, that he sinned and thereby incurred not only physical death, but also spiritual death which is separation from God; and that all human beings are born with a sinful nature and are incapable of pleasing God, and only through regeneration by the Holy Spirit, can salvation and spiritual life be obtained.

SALVATION
That the shed blood of Jesus Christ and His bodily resurrection provide the only grounds for salvation and justification for all who believe, and only such as receive Jesus Christ are born of the Holy Spirit, and thus become the children of God.

CHURCH
That the true church is composed of all such persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are united together in the body of Christ of which He is the head.

That only those who are thus members of the true church shall be eligible for membership in the local church.

That Jesus Christ is the Lord and Head of the Church, and that every local church has the right under Christ to decide and govern its own affairs.

SECOND COMING
In the personal, premillennial and imminent coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and that this “Blessed Hope”
has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer.

SPIRITUAL GROWTH
That the fullness of the Holy Spirit is received by faith alone and that sanctification is instantaneous as well as progressive, producing daily growth in grace toward spiritual maturity following the one experience of the new birth.

DEATH
That at death the soul and spirit of all men continue in conscious existence, awaiting the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust, the saved to everlasting blessedness and the lost to everlasting torment.

SACRAMENTS
That water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are acts of obedience to the Lord, and are to be observed by the
church during the present age. These are also personal confessions of faith in Christ and should be performed according to the teachings and practices given in God’s Word. They are however, not to be regarded as means of salvation.