God--We believe that God is the Creator,
Sustainer, and Righteous Ruler of the universe. He has revealed
Himself in nature, and in the Scriptures of the Holy Bible as Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit: yet as one God.
Jesus Christ--He is God's unique Son; the
only one of a kind. The Scripture teaches that He is God revealed in
flesh. In His Divine nature He is truly God and in His human nature
truly man. He is the One once crucified for man's sin, the now risen
and glorified Savior and Lord who mediates between God and man and who
gives us access to the Father through His intercession. None can come
to the Father unless they come through Him.
Holy Spirit--All of the attributes of God are
ascribed to the Holy Spirit by the Scriptures. It is He who convicts
and convinces men of their sin. He also convinces man of that which is
right, and that a final day of judgment will come. He, it is, who
comes to live in us at conversion, to open our understanding to the
Scripture, and to lead us into the truth.
The Bible--God used holy men to write the
Scriptures. They are, in both the Old and New Testaments, the very
words God intended us to have. They are, as given by God, without
error and are our only rule of faith and practice. We profit from them
by learning the truth about many things: they also speak to us about
wrong doing; they even correct us and get us back on course as well as
instructing us in right living.
Man--God created man in a state of innocence.
Man, being tempted by Satan, yielded and willfully disobeyed God,
becoming a sinner and incurring God's judgment upon sin. All of Adam's
descendants inherit his fallen nature and thus have a natural
inclination to sin. When one comes to an age of accountability, he is
guilty of sinning before God and in need of salvation.
God's Relationship to His Creatures and Creation--God
exercises a wise and benevolent providence over all beings and things.
He maintains the laws of nature and performs special acts as the
highest welfare of mankind and His created order of things require.
Salvation--Man receives pardon and
forgiveness for his sins when he admits to God that he is a sinner,
when in godly sorrow he turns from them and trusts in the work of
Christ as redemption for his sin. This acceptance of God's great
salvation involves belief in Christ's death on the cross as man's
substitute and the fact of God's raising Him from the dead as
predicted. It is a salvation by grace alone and not of works.
Who Can be Saved?--It is God's will that all
be saved, but since man has the power of choice, God saves only those
who repent of their sin and believe in the work of Christ on the
cross. Those who refuse in this life to repent and believe have no
later chance to be saved and thus condemn themselves to eternal
damnation by their unbelief.
Perseverance--We believe that there are
strong grounds to hope that the saved will persevere unto the end and
be saved because of the power of divine grace pledged for their
support. We believe that any saved person who has sinned (whether we
call him a backslider or sinner), but has a desire to repent, may do
so and be restored to God's favor and fellowship. Since man, however,
continues to have free choice, it is possible because of temptations
and the weakness of human flesh for him to fall into the practice of
sin and to make shipwreck of his faith and be lost.
Gospel Ordinances--Free Will Baptists believe
the Bible teaches three ordinances for the church to practice: Baptism
in water by immersion, the Lord's Supper, to be perpetuated until His
return, and the Washing of the Saints' feet, an ordinance teaching
humility.
Resurrection--Free Will Baptists believe the
Scriptures teach the resurrection of the bodies of all men, each in
its own order; they that have done good will come forth to the
resurrection of life, and they that have done evil to the resurrection
of damnation.
Church Government--Free Will Baptist churches
enjoy local church autonomy (self-governing). The local church is the
highest authority in the denomination. Local churches voluntarily
organize themselves into quarterly meetings, district, state, and
national associations for the purpose of promoting the cause of Christ
on the local, state, district, national, and world-wide level.
Christ's Second Coming--The Bible teaches
that Jesus Christ, who ascended on high and sits at the right hand of
God, will come again to close the Gospel dispensation, glorify His
saints, and judge the world.
Missions--Free Will Baptists believe that
Jesus commanded the church to go into all the world and preach the
Gospel to every creature.
For an in-depth study of Free Will Baptist beliefs
and practices, click on this link to view a copy of the Free
Will Baptist Treatise.
Ambassador
Free Will Baptist Church
