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Theological Perspective
Praxis Bible College is committed to glorifying the Triune God of biblical revelation through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the only mediator between humanity and God. The ultimate standard for thought and practice is the Word of God as revealed in all of, and only in, the Old and New Testaments. We embrace the Patristic and Reformational confessions of the church. All trustees, administration, faculty, and staff at Praxis Bible College must pledge in writing their commitment to uphold the Statement of Faith below. Although students are required to profess their faith in Christ and the Abbreviated Statement of Faith, they are not required to pledge their assent to the more developed Extensive Statement of Faith and the Statement of Biblical Perspective.
Statement of Faith (In Brief)
The College is, and shall always remain, a Christian institution dedicated to bringing honor and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ. Each trustee, officer, faculty member, and student of the college subscribes to the following essentials of the historic Christian faith:
- The 66 books of the Bible are the inspired Word of God and that they hold authoritative power to define everything we believe and do. 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21
- God exists as an intimate complexity revealing Himself as One God in Three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We acknowledge God, our Heavenly Father, infinitely perfect, and intimately acquainted with all of our ways. We claim Jesus Christ as Lord – God who came in human flesh – the object of our worship and the subject of our praise. We recognize God the Holy Spirit as Counselor, constantly at work convicting, convincing, indwelling, gifting, and empowering. 1 Peter 1:2
- Humanity - separated from God because of our fallen nature, evidenced in thought and action - is in opposition to who God is, and therefore is without hope of heaven apart from a new birth, made possible by the Savior’s virgin conception, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection and communicated as the Holy Spirit moves upon all people to bring them into relationship with God. John 3:16; Romans 3:23; 10:9
- The offer of salvation is God’s loving gift to all. Those who accept it by faith and not by their works become new creatures in Christ. Ephesians 2:8-10
- The Lord promised to return and that all who have died will be brought back from beyond in a bodily resurrection – believers to everlasting communion with God and unbelievers to everlasting separation from God. 1 Corinthians 15:2; Matthew 25:46
- The Lord is continuing to enlarge His family, the universal Body of Christ, over which He rules as Head. We are grateful to be a part of this Body, which exists to proclaim God’s truth, to stimulate growth toward maturity, to equip the priesthood of all believers, to reach out and transform our culture and world, and to bring glory to God. Ephesians 4:4-6
- The ultimate answer to life comes down to our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and the ultimate purpose for our life is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. John 10:10
Statement of Faith (Extensive)
The Statement of Biblical Perspective is affirmed by all trustees, administrators, faculty and staff.
1. The Holy Scriptures comprise all the books of the Old and the New Testament which are received as canonical and which are given by inspiration of God to be the rule of faith and practice.
2. The authority of the Holy Scriptures depends not upon the testimony of any man or Church, but upon God alone. (2 Timothy 3:16; 1 John 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 2:13)
3. The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for His own glory – in creation, providence, and humanity’s salvation – is either expressly stated in the Scriptures, or by necessary consequence may be deduced therefrom; unto which nothing at any time is to be added; nevertheless we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word. (1 John 2:20, 27; John 16:13, 14; Galatians 1:8; 2 Corinthians 2:10-12; John 6:45)
4. The best rule of interpretation of the Scriptures is the comparison of scripture with scripture. (1 Corinthians 2:13; Matthew 22:29)
5. There is but one living and true God, a self-existent Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. (Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Corinthians 8:4,6; 1 Thessalonians 1:9; John 4:24; Exodus 3:14; Psalm 114:3; Genesis 17:1; Romans 16:27; Malachi 3:6)
6. God has all life, glory, goodness, and blessedness in Himself; not standing in the need of any creatures which He has made, nor deriving any essential glory from them; and has sovereign dominion over them to do whatsoever He may please. (John 5:26; Acts 7:2; Psalm 119:68; 1 Timothy 6:15; Romans 9:15; Acts 17:24, 25; Job 22:2,3; Romans 11:36; Revelation 4:11)
7. In the unity of the Godhead there are three persons of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (2 Corinthians 13:14; Matthew 3:16,17; 28:19)
8. God, for the manifestation of His glory and goodness, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, free and unchangeably ordained or determined what He Himself would do, what He would require His intelligent creatures to do, and what should be the awards, respectively, of the obedient and the disobedient. (Psalm 135:6; Exodus 20:3-17; Matthew 22:38,39; Ecclesiastes 12:13; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 22:12; Matthew 16:27)
9. Though all Divine decrees may not be revealed to humanity, yet it is certain that God has decreed nothing contrary to his revealed will or written word. (Deuteronomy 29:29; Acts 1:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:1; Matthew 24:36; Acts 20:27; Romans 2:12, 16; Revelation 21:12)
10. It pleased God, for the manifestation of the glory of His eternal power, wisdom, and goodness, to create the world and all things therein, whether visible or invisible and all very good. (Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 44:24; Romans 1:20; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 11:3; Genesis 1:31; Exodus 20:11)
11. After God had made all other creatures, He created humanity in His own image; male and female He created them; they have the law of God written in their hearts, and power to fulfill it, being upright and free from all bias to evil. (Genesis 1:26, 2:7; Romans 2:14,15; Ecclesiastes 7:29)
12. God the Creator upholds and governs all creatures and things by His most wise and holy providence. (Hebrews 1:3; Matthew 10:29-31, Romans 9:17)
13. God, in His providence, ordinarily works through the instrumentality of laws or means, yet is free to work with and above them, at His pleasure. (Matthew 5:45; Isaiah 4:10,11; Acts 27:24,31; Hosea 1:7, Romans 4:19,10; 2 Kings 6:6)
14. God never leaves nor forsakes His people; yet when they fall into sin He disciplines them in various ways, and makes even their own sin an occasion to help them discover their weakness and need of greater dependence on Him for supporting grace. (Psalm 37:28; 2 Corinthians 7:7-9; Romans 8:2-4; Psalm 69:71,75; Hebrews 13:5-11)
15. God’s providence over the wicked is not designed to lead them to destruction, but to a knowledge of His goodness, and of His sovereign power over them, and thus to become a means of their repentance and reformation, or to be a warning to others; and if the wicked make it an occasion of hardening their hearts, it is because of their perversity, and not from necessity. (James 1:13; Matthew 9:13; Luke 24:38; Romans 2:4; Proverbs 1:24,25; John 5:40; Exodus 8:15,32; Acts 12:23)
16. While the providence of God, in general, embraces all creatures, it does, in a special manner, extend to His Church. (Matthew 16:18; Romans 8:28-31; Acts 5:11)
17. Our first parents, being seduced by the subtlety and temptation of Satan, sinned in eating the forbidden fruit; whereupon, God was pleased, for His own glory and the good of humanity, to reveal the Covenant of Grace in Christ, by which a gracious probation was established for all people. (Genesis 3:13; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Romans 5:12; Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 4:16; John 3:16, 17; Romans 5:2,8; 14)
18. By this sin they fell from their original uprightness, lost their communion with God, and so became dead in sin and defiled in all the faculties of their moral being. They being the root of all humanity, sin entered into the world through their act, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all humanity. (Genesis 3:7,8; Ecclesiastes 7:29 Romans 3:23; Ephesians 2:1; Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9)
19. From this original corruption also proceeds actual transgression. (Romans 5:12, 15-19; Job 25:4; Psalm 51:5; Job 14:4; John 3:6; Ephesians 2:3)
20. The remains of this corrupt nature are felt by those who are regenerated, nor will they altogether cease to operate and disturb during the present life. (Romans 7:14,17-18, 23; Proverbs 20:9; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 7:5,7,25)
21. Sin, being a transgression of the law of God, brings guilt upon the transgressor, and subjects him or her to the wrath of God and to endless torment, unless pardoned through the mediation of Christ. (1 John 3:4; Galatians 3:18; Romans 6:23)
22. Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, was verily appointed before the foundation of the world to be the Mediator between God and humanity, the Prophet, Priest, and King, the heir of all things, the propitiation for the sins of all humankind, the Head of His Church, the Judge of the world, and the Savior of all true believers. (1 Peter 1:19,20; 1 Timothy 2:5; John 3:16; Acts 22; Hebrews 1:2; 1 John 2:2; 4:10; Ephesians 2:20-22; Matthew 21:42; 2 Timothy 4:1,8; 1 Peter 4:5; Acts 10:42; Romans 14:10; Luke 2:11; John 4:42; Acts 5:31; 1 Timothy 4:10)
23. The Son of God, the Second Person of the Trinity, did, when the fullness of time was come, take upon Himself human nature, yet without sin, being very God and very man, yet one in Christ, the only Mediator between God and man. (John 1:1,14; 1 John 5:20; Philippians 2:6; Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 2:17, 4:15; Romans 1:3,4; 1 Timothy 2:5)
24. Jesus Christ, in His human nature, thus united to the Divine, was sanctified and anointed with the Holy Spirit above measure, having in Him all the treasures and knowledge, in whom it pleased the Father that all fullness should dwell, to the end that, being holy, harmless, undefiled, and full of grace and truth, He might be thoroughly furnished to execute the office of Mediator and Surety. (Psalm 14:7; John 3:34; Colossians 1:19; 2:3; Hebrews 7:22, 26; Acts 10:38)
25. That He might discharge the office of Mediator Jesus Christ was made under the law, which He perfectly fulfilled, was crucified, died, and was buried, and remained under the power of death for a time, yet saw no corruption. On the third day He rose from the dead, and afterward ascended to heaven, where He sits on the right hand of God, making intercession for transgressors. (Galatians 4:4; Matthew 3:15; 5:17; Matthew 27:35,50; Acts 2:31; Acts 8:30,37; 1 Corinthians 15:4; Mark 16:19; Romans 8:34; Romans 14:9,10)
26. Jesus Christ, by His perfect obedience and sacrifice of Himself, which He, through the Eternal Spirit, once offered unto God, became the propitiation for the sins of the whole world, so God can be just in justifying all who believe in Jesus. (Hebrews 9:14; Romans 3:25,26; Romans 5:6,8,10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; Hebrews 2:9; 1 John 2:2)
27. Although the work of redemption was not actually wrought by Christ until after His incarnation, yet the benefits thereof were communicated unto the believer, in all ages, successively, from the beginning of the world, by the Holy Spirit, and through such instrumentalities as God was pleased to employ. (Galatians 4:4-5; Genesis 15:6; Romans 4:3,5,6,7; Nehemiah 9:20; Psalm 143:10; 51:11,12; Hebrews 1:1; Numbers 12:6)
28. Jesus Christ tasted death for every person, and now makes intercession for transgressors, by virtue of which the Holy Spirit is given to convince of sin and enable one to obey, governing the hearts of believers by His Word and Spirit, overcoming all their enemies, by His almighty power and wisdom, in such manner and ways as are most consonant to His wonderful and unsearchable dispensation. (Hebrews 2:9; 1 John 2:1; Romans 8:34; John 14:10,18; John 16:8-11; 17:6, 8-11; Romans 8:28, 33-39)
29. God in creating humanity in His own likeness, endued humanity with intelligence, sensibility, and will, which form the basis of moral character, and render man capable of moral government. (Genesis 1:26,27; Ephesians 4:24; Revelation 22:17; John 5:40)
30. The freedom of the will is a face of human consciousness, and is the sole ground of human accountability. Humanity, in the state of innocence, was both free and able to keep the Divine law, also to violate it. Without any constraint, from either physical or moral causes, humanity chose to violate it. (Joshua 24:15; Proverbs 1:29-31; Romans 2:12-15)
31. Humanity, by disobedience, lost innocence, forfeited the favor of God, became corrupt in heart and inclined to evil. In this state of spiritual death and condemnation, humanity is still free and responsible; yet, without the illuminating influences of the Holy Spirit, humanity is unable either to keep the law or lay hold upon the hope set before each person in the gospel. (Romans 5:12; Ezekiel 18:4; Romans 8:6-8; Romans 1:18-20; 3:19-20; 1 Corinthians 2:14; John 6:44; John 1:9; 1 Corinthians 7:7; Romans 8:26)
32. When the sinner is born of God, he or she loves God supremely, is made a new creation and steadfastly purposes to do His will; yet because of remaining echoes of corruption, and of the imperfect knowledge of moral and spiritual things, he or she often wills what in itself is sinful. This imperfect knowledge and corruption remain, in greater or less force, during the present life; hence, the conflict between the flesh and spirit. (Romans 8:14-16; 7:14-15, 23-24; Galatians 5:17; Ecclesiastes 7:20)
33. God the Father, having set forth His Son Jesus Christ as a propitiation for the sins of the world, does most provides the third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, to work co-extensively with same intent toward every human person. (Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; 4:10; Hebrews 2:9; John 1:9; Isaiah 49:6; 1 Corinthians 7:7)
34. The Holy Spirit, operating through the written word, and through such other means as God in His wisdom may choose, or directly, without means, so moves upon the hearts of men as to enlighten, reprove, and convince them of sin, of their lost estate, and of their need of salvation; and, by doing so, inclines them to come to Christ. (Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 22:17; John 16:8; 7:32; Romans 5:18)
35. This call of the Holy Spirit is purely of God’s free grace alone, and not because of human merit, and is antecedent to all desire, purpose, and intention on the part of the sinner to come to Christ; so that while it is possible for all to be saved with it, none can be saved without it. (1Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:4-5; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Romans 8:7; Ephesians 2:5; John 6:37)
36. This call is not irresistible, but is effectual in those only who, in penitence and faith, freely surrender themselves wholly to Christ, the only name whereby humanity can be saved. (Proverbs 1:24-25; John 5:40; Acts 7:51; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; Matthew 9:28-29; Luke 8:3,5)
37. Repentance unto life is a change of mind and heart toward God, induced by the agency of the Holy Spirit, wherein the sinner resolutely purposes to forsake all sin, to turn unto God, and to walk in all His commandments. (Acts 11:18; John 3:27; 15:5; Luke 24:47; Acts 20:21; Ezekiel 28:30-31; 36:31; 2 Corinthians 7:11)
38. There is no merit in repentance, or in any other human exercise; yet God is pleased to require all people to repent. (Isaiah 64:6; Acts 2;38; 3:19; 17:30)
39. As all are required to make full and honest confession of sin to God, the one who gives ground of offense to the Church, or trespasses against his brother or sister, should confess his or her errors, make amendment and due restitution, so far as is in his or her power. (Psalm 32:5,6; Proverbs 28:13; 1 John 1:9; James 5:16; Luke 17:3; 2 Corinthians 2:8)
40. Saving faith, including assent to the truth of God’s holy word, is the act of receiving and resting upon Christ alone for salvation, and is accompanied by contrition for sin and a full purpose of heart to turn from it and to live unto God. (Psalm 2:12; 1 Peter 2:2,6; John 14:1; Matthew 16:16; John 11:26,27, John 6:68,69; Matthew 19:27-29; 2 Corinthians 4:13; Romans 10:14-17; Ephesians 2:8; romans 1:16-17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 John 5:10)
41. While there is no merit in faith, yet it is the condition of salvation. It is not of the nature of good works, from which it must be distinguished. (Romans 4:16; John 3:36; Acts 16:31; John 3:14-16,18)
42. This faith may be tried in many ways, but the believer has the promise of ultimate victory through Christ. (Luke 22:31-32; Matthew 6:30; Matthew 8:10; Romans 4:19-20; Hebrews 5:13-14; Hebrews 10:22; 1 John 5:4-5; Hebrews 12:2)
43. All those who truly repent of their sins, and in faith commit themselves to Christ, God freely justifies; not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins and by counting and accepting them as righteous; not for anything innate to them or done by them, but for Christ’s sake alone; not by imputing faith itself, or any other evangelical obedience, to them as their righteousness, but by imputing the obedience and satisfaction of Christ unto them, they receiving and resting on Him and His righteousness by faith. (Romans 3:24; 4:5-8; 2 Corinthians 5:19,21; Romans 5:17-19)
44. Justification is purely of God’s free grace, and is a full pardon for all sins, and exemption from all their penal consequences; but it imparts no moral qualities or merits to the believer. Though of free grace alone, it is conditioned upon faith, and is assured to none but penitent and true believers, who, being justified, have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Philippians 3:9; Romans 3:20-24; John 5:24; Romans 8:1)
45. God continues to forgive the sins of those who are justified, and although He will never permit them to fall from the state of justification, yet they may, by their sins, fall under God’s fatherly displeasure, and not have thelight of His countenence restored unto them until they humble themselves, confess their sins, and renew their consecration to God. (Matthew 6:12; 1 John 2:1; Luke 22:32; John 10:28; Hebrews 10:14; Psalm 89:31-33; Psalm 51)
46. Those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ are regenerated, or born from above, renewed in spirit, and made new creatures in Christ. (1 John 5:1; John 3:5-7; Romans 7:2; Titus 3:5; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10)
47. The necessity for this moral purification arises out of the enmity of the human heart against God, its insubordination to His law, and its consequent incapacity to love and glorify God. (Romans 8:6-7; 2 Corinthians 6:15; Amos 3:3; Romans 1:28-32; Matthew 15:18-20)
48. Regeneration is of God’s free grace alone, and is the work of the Holy Spirit, who, by taking of the things which are Christ’s and showing them unto the sinner, enables him or her to lay hold on Christ. This renewal of the heart by the Holy Spirit is not of the nature of a physical but of a spiritual work – a purification of the heart by faith – allowing one who was a sinner to become what Scripture names a saint. (Ephesians 2:8; Philippians 1:29; John 1:13; 3:5,6; 16:13,14; 2 Corinthians 2:10; 1 John 2:27; 1 Corinthians 7:3; Zechariah 4:6; Acts 15:9; 1 Peter 1:22,23; Galatians 3:7,26; 1 John 5:1; John 1:12; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:2)
49. All infants dying in infancy, all persons who have never had the faculty of reason, are regenerated and saved. (Luke 18:15-16; Acts 2:38-39)
50. All those who are regenerated, and are thus changed into the image of His Son, God the Father is pleased to make partakers in the grace of adoption, by which they are taken into the nuber, and enjoy the liberties and privileges, of the children of God; have His name put upon them; receive the Spirit of adoption; have access to the throne of grace with boldness; are enabled to cry, Abba, Father; are pitied, protected, provided for, and disciplined by Him, as by a father, yet never cast off, but sealed to the day of redemption, and inherit the promisesas heirs of everlasting salvation. (Ephesians 1:5; Galatians 4:4-6; Romans 8:15-17; Psalm 53:13; Malachi 3:17; Matthew 6:30,32; 1 Peter 5:7; Hebrews 7:6; Lamentations 3:31; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30; Hebrews 6:12; Galatians 3:29; 1 Peter 1:4; Hebrews 1:14)
51. Sanctification is a doctrine of the Holy Scriptures, and it is the duty and privilege of believers to avail themselves of its inestimatable benefits, as taught in the word of God; although a state of sinless perfection in this life not authorized by Scriptures. Sanctification is an act of separation from the world and evil, and of dedication to God. Sanctification is realized in the believer by recognizing his or her identification with Chist in His death and resurrection, and by faith in that union offering every faculty continually to the perview of the Holy Spirit. (2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2, 5, 15-16; Hebrews 9:13-14; 2 Corinthians 6:16-18; Psalm 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Ephesians 5:26-29; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Romans 6:1-11, 13, 22; 12:1-2; 8:1-2, 13; 1 Corinthians 6:11; Galatians 2:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Philippians 2:12,13; 3:12; Hebrews 12:14; 13:12)
52. Believers are given and indwelt by the Holy Spirit when they believe in Jesus Christ and are regenerated. Baptism in and sanctification by the Holy Spirit does not give the the believer more of the Holy Spirit because God does not hold anything back from His children, but rather we are the ones who hold back from God; therefore in a life growing toward total surrender the Holy Spirit is given more of the believer. The Holy Spirit provides to believers the fruit of the Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit to empower believers for a life of service and ministry in all vocations. (Mark 16:20; Luke 24:49; John 7:37-39; Acts 1:4, 8; 2:42,43; 4:8; 8:12-17; 10:44-46; 11:14-16; 15:7-9; 12:6-8;1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 5:22-25; Hebrews 12:28)
53. Growth in grace is secured by personal consecration to the service of God, regular attention to the meas of grace, the reading of the Holy Scriptures, prayer, the experience of corporate worship, and all known Christian disciplines, discipleship, and duties. By such means the believer’s faith is much increased, his or her tendency to sin weakened, the lust of the flesh mortified, and he or she more and more strengthened in all saving graces, and the practice of holiness, without which no person shall see the Lord. (2 Peter 3:18; 2 Corinthians 6:17; Psalm 4:3; 2 Corinthians 7:1; John 5:39; 2 Corinthians 13:7; Philippians 3:9-11; Colossians 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:17,23; Hebrews 10:25; Acts 2:42; 8:42; 16:13; 18:4; Hebrews 6:12; 2 Peter 1:5,10; Colossians 1:11; Ephesians 3:16; Mark 4:28,31-32; 1 Peter 2:2)
54. Good works are such only as God has commanded in His word, and not such as may be devised by men out of blind zeal, or any pretense of good intention. (Micha 6:8; romans 12:2; Hebrews 13:21; Matthew 15:9; John 16:2)
55. Those who, in their obedience and love, attain the greatest height in this life, still fall short of that perfection which the Divine law requres; yet their good works are accepted of God, who, looking upon them in His Son, is pleased to accept and reward that which is sincere, although accompanied with many weaknesses and imperfections. (Luke 17:10; Job 9:2-3; Galatians 5:17; Ephesians 1:6; 1 Peter 2:5; hebrews 11:4; 2 Corinthians 8:12; Hebrews 6:10)
56. Those whom God has justified, He will also glorify; consequently, the truly regenerated soul will not totally fall away from a state of grace, but will be preserved to everlasting life. (Psalm 37:28; Romans 8:38-39; John 5:24; 10:28-29)
57. The perservation of believers depends on the unchangeable love and power of God, the merits, advocacy, and intercession of jesus Christ, the abiding of the Holy Spirit and seed of God within them. Nevertheless, true believers, through the temptations of Satan, the world, and the flesh, and the neglect of the means of grace, may fall into sin, incur God’s displeasure, and grieve the Holy Spirit, and thus be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts, and have their consciences wounded; but the Christian will never rest satisfied therein. (2 Timothy 2:19; Jeremiah 31:3; 1 Peter 1:5; 1 John 2:1; Romans 5:10; Colossians 3:3; Hebrews 7:25; 10:10,14; John 14:16-17; 1 John 3:9; Jeremiah 32:40; John 17:9, 21-22; 2 Samuel 12:13-14; Revelation 3:4; Luke 22:31-34)
58. Those who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and love Him in sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before Him, may, in this life, be certainly assured that they are in a state of grace, and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, which hope shall never make them ashamed. (1 John 2:3; 5:13; Romans 5:2,5; 2 Corinthians 5:1,6)
59. This assurance is founded on the Divine promises, the consciousness of peace with God, the testimony of the Holy Spirit witnessing with their spirits that they are the children of God, and is the deposit of their inheritance. (Hebrews 6:17¬-18; 2 Peter 1:4-5, 10-11; 1 John 2:3; 3:14; 2 Corinthians 1:12; Romans 8:15-16; Ephesians 1:13-14)
60. This comfortable assurance of salvation is not an invariable accompaniment of faith in Christ; hence the believer may have sore conflicts before he or she is made a partaker of it; yet he or she may, by the right use of the means of grace – through the agency of the Holy Spirit – attain thereunto; therefore, it is the duty of every one to give diligence to make his or her calling and election sure. (1 John 5:13; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 1 John 4:13; Hebrews 6:11-12; 2 Peter 1:10; Romans 5:5; Romans 14:17; Romans 15:13; Psalm 69:32; 2 Peter 1:20)
61. As this assurance may be very much strengthened by full consecration to god and fidelity in His service, so it may be weakened by worldly-mindedness and negligence in Christian duty, which result in darkness and in doubt; yet true believers have the promise of God that He will never leavve nor forsake them. (Psalm 51:8,12,14; Ephesians 4:30; John 3:20; Job 13:15; Micah 7:7-9)
62. The moral law is the rule of duty growing immediately out of the relations of rational creatures to their Creator and to each other. Tehse relations being the product of the Divine purpose, the law has its ultimate source in the will of the Creator. (Matthew 22:37; Exodus 20:1-2; Ephesians 6:1,4-5, 9; Titus 3:1; Hebrews 13:7; Isaiah 46:10; Psalm 33:11; Psalm 55:3)
63. This law is of universal and perpetual obligation, and is written primarily upon the hearts of all accountable beings. It was sufficiently known to Adam and Eve to enable them to know and do the will of God, and thus, by the righteousness of works, secure eternal life. (Genesis 1:26; 2:17; Romans 1:18-19; 2:14-15; Romans 5:5; John 2:9)
64. After Adam and Eve’s fall, and that of their posterity through them, a written form of the law beacme necessary. This was given in the Ten Commandments, a summary of which is given in these words: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and will all your strength, and will all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself. (Romans 5:12,19; Exodus 20:1-17; Mark 7:30)
65. This law is not set aside, but rather established by the gospel, which is the Divine expedient by which sinners are saved, and the end of the law fully met. It accordindly remains in full force as the rule of conduct. It must not, therefore, be confounded with the ceremonial law, which was satisfied in Christ. (Matthew 5:17-18; Galatians 3:21,24; Romans 3:24-25, 31; 6:15; 8:8-9)
66. The penalties of this law are the natural and subjective sequences of transgression, and, unless set aside by the provisions of the gospel, must of necessity be eternal; and such are they declared to be by the Holy Scriptures. These moral retributions must be distinguished from judicial punishments, which are arbitrary, objective, and temporary, and are always inflicted, as occasion may require, for administrative purposes. (Genesis 2:7; romans 6:23; 8:6; John 3:36; Matthew 25:46; John 5:29; Revelation 14:11; Luke 16:24; 1 Peter 3:19-20; Jude 7; Genesis 6:7; 14:24-25; Acts 7:23)
67. The liberty that Christ has secured to believers under the gospel consists in freedom from the guilt and penal consequences of sin, in their free access to god, and in the yielding obedience to Him, not from a slavish fear, but from a cheerful and confiding love. (Titus 2:14; Galatians 1:4; 3:13; Romans 8:14-15; 1 John 4:18; John 14:21)
68. God, who alone is Lord of the conscience, has left it free, in matters of faith and worship, from such opinions and commnadements of humanity as may be contrary to His word. (Romans 14:4; Acts 4:19; 5:29)
69. Those who, upon pretense of Christian liberty, practice any sin, or cherish any lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian liberty, which is, that being delivered from the dominion of sin, we may serve the Lord without fear in righteousness all our days. (Galatians 5:13; 1 Peter 2:16; 2 Peter 2:19; John 7:34)
70. Those who, upon a similar pretense, shall oppose the proper exercise of any lawful authority, whether civil or ecclesiastical, and thereby resist the ordinance of God, may lawfully be called to account. (1 Peter 2:13-14; Hebres 8:17; 1 Corinthians 5:1,5,11,13; 2 Thessalonians 3:14)
71. Worship is to be rendered to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and to Him alone, and, since the fall, this worship is acceptable only through the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ. (John 5:23; Colossians 2:18; 2 Corinthians 8:14; Revelation 19:10; Romans 1:25; 1 Timothy 2:5; Ephesians 2:18)
72. Christian stewardship consists in the recognition that all of life is a trust from God and is to be used for his glory and the advancement of His kingdom. It extends to all gifts which God has bestowed upon man including time, talents, environment, and substance. (Psalm 24:1; 1:10; 50:3; Haggai 2:8; Romans 14:8; 1 Corinthians 4:7)
73. The motive of Christian stewarship is love toward both God and humanity and the desire for the propagation of the gospel. A minimum in giving is the tithe and not necessisarily as the full mesure of one’s devotion to Christ. Every person must give an account to God of his or her stewardship. (Matthew 22:37-39; 1 Corinthians 8:3,13; 2 Corinthians 8:7-8; Genesis 14:20; Leviticus 27:30; Deuteronomy 14:22; Malachi 3:8-10; Matthew 23:23; 1 Corinthians 26:2; 2 Corinthians 9:7-13; Acts 20:35; 2 Corinthians 8:12; 9:6; Romans 14:12; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Matthw 12:36; 25:14-46; Luke 7:16-21; 1 Corinthians 4:2)
74. God, the Supreme Lord and King of all the world, has ordained civil officers to be under Him and over the people, for His own glory and public good; and, to this end, has armed them with power for the defense of the innocent and the punishment of evil-doers. (Romans 8:1,3,4; 1 Peter 2:13-14)
75. It is lawful for Christian to accept civil offices when call thereunto, in the management whereof they ought especially to maintain piety, justice, and peace, according to the wholesome laws of each Commonwealth. (Poverbs 8:15-16; Psalm 82:3,4; 2 Samuel 23:3; Luke 3:14; Acts 10:1,2; Romans 8:4)
76. Civil officers may not assume to themselves the administration of the word and sacraments, or in the least interfere in matters of faith; yet it is their duty to protect the Church of our common Lord, without giving preference to any denomination of Christians. And, as jesus Christ has appointed government and discipline in His Church, no law of any Commonwealth should interfere therewith, but should provide that all religious and ecclesiastical assemblies shall be held without molestation or disturbance. (2 Chronicles 26:18; 1 Corinthians 4:1-2; John 18:36; Malachi 2:7; Isaiah 59:21; Psalm 105:15: 2 Samuel 23:3; 1 Timothy 2:1)
77. It is the duty of every believer to pray for magistrates, to obey their lawful commands, and to be subject to their authority as they obey God for conscience’s sake. (1 Timothy 2:1-2; 1 Peter 2:17; Romans 8:5-7; Titus 3:1)
78. Marriage is to be between one man and one woman; neither is it lawful for any person to have more than one spouse at the same time. (1 Corinthians 7:2; Mark 10:6-9)
79. Marriage was ordained for the mutual help of husband and wife, and for the benefit of the human race. (Genesis 2:18; 1 Corinthians 7:29)
80. Marriages ought not to be within the degrees of consanguinity or affinity forbidden in the word of God, nor can such marriages be justified by the human law. (1 Corinthians 5:1; Mark 6:18)
81. The marriage relation should not be dissolved for any cuase not justified in the teachings of the Word of God. (Matthew 1:18-20; 5:31-32; 19:9; Romans 7:2,3; 1 Corinthians 7:15)
82. The universal Church, which is invisible, consists of all those who have become children of God by faith, and joint-heirs with Christ, who is the head of the Church. (Ephesians 1:10,22-23; Colossians 1:18; Ephesiand 5:23,27,32)
83. The visible Church consists of those who hold to the essential, historical, and scriptural doctrines of Christianity in respect to matters of faith and morals. (1 Corinthians 1:2; 7:12-13; Psalm 2:8; Genesis 17:7; Acts 2:39; Romans 11:16; Galatians 3:7,9,14; Proverbs 22:6)
84. Unto this visible Church Christ has given the ministry, the word, the sacraments, and the ordinances for its edification, and, by His own presence in spirit, makes them effectual thereunto. (Ephesians 4:11-13; Isaiah 59:21; Matthew 28:19-20; Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22)
85. All those united to Christ by faith have fellowship with Him, and, being united to one another in love, have communion with one another, and are required to bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Believers are called to pray for the lost and to pray for healing for those who are sick. (1 John 1:3; Ephesians 3:16-17; John 1:16; Philippians 3:10; Ephesians 4:15-16, 1 Thessalonians 5:11,14; Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; James 5:14-16)
86. The bodies of men, after death, return to dust; but their spirit, being immortal, return to God who gave them. The spirits of the righteous are received into heaven, where they behold the face of God in light and glory, waiting for the full redemption of their bodies; and the spirits of the wicked are reserved for judgment. (Genesis 3:19; Acts 8:36; Luke 23:43; Ecclesiastes 7:7; hebrews 7:23; Philippians 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:1; 1 John 3:2; Luke 16:23-24; Matthew 25:46; Jude 6,7)
87. The resurrection of those who have fallen alseep in Christ and their translation together with those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed hope of the church. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52)
88. At the resurrection, those who are alive shall not die, but be changed; and all the dead shall be raised up, spiritual and immortal, and spirit and bodies be reunited forever. There shall be a resurrection both of the just and the unjust: of the unjust to dishonor and of the just unto honor; the bodies of the latter shall be fashioned like unto Christ’s glorious resurrection body. (1 Thessalonians 4:17; 1 Corinthians 25:51-52; John 5:28-29; Philippians 3:21)
89. God has appointed a day wherein He will judge the world in righteousness by Jesus Christ – to whom all power and judgment are given by the Father – in which not only the apostate angels shall be judged, but likewise all persons who have lived upon the earth shall appear before the tribunal of Christ, and shall receive according to what they have done, whether good or evil. (Acts 27:31; John 5:22, 27; Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Romans 2:16; 14:10-12; Matthew 7:36-37)
90. After the judgment, the wicked shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life and reward. (Matthew 25:46; Revelation 14:11; Jude 7)
Statement of Biblical Perspective
The Statement of Biblical Perspective is affirmed by all trustees, administrators, faculty and staff.
Authority and Revelation
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are our only infallible rule for faith and practice. The Lord Jesus Christ committed these inspired Scriptures to His Church (1 Timothy 3:15). We therefore defer to the witness of the historic Christian Church as a genuine but fallible authority, subordinate to the Scriptures themselves, in discerning what the Scriptures teach. Because they faithfully witness to what is taught in the Word of God, we receive the great creedal statements the Church has affirmed throughout the ages: The Apostle’s Creed, The Nicene Creed, and the Definition of Chalcedon. Therefore, the specific headings below do not exhaust our doctrinal understanding, but rather simply highlight certain doctrines.
The Holy Scriptures
The Bible in its entirety (all 66 books of the Old and New Testament) is the inspired Word of God, inerrant in its original autographs, and the only infallible authority for faith and practice. Tradition, reason, and experience must all submit to the authority of the Holy Scriptures. [2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 119:11]
The Holy Trinity
The only true and living God is eternally existent in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, having precisely the same divine nature, attributes, and perfections. [Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:18; John 10:30] God is a self-existent and transcendent spirit who is incomprehensibly holy, righteous, good, just, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, wise, loving, gracious, and faithful. He alone is worthy of all worship. [John 4:24; Exodus 3:14, 20:3-6; Isaiah 6:3; Psalm 96:13; 139:3-10; 1 John 3:20; 4:7-8; Jeremiah 9:24; 1 Timothy 6:15-17]
God’s Creative Works
The Triune God is the one uncreated Creator of all things that exist. In the beginning, God created the material universe from nothing in six ordinary days. He spoke and, by the Word of His power, it was. Our science on the nature and time of this event must be in full submission to the Word of God. God created the heavens and the earth, and all that is in them for His good pleasure. He has absolute control over all of His creation and sustains it by His gracious providence. Humans and each kind of organism resulted from God’s distinct and supernatural intervention and did not result from an evolutionary process that God secretly directed. In particular, God created man in a distinct and supernatural creative act, forming the specific man Adam from non-living material, and the specific woman Eve from Adam. [Genesis 1:1-2:4; 1 Chronicles 29:11; Psalm 23; 104; Colossians 1:16-17]
Jesus Christ
Jesus is the Son of God, the second person of the Holy Trinity, the promised Messiah and the Savior of the world. He humbled Himself by becoming fully human while remaining fully God, was born of a virgin and lived a perfect sinless life. Having redeemed us by His shed blood and death on our behalf, and having risen bodily from the dead, He later ascended into heaven. He now sits at the right hand of the Father as Lord and Head of His body, the Church, awaiting the day when He will return bodily to earth in power and in glory. [John 1:1,14; Luke 2:1-21; Galatians 4:4; Philippians 2:5-10; Colossians 1:13-20; 2:8-12; John 19-20; Acts 1:9-11; Revelation 20:1-6]
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is fully God, the third person of the Holy Trinity, who convicts the world of sin and guilt. He is the Comforter and Counselor who indwells all believers, teaching them, enabling them to seek after God, interceding in their prayers, bearing the fruit of Christ in them, gifting them for ministry, and empowering them for effective service. [John 14:15-27; 16:7-15; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:1-27; 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11]
Humanity
Humanity was created in the image of God, free from sin and death, designed to glorify God and to enjoy a deep, personal relationship with Him forever. However, sin entered the world when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and it is now inherent in the nature of all people. Although each person still carries the image of God, all are separated from God by their sin, and in need of salvation. Human life begins at conception; it is a gift from the Creator, sustained by His grace and to be taken only upon His authority. Children dying in infancy are received by God in His mercy. The sanctity of human life emphasized by Scripture requires that abortion and euthanasia are sins and violations of the public good. [Genesis 1-3; Acts 17:28; Romans 3:23; 5:12-14, 17-21; 6:23; Genesis 9:6; Exodus 20:13; Psalm 139:13-16]
Salvation
God reconciles to Himself, redeems from sin, and freely gives eternal life to each person who repents of his sin, and places his faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Christ’s substitutionary death paid for the sin of humanity, once and for all. Salvation is solely by grace, solely through faith in Jesus Christ alone; it is a free gift of God, not earned on the basis of human merit or works of any kind or degree. Those receiving Christ receive eternal life, if separated from the body, are with the Lord, and those in Christ will follow Him someday in resurrection to a body fit for eternity. [John 1:12; 3:16; Acts 17:30; 2 Peter 3:9; Ephesians 1:7-8; 2:8-9; 1 Corinthians 15; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Romans 6:23; Hebrews 1:1-10; 1 John 5:11-13]
Sanctification
All those who have been saved from the penalty of sin are new creations in Christ, and have the privilege and obligation of growing in holiness, conformity to Christ, and obedience to His Word, by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. [2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:22-24; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Peter 1:13-2:3; Romans 8:5-17; Galatians 5:13-25; Philippians 3:7-14]
Ministry
All those in Christ are called to minister in Christ’s name, therefore all vocations have the mandate for ministry. Christ calls all His people to be a priesthood of believers; therefore, men and women of every tribe and nation in Christ are instructed to learn to be effective ministers and our calling is to the education and equipping of those in Christ. Ordained ministry is instructed to equip the members of the body of Christ. Ordination and assignments in ministry are left to the call of God to ordained ministry and the ordaining body, the church. [Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Galatians 3:28; 1 Peter 2:5,9]
Social Institutions
God has ordained three primary social institutions to order human affairs: the family, the church, and civil government. Each of these institutions honors God when it operates under the principles of His Word within its God-given scope of authority:
Marriage and Family
The Lord is the author of the union of marriage, made evident when He provided a companion for the first man, Adam. This design resembles the unique relationship of Christ and His bride, the Church. Therefore, marriage is a sacred God-made union between a man and a woman, which is to be separated by no man. It is to model the reverence, love, sacrifice, and respect exemplified by Christ for His bride. Husbands and wives are to mutually submit to one another out of love. Husbands are the head of their wives just as Christ is the Head of the Church, and are to love their wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her. Human sexuality is a great blessing created by God to be enjoyed within the context of a monogamous marriage between a man and a woman; any sexual conduct outside the parameters of marriage is sin. One of the many blessings of marriage is children, a gift from the Lord. Children are given to parents to nurture and educate, for the primary purpose of teaching them to love God with all their hearts, and inculcating in them a desire to fulfill this same purpose in the next generation. Parents remain responsible before God for the training and upbringing of their children, even when they delegate some of that work to others. [Genesis 2:18-24; Ephesians 5:21-33; Isaiah 45:5; Exodus 20:14; Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 1:24-28; Psalm 127:3-5; Deuteronomy 11:18-21]
The Church
Christ’s church has a unique role in society, which only it can fulfill. God requires the church to be salt and light to the world, bringing the message of salvation and discipleship to individuals and ultimately to nations. This duty to promote godly values includes boldly, but respectively, speaking truth in power and love to encourage others to adhere to principles of biblical morality and encouraging all citizens to practice love, lawfulness, justice, mercy, and other civic virtues necessary for the government of free peoples. [Proverbs 29:2-4,14,18; 28:4,19,27; 31:8-9; Micah 6:8; Matthew 16:18-19; 28:19-20]
Civil Government
God Himself has ordained government and commands that everyone must submit to government; moreover, there is no authority except that which God has established. Governments must establish their legitimacy upon the will of a self-governing people. Government’s first duty is to protect the life, liberty, property, and other God ordained, inalienable rights of the citizenry. Government must operate under the rule of law, diligently applying the same legal rules and sanctions without regard to any individual’s power or stations in life. A national government, in order to defend self-governance, must be the highest level of legitimate human governance and must defend the sovereignty of the nation constituting it. [Genesis 9:6; 11:1-9; 34:10; Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 17:4-10,14; Ezekiel 46:18; Luke10:7; Acts 5:1-4; Romans 2:11, 4:4; 13:1-5; 1 Timothy 5:18]
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