Church Covenant
We at Temple Baptist Church using the Holy Bible as our guide in all beliefs, are guided by our Church Covenant, Constitution and Articles of Faith.
- One God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit - three persons, yet but one God.
- The deity and the humanity of Jesus Christ, and His virgin birth, His substitutionary death, His bodily resurrection.
- The fact that all people are sinners needing a Saviour; that salvation is only and altogether through simple faith in Jesus Christ who dies for our sins.
- The unbroken conscious existence after death, bodily resurrection and the personal second coming of Christ.
- The Bible as the inspired Word of God. It is our law, our creed, and our final authority in all matters relating to faith and practice. King James Bible only.
- The regeneration or "The birth from above" as a basis of church membership.
- Believer's baptism - The immersion of the believer in obedience to Christ's command, as a symbol of death to the old life and resurrection to the new.
- The separation of Church and State, and for the largest measure of civil and religious liberty.
- Education, evangelism, and world-wide missionary endeavor.
What We Believe As Baptists
Having been led as we believe, by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, and on the profession of our faith, having been baptized (immersed) in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, we do now in the presence of God, angels, and this assembly most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another, as one body in Christ.
We engage, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this church; in knowledge, holiness, and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines; to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church and the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel through all nations.
We also engage to maintain family and secret devotions; to educate our children with the Word of God and to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances, to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements and exemplary in our department; to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of alcoholic drink as a beverage, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Saviour.
We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour, to secure it without delay.
We engage, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this church; in knowledge, holiness, and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines; to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church and the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel through all nations.
We also engage to maintain family and secret devotions; to educate our children with the Word of God and to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances, to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements and exemplary in our department; to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of alcoholic drink as a beverage, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Saviour.
We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour, to secure it without delay.
Articles of Faith
Article I - God the Father
|
We believe there is but one true and living God (1 John 5:20). He is eternal, of infinite power, wisdom and goodness, the Creator of all things, visible and invisible (Genesis 1:1). In the unity of the Godhead there are three persons - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (1 John 5:7).
|
Article II - God the Son
|
We believe Jesus Christ to be the eternal Son of God co-equal with God (Hebrews 1:1-3); Who became flesh (John 1:14, Colossians 2:9), being born of the Virgin Mary (Luke 1:35). He died for our sins upon the Cross (1 Peter 2:24). According to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice (2 Corinthians 5:21), all who believe in Him are justified on the grounds of His shed blood; not of their own works (Colossians 1:14, Ephesians 2:8).
|
Article III - God the Holy Spirit
|
We believe the Holy Spirit to be co-equal with the Father, and the Son (1 John 5:7). He is a person; he has come as the fulfillment of Christ's promise (John 16:7). He quickens sinners, uniting with the Spirit of Man after his spirit is cleansed by the Blood of Christ (1 John 1:7). This experience is known as regeneration (2 Corinthians 5:17) of "The New Birth", and is the condition of entrance into the Kingdom of God (John 3:5). The Holy Spirit indwells and works through every "born again" believer. He instructs (Psalm 32:8), teaches (John 14:26), guides (John 16:13), intercedes (Romans 8:26), sanctifies (Romans 15:16) and finally leaves the physical body with the soul and spirit of man at death to indwell the spiritual body (Psalm 23:4, 2 Corinthians 5:1-8).
We believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place at the time of conversion and is the act of placing the believer into the body of Christ, but is not a second work of grace (1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:27). It is different than the filling of the Holy Spirit which is an ongoing process that may occur at any time in the believer's life (Ephesians 5:18). Neither of these aspects is accompanied by the unusual signs such as speaking in tongues. Back to Top |
Article IV -
|
We believe the Scripture of the Old and New Testaments as verbally inspired of God; inerrant in the original writings, and they are our supreme and final authority in faith and life (2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21, Matthew 5:18, 1 Corinthians 2:13).
The Bible IS the Word of God. We CANNOT accept the misleading statement: "The Bible contains the Word of God." Back to Top |
Article V - Mankind: Sinful Nature
|
We believe that man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27); that he sinned (Romans 3:23, Romans 5:12) and thereby incurred not only physical death (1 Corinthians 15:21-22) but also that spiritual death which is not annihilation (Luke 16:23, Revelation 21:8) but eternal separation from God (Revelation 20:11-15). We believe that all men are born with a sinful nature, totally depraved, and all who reach moral responsibility become sinners in thought, word and deed (Romans 3:9-20) and if they do not repent, are eternally lost (Romans 6:23, Luke 13:3).
Back to Top |
Article VI - Mankind: Free Moral Agent
|
We believe every man is born a creature of free will, given the power of choice (John 1:12). He can either accept or reject God's offer of salvation (John 3:36, John 5:24).
Back to Top |
Article VII - Mankind: Salvation Through Faith
|
We believe we are saved by grace (Ephesians 2:8), through faith and faith alone in the shed blood of Jesus Christ on Calvary's Cross (Ephesians 1:7).
God has provided salvation through offering His Son on the cross of Calvary, and allowing His BLOOD to be shed to atone for our sins (Romans 3:25, Hebrews 9:22). Back to Top |
Article VIII - Mankind: Service
|
We believe that every true Christian will apply his life in service for Jesus Christ. Salvation is by grace through faith alone. Works have no part or lot with being saved (Romans 3:20-21). We are justified by faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1); works are the outgrowth of our salvation (Ephesians 2:10). Every true Christian will have a passion for souls and will constantly endeavor to win sinners to an acceptance of Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord.
Back to Top |
Article IX - Mankind: Soul Winning
|
We believe in accordance with Article VIII that we must be active in the support of world-wide missions, and that our support should go to missions both at home and abroad which have as their supreme motive the winning of souls to Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15).
Back to Top |
Article X -
|
We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord (1 Corinthians 15:3-20), in His ascension into Heaven (Acts 1:9) and in His present life there for us as High Priest and Advocate, the propitiation of our sins (1 John 2:1-2).
Back to Top |
Article XI -
|
We believe in the "blessed hope"; the personal (Acts 1:11), premillennial (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4, Revelation 20:1-3) and imminent return of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 4:14-18).
First, for the "dead in Christ" who will be resurrected bodily, and for those who are alive at His Coming. This resurrection not only precedes His return to Earth to reign 1,000 years, but also precedes the Tribulation (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 5:9). Then, to reign 1,000 years on the Earth (Revelation 20:1-6, 2 Timothy 2:12). Back to Top |
Article XII - Heaven and Hell
|
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and unjust (Acts 24:15), in Heaven as the eternal home of the redeemed where we shall dwell in conscious, everlasting blessedness (John 14:1-3, Revelation 21:1-5) and in Hell as the place where the unsaved shall dwell in everlasting conscious torment (Revelation 21:8).
Back to Top |
Article XIII - Family of God
|
We believe that the Family of God is composed of all "born again" persons. Christ is the head (Colossians 1:18); we are the members of His body, the church (1 Corinthians 12:20-27).
Back to Top |
Article XIV - Ordinances of the Church |
We believe the ordinances as taught by Jesus were given for the purpose of man's witnessing to the world of his salvation, and that no person is qualified to have part in either of these ordinances unless they are "born again". The two ordinances are "Baptism First" and "The Lord Supper after Baptism" (1 Corinthians 11:23-28).
a. We should regularly participate at the Lord's table (1 Corinthians 11:23-32). 1. The Lord's Supper consists of unleavened bread and fruit of the vine (grape juice) no alcohol (Proverbs 23:31). 2. Baptism is an outward sign of an inward work of God's grace in the heart of man (Colossians 2:12). No person is qualified to be baptized until he has given testimony to his salvation by grace through faith in Christ (Romans 10:9-11). b. All believers should be baptized by immersion as an act of obedience, but not for securing their salvation (Acts 2:41, 19:4-5; Matthew 28:19-20). Back to Top |
Article XV -
|
We believe every true Christian will faithfully give at least one-tenth of his income to God for the spreading of the Gospel: that God's blessing is definitely and positively upon all who will thus tithe their income (Malachi 3:8-11). God owns all (Colossians 1:10-16); we are but His stewards (1 Corinthians 4:1-2). Our giving is not to be as unto men (Matthew 6:1-4), but as an act of worship (1 Corinthians 16:1-3).
Back to Top |
Article XVI - Eternal Security
|
We believe in the security of the believer (Romans 8:35-39, John 6:27, Ephesians 1:13, John 3:16, Philippians 1:6, John 10:27-29).
Back to Top |
Article XVII - Christian Life
|
The grace of God teaches us to "live soberly, righteously, and godly" (Titus 2:11-13).
a. Titus 2:13 — "Looking for that blessed hope" of His returning for us b. Colossians 3:2-3, 1 John 2:15-17 — Setting our "affection on things above, not on things on the earth" c. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 — Living a life of separation from the world We believe in separation "unto God" (Romans 1:1, 16:17; 2 Corinthians 6:17-18; 2 Thessalonians 2:15, 3:6; 1 Timothy 6:3-5). Back to Top |
