Doctrine of Last Things

I believe that death is coming for everyone (Gen. 3:19; Heb. 9:27) unless Jesus returns first (1 Thess. 4:15-18). Death is the separation of what was never meant to be separated—material body from immaterial soul (Eccl. 12:7, Matt. 10:28) and separation from fellowship with God (Eph 2:1, 12). All people die physically; some die spiritually. Death is not a natural part of living, we were created for eternal life with God, but sin brought about death (Rom. 5:12). Death is an enemy that Jesus has conquered (1 Cor. 15:26, 50-58). Upon physical death the immaterial soul enters an intermediate state—believers to paradise with the Lord (Lk. 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8), unbelievers to a place of punishment (Lk. 16:22-23)—where they remain until the resurrection at the return of Christ (Rev. 20:11-13). At the resurrection, believer’s bodies will be reunited with their souls (1 Cor. 15:53) and will face judgment at the Bema seat of Christ, receiving rewards according to their faithfulness (2 Cor. 5:10; Matt. 25:23). Believers will reign with God during the millennium and will dwell with Him forever on the new earth in glorified bodies (Rev. 21:3, 6).

I believe that prior to Christ’s return, there will be increased tribulation of satanic influence on the earth (Jn. 16:33; Acts 14:22), culminating in a Great Tribulation (Matt. 24:4-21; 2 Thess. 2:3-12). During this time, God will judge His enemies (Rev. 6:15-17), purify Israel (Jer. 30:7), and protect the church (1 Thess. 1:10; Rev. 3:10) as He did the Israelites during the plagues in Egypt. At the end of this Tribulation, Christ will return suddenly, personally, and visibly (Matt. 24:29-31; Acts 1:11; Rev. 19:11-16) and rapture His church (1 Thess. 4:16-17). Believers will join Jesus in triumphal procession as He comes to establish His millennial kingdom on the earth, reigning from His throne in Jerusalem (Rev. 20:1-6; Isa. 2:2-4). After these thousand years of peace and righteousness (Isa. 11:6-10; 65:20-25), Christ will release Satan, defeat him, and cast him into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:7-9). Unbeliever’s will be judged at the Great White Throne and will join Satan in hell, experiencing conscious torment apart from God forever (2 Thess. 1:7-9; Rev. 20:11-15). Jesus will deliver the kingdom over to His Father (1 Cor. 15:24-28) and will bring history to a close, instituting the eternal state—a new heavens and new earth—where God will dwell with His people forever (2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21-22). I believe that Christ is coming soon (Rev 22:20). His return is certain (Matt. 26:64), though the exact time is not known (Mk. 13:32; Acts 1:7). We wait in eager anticipation. Come, Lord Jesus!

Doctrine of Salvation

I believe that the Triune God saves (Ps. 68:20). It is His work alone (Ps. 3:8). God takes the initiative in saving people from satan, sin, death, and hell, saving them to full and forever life with Him. Salvation is a free gift of God that is received by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone (Eph. 2:8).

I believe that before the foundations of the world God chose certain people to receive every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph. 1:3-6). This election was not based on any human action or ability (1 Cor. 1:26-29) but solely on God’s sovereign plan and gracious purpose (2 Tim. 1:9; Eph. 2:8-9). God’s abounding love (Jn. 3:16) and amazing grace (Eph. 2:5) are driving forces in His great work of salvation (Tit. 2:11). God is calling all people everywhere to be saved (Acts 17:30; 1 Tim. 2:3-4). This general call sounds forth primarily through the spoken word of the gospel (Rom. 10:13-17) by disciple-making disciples of Jesus (Mat. 28:18-20) empowered by the Spirit (Acts 1:8). Some people hear this call, but are not saved (Mat. 22:14). Others hear it and are saved (1 Cor. 1:24) when God particularly and irresistibly draws them to Himself (Jn. 6:44). This effectual call is a supernatural work of God’s grace that infallibly results in salvation.

I believe that salvation begins in people with the miracle of rebirth (Jn. 3:3-8; 1 Pet. 1:23). A new heart is given that beats with life for God and a new spirit is given that can connect with His (Ezek. 36:25-28). This regeneration is a monergistic (one way) work of God (Tit. 3:4-7) that inaugurates an ongoing relationship with Him. God brings us to life (Col. 2:13)! At this point everything changes—our disposition, direction, and deepest desires—when God makes us new (2 Cor. 5:17). We realize our sinfulness in light of God’s holiness and recognize that Jesus is the Savior we need. In this moment of conversion—after hearing the gospel, upon being reborn—we respond to God in repentance and faith (Mk. 1:15; Acts 20:21). In repentance we turn from sin and self, and turn toward God (1 Thess. 1:9). In faith we trust that Jesus is the Savior we need, and we entrust our lives to Him (Rom. 10:9-10). At conversion all believers are adopted into God’s family (Gal. 4:4-7), obtaining all the rights and privileges of being heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:15-17). When we believe the gospel and receive God’s grace we become God’s children (Jn. 1:12).

I believe that salvation has past, present, and future dimensions. In the past work of Christ on the cross, God made justification possible (Rom. 3:24-26). God declares sinners to be righteous and changes their legal status from ‘guilty’ to ‘acquitted.’ On the cross Christ took our sin, and we received His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21). We have been saved! Justification is a gracious gift of God received by faith (Rom. 5:1-2; Eph. 2:8). It inaugurates our ongoing status as His children (Rom. 8:16-17).

As we walk through life as children of God we experience sanctification—the ongoing process of Christian growth (1 Cor. 1:18; 2 Cor. 2:15). Sanctification is a conditional state that springs from a positional standing. Believers stand as those who have been apart for holiness and service to God (Heb. 10:10,14). As such, we are those whose current state is one of gradual transformation—becoming more like Christ (2 Cor. 3:18). We are being saved! Sanctification is where divine and human responsibilities merge. In cooperation with the indwelling Spirit (Jn. 14:16-17; Gal. 5:16) in the context of Christian community (Col. 3:12-15) believers strive for holiness (Heb. 12:14; 2 Cor. 7:1), fight against sinfulness (Rom. 6:12; 8:13), and walk in repentance (Acts 26:20). We work out our salvation as God works in us (Phil. 2:12-13). We utilize all the power and wisdom provided to us in the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:24).

Christians experience gradual growth in the present as they look with hope towards the future. One day, we will be saved! When Christ returns we will be like Him (1 Jn. 3:2)—sanctified completely (1 Thess. 5:23) in sanctified community (Eph. 5:26-27). We will inhabit new glorious bodies (Phil. 3:20-21; 1 Cor. 15:51-53) and will live on a new resurrected earth (Rev. 21-22). This future glorification is our hope! Until then, we wait eagerly (Heb. 9:28). We press on (Phil. 3:12-14), continue in the faith (Col. 1:23), and hold firm to the end (Heb. 3:14) in full assurance that God will finish what He started (Phil. 1:6), will not cast a believer out (Jn. 6:37), and will never let a believer go (Jn. 10:28). Genuine salvation is secure salvation (Jn. 6:39-40). God will glorify those whom He justified (Rom. 8:29-30).

I believe that salvation is possible because of the believer’s union with Christ. In Christ (Eph. 1:3-14) we have died (Rom. 6:5), are risen (Col. 3:1), and will reign with Him (2 Tim. 2:12). All of a believer’s life now orients around Christ—our lives are in Him (Col. 3:3). Christ is our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, redemption (1 Cor. 1:30). Christ is our hope (1 Tim. 1:1), life (Col. 3:4), and Savior (Tit. 2:13) for God is reconciling the world to Himself through Him (2 Cor. 5:19). Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world (1 Jn. 4:14).

Doctrine of the Atonement

I believe that the atonement was necessary to reconcile sin-alienated humanity to relationship with God. Sin leads to death (Rom. 6:23) and results in alienation from God (Col. 1:21). In light of humanity’s desperate condition (Rom. 5:8) and because of God’s great love (Jn. 3:16), God was pleased to crush Jesus (Isa. 53:10) as the propitiation for sin (1 Jn. 4:9-10; Rom. 3:25). Jesus is the wrath-bearing substitute who died in our place (2 Cor. 5:21), willingly giving up His life to save us (Jn. 10:18).

I believe that the atonement is like a multi-faceted jewel or a multi-layered symphony. As you turn the jewel examining its beauty, every angle shines forth a unique reflection of God’s plan to restore rebels to relationship with Himself. Like a symphony of interwoven sounds that circle harmoniously around one central theme, in the atonement the concepts of sacrifice, propitiation, expiation, redemption, reconciliation, triumph, and example all circle around the central theme of penal substitution. On the cross, Jesus died as our substitute—in our place for our sins (Gal. 3:13). He bore our sin and paid the penalty our sin incurred (1 Pet. 2:24; 2 Cor. 5:21). As the perfect sacrifice, Jesus offered His life once for all (Heb. 10:10,12) as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (Jn. 1:29). On the cross, Jesus propitiated God’s wrath and expiated our sin (Rom. 3:25). Jesus enabled redemption (Eph. 1:7) and made reconciliation possible (Rom. 5:10-11; 2 Cor. 5:18-21), delivering captives from slavery (Rom. 6:6) and restoring peace with God (Rom. 5:1). On the cross, Jesus triumphed over satan, disarming the powers of darkness (Col. 1:20-21) and destroying the power of sin (Rom. 6:14). As the ultimate example of sacrificial love (Phil. 2:5-8), the cross is now the pattern for the believer’s life (1 Pet. 2:21; 1 Jn. 3:16).

I believe that there are two levels of application of the atonement—Christ died for all people in general, and for believers in particular (1 Tim. 4:10). In one sense, the death of Jesus was sufficient to pay the price for the sins of every person. In another sense, His death was efficient to actually pay for the sins of only the elect. Scripture teaches that Christ died for all people (1 Tim. 2:6; Heb. 2:9), that God desires all to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Pet. 3:9), and that all are invited to salvation (Jn. 3:16; Acts 16:31). But it also teaches that Christ died for those He chose before the foundations of the world (Eph. 1:3-14)—namely, his people (Mat. 1:21), the sheep (Jn. 10:15), the church (Acts 20:28), the elect (2 Tim. 2:10). For these people the blood of Jesus actually redeems (Tit. 2:14), reconciles (Rom. 5:10), and propitiates God’s wrath (Rom. 3:25). This great salvation is based solely on God’s gracious initiative, abounding mercy and immeasurable love (Eph. 2:4-5, 8).

Doctrine of Angels & Demons

I believe that angels are real personal spiritual beings (Heb. 1:14) created by God (Neh. 9:6) for His glory (Col. 1:16-17). Angels are powerful (2 Pet. 2:11), immortal (Lk. 20:36), and glorious (Lk. 9:26), higher than humans in the creative order (Heb. 2:7) but inferior to Christ (Heb. 1:4) and are not to be worshiped (Col. 2:18; Rev. 19:10). Angels, vast in number (Heb. 12:22), are normally invisible (2 Kgs. 6:17) but at times appear in bodily form (Matt. 28:5; Heb. 13:2). They are emotional (Lk. 2:13), volitional (Jude 6), intelligent beings intrigued by the mystery of the gospel (1 Pet. 1:12). They are obedient to God’s commands (Ps. 103:20) and rejoice in God’s work of saving sinners (Lk. 15:10).

I believe that angels exist to minister worship to God (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 5:9-13), speak messages of God (Matt. 1:20; Acts 10:3-7), and execute judgments for God (Gen. 19:1, 13; Rev. 8:1-9:21). Angels ministered to Jesus during His incarnation (Matt. 4:11; Lk. 22:43) and will accompany Him at His return (Matt. 16:27). Angels are sent to minister to God’s people (Heb. 1:14), but Scripture does not teach the idea of personal guardian angels.

I believe that before creation, some angels rebelled against God (2 Pet. 2:4), were condemned forever (Mat. 25:41), and are not redeemable (Heb. 2:16). These fallen angels—demons—are real personal spiritual beings (Matt. 8:16) who know the truth about God (Ja. 2:19; Lk. 4:41) but oppose Him nonetheless (Eph. 6:11-12). Demons are evil (Lk. 7:21) unclean (Lk. 8:29) forces of wickedness (Eph. 6:12) that oppress (Mat. 8:16), harm (Lk. 13:11-16), possess (Matt. 9:32-33), and destroy (Mk. 5:2-5). Their mission is to keep unbelievers blind to the gospel (2 Cor. 4:4), hinder effective ministry (1 Thess. 2:18), and lead believers astray (1 Tim. 4:1). Satan—the devil—is the prince of demons (Matt. 12:24) and ruler of this world (Jn. 12:31). He is the great deceiver (Rev. 12:9), destroyer (1 Pet. 5:8), liar (Jn. 8:44), accuser (Rev. 12:10), and tempter (1 Cor. 7:5). Satan was once a holy angel (Ezek. 28:13-16), but in pride led the rebellion against God (Isa. 14:12-15). He and his followers were cast out of heaven forever (Rev. 12:3-4).

I believe that demonic power is limited by God's control (Job 1:12). Demons have been disarmed of power by the cross (Col. 2:13-15) and are damned forever (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10). Since Christians are no longer in the domain of darkness (Col. 1:13; Acts 26:18), demons have no authority in a believer’s life. Not even grievous sin gives demons legal right to invade and inhabit. However, a Christian can be influenced (Matt. 16:22-23), exploited (Acts 5:3), and deceived to believe that they are under demonic control. Christians must not fall prey to this deception (1 Pet. 5:8) and must push away evil by standing firm in God’s truth (Eph. 6:11). When demons are resisted by a believer submitted to God, they have no choice but to flee (Ja. 4:7). Christians, like Jesus, can boldly command, “Be gone, now!” (Matt. 4:10).

Doctrine of Humanity & Sin

I believe that on the sixth day of creation God created man and woman (Gen. 1:26-28). Made in the image of God, humans have an amazing ability and awesome responsibility to make visible God’s invisible attributes and to serve as His vicegerents over creation (Gen 1:28). Humans image God in their similarity to Him, dominion for Him, and representation of Him. We are spiritual, emotional, rational, relational, moral beings who have the ability to cultivate and create (Gen. 2:15-25). As the image of God, every human being has intrinsic dignity, value, and worth (Gen. 9:6). As the crown of God’s creation (Psa. 8:3-8), humans live in special relation to creation—part of, but distinct from. We also live in special relationship to God and other people. We’re created to glorify God (Isa. 43:6-7) by loving Him and others (Mk. 12:30-31) as we live in communities of family and society (Gen. 9:7). In marriage, man and woman together bear the image of God (Gen. 1:27; 2:24) as they live as equal persons (1 Cor. 11:11-12) with distinct relational roles (Eph. 5:22-33).

I believe that every person is a complex unified being—one person of two essences with a wide range of facets and functions. Just as God formed Adam from dust and breathed life into him (Gen. 2:27), so too every human from conception is made of material body and immaterial spirit (Jas. 2:26) or soul (Matt. 10:28). The body gives physical form while the spirit gives life—vital power and affinity for God. As somatic-spiritual beings, body and spirit are intricately connected (Matt. 26:41; Rom. 6:12-13). As complex unified begins we have a variety of inner and outer facets (2 Cor. 4:16)—immaterial mind, conscience, and will, along with physical flesh, blood, and bones. According to the Bible, the heart (not the physical organ) is the deepest center of our personhood, the driving force of our lives (Prov. 4:23).

I believe that all humans, as descendants of Adam and Eve, comprise a single human race (Gen. 3:20; Acts 17:26) that is marred by sin (1 Cor. 15:22). Since Adam was appointed by God to be the representative of the human race, when he fell all of humanity fell with him (Rom. 5:12-21). Every person, therefore, has inherited sin—Adam’s guilt imputed to us, Adam’s depravity imparted to us. We are sinners by nature (Ps. 51:5, 58:3), but also sinners by choice (Rom. 3:23). God has given us freedom to make morally responsible choices (Josh. 24:15) and every one of us has chosen to sin against Him (Ps. 51:4).

I believe that sin is multifaceted and its effects are severe. Sin is any falling short of God’s righteous standard (Jas. 4:17), breaking God’s revealed law (1 Jn. 3:4), or missing the mark of His glory (Rom. 3:23). Sin is violating relationship with God (Ex. 20:3) or vandalizing of His shalom (Gen. 4:8). Sin is loving the wrong things (1 Jn. 2:15), loving the right things the wrong way (Matt. 23:5-7), or placing someone or something in God’s rightful place of preeminence (Ex. 20:3). Sin is ungodliness, godlessness, or active rebellion against God (Rom. 1:18). Sin is a turning in on oneself (Hos. 11:7). Sin can be both intentional or unintentional, active (things I do) or passive (things done against me), committed (doing wrong) or omitted (not doing right). Sin can be through internal thought and motive, or external word and deed (Matt. 15:19). All sin is sin (Jas. 2:10-11), but some sins have greater consequences (1 Jn. 5:17) and are qualitatively worse than others (Jn. 19:11). The effects of sin are vast and varied, interfering with the way things are supposed to be (Gen. 2-3). Sin mars, warps, twists, spoils, perverts, pollutes, enslaves, defiles, divides, disconnects, and destroys. Sin produces guilt, shame, and death (Gen. 3:1-24). Sin is first and foremost an offense against God (Ps. 51:4) that secondarily affects other people and creation (Rom. 8:23-24).

I believe that human depravity is pervasive. Everything we do is corrupted by sin and there is no part of our being that is not affected—our minds are dark (Eph. 4:18), hearts deceitful (Jer. 17:9), consciences defiled (Tit. 1:15), emotions enslaved (Tit. 3:3), and wills distorted (Rom 6:16-17). By nature, we are slaves to sin (Jn. 8:34) and totally unable to fix our fundamental problem. We are totally depraved (Gen. 6:5) and cannot restore our broken relationship with God (Eph. 4:18). Nor can we respond to the gospel apart from divine intervention (Acts 26:18). By nature we are objects of God’s wrath who stand in need of a Savior (Eph 2:1-9).

I believe that though we are totally depraved, we are not utterly depraved (Lk. 10:30-37, 11:13). There is dignity that remains in every human being despite his or her depravity (Gen. 9:6). The good news is that God has come to save us in the midst of our sin (Gen. 3:8-9; Rom. 5:8). The true image of God, Jesus Christ, has come to rescue us and restore us to full life in Him (Col. 1:15-23). For those in Christ, the distorted image is gradually being renewed (Col. 3:10). We’re being conformed to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29), transformed into His likeness (2 Cor. 3:18). One day, in those who are in Christ, the image of God will be fully and finally restored—we shall be like Him (1 Jn. 3:2)!