Beliefs | pinegrovechurch

STATEMENT OF FAITH

The Scriptures

We believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and that in its original writing is inerrant, complete and the final authority for faith and life.

(See Deuteronomy 4:2; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 119:160; Ezekiel 1:3; Matthew 5:18; John 17:17; II Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; II Peter 1:20-21; and Revelation 22:19.)

The Godhead

We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three persons share in the same divine nature, attributes, works and perfection.

(See Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19-20; John 15:26; and II Corinthians 13:14.)

God the Father

We believe the Father is the first person of the trinity in His relationship to the Son and the Holy Spirit; and in His sovereign plan are the works of creation, providence and redemption.

(See Genesis 1:1ff; Exodus 3:14; Job 12:13ff; Psalm 103:19; Psalm 139:16; Isaiah 44:6-8; Romans 1:20; Ephesians 1:3-6; I Timothy 6:15-16; and Revelation 4:11.)

Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ became a true and complete man without ceasing to be true and complete God. We believe that He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary in order that He might reveal God to man and to accomplish man’s redemption through His death, burial and bodily resurrection. We believe His substitutionary sacrifice was sufficient to satisfy God’s judgment against all men and that Christ is now present at the right hand of God the Father as our mediator.

We believe in the personal, bodily and imminent return of Christ wherein He will gather His elect, judge the world, and establish His eternal rule. This is the blessed hope of every believer.

(See Matthew 1:20-25; Mark 13:24-32; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:1-2, 14; Romans 4:25, 8:34; Colossians 2:9-10; I Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:1-4, 7:25, 9:24-28; I Peter 3:18; I John 2:1-2; and Revelation 19:11-22:7.)

Holy Spirit

We believe in the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit. We believe the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment and is the Divine agent of the new birth, bringing sinners to faith through the Word of God. We believe that at the moment of conversion, every believer receives the Holy Spirit in all His fullness, is baptized into the body of Christ and sealed until the day of redemption.

(See John 14:16-17, 26, 16:8-11; Romans 8:12-17; I Corinthians 2:10-13, 12:12-14; Galatians 5:22-26; and Ephesians 1:13-14, 5:18-21.)

Satan

We believe in the existence and personality of Satan, a fallen angel. He is the open and declared enemy of God and man, and he shall be eternally punished in the lake of fire.

(See Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 4:2-11, 25:41; Ephesians 6:11-12; Hebrews 2:14; I Peter 5:8-10; I John 3:8; and Revelation 20:10.)

Man

We believe that God created man in His own image and likeness. However, because of Adam’s disobedience, sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned. Therefore, mankind is naturally sinful, hopelessly lost, and completely unable to remedy his lost condition.

(See Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 51:5, 139:13-16; Romans 3:10-12, 23, 5:12-21; and Ephesians 2:12.)

Salvation

We believe that salvation is wholly of God by grace alone, which is received by personal faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, whose precious blood was shed for the forgiveness of our sins.

(See Mark 1:15; John 1:12, 3:16, 10:28-29, 14:6; Romans 3:21-26; and Ephesians 1:7, 2:8-9.)

The Church

We believe that the church universal and invisible is composed of all such individuals 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.

We believe that the church local and visible is composed of professed believers in Christ who organize and assemble themselves together to glorify God through worship, instruction and training in the Word, fellowship, evangelism, observing the ordinances, and administering discipline.

continued at top of page

The Church (continued)

We believe that the church universal is the body and bride of our Lord and that He will return to claim His bride at the time appointed by God the Father.

(See John 17:21; Acts 2:37-47; I Corinthians 12:12-14, 15:50-53; Ephesians 1:15-23, 5:25-27; I Thessalonians 3:12-13, 4:13-18; Hebrews 10:23-25; and Revelation 19:7-9, 20:6.)

Ordinances

We believe an ordinance is an action instituted by Christ in which signs perceived by our senses present to us the grace of God in Christ and the blessings of His covenant. We believe that God has given the ordinances of water baptism and the Lord’s Supper to the church.

We believe that water baptism is for believers and that it is an act of personal obedience and public declaration signifying a believer’s death, burial and resurrection to a new life in Christ. It is not effective for salvation, nor does it guarantee it. (See Constitution Article IV, Number 8.)

We believe that the Lord’s Supper is a memorial service ordained by Christ in which a believer testifies that Christ’s death on the cross is the only source of salvation. It consists of self-examination, union with Christ and with other believers, and taking of the bread and cup which symbolize the body and blood of Christ. The Lord’s Supper is open to all believers who are in right relationship with God and with one another.

(See Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 22:14-20; Acts 2:41-42, 8:36-39, 18:8; Romans 6:1-11; I Corinthians 11:23-34; and Colossians 2:12.)

Resurrection

We believe in the bodily resurrection of the dead: the believer to the everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord and the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment.

(See Luke 16:19-31; John 5:25-29, 11:25-27; I Corinthians 15:20-26; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; and Revelation 20:15, 21:3-4.)

Christian Conduct

We believe that all believers, by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, should seek to live a life pleasing unto God, separated from those practices that compromise our Christian ministry and testimony and that hinder our fellowship with Christ and His church.

We believe that each believer should be quick to forgive and slow to take offense so that the church might be bound together in unity of spirit and purpose.

(See Proverbs 6:16-19; Romans 12:1-2, 14:13, 15:5-6; I Corinthians 1:10, 10:31-33, 15:33-34; II Corinthians 6:14, 7:1; Galatians 5:19-24; Colossians 3:5-14; I Thessalonians 5:12-22; James 1:19-20; and I John 2:15-17.)

Marriage and Human Sexuality

We believe that God created human beings in His image as two distinct genders, male and female, and that the intended gender identity of an individual is determined by such individual’s biological sex at birth. With this belief, we apply this understanding to all policies and programs throughout Pine Grove Community Church’s faith community. In addition, we believe that God has instituted marriage as a covenant relationship between one man and one woman. We recognize only such marriages for all policies and programs throughout Pine Grove Community Church’s faith community. Further, we believe that sexual desire is rightfully fulfilled only within marriage and that unmarried singles who abstain from sex can be whole, mature persons, as pleasing to God as persons who are faithful in marriage.

(See Genesis 2:21-25; Matthew 19:6; Ephesians 5:21-33; Romans 1:26-27)

Spiritual Gifts

We believe that in regeneration, every believer receives the Holy Spirit who manifests His presence by gifts which are borne out in the believer’s life in the service and building up of the body of Christ in the unity of the same Spirit. In the use of these gifts, we practice that which is orderly, appropriate, edifying and profitable.

(See John 16:13-15; Romans 12:4-10; I Corinthians 9:1-2, 12:1-7, 14:12; II Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:11-13; Hebrews 2:1-4; and I Peter 4:7-11.)