Statement of Faith

Statement of Faith
From ByLaws
Florida Men of Integrity

ARTICLE 5 – Statement of Faith

5.01 The Holy Scriptures. We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God.  The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and, therefore, are the final authority for faith and life.  The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to man.  The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).

5.02 The Godhead. We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor.13:14; John 14:10, 26).

5.03 The Person and Work of Christ.

1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men (Is. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8).

2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through his death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; I Peter 2:24; Eph. 1:7; I Peter 1:3-5).

3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; I John 2:1-2).

5.04 The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit.

1. We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing believers into the body of Christ, indwelling them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14).

2. We believe that He is the Divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to e filled with the Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; I John 2:20, 27).

3. We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer.  God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry (Rom. 12:3-8; I Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12).

5.05 The Total Depravity of Man. We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and, that man is totally depraved, and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19).

5.06 Salvation. We believe that the Bible teaches that there is only one way of salvation and that salvation is the gift of God brough to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7, 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; John 14:6).

5.07 The Church.

1. We believe that the church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27).

2. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11).

5.08 Separation. We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and, that separation from all religious apostasy, sinful pleasures, practices, and associations is commanded of God (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11).

5.09 The Eternal State.

1. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13).

2. We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the First Resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil 1:23; 3:21; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6).

3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the Second Resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting, conscious punishment and torment (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15).

5.10 The Personality of Satan. We believe that Satan is the author of sin, and the cause of the fall of man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and, that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire (Job 1:6-7; Is. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

5.11 Creation. We believe the God created the universe.  We reject evolution as an unscriptural theory of origin (Genesis 1-2; Ex. 20:11).

5.12 Civil Government. We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions:  1)  the home; 2)  the church; and 3)  the state.  Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word.  God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other.  The home, the church, and the state are sorereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14).

5.13 Human Sexuality.

1. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.  We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex.  (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen. 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom 1:26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)

2. We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one man and one woman (Gen. 2:24; Rom. 7:2; I Cor. 7:10; Eph. 5:22-23).

5.14 Abortion. We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being.  Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life.  Abortion is murder (Job 3:15; Ps. 51:5; 139:14-16; Is. 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jer. 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44).

5.15 Missions. We believe that God has given all believers a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.  As ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to use (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20).

5.16 Lawsuits Between Believers. We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians, the church, or Christian organizations to resolve personal disputes.  We believe the Christian community possess all of the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between believers.

5.17 Giving. We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially.  We believe that God has established the tithe, ten percent of one’s total income, as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings cheerfully to the support of various ministries of God’s Kingdom, including, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel.  We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 4:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal 6:6; Eph. 4:28; 1 Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17).

5.18 This Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith.  The Bible itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe.  We do believe, however, that the foregoing Statement of Faith accurately represents the teaching of the Bible, and, therefore, is binding upon all Directors and employees of the Corporation.