I. The Tri-une God
We believe in one God, eternally existent in 3 persons – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These persons are one in nature, being fully God and yet distinct. This God is the creator and sustainer of all things, in heaven and on earth. He is perfect in His unchanging character of holiness, justice, wisdom and love. He is infinitely worthy of worship, and He is sovereignly bringing about all things for His own purpose and Glory.
II. Revelation
Since the beginning, God has made himself known through his spoken Word. We believe God’s self-revelation to be continued in the words of the Old and New Testaments. We believe the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments to be the inspired Word of God, and that they were without error in their original documents. We affirm these Scriptures alone as the source of authoritative instruction, correction, and knowledge necessary for one who would follow Christ for salvation.
III. Creation and Mankind
We believe that God created all things for his own Glory. God created male and female distinct in their gender; created in His own image and likeness for the purpose of His own Glory. Adam and Eve were given dominion as agents to care for and govern his Earthly creation.
IV. The Fall
We believe that Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden, perverting God’s image in mankind and falling from his purpose. In this way, the corruption of sin entered mankind, bringing death and judgment. This corruption and its penalty have passed down to every subsequent human being. Because of this innate corruption, every human naturally stands as God’s enemy and are subject to God’s just wrath and an eternity in Hell, without hope or power outside of God’s divine work of restoration through Christ Jesus.
V. The Gospel
We believe that before the foundation of time, God had determined a plan to save the elect from the corruption of sin through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, the divine Son. We believe that Jesus left his heavenly throne and came to earth both fully human and fully Divine. This Gospel is the good news of Jesus’ virgin birth, sinless life, sacrificial atoning death, and bodily resurrection for the forgiveness of sins of the elect. In love, God commands all men to repent through Christ the Redeemer.
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. There is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.
A. Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of God’s grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences of grace. Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Saviour.
B. Justification is God’s gracious and full acquittal upon principles of His righteousness of all sinners who repent and believe in Christ. Justification brings the believer unto a relationship of peace and favor with God.
C. Sanctification is the experience, beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to God’s purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual maturity through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Growth in grace should continue throughout the regenerate person’s life.
D. Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
VI. New Life
We believe that Christ, by his atoning death on the cross, fully paid for the debt of sinners, satisfying the wrath of God. In this, believers receive the righteousness of Christ, forgiveness from the guilt of sin, freedom from the penalty of sin, and regenerated life. Believers are saved from the penalty of sin, while still battling the reality of sin in our fallen world, looking forward to the sure hope of Christ’s return – the complete glorification from sin.
VII. The Church
We believe in the Church, the body of Christ-following believers, functioning together with Christ as the head. This is to be a functioning group of believers, meeting together for worship, the hearing of the Word, and the Spread of the good news of the Gospel.
VIII. The Ordinances
We follow the Lord’s command and example in baptism and the observation of the Lord’s Supper. We believe baptism to be the obedient immersion in water, symbolizing death of the old man, and new life in Christ. We also follow the Lord’s example, remembering his death in the observation of the Lord’s Supper – symbolizing Christ’s body and blood – to remember his death until he return.
IX. The END
We believe in the future, personal, bodily return of Christ. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, and the eternal reign of Christ.
X. Marriage
We believe that term “marriage” has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other. 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 sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one’s sex, or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God.
We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by the church in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, or who would agree to the Member Covenant should abide by and agree to this Statement on Marriage and Sexuality and conduct themselves accordingly.
We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with scripture nor the doctrines of the church.
In light of these things, Stoney Point Baptist Church will only perform wedding ceremonies to believers who hold to this and the other tenants of belief as laid out in this document.