New LIFE’s Statement of Faith

The WORD of GOD

We believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are the inspired and Holy Word of God, fully authoritative, infallible and inerrant in their original writings2 Tim. 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20-21  and they are complete as the Revelation of God’s will for salvation, and the supreme and final authority in all matters to which they speakDeut. 6:4-9, 11:13-19, Psalm 19:7-11; 119:89-104; 1 Corinthians 10:8-12
(We approach the reading, studying, and applying of God’s Word utilizing
the literal-grammatical-contextual-historical method of Bible Study.
2 Timothy 2:15 )
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GOD

We believe in ONE True and Living God, Creator and Sustainer of all things, Eternally Existing in Three Persons : Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – [The Trinity – Not Three gods] ; Deuteronomy 6:4, Isaiah 44:6-8, 45:5, 1 Timothy 2:5, 1 Corinthians 8:4. Equal in every divine perfection, and that Each executes distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption. One God, one substance, one undivided Divine Being… revealed in three Persons of the Godhead. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exodus 3:5-15); He is the God of the Bible, the God of Creation, the God of Nature, the God of History, the God of the Universe, the God of Time and the God of everything… past, present, and future… the ONLYOne, True & Living God. God is eternal (Psalm 90:2), infinite (1 Timothy 1:17), and sovereign (Psalm 93:1). God is omniscient (Psalm 139:1-6), omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-13), omnipotent (Revelation 19:6), and unchanging (Malachi 3:6). God is holy (Isaiah 6:3), just (Deuteronomy 32:4), and righteous (Exodus 9:27). God is love (1 John 4:8), gracious (Ephesians 2:8), merciful (1 Peter 1:3), and good (Romans 8:28) .

Old Testament ImplicationsGenesis 1:26, 3:22, 11:7, Psalm 2:7-9, Psalm 110:1-7, Isaiah 9:6-7

New Testament Indications:  Matthew 3:16-17, John 1:1-3, 1:14-18, 10:30, Acts 5:3-4, Gal. 1:1-5, Col. 1:15-20, Heb. 1:8

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God the Father

We believe in God the Father, an infinite personal, uncreated Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love. We believe He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.  Ex. 3:1-18, Zeph. 3:17, Mat. 5:45, John 1:12-13, Rom. 5:10-11, 1 Cor. 8:5-6, Eph. 3:14-19, 1 Tim. 4:10

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Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal Son, the Eternal and Living Word of God, and He has precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Psalm 2:7, John 3:16-17, Hebrews 1:5, John 10:30,17:24, Colossians 1:15-20, 2:9

We believe Jesus Christ is the only unique Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary, and is fully God and fully man. He lived a perfect life without sin and died on the cross, in the place of man, as the only sufficient sacrifice. He rose from the dead, bodily, three full days later (3 days and 3 nights – a full 72 hours (or more)) and has ascended to heaven and sits at the right hand of God, and lives to always intercede for believers in Him.  We, also, believe in His personal, visible, and real, pre-millennial return from heaven to rule and reign here on earth to rule over all the universe and of all of the earth and over all of the heavens from Jerusalem, sitting upon the throne of David in redeemed Israel.  Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 24:1-8, 44-48; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:14;Philippians 2:8; Hebrews 4:14-16; Acts 2:22-36; 1 Corinthians 15:1-5; 1 Thess. 4:13-5:11; Revelation 20:4-7; Isaiah 9:6-7

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Holy Spirit

We believe in the Holy Spirit, co-equal with God the Father and God the Son.  We believe in His personality, and His work in regeneration, sanctification, sealing, baptizing, and preservation of the believer. His ministry is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, apply Christ’s redemption which was purchased upon the cross to the believer, to implement Christ’s work of redeeming the lost, and empowering the believer for godly living and service. We believe the Holy Spirit indwells all, true, “born again” believers and baptizes all believers into the Body of Christ from the moment of salvation and that He seals them until the return of Jesus Christ (i.e.: “the day of redemption”).  The Holy Spirit also empowers believers to be effective and fruitful witnesses to the lost and to build up the Body of Christ utilizing spiritual gifts that He sovereignly supplies to each believer from the moment of salvation.  John 14:16-27; Rom. 8:1-39; 1 Cor. 12:7-13; 2 Cor. 2:14-3:11; 2 Thes. 2:13-14; Eph. 1:13-14; Eph. 4:30; Titus 3:4-7


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Man

We believe God, in the beginning, created man (not by any “natural” evolutionary process), male and female (i.e.: Adam and Eve), in the image and likeness of God and free from sin. [We, also, believe in the literal-historical account of Genesis chapters 1 & 2 regarding the creation of the physical universe in 6 literal (24-hour) days, as written.]  We are Adam’s descendants from the point of conception.  Genesis 1:26-30, 5:1-3; 9:6; Psalms 8:1ff; 139:1ff…  By human choice, humans became sinners, and are therefore spiritually dead. Genesis 3:1-24, Romans 3:10-11,23; Romans 5:12-19 ; Romans 6:23, Psalm 14:1ff  .   We also believe that those who repent of sin and trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord are regenerated by the Holy Spirit. Isaiah 55:6-12, Romans 5:8; 10:8-15; Titus 3:4-7

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Salvation

We believe that Salvation is by God’s Loving and Free Grace through faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work of redemption, alone. Eph. 2:4-10 We further believe that this salvation is Eternally Secure, Matthew 25:34, Ephesians 1:3-14 and was purchased by Christ upon the cross, Philippians 2:6-11, Colossians 1:19-23, Hebrews 12:1-2 and is received by humans through repentant and trusting faith, apart from any human merit, works or ritual. Ephesians 2:4-10; Titus 3:4-7; 1 Corinthians 12:13We, also, believe that true and genuine salvation results in righteous living, good works, and proper evangelistic and social concern. Romans 6:1-14; Romans chapter 12 and Romans chapter 13; 2 Corinthians 5:14-22; Gal. 5:13-26; Ephesians 2:13,14; 4:1-32.


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Church

We believe that the Church is the Spiritual Body of which Christ is the Head.  Ephesians 1:15-23, 5:23, Colossians 1:18  We believe that the true Church is composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated.  Acts 2:38-47; Ephesians 2:11-22; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; Titus 3:4-7

We believe that this body expresses herself in distinct local assemblies or congregations whose members have been immersed in water baptism upon a credible confession of faith and have voluntarily associated themselves by mutual covenant for worship, for instruction and equipping, for edification, for evangelism, for mission, and for service. Matthew 28:19-20, Ephesians 1:4-6, 4:11-16

We believe the ordinances of the local church are Believer’s Baptism by Immersion and The Lord’s SupperMat. 26:26-29; 28:19-20, Acts 2:38, 1 Cor. 11:2, 23-26  Although these ordinances were ordained by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we understand that they are symbolic in nature and do not convey or “transmit” salvation to the participant, but they are symbolic acts of obedience of the already saved, born-again follower of Jesus Christ.  Please, take  *** SPECIAL NOTE ***  of our Simply Biblical Position regarding the Lord’s SupperWhat about the LORD’s Supper? (please, click the link to this very important article)

We, also, believe in the autonomy and voluntary interdependence and mutual cooperation for mission of local churches and the mutual submission of believers to each other in love.  1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Romans 12:4-5; Ephesians 4:1-4, 11-16; 5:18-22

We, also, believe that God has ordained that certain men (i.e: male human beings),  called by God, to be shepherding-overseers (i.e. “elders”, “pastoral elders”, “pastors”, and/or “pastor-teachers”), that should lead each local church family in overall church governance, by example and by the teaching and proclamation of God’s Word.  Acts 20:27-32; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 5:17-20; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-5; Hebrews 13:7,17  – For more on what we believe about God’s Biblical Leadership Model for every local church family Leadership (i.e.: Pastors, Elders, Deacons, etc.) , please, CLICK HERE.
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Separation of Church and State

We believe that each local church is distinct and self-governing in function and must be a FREE CHURCH, free from interference by any ecclesiastical, civil, and/or political authority. We therefore maintain ourselves as a distinct, independent, autonomous, local church family that is unincorporated and unregistered, in which Jesus Christ is Lord, Sovereign, and Head. Therefore, we are not under any ecclesiastical, civil and/or political authority. We have freely and voluntarily associated ourselves to pursue biblically based gospel ministry, together, as a biblically-based distinct and autonomous local church family. Acts 6:1-6, 15:22-19, Rom. 13:1-7, 1 Cor. 5:9-6:11, 2 Cor. 2:5-11, Eph. 1:15-23; 2:19-22 We further believe that every individual human being is directly responsible to God in matters of faith and life, and that each should be free to worship God according to the dictates of one’s conscience. Exodus 1:15-22, Daniel 1:8-21; 3:13-18, Romans 1:1-32


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Christian Conduct

We believe the supreme task of every believer is to glorify God in one’s life, that one’s conduct should be blameless before the world, that the believer should be a faithful steward of one’s possessions, and that the believer should seek to realize for one’s self the full stature of maturity in Christ. Ephesians 4:11-32; Philippians 1:27-2:15, Colossians 1:28; Titus 1:6-3:14, 1 Peter 2:12


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Biblical Financial Giving

We are NOT under the Old Covenant of the Nation Israel as given by Moses (i.e. The Mosaic Covenant, the Old Covenant, the Old Testament Law, etc.).  Since, that is the case, within the New Covenant, in which all Born Again Christians are in, we, as the Body of Christ are NOT under that system (ref. Hebrews 8:13) . This is borne out quite fully in Acts 15:1-31, Romans, Galatians, Hebrews, etc.  We hold to New Covenant Grace Giving  . . . for more on this, please, CLICK HERE  (ref. 2 Corinthians chptrs 8 & 9).

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Last Things

We believe in the blessed hope (Titus 2:13), the personal and imminent  coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to rapture His saints (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We believe in the  visible and bodily return of Christ to the earth with His saints to establish His promised millennial kingdom (Zechariah 14:4-11; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; Revelation 3:10, 19:11-16, 20:1-6).  We believe in the physical resurrection of all men – the saints to everlasting  joy and bliss on the New Earth, and the wicked to eternal punishment in the lake of fire (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28-29Revelation 20:5-6, 12-13).

We believe that the souls of believers are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where they await their resurrection when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be  glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; 2 Corinthians 5:8;Philippians 1:23, 3:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17).  We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious misery until their 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 to suffer everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Revelation 20:11-15).


Basic Christian Community

In Acts 2:42-47 we discover that the early New Testament Church met publicly and from house to house as their first pattern for meeting together. They enjoyed a simply structured fellowship under the LORDship of Jesus Christ, together. We have realized that true, biblically-based, fellowship and building up one another is never done effectively unless church life begins with spiritual families. Becoming a part of our church means becoming a part of one of our LIFE Groupsthat is what we call our Basic Christian Community.  None of our church family’s LIFE Groups are independent of each other but are “sister” groups, and each of them is always under the shepherding covering and guidance of our pastoral leadership team. Our vision is to develop hundreds of these LIFE Groups, with each of them gathering together within our regularly scheduled Public Worship Celebrations.


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