REAL CHURCH
Articles of Faith
CONCERNING THE SCRIPTURE
We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament (66 books) as originally written were inspired by God, verbally and plenary. We believe that God, who is the Truth, communicated His Word through all that they teach and in all the matters that they encompass. We believe that the Bible is the supreme revelation of God's will for man and constitutes the only infallible guide for faith and life. (Matthew 5:18, Mark 12:36, John 10: 34-35, Acts 1:16, Romans 3: 1-4, Galatians 3:16, II Timothy 3:16, Hebrews 4:12, II Peter 1:19 -21; Revelation 22:18-19)
CONCERNING THE TRUE GOD
We believe in one God, the Creator of heaven and earth; that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, equal in power and glory, and executing distinct harmonious duties in the great work of redemption. (Genesis 1: 1, Exodus 20: 2-3, Deuteronomy 4:35, 6: 4, 32:39, Isaiah 45:14, 46: 9, Matthew 16:17, 28: 19-20, John 1: 1 -3; 5: 36-40; Romans 1:1-6; I Corinthians 8: 6; Ephesians 1: 3-10; 4: 3-6)
CONCERNING THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person possessing all the attributes of personality and deity. It is equal to the Father and the Son, and is of the same nature. His relationship to the unbelieving world is that he convinces him of sin, of justice and of judgment. He is the agent of the new birth and His work among the believers is to dwell in them, seal them, fill them, guide them and teach them the ways of justice. We believe that there is a distinction between the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament and His ministry in the New Testament. There is a new and unique work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the Body of Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit endows believers with gifts for service, at the time of conversion. (John 7:39, 14:16, 17,26, Acts 1: 5, Romans 12: 3-8 I Corinthians 12: 8-13, 12: 28-31, I Corinthians 13: 8-12, Ephesians 1: 13, 14;4: 7-11; Hebrews 9:14; Revelation 22: 18-19)
CONCERNING THE HUMAN BEING
We believe that the Scriptures teach that man was created male and female by a direct act of God, and not some previously existing way of life. By voluntary transgression, he fell from his state of innocence and as a consequence, all men are now sinners by nature and of their own will, totally devoid of the sanctity
required by the law, absolutely inclined towards evil, therefore, under condemnation just of eternal punishment and an eternal existence separated from God without defense or excuse. (Genesis 1:27; Isaiah 53: 6; Romans 3:23; 5:12-19)
CONCERNING THE CHURCH
We believe that the Scriptures teach that the Church of Jesus Christ, distinct from Israel in the Old Testament, was inaugurated on the Day of Pentecost, and has to be considered in two aspects: the local and the Universal Church ("the church that is His body "). The local Church is a congregation of baptized believers, associated by an agreement in the faith and the communion of the
gospel, observing the ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, and exercising the gifts, passion, abilities, rights, and privileges vested in them. for His Word. Their biblical officers are pastors, sometimes called bishops or elders, and deacons, whose requirements, rights and duties are defined in the epistles of
Timothy and Titus. This definition of the local church guides us to the following biblical characteristics:
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The authority of the Scriptures for all faith and practice;
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The autonomy of the local church;
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The baptism by immersion of the believers as a prerequisite of membership in the local church;
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Two trades: Pastor and Deacon/Deaconess;
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Two symbolic ordinances: baptism and Holy communion;
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The individual priesthood of the believer and freedom of conscience
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The separation of the Church from the State.
The "church that is His body" is the total company of believers in Christ, whether Jews or Gentiles, regardless of their denominational affiliation or present position, in heaven or on earth.
(Matthew 28:19, 20, Acts 1: 5, Acts 2: 1-4, 10: 44-45, 11: 15-16, I Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 1: 22-23, I Timothy 2:11 -14; Titus 1; Hebrews 12:23)
CONCERNING THE SALVATION
We believe that the Scriptures teach that the salvation of sinners is initiated divinely, totally by grace, and achieved only through the redeeming work of the Son of God; which is totally apart from the works, with the unique condition of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and never without a genuine repentance. To be saved, the sinner must be born again, being regenerated by the power of the Holy Spirit by faith in the Word of God, and becoming a recipient of a new nature, not by any work of justice on our part, but only by faith in the blood of the Redeemer. The believer who has placed his personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is fully justified and in possession of the salvation that is eternally secure.(John 3: 3-6; 3:16; 10: 28-29; Acts 13:39; Romans 2: 4; II Corinthians 7: 9-10; I Timothy 2: 5-6; Hebrews 4: 2; Peter 1: 18-23; II Peter 1: 4)
CONCERNING THE BAPTISM AND THE LORD’S SUPPER
We believe that the Scriptures teach that Christian baptism is by the immersion of the believer in water only once, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, to demonstrate through a solemn and beautiful act his identification with Christ, illustrating the death of the believer to sin and his resurrection to a new life.We believe that the Lord's Supper is the commemoration of the death of Christ until He comes, and must be practiced by the church in fellowship and brotherly love. The observation of the Lord's Supper is only for baptized believers. The ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper are to be observed under the cover of the local church. (Acts 8: 38-39; Romans 8: 3-5; I Corinthians 11: 23-28)
CONCERNING THE ETERNAL STATE
We believe that the Scriptures teach the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust. All those who by faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ will spend eternity in the full delight of God's presence, and all those who through unbelief refuse to accept the offer of grace and mercy from God will spend eternity in eternal damnation. (Psalm 16:11, Matthew 25:46, John 5: 28-29, 14: 2, Revelation 20: 14-15, 21: 4)
CONCERNING SATAN
We believe that the Scriptures teach that there is a devil who is the “god of this world” and the “price of the power of air”, who continually seeks to twist the purposes of God and is like a roaring lion continually looking for someone to
devour, and that he was defeated by Christ on the cross and condemned to eternal punishment. (II Corinthians 4:4, 11:13-15, Ephesians 2:2, Hebrews 2:14,
Revelation 12:9).
CONCERNING THE PERSONAL SEPARATION
We believe that the Scriptures teach that the believer must be separated for God and the world and with the help of the Holy Spirit, must walk in Christian love and holiness, exhibiting the qualities of honesty, integrity, forgiveness and kindness. We further believe that any achievement in the practice of these qualities will be manifested with sincere humility and genuine zeal for the
advancement of the cause of Christ. We also believe that the Scriptures admonish all believers not to love the world or the things of the world, but rather to flee from evil desires, avoiding all kinds of evil and refraining from any doubtful practice that destroys their testimony, offends their brother and do not glorify God. (Proverbs 15:33; Romans 14: 19-21; I Corinthians 6: 18-20; 8: 9-13;
10: 23-33; II Corinthians 7: 1; I Peter 5: 5-6; Galatians 5: 22-25; Ephesians 4:32; 5:1-2; 5: 7-10; 5: 15-20; Philippians 4: 8)