Our basis of faith
We are convinced that the Bible is God's inspired and inerrant Word. As such it is the rule in all matters of faith and doctrine. We passionately and unashamedly seek to sit under the Word of God even when it is seen to be out of step with the culture. Our full statement of faith is as follows:
The basis of the Partnership shall be the fundamental truths of Christianity, as revealed in Holy Scripture, including:
God
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There is one God in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
God’s works
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God is sovereign in creation, revelation, redemption and final judgement.
The Bible
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The Bible, as originally given, the 66 books of the Old and New Testament, is the inspired and inerrant Word of God. It is the supreme authority in all matters of belief and behaviour.
Humankind
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God created humanity in his image. The first human, Adam, had a right relationship with God, but tempted by Satan, he sinned against God and fell out of right relationship with God. Since the fall, the whole of humankind is sinful and guilty, so that everyone is subject to God's wrath and condemnation.
Salvation and Judgement through Christ
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The Lord Jesus Christ, God's incarnate Son, is fully God; he was born of a virgin; his humanity is real and sinless; he died on the cross, was raised bodily from death and is now reigning over heaven and earth.
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Sinful human beings are redeemed from the guilt, penalty and power of sin only through the sacrificial death once and for all time of their representative and substitute, Jesus Christ, the only mediator between them and God.
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Those who believe in Christ are pardoned all their sins and accepted in God's sight only because of the righteousness of Christ credited to them; this justification is God's act of undeserved mercy, received solely by trust in him and not by their own efforts.
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The Lord Jesus Christ will return in person, to judge everyone, to execute God's just condemnation on those who have not repented and to receive the redeemed to eternal glory.
Holy Spirit
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The Holy Spirit alone makes the work of Christ effective to individual sinners, enabling them to turn to God from their sin and to trust in Jesus Christ.
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The Holy Spirit lives in all those he has regenerated. He makes them increasingly Christlike in character and behaviour and gives them power for their witness in the world.
The Church
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The one holy universal church is the Body of Christ, to which all true believers belong.
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In accordance with the will of God, each particular church worships God, studies the Bible, performs the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, preaches the gospel, serves one another as servants of God, contends together for the gospel, encourages works of love, and waits expectantly for the return of the Lord.