What We Believe
1. THE WORD OF GOD ‑ We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and that it has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct.
2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-21
2. THE TRINITY ‑ We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons, that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation and redemption.
Father: John 10:30 Son: Hebrews 1:8 Holy Spirit: Acts 5:3, 4
Trinity: Matthew 3:16, 17 Oneness: Deuteronomy 6:4
3. GOD THE FATHER ‑ We believe in God, the Father, an infinite personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of mankind, that He hears and answers prayer, that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.
John 16:23-28; Ephesians 1:3-14; John 17:5
4. JESUS CHRIST ‑ We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit, we believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles and teachings. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal visible return to earth.
John 1:1, 14; Colossians 1:13-23; Philippians 2:5-11
5. THE HOLY SPIRIT ‑ We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ, and that He is an abiding helper, teacher, and guide.
John 14:26; Romans 8:16; John 16:7-13
6. THE WORKING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT –We believe that the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is received by every believer at the moment he receives Christ; that the Holy Spirit gives leaders to the church to equip believers for their individual ministries; and that every member is gifted by the Holy Spirit according to His will for the building up of the Body in love.
Romans 8:9, 26-27; 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:11-18
7. SALVATION ‑ We believe that all men are sinners by nature and by personal choice and are, therefore, under condemnation. We believe that those who repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ by faith as their personal Lord and Savior are saved from condemnation, regenerated by the Holy Spirit, are declared righteous before God and are eternally secure by the grace and power of God. We also believe that those thus saved need not mediation other than Jesus Christ and can come directly to God through Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:23, 24; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:5
8. SATAN – We believe that Satan is a spiritual being, a fallen angel, the first created being to sin; he is the enemy of God and man and consciously strives to separate the two; and that he will suffer eternal, conscious punishment in the Lake of Fire.
Matthew 4:1-11; 1 John 3:8; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 20:10
9. THE CHURCH ‑ We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members by the baptizing work of the Holy Spirit of God. We believe in the local church, consisting of a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible profession of faith, and associated for worship, work and fellowship. We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of giving the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world.
Matthew 28:16-20; Colossians 1:18; 1 Corinthians 12:27; Hebrews 10:24, 25
10. CHRISTIAN CONDUCT ‑ We believe that a Christian should live for the glory of God and the well being of their fellow man; that their conduct should be blameless before the world; that they should be a faithful steward of his possessions; and that he should seek to realize for himself and others the full stature of maturity in Christ.
Matthew 5:16; 1 Corinthians 15:58; Colossians 1:18; 3:1-17
11. THE ORDINANCES ‑ We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Biblical baptism is the immersion of a believer in water into the name of the Triune God. We believe the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ for commemoration of His death. We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew 3:13-17; 26:26-29; 28:19, 20; 1 Corinthians 11:20-34
12. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY ‑ We believe that every human being is responsible to God alone in all matters of the practice of faith; that this church is independent and autonomous and will be subject to no other authority than God in its beliefs and practices of faith. We further believe that although church and state should be separate, the church shall always remain free to exercise its influence for Biblical morals and ethics.
Proverbs 14:34; Acts 4:19; Mark 12:17; Romans 13:1, 2
13. CHURCH COOPERATION ‑ We believe that local churches can best promote the cause of Jesus Christ by cooperating with one another in a denominational organization and others of like faith. Such an organization, whether a regional or district conference, exists and functions by the will of the church. Cooperation in a conference is voluntary and may be terminated at any time. Churches may likewise cooperate with inter-denominational fellowships on a voluntary independent basis.
1 Corinthians 12
- THE LAST THINGS ‑ We believe in the “blessed hope” and the personal, visible and imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth to establish His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the eternal felicity of the righteous, and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost in hell.
John 14:1-3; Acts 1:10, 11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 20
Raging River Community Church 