Although the following description of our beliefs may look overwhelming to some, please know that each belief is located in the Bible, which we believe is God’s Word and can be trusted as absolute truth. Because these Bible-based beliefs match the basic doctrines of Baptists, we call Harvestview a Baptist church.
THE BIBLE
We believe in the verbal, plenary inspiration of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. Because of inspiration (God-breathed), the Holy Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, and are the final authority for faith and practice for the believer. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation from God to Man. The Holy Scriptures are sufficient for the readers of today and are to be interpreted in a normal, grammatical and historical meaning.
(Psalm 119:105, 160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-2)
GOD
We believe that the God of the Bible is both the Sovereign Creator and Ruler of all the universe. There is one God, who eternally exists in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. All are co-eternal in being, co-equal in power and glory, co-identical in nature by having the same attributes and perfections. He is eternal, meaning that He has always been and always will be God, the Sovereign Creator and Ruler.
(Genesis 1:1, 26-27, 3:22; Deuteronomy 6:4; John 1:1-2, 14:10, 26 )
JESUS CHRIST
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, is the only-begotten of God. Jesus Christ became man, without ceasing to be God. Being miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, Jesus revealed God to man and became the perfect sacrifice for sinful men. He fulfilled His redemption purpose by dying upon the cross as the representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, for sinful man and by physically raising from the dead which made our justification sure. We believe that Jesus Christ has ascended to Heaven and has been exalted to be our Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. We believe He is the only way of eternal salvation.
(Isaiah 7:14, 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14:2; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21; Philippians 2:5-8)
HOLY SPIRIT
We believe the Holy Spirit to be co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. We believe that He indwells and seals believers unto the day of redemption. He is the catalyst in the world to make men aware of sin, righteousness, and judgment. At the time of salvation, the Holy Spirit gives to every believer a spiritual gift for the edifying of the body of Christ, the Church. Every Christian should strive to live every day under His control.
(John 16:8-11; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:13-14, 5:17)
HUMAN BEINGS
We believe human beings were created male and female and were created in the image and likeness of God. We believe that God instituted and only recognizes marriages between a male and female. God created Adam and Eve without sin, but Adam chose to sin. By choosing to sin, Adam passed a sinful nature to all human beings and alienated human beings from God. Because of this sinful nature, every man is totally depraved and of himself is not able to remedy his lost condition.
(Genesis 1:27; 3:1-8, Romans 5:12, 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-3, 8-9, 4:17-19)
SALVATION
We believe that every person is totally depraved and unable to save himself. Salvation is a free gift, but must be accepted on a personal basis. Salvation is only through the Person, the work and the gift of Jesus Christ. Salvation cannot be accepted through good works or by self-improvement. Personal belief in Jesus Christ is the only way for a person to be born again into the family of God. Eternal life (salvation) begins at the moment one receives Jesus Christ into their life.
(Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 14:6; Titus 3:5)
ETERNAL SECURITY
Once a person receives the free gift of salvation, he is eternally secure in this salvation. There is nothing that he or anyone else can do to take away his salvation. Salvation is maintained by grace and the power of God. For the believer, eternal security is not a license to sin.
(John 6:37-40, 10:29, 14:1-6; Romans 6:1, 8:1, 38-39)
ETERNITY
Mankind was created to exist forever. There are only two options for the eternal state of a person. Mankind will either spend eternity separated from God or spend eternity living with God in Heaven. The ones who are separated from God are separated because they never accepted God’s free gift of salvation; they will judged at the Great White Throne and cast in Hell and then into the Lake of Fire. The ones who spend eternity living with God do so by accepting God’s free gift of salvation; they will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ and will be in Heaven with God for eternity.
(John 3:16, 14:17; Romans 6:23; Luke 23:43; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; 2 Corinthians 5:10-11; Luke 16:19-26; Revelation 20:11-15)
CREATION
We believe that God created the universe and everything in it in six literal, 24-hour periods. We believe that Jesus, the Son of God, both created and sustains the universe to this day. We reject the teachings of evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of creation. We believe that God existed before creation of this universe and is not a created being.
(Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11;Colossians 1:15-18)
THE SECOND COMING
We believe in the imminent and personal return of Christ to rapture His church. This rapture of His church will happen before a seven-year tribulation period (God’s judgment on the earth). At the end of this tribulation, Christ will come back with all His saints and establish His earthly, Millennial Reign, which was promised to Israel.
(Psalm 89:3-4; Daniel 2:31-45; Zechariah 14:4-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4; Titus 2:13; Revelation 20:1-6)
THE CHURCH
We believe that the local church is made of born-again, baptized individuals who assemble for the purpose of edifying and equipping the saints for the work of the ministry. We believe that every local church is accountable only to Christ and is free from any outside control or authority of an organization.We recognize water baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper as the two Scriptural ordinances. Both are only for believers; there are no saving qualities in these ordinances. We also recognize only two offices of the church: the pastor and the deacon.
(Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 1 Timothy 3:1-13, Hebrews 10:25-26; 1 Peter 5:1-4)
THE PERSON OF SATAN
We believe that Satan is a created being who rebelled against God. He is the self-declared enemy of God and God’s children. We believe that he will eternally punished by being thrown into the Lake of Fire.
(Job 1:6-7; Matthew 4:2-11; 25:41; Revelation 20:10)