Statement of Faith

Below is Country Road Bible Church’s Statement of Faith

The Bible

We believe that the Bible, consisting of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, is the revelation of God to mankind, is verbally and fully inspired by Him, is sufficient for the knowledge of God and His will that is necessary for the eternal welfare, is infallible, inerrant in its original manuscripts, and is the supreme and final authority for all Christian faith and conduct. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 Corinthians 2:13; Deuteronomy 29:29, 2 Timothy 3:15; John 10:35)

The True God

We believe that there is but one God, whose essential nature is that of a living, personal Spirit.  He is infinitely perfect in all of His attributes; He is the creator and sustainer of all things; He exists in three persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit who one in essence and attributes, yet distinct in office and activity. (1 Corinthians 8:4; John 4:24, 5:26; Genesis 1:1; Colossians 1:16-17; Matthew 28:19)

Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ is true God and true man; that is, He is fully divine and also fully human. He preexisted eternally with the Father, was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, lived a perfect life, and died a substitutionary death for the sins mankind.  We believe that He arose bodily from the grave and that He ascended to heaven, where He is presently High Priest and Advocated for His people, and that He will return personally and bodily to the earth at the close of this age. He is the world’s only Savior and is the Lord of all. (Philippians 2:5-11; John 1:1; Matthew 1:23-25; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 Corinthians 15:3; 1 Timothy 2:6; 1 Corinthians 15:20; Hebrews 4:14-16; John 14:3; Acts 4:12)

​The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine person, the third person of the Trinity.  We believe that He was sent from the Father by the Son to convict the world of sin, to regenerate and indwell those who trust in Christ, to seal them for the final day of redemption, to guide them into truth, to fill them for a life of holiness and victory, and to empower them for witness and service.  We believe that He gives spiritual gifts to believers for the proper functioning of the Body of Christ, which is the church. (Acts 5:3-4; John 16:7-14, 3:5-8; 1 Corinthians 2:9-12, 3:16, 12:3-13, 28-31; Ephesians 1:13-14; Galatians 5:16-25; Acts 1:8)

​Man

We believe that man was originally created by a definite act of God in His own image and is dependent upon, and accountable to, His Creator.  Through disobedience, the first man sinned and fell from his original state of moral perfection.  As a consequence, he brought upon himself and upon the whole human race the penalty for sin, which is spiritual and physical death.  Since Adam, every person is born with an inherently sinful nature and becomes a sinner in thought, word, and deed.  Every person, therefore, stands under the just condemnation of God and is unable to save himself or to present deeds worthy of merit before God.  (John 3:16; Genesis 1:26-27, 2:7; Romans 2:6-16, 5:12-21, 6:23; Matthew 5:2-48)

​Salvation

We believe that a person is saved by God’s grace alone, which is made possible through the shed blood of Christ when He died a substitutionary death for mankind, and through the resurrection of Christ.  Salvation becomes effective when a person, by an act of faith, acknowledges Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and Lord. The benefits of this salvation include the forgiveness of sins and a new standing before God, the impartation of new life, and all the privileges that accompany a new family relationship with God.  The assurance of salvation as a present possession is the privilege of every believer in Christ.  (Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 Corinthians 15:3; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9; Acts 3:19; Romans 3:28; John 3:16; 1:12, 10:28; Philippians 1:6)

​Assurance

We believe in the eternal security of the saved through the sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, the bodily resurrection of the just to an everlasting life of blessedness, and the bodily resurrection of the lost to an everlasting conscious suffering. (Ephesians 4:30; 1 Corinthians 1:8; Romans 8:30; John 10:27-29, 5:28-29) 

​The Christian Life

We believe that God expects every believer to live a life of obedience, in which every area of his life is brought under the lordship of Jesus Christ and the fruit of the Spirit becomes increasingly evident in his life. The goal of the Christian life is to be conformed to the image of Christ.  This life is characterized supremely by self-giving love for God and for others.  The life and character of Christ, which grows through the Holy Spirit, is noticeably distinct from the life of the world.  A believer who resists in the gracious working of the Holy Spirit and fails to grow in obedience is chastened in infinite love by his Heavenly Father so he may learn obedience.  (John 14:21; 2 Corinthians 10:4-5; Galatians 5:22-23; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Matthew 22:37-40; 1 John 2:15-17; Hebrews 12:5-14)

​The Church

We believe that the Church of Jesus Christ is the universal company of God’s redeemed people, His Body, of which He is the head; and His Bride, whom He loves infinitely; and His temple, in which He dwells.  This universal Body of Christ is visibly expressed in local assemblies whose purpose is to glorify God through worship, fellowship, instruction in God’s Word, observing the ordinances and training in service to the world.  The supreme task in the mission of the Church is to make disciples for Christ in all the nations through the proclamation and teaching of the Gospel.  The Church is also to demonstrate the love and compassion of Christ, through word and deed, in an alienated world. (1 Peter 2:9; Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27, 2:19-22; 1 Thessalonians 2:14; Ephesians 3:6-10; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 4:11-13; Hebrews 10:25; Matthew 28:18-20, 26:26-29; 1 John 4:17)

​Ordinances

We believe that Christ instituted the ordinances of believers’ baptism (which we believe is by immersion), and the Lord’s Supper, both should be observed until He comes. (Matthew 28:19; Acts 8:26-29; Matthew 26:26-29; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Acts 2:41) 

​The Future Life

We believe in the imminent, pre-tribulational, premillennial return of Christ to take His people to be with Him and to judge and rule the earth in righteousness.  We believe in the resurrection of the body for both believers and unbelievers.  We believe that the believer goes to be with Christ in conscious blessedness immediately after death, having escaped the condemnation of his sins through the death of Christ. He will, however, stand before God to receive rewards for works approved by God or to suffer loss for works disapproved.  The believer will live eternally in the immediate presence of God, while the unbeliever must face the eternal and holy Judge who will sentence him for his sins.  He will experience the punishment of eternal separation in hell from the presence of God. (John 14:3; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 11:15; 1 Corinthians 15:20; Philippians 1:23; Romans 8:11; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:11-21:5; Romans 2:11)