Free Web Hosting Provider - Web Hosting - E-commerce - High Speed Internet - Free Web Page
Search the Web


Inner City Baptist Church
Statement of Faith
  1. The Holy Scriptures
    We believe the Holy Scriptures (AV 1611) of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally and plenary inspired word of GOD. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, God-breathed, preserved, and are therefore the final authority for faith and life. The sixty six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and final divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal, literal, grammatical- historical meaning. We believe that the Authorized Version 1611, also known as the King James Version, shall be the only and official English Bible used by this Church. (2 Tim. 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20- 21).
  2. Dispensationalism
    We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man's responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations do not allow different rules for salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. (1 Cor. 9:17, 2 Cor. 3:9-18, Gal. 3:13-25)
  3. The Godhead
    We believe in One Triune GOD, eternally existing in three persons-Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, each coeternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same essence, attributes, and perfections (Duet. 6:4; Isaiah 7:14, 9:6; Matt. 1:21-23; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 14:10, 26; 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Tim. 3:16; Hebrews 1:8; )
  4. The Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ
    1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became Man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God, and redeem sinful men (2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Philippians 2:5-8).
    2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical, bodily, resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:18-36; Romans 3:24-25; 1 Peter 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5).
    3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, he fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2).
  5. The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
    1. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity Who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, spiritually baptizing all believers into the spiritual body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; 1 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
    2. We believe that He is the Divine Teacher Who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the Saved to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18;5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27).
    3. We believe that God is Sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to believers. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the Church in order that they can do the work of the ministry (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4- 11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12).
    4. We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Ghost, i.e. speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary and uniquely designed for the Jewish unbeliever. We believe that speaking in tongues was never the common nor necessary sign of the baptism of the Holy Ghost and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for healing (1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22).
  6. The Total Depravity of Man
    We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam's sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; that man is totally depraved, and of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition ( Gen. 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19).
  7. Salvation
    We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:18-19).
  8. The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
    1. We believe that all who are truly saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 6:37- 40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Peter. 1:4- 5).
    2. We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God's word, which however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh (Romans 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15).
  9. The Church
    1. We believe that the church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of bornagain persons (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:22; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27).
    2. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5- 11).
    3. We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Romans 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1-4).
    4. We recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the Church in this age (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18-18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26).
  10. Separation
    We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Saviour and Lord, and, that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations is commanded of God (Romans 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11).
  11. The Second Advent of Christ
    We believe in that "blessed hope", the personal, imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ Who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation Christ will personally and visibly return, with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the Nation of Israel (Psalm 89:3-5; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4- 11; 1 Thess. 1:10; 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10, 19:11-16, 20:1-6).
  12. The Eternal State
    1. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28,29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5- 6, 12-13).
    2. We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23, 3:21; 1 Thess 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6).
    3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43- 48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15).
  13. The Personality of Satan
    We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the Fall of Man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man, and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire (Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev 20:10).
  14. Creation
    We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour days. We reject evolution, the Day-Age Theory, the Gap theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of the origin of all (Genesis 1- 2; Exodus 20:11; John 1:3; Colossians 1:16).
  15. Civil Government
    We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home; 2) the church; and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and are to be governed by His word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that the state has no right to infringe upon the church. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God (Romans 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22- 24; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:13-14).
  16. Human Sexuality
    We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity should be engaged in outside of a lawful marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions of God's gift of sex (Gen. 2:24; 19:5, 13; 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Romans 1:26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1, 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4).
  17. Divorce and Remarriage
    We believe that God hates divorce and intends marriage to be permanent. However, recognizing the sinfulness of man, God has allowed for the marriage covenant to be broken only in instances of fornication, and death. In each of these instances, God allows remarriage without bondage. (Gen. 2:24; Mal. 2:14-16; Matt. 19:3-12; 1 Cor. 7:1- 15; 1 Tim. 3:1-13).
  18. Abortion
    We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the mental well-being of the mother are acceptable (Job 3:16; Psalms 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24, 49:1-5; Jer. 1:5, 20:15-18; Luke 1:44).
  19. Missions
    We believe that God has given the Church a Great Command to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ we must use all available means to go to the unsaved multitudes, whether at home or on the foreign field, and not wait for them to come to us (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20).
  20. Lawsuits Between Believers
    We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the Church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian's insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander ( 1 Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32).
  21. Giving
    We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God's wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially. We believe that God has established the tithe as the minimum required to give, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the Church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; 1 Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17).
Available in pdf format for download.

Close Window