Our Beliefs | parsonsbaptist

Doctrinal Statement

The sole authority for faith and practice are the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. “The Baptist Faith and Message”, as adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention on June 14, 2000, serves as our guide in interpretation, having no authority over the conscience of the believer.

The statements in this article are a summary of the essentials of our faith, taken from the “Abstract of Principles.”[1]

The Scriptures - The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament were given by inspiration of God, and are the only sufficient, certain and authoritative rule of all saving knowledge, faith and obedience.
God - There is but one God, the Maker, Preserver and Ruler of all things, having in and of himself, all perfections, and being infinite in them all; and to Him all creatures owe the highest love, reverence and obedience.

The Trinity - God is revealed to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit each with

distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence or being.

Humanity - God originally created man in His own image, and free from sin; but, through the temptation of Satan, he transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original holiness and righteousness; whereby his posterity inherit a nature corrupt and wholly opposed to God and His law.
The Mediator - Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, is the divinely appointed mediator between God and man. Having taken upon Himself human nature, yet without sin (being born of virgin Mary), He perfectly fulfilled the Law, suffered and died upon the cross for the salvation of sinners. He was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended to His Father, at whose hand He ever lives to make intercession for His people. He is the only Mediator, the Prophet, Priest and King of the Church, and Sovereign of the Universe.
Salvation - Salvation comes through faith in Christ. Saving faith is accepting and resting upon Him alone for justification and eternal life. It is brought about in the heart by the Holy Spirit, and leads to a life of holiness.
The Church - The Lord Jesus is the Head of the Church, which is composed of all his true disciples, and in Him is invested supremely all power for its government. According to his commandment, Christians are to associate themselves into particular churches; and to each of these churches he has given needful authority for administering that order, discipline and worship which he has appointed. The regular officers of a Church are Pastor or Elders, and Deacons.

Ordinances

Baptism - Baptism is an ordinance of the Lord Jesus, obligatory upon every believer, wherein one is immersed in water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, as a sign of one’s fellowship with the death and resurrection of Christ, of remission of sins, and of giving oneself up to God to live and walk in newness of life. It is prerequisite to church membership and to participation in the Lord's Supper.
The Lord's Supper - The Lord's Supper or Communion is an ordinance of Jesus Christ, to be administered with the elements of bread and the fruit of the vine, and to be observed by His churches until the end of the world. It is in no sense a sacrifice, but is designed to commemorate his death, to confirm the faith and other graces of Christians, and to be a bond, pledge and renewal of their communion with Him, and of their church fellowship.

Contemporary Issues

In an effort to use love language, not hate language, to our neighbors we seek to define marriage and sexuality in biblical terms. We believe that the term ‘marriage’ has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. Therefore, Parsons Baptist Church will only allow weddings that fall within the definition of what we believe marriage to be.

We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of marriage.

We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography, or any attempt to change one’s sex, or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God.

We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by the church in any capacity, or those who serve regularly as volunteers, should abide by and agree to this statement on marriage and sexuality and conduct themselves accordingly.

We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual or group are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of the church.