OUR BELIEFS
Our Articles of Faith
 
1. The Bible – We believe the Bible is the Inerrant, Infallible, Inspired and Authoritative Word of God.  It does not contain the Word of God.  It is the Word of God.  Therefore, it is sufficient for things pertaining to God, life and living as it relates to its claims, commands, laws, doctrines and instructions.  Furthermore, there is no salvation for fallen humanity outside of that which is contained within its pages.

   2nd Timothy 3:15-17; 2nd Peter 1:19-21

2. God – We believe that there is only one true and living God, who has created the heavens and the earth. He is shown in the pages of the Bible as Invisible, Eternal, Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Holy, Righteous, Just, Longsuffering, Merciful and Loving.  This one God has chosen to reveal Himself in three distinct personalities:  The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit.  Each person within this Godhead equally shares the same eternal qualities as the others.

Deuteronomy 6:3; Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 29:18-20; 2nd Corinthians 13:14

3. The Lord Jesus Christ – We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ is the Eternal Son of God, who became man without ceasing to be God’s Eternal Son. He lived as a man on earth experiencing all human experiences without sin or sinning.  At the appointed time, Our Lord was crucified to atone for our sins.  He was buried and, on the third day, He was raised from the dead.  After His resurrection He was seen for forty days.  Then He returned to heaven and sat down at the right hand side of God the Father.  He is there right now, interceding on behalf of His People.  He will come back to earth one day soon first, to take His bride, the Church, away and then later to sit on the Throne of David ushering in the age of the Kingdom in its fullness.  

John 1:1-18; Acts 1:1-4; Romans 8:34; 1st Corinthians 15:1-11; Ephesians 1:20; Philippians 2:5-11; 1st Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 1:3, Hebrews 13, Hebrews 8:1, Hebrews 10:12, Hebrews 12:1-2

4. The Holy SpiritWe believe that the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Godhead. He is equal to God the Father and God the Son in character and essence, but different in office and operation.  God the Father planned our Salvation.  God the Son offered the purchase price of our Salvation.  God the Holy Spirit is responsible to provide to us what was planned and purchased.  He Saves us; He Seals us; He Secures us; He Settles us.

Genesis: 1-2; John 14:16-17; John 16:7-13; Romans 8:1-17; Ephesians 1:3-14

5. AngelsWe believe that at a period before time began, God made an angelic host. They are a diverse group of celestial beings set aside for the express purpose of glorifying God.  Originally, they all fulfilled his purpose, until one of them Lucifer, decided to seek glory for himself.  He led an angelic rebellion against God, which failed.  Then Lucifer became Satan and, along with one-third of the angels, was cast out of heaven.  Now there are good angels, those who remained faithful to God, and evil angels, called demons, who have aligned themselves with Satan.  This plan will fail, because ultimately, God is in control.  Good angels are sent to serve the people of God.

Job 25:3; Job 38:7; Psalm 68:17; Isaiah 6:2; 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Hebrews 12:22; Jude 1:14

6. Man – We believe that Man was created by God in His own image and likeness for the express purpose glorifying God and governing over the earth.  Man is presently in a fallen state due to the failure of Adam in the Garden of Eden.  Adam’s act of disobedience caused every human being that is born to have a sin nature and is helplessly unable to change themselves unto Salvation.  

  Genesis 1:25-31; 2-7; Romans 3:1-21; Ephesians 2:1-3

7. The Family – We believe that the family was instituted by God; that in His original design, He intended that a Man and Woman would be joined together in marriage.  As a result of that union, they would have children, and then grow together in harmony with God and one another.  The failure of man’s representative, Adam, in the Garden of Eden, has damaged our ability to fulfill that harmonious design.  Man’s sin continues to deny and defy God’s original plan for marriage and the family.

  Genesis 2:7-25; Genesis 3; Matthew 19:5; 1st Corinthians 7:1-17; Ephesians 5:18-33
 
8. Sin – We believe that Mankind is in a state of sin.  This is due to Adam’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden.  This one act of disobedience made the entire human race sinners.  Sin is simply not an act.  It is a state of being originating with the heart.  The heart’s of men are corrupt and in need of transformation.  No man is capable of this transformation.  Only God can change the heart.

  Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9
 
9. The Gospel – We believe that the Gospel is the Good News from God concerning His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ.  It reveals God’s redemptive work through Jesus Christ.  It speaks of God’s wrath against sin and his unconditional Love and Grace towards helpless sinners.  The heart of the Gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.  His Resurrection being the proof of God’s accepting His sacrifice.  

  Romans 1:1-4; 1st Corinthians 15:1-8; Matthew 27-28; Mark 15-16; Luke 23-24; John 19-20
 
10. Salvation – We believe that God has chosen to Save men. He does this through the selfless act of His own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who offered up His life on the cross as an atonement sacrifice for man’s sin.  His sacrifice both paid the price for our sins and satisfied God’s Holy demand for justice.  It is a gift of grace and is received by faith.  No one deserves it and no one could pay for it.  It is the only plan that God offers to man because it is the only one that He will accept.

John 6:37; John 44; Ephesians 1:4; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1st Peter 1:2-5

11. Justification – We believe that through the finished work of Christ on the Cross we are Justified. This means that we are declared Righteous by God and are in right standing with God on the basis of our faith in Christ.

Romans 3:21-28; 4-1-12; 5:1-11

12. Sanctification – We believe that Sanctification is the Positional, Progressive and Personal work of the Holy Spirit. Through Sanctification, the Holy Spirit is at work shaping us into the image of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The work of the Spirit is ongoing and consistent with the Will of God for His People.

Romans 1:7; Romans8:1-17; 1st Corinthians 1:2; 1st Corinthians 1:30-31; Philippians 1:1; 1st
Thessalonians 4:1-6
 
13. The Church – We believe that Christ is the Head of the Church and the Church is made up of every single person who is redeemed by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church began on the day of Pentecost, in Acts 2 and continues on until the return of Jesus.  It is made up of men and women; boys and girls from every nation; every race; every color; etc. found throughout human history.  This movement will continue throughout the world until the very last person who has been chosen by God for His church has been saved.

Matthew 16:18; Acts 2; Romans 1:1-7; Ephesians 3:14-21

14. The Last Days – We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is coming at any time. As to the when and the how, no man knows the day or the hour.  We accept that the Lord Jesus will come for His Church, both for those who are dead and those who are alive, and that we will be caught away from the earth.  At that time, we will be changed into His likeness, and taken to heaven.  There will be a final judgment.

Matthew 24-25; Mark 13:32; Acts 1:11; 1st Corinthians 15:50-58; 1st Thessalonians’ 4:13-18; 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-2
 
 

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Shiloh Baptist Church | 96 North Centre Ave, RVC, NY 11570 | 516-764-8311 | shilohbaptrvc@optonline.net