Statement of Faith
The following statement of faith is provided only as an abridged expression of our position on some of the major doctrines (BSWE is a ministry of First Baptist Church of Milford).
We believe that God eternally exists in three distinct persons each equal in attributes and power – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus is God’s only Son who is without sin and who came to earth for the express purpose of giving His life to be a ransom for the sins of all people. We believe that Jesus is God. We believe that the Holy Spirit is God. We believe the Holy Spirit indwells each believer. We believe that the Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus Christ. We do not believe in the modern tongues movement. We believe that the triune God created all things and holds all things together. We believe that God is sovereign over all things in heaven, in earth, and under the earth and that His will is being and will be accomplished in these same three realms. We believe that the Bible consists of only sixty-six books (Genesis through Revelation). We believe that God breathed the very words of Scripture (all of them) and superintended the men whom He chose in the process each had in writing the Scripture. We believe that God has preserved His Word in New Testament form in the manuscript text known as the Textus Receptus. We further believe that God has preserved His Word in Old Testament form in the manuscript text known as the Masoretic Text. Finally, we believe we have His preserved Word in the English language in the Bible known as the King James Version or Authorized Version. The King James Version is our sole authority for all purposes of reading and studying in English. The Bible is our sole rule of faith and practice. We believe that the church is a local, visible assembly of saved persons who have been baptized by immersion after their salvation experience. We believe that the church has only two offices – pastor and deacon. We believe that the church has only two ordinances – baptism and the Lord’s Supper (the former being prerequisite to the latter). We believe that the church’s primary and all-important business is to tell every person in the world about the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ, baptize those who accept Jesus as their Saviour, and teach them to observe His Word. We believe the church is the designated agency which is continuing and will perpetuate in the aforementioned manner until Christ returns. We believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour. We believe that a person must repent of his or her sin in order to be saved. We believe that all persons are dead in sin from their birth and must be born again by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. We believe that salvation is the gift of God and unable to be earned by any means. We believe that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will be in two parts. First, we believe in a pre-tribulation return by Christ in the sky to take His church up into heaven; and second, we believe in a physical return of Christ to the earth bringing His saints with Him at the end of the tribulation wherein He will defeat all enemies and set up His earthly, millennial kingdom.
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Statement of Faith
