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The
Evangelical Free Church of America is an association of autonomous churches
united around these theological convictions:
God
1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect,
and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons:
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and
sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a
people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
The Bible
2. We believe
that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through
the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible
is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His
will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human
knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in
all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that
it promises.
The Human Condition
3. We believe
that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they sinned when tempted by
Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice,
alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s saving work in
Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and renewed.
Jesus Christ
4. We believe
that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in
two natures. Jesus—Israel's promised Messiah—was conceived through the Holy
Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified
under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and
sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.
The Work of Christ
5. We believe
that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on
the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning
death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
The Holy Spirit
6. We believe
that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ.
He convicts the world of its guilt. He regenerates sinners, and in Him they
are baptized into union with Christ and adopted as heirs in the family of
God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips and empowers believers
for Christlike living and service.
The Church
7. We believe
that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God's grace
through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in
the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in
local churches, whose membership should be composed only of believers. The
Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which
visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of
salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances
confirm and nourish the believer.
Christian Living
8. We believe
that God's justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power
and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially,
and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the
poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word, the Spirit’s power, and
fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of
evil. In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among
all people, always bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
Christ’s Return
9. We believe in
the personal, bodily and premillennial return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The
coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy
and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living,
sacrificial service and energetic mission.
Response and Eternal
Destiny
10. We believe
that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to
Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God
will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to
condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer to eternal
blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to
the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.
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