What We Believe

The following are the core beliefs of Calvary Baptist Church  based on the foundational truths taught in the Bible. All of our teaching and ministry is rooted in and flows out of these biblical doctrines.

We believe that the Bible (the 39 books of the Old Testament and 27 books of the New Testament), in its original manuscripts, was inspired by God. As God’s inspired Word, the Bible is without error in all that it affirms and is of supreme and final authority in faith and practice.  

We believe in one God, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, immutable, existing in three
distinct persons. Those persons are the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and these three exist in
eternal distinction and equality. This God created the universe from nothing and exercises his
ongoing providential governance over all things.

We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son, was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the
virgin Mary. As a result of the incarnation, Jesus Christ is both true God and true man. He lived
a perfect life and died to make atonement for the sins of the world.

We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of Jesus, in His ascension into Heaven, in
His present ministry there for us as High Priest and Advocate, and in His imminent return.

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a distinct third member of the Trinity and fully God. The Holy
Spirit was the divine agent in creation, revelation, and redemption.

We believe that Christians are indwelt and sealed by the Holy Spirit and so are secured unto the
day of redemption. We believe that the filling of the Spirit in a believer’s life is manifested by
that person’s willingness to be under control of the Spirit and to be obedient to the Word of
God. We do not believe that speaking in tongues is a primary manifestation of the fullness of
the Spirit as it is taught and espoused by the charismatic movement. We believe that the gift of
tongues was a sign in the early church, and that gift ceased after the completing of the canon
of Scripture.

We believe that man was created perfect and in the image of God by a special act of
God, wholly apart from any process of evolution. All humans, as image-bearers, possess
inherent dignity and worth. Through the sin of Adam, mankind became depraved, marring the
image of God and causing them to be in need of a Savior.

We believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures as a representative
and substitutionary sacrifice. All who repent of their sin, believe in His name, and receive Jesus
as Savior are made God’s children, joint heirs with Christ. This salvation can be found by grace
alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

We believe that the Scriptures admonish each believer to progress in his/her sanctification. This
transformation toward Christlikeness is made possible by the efforts of each believer
in cooperation with the Spirit, by the power of the Word of God, and
by the encouragement of other believers.

We believe that the church began at Pentecost. It is composed solely of believers and is
the bride of Jesus Christ. The church is a local assembly of the body of Christ. This local body
meets together for the study of the Bible, for discipleship, for worship, for the observance of
the ordinances, and for prayer. As an independent local body, the church has the right of self-governance as directed by the Holy Spirit and the principles of Scripture. The mission of the
church is to display the glory of God to the world and to fulfill the Great Commission.

We believe in two ordinances: believer’s baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the
immersion of the believer in water as a public testimony to saving faith. The Lord’s Supper was
instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ and is to be observed by believers in this age as a memorial
of Christ’s death.

We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and unjust in the last day. Those who profess
saving faith will spend eternity with God and the lost will experience separation from God which
will include everlasting conscious punishment.

We believe that Satan, a fallen angel, is the author of the fall of mankind. He is the adversary of
Christ and the church and his ultimate destiny, along with the lost, is eternal conscious
punishment in the Lake of Fire.

We believe that God commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a
marriage between a man and a woman. Any such activity is a perversion of God’s good gift of
sex. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by
surgery or appearance.

We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society.
The husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit herself to the
Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to the leadership of Christ. Children
are a heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and
moral values and leading them through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate
discipline.

We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God. However, we
believe that God has ordained distinct and separate functions for men and women in the home
and the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home (as described above), and men
are to be the leaders (pastors/elders) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible to fill the
role of elder and to be candidates for licensure and ordination by the church.

We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one man and one woman. We
believe that God intends marriage to be a life-long commitment. As such, the breaking of that
commitment through divorce is never His intention, though it may at times be permissible in the
case of infidelity and/or desertion.

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.