SECTION 1 – THE SCRIPTURES

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16

We believe all Scripture of the Old and New Testaments to be verbally inspired by God and inerrant in the original writings (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:2) and that they are the supreme and final authority for faith and life (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21).

We believe God in His good providence has faithfully preserved His revelation to man so that today we possess accurate and reliable texts of both testaments (Isaiah 40:8; 1 Peter 1:24-25).

We believe the meaning of Scripture is determined by a literal, grammatical, and historical method of interpretation under the illuminating ministry of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:7-15).

SECTION 2 – THE TRINITY

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.

2 Corinthians 13:14

We believe the one living and true God exists in three persons:  the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are one God having precisely the same nature and attributes and are worthy of the same worship, honor, confidence, and obedience (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14).  

SECTION 3 – GOD

But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

John 4:23-24

God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth (Westminster Shorter Catechism). We believe the Genesis account of creation, that God created all things out of nothing (ex nihilo), that God created the universe in six literal twenty-four-hour days and on the sixth day He created man in His own image. We reject the man-made theories of evolution (Genesis 1-2).  

SECTION 4 – CHRIST

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

Colossians 1:15-17

A. His Pre-existence

We believe the Lord Jesus Christ is co-eternal in being with the Father and the Holy Spirit from eternity past (John 1:1,14, 17:5; Hebrews 13:8).

B. His Deity

We believe Jesus Christ to be of the same substance or essence, coequal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus Christ has never at any time ceased to be God (John 1:1, 14, 8:58, 10:30, 14:9).

C. His Virgin Birth

We believe Jesus Christ was miraculously conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary with the result that the second person of the triune God was joined to a real human body and nature. We, therefore, believe the virgin birth was the method by which the second person of the Godhead entered into humanity and became the God-man (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:35).

D. His Humanity

We believe Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, and that His human nature was genuine and complete. We believe the incarnation forever unites God with humanity in hypostatic union as the God-man, Jesus Christ (Isaiah 53:2; John 1:1-14; Philippians 2:5-8).

E. His Sinless Character

We believe Jesus Christ in His incarnation was tempted in all things as we are, and was yet without sin. This did not in any way demean His humanity. Sin, being an intrusion upon and not a necessary element of humanity, marred man and brought death. Jesus Christ was perfect humanity without ever experiencing sin (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22).

F. His Death

We believe the death of Jesus Christ was a literal, complete, and final physical death (John 19:30; Romans 5:6-8; 1 Corinthians 15:4-5).

G. His Resurrection

We believe in a literal, physical, bodily, and personal resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (Mark 16:6; 1 Corinthians 15:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:14).

H. His Redemptive Character

We believe the Lord Jesus fully satisfied the justice of God by His perfect obedience and sacrifice of Himself to God on man’s behalf. We believe Christ effectually calls all those for whom He purchased redemption (Romans 3:25-26; Galatians 3:13; Hebrews 9:14-15, 10:10; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

I. His Priestly Ministry

We believe Jesus Christ has ascended into heaven and is at the right hand of God to intercede on behalf of believers as their High Priest and Advocate. We also believe that as all judgment has been given unto the Son, He as the Judge will evaluate the works of believers at the Bema (Judgment Seat of Christ) and the works of unbelievers at the Great White Throne Judgment (John 5:22, 26-27; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Hebrews 1:3, 7:25; 1 John 2:1; Revelation 20:11-15).

J. His Return

We believe Jesus Christ will return to the earth and that there are two distinct phases of His coming revealed in Scripture: the rapture of the saints and the revelation of Christ. These two phases are separated by the seven-year tribulation period. We believe the return of Christ for the saints is imminent, literal, bodily, personal, pre-tribulational and pre-millennial (John 14:2-3; Acts 1:11; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; Philippians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; James 5:8).

SECTION 5 – THE HOLY SPIRIT

I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.

John 16:12-14

A. His Deity

We believe the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Godhead, is identical in substance or essence, co-equal in power and glory, and has the same attributes and perfection as God the Father and God the Son (Matthew 28:19; John 15:26, 16:13-14; Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 2:11; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

B. His Personality

We believe the Holy Spirit is not just an influence, power, or force, but an eternal person having intellect, emotion, and will (1 Corinthians 2:10-11, 12:11; Ephesians 4:30).

C. His Work

  1. Convicting:  We believe the present ministry of the Holy Spirit is restraining sin in the world and convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:7).
  1. Regenerating:  We believe the Spirit is the supernatural agent in the work of regeneration, in which He sovereignly imparts to the soul new spiritual life with new desires for God (John 3:5; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Titus 3:3).
  1. Indwelling:  We believe the Spirit indwells every believer. This indwelling takes place at the time of salvation. It is God’s pledge guaranteeing the believer’s complete redemption and is permanent in nature (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Ephesians 1:13, 4:30).
  1. Baptizing:  We believe the baptism of the Spirit to be the work of the Holy Spirit placing every believer in this present dispensation of the church age into the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13).
  1. Filling:  We believe that the Spirit fills the believer. The filling is not a second work of grace, a completion of salvation, or a second blessing. It is the believer being controlled by the Spirit through a continually dedicated and dependent life producing a Christ-like character (Galatians 5:16, 22-23; Ephesians 5:18).
  1. Teaching:  We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Divine Teacher who guided His apostles into all truth and who teaches all believers and reveals to them the deep things of God (John 14:26, 16:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:9-15; 1 John 2:20, 27).
  1. Spiritual Gifts:  We believe that the Holy Spirit is sovereign in giving spiritual gifts. These gifts are distributed to the church for the building up and good of the body (1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 13:8, 14:19). We believe there are three categories of spiritual gifts:  sign, serving, and speaking gifts. The sign gifts served a specific purpose in the first century to authenticate the message of the gospel through the Apostles (2 Corinthians 12:12). Sign gifts, including supernatural miracles and speaking in tongues (supernatural ability to speak in a known language), were limited to the apostolic age. This does not mean that God does not heal in answer to prayer and according to His sovereign will (Acts 2:4-11; 1 Corinthians 14; Hebrews 2:4).

SECTION 6 – SIN

Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.

Romans 5:12

A. Man’s Fall

We believe man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Therefore, everyone is born a sinner in both nature and practice. Sin is defined as falling short of God’s righteous standard of holiness or righteousness (Romans 3:23).

Because of sin man is condemned, under judgment, without hope, and utterly helpless to remedy his lost condition. He is totally depraved, which does not mean that man is as bad as he can be, but rather that man is as bad off as he can be. Man possesses no spark of divinity in his natural condition but rather is born spiritually dead and corrupt in every part of his being. He needs to be made alive (born again) by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit that comes solely by grace alone through faith alone in the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ alone (Psalm 51:5; Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:10-12; Ephesians 2:1-10; John 3:17-18).

B. Satan

We believe Satan is the author of sin and the deceiver of Eve in the fall. We believe he is the declared enemy of God and man and he shall be eternally punished in the lake of fire (Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 4:2-11; Revelation 20:10).

SECTION 7 – SALVATION

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Ephesians 2:8-10

A. By Grace Alone through Faith Alone in Christ Alone

We believe in a “reformed” view of salvation. God has chosen before the foundation of the world all those He would save. Christ came to purchase His chosen people through His redeeming work on the cross.  Salvation is the gift of God, brought to many by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is totally a work of God for man and, therefore, it is apart from any sacraments, ordinances, good works, or human merit (Ephesians 1:3-4; John 1:12; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).

B. Available to All

We believe that this salvation is available to all men, but effective for only those who repent from their sin and turn to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord (Acts 17:30; Romans 6:23; 1 Timothy 2:3-6).

C. Immediate Justification

We believe man is immediately justified (declared righteous) by God and receives eternal life at the moment of his conversion. In justification the believer’s sins are imputed to Christ and paid for in His substitutionary death, and Christ’s perfect righteousness is imputed to the believer (Romans 3:24-26; 5:1).

D. Sanctification

We believe that biblical sanctification is the process by which, according to the will of God, the believer is set apart from sin to Christ and has three aspects.

  1. The believer has been positionally set apart before God the moment he believes (1 Corinthians 1:30, 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 10:10, 14).
  1. The believer is being set apart or sanctified progressively in his daily walk as he grows in grace toward the likeness of Christ. Progressive sanctification takes place by the power of the Holy Spirit and the continual use of God’s appointed means, especially the Word of God, self-examination, watchfulness, prayer and yielding to the Spirit (John 17:17; Romans 8:13; 2 Peter 3:18; Romans 8:28, 29a; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Timothy 4:7b; Hebrews 5:12-14; 1 John 3:3; Romans 12:1, 2; Ephesians 4:22, 24).
  1. The believer is to be set apart prospectively from the very presence of sin when his sanctification is completed at the coming of Christ for the church (1 John 3:2; 1 Thessalonians 3:13, 5:23).

E. Eternally Secure

We believe all who are born again by the Spirit of God are kept by God’s power alone. They are therefore secure in Christ forever, sealed by the Holy Spirit who is the guarantee of their inheritance. This eternal salvation rests in the faithfulness of God, not in the faithfulness of man. This preservation of all believers rests upon the finished work of Christ, the promises of God, God’s gracious election before the foundation of the world, and the sovereign predestination of God. Therefore, it is the privilege of the believer to rejoice in the assurance of his salvation through the testimony of God’s Word. While the genuine believer in Christ is eternally secure, God’s Word clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as a license to carry out the desires of the flesh (John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; Ephesians 1:13-14; Philippians 1:6; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 1:3-5; 1 John 2:1-2; Galatians 5).

SECTION 8 – THE CHURCH

I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

1 Timothy 3:15

A. Defined

We believe the church, the body and bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism and New Testament institution composed of all born-again believers of this present church age. We believe the local church is the visible expression of the “body of Christ,” and that God’s program for this age is to be carried out through the local church, the pillar and support of the truth (1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; 1 Timothy 3:15).

B. Ordinances

We believe our Lord Jesus Christ has left the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper to be observed by the church in commemoration of His person and work.

We exhort all who have professed Christ as Savior and Lord to be obedient to Christ’s command to be baptized by immersion in water in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We believe that water baptism neither regenerates, cleanses from sin, nor completes a salvation process.  Rather, water baptism is a public testimony to one’s union with the triune God and identification with His people (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:38-41, 8:12-13, 9:18, 19:4; John 1:31; Titus 3:5).

We believe the Lord’s Supper is the commemoration of our Lord’s death until He returns by the sacred use of bread and juice as the symbols of the price He paid for sinners. This commemoration should always be preceded by solemn self-examination (1 Corinthians 11:23-28).

C. Mission

We believe the primary mission of the church is to proclaim the gospel to the nations and equip believers for the work of serving. The church is not a political organization or a social institution. The church is not called to enforce social justice, engage in social activism, or participate in ecumenical movements as God’s agency on earth. Rather, the church is called to worship God in spirit and in truth and serve as the pillar and support of the truth (Ephesians 4:11-12; Matthew 28:19-20; John 4:24; 1 Timothy 3:15).  

D. Responsibility

We believe it is the church’s task to glorify God through:

  1. Regular corporate worship (John 4:24; Hebrews 10:25, 13:15; Colossians 3:16)
  1. Evangelism of the lost (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)
  1. Building up believers (Ephesians 4:11-16)
  1. Caring for her members (1 Timothy 5)
  1. Doing good in the world (Galatians 6:10)

E. Separation

We believe that out of deep gratitude for the undeserved grace God has granted to us, and because our glorious God is worthy of our total consecration, all believers should live in such a manner as to demonstrate our love to God and not to bring reproach upon our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Ephesians 4:1-3; Colossians 1:9-12).

We believe in the separation of the local church from all affiliations and fellowships who deny the fundamentals of the Christian faith (Romans 16:17).

We believe separation from sin is clearly commanded throughout the Old and New Testaments, and that the Scriptures clearly indicate that in the last days apostasy and worldliness will increase (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1-5).

We believe, though Christians are commanded to be good citizens and obey those placed in authority over us, the church as an institution should be separate from the state (Matthew 22:21).

F. Government

We believe the local New Testament church is autonomous, self-governing, self-supporting, and self-propagating (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 13:1-3; Titus 1:5).

We believe the local church is to be shepherded and ruled by a plurality of spiritually qualified men known as Elders (Acts 20:28; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 5:17-20; Titus 1:5; 1 Peter 5:1-4).  

We believe it is the responsibility of all members to seek to have a spirit of eager cooperation and submission to their leaders (Romans 15:2; Hebrews 13:17).

G. Gender Roles 

We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God, but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions within the home and the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home and men are to be the leaders in the church. Accordingly, only men will serve as Elders in the church. This is known as the complementarian view of the genders (1 Timothy 2:11-15; 1 Corinthians 14:34).

SECTION 9 – MARRIAGE AND THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE

The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. 23 The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” 24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

Genesis 2:22-24

A. Marriage and Human Sexuality

We believe marriage is a monogamous, heterosexual union instituted and ordained by God

(Genesis 2:18-25; Ephesians 5:22-33). As such, it is to be an exclusive covenantal union of one man and one woman as determined by their God-given biological sex at birth for the purpose of a lifetime of mutual commitment and companionship. A civil government’s sanction of a union will only be recognized as a legitimate marriage by Evansville Bible Church to the extent that it is consistent with this biblical standard. We therefore believe and affirm that:

  1. The term “marriage” has only one meaning: It is a union sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive relationship, as delineated in Scripture.
  1. God intends sexual intimacy to only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other. 
  1. God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity is to occur outside of marriage.
  1. Any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, polygamy or any attempt to change one’s gender, or to reject one’s God-assigned, biological gender is sinful and offensive to God.
  1. In order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ and to provide a biblical example to church members and the community, it is imperative that all members or persons employed by Evansville Bible Church in any capacity or who serve as volunteers in any capacity should agree with and abide by this position statement on Marriage and Human Sexuality and conduct themselves accordingly.
  1. The recognition of same-sex or trans-gendered marriages, civil unions or domestic partnerships is prohibited by Scripture. Rather than promoting the family and the common good of a community, the recognition and sanction of same-sex marriages, civil unions or domestic partnerships is detrimental to a society. Such a redefinition of marriage dishonors God, devalues the institution, and confuses the meaning of family and the unique role of both a man and a woman in the nurturing and instruction of children.
  1. God offers redemption and restoration to one’s created identity as male or female to all who confess and forsake their sin and seek forgiveness and mercy through Jesus Christ.

B. Sanctity of Human Life

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. This affirmation does not suggest that we oppose capital punishment or just war (Psalm 139; Genesis 9:5-6; Matthew 26:52; Romans 13:1-4).

SECTION 10 – FUTURE EVENTS

Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus.

Titus 2:13

A. The Second Coming of Christ

We believe the second coming of Christ is pre-millennial and will take place in two distinct phases (Revelation 3:10, 19:7-14). The first phase, often called the Rapture, involves the personal, imminent, and pre-tribulational coming of the Lord Jesus for His church. The Rapture of the Church is the believer’s comforting, purifying, and blessed hope and expectancy (Acts 1:11; Revelation 22:20; Titus 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 4:13-18, 5:9-10; 1 John 3:2-3).

The second phase of the second coming of Christ will take place immediately after the tribulation period.  Christ will return to earth with His saints after the seven-year tribulation period in order to establish His millennial kingdom (Zechariah 14:4-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10: Revelation 19:11-16, 20:1-6).

B. The Eternal State

We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men. The saved shall be raised to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:46; John 5:28-29; Revelation 20:4-15).

We believe the believer at death is absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss he awaits the first resurrection when he will be reunited with his resurrected body to be glorified forever with the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:51; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).

We believe unbelievers at death go to be in conscious misery until the second resurrection, when they shall be reunited with their resurrected bodies to appear before Christ at the Great White Throne Judgment. Unbelievers will not be annihilated, but will suffer everlasting, conscious punishment under the wrath of a holy God (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; Revelation 20:11-15).