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Our Beliefs |
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This is what Ridgecrest
believes:
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1.
About God
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God
is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has
eternally existed in three personalities—the Father, the
Son, and the Holy Spirit. The eternal triune God
reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with
distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature
essence, or being. (Genesis 1:1, 26, 27; Psalm 90:2;
Matthew 28:19; 1 Peter 1:2; 2 Corinthians 13:14) |
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2.
About Jesus Christ
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Christ is the eternal Son of God. He is conceived of
the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus lived a
sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect
sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a
cross. He arose from the dead after three days to
demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended
to Heaven’s glory and will return again some day to earth
to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. (Matthew
1:22, 23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14,15;
1 Corinthians 15:3; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Timothy
6:14-15; Titus 2:13)
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3.
About the Holy Spirit
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The Holy Spirit is the Spirit
of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write
the Scriptures. He is present in the world to make men and
women aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives
in every Christian with power for living, understanding of
spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He
gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved.
As Christians, we seek to live under His daily control. (2
Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14, 16, 17; Acts 1:8;
Ephesians 5:18; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13;
Galatians 5:25)
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4.
About the Bible
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The Bible is God’s word to us. Human authors wrote
it, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy
Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for
Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired
by God it is the truth without any mixture of error. All
Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus
of divine revelation. (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2
Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:105,106, 12:6; Proverbs 30:5)
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5.
About Human Beings
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People are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like
Him in character. People are the supreme object of God’s
creation. Although every person has tremendous
potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of
disobedience toward God called “sin.” This
attitude separates people from God and causes many problems
in life. Every person of every race possesses full
dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
(Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:23; Isaiah
59:1-2)
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6.
About Salvation
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Salvation is God’s free gift to us. We can never
make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works.
Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of
forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty.
When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in
faith, we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one
receives Jesus Christ into his or her life by faith. (Romans
6:23; Ephesians 2:9; John 14:6, 1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians
3:26; Romans 5:1)
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7.
About Eternal Security
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Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the
true believer is secure in that salvation for
eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot
“lose” your salvation. We may fall into sin
through neglect and temptation, but salvation is maintained
by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the
Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God
that gives us this security. (John 10:29; 2 Timothy 1:12;
Hebrews 7:25; 10:10-14; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
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8.
About Last Things
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People
were created to exist forever. God, in His own time and in
His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end.
Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to
the earth. We will either exist eternally separated from
God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and
salvation through Jesus Christ. To be eternally separated
from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is
eternal life. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal
existence (John 3:16; 1 John 5:13-15; Romans 6:23;
Revelation 20:11-15; Matthew 16:24-28)
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9.
About Evangelism and Missions
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It is the
duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every
church to go and make disciples of all nations. The Lord
has commanded the preaching of the gospel to all people on
earth. Every believer is called to seek constantly to win
the lost to Christ by verbal witness undergirded by a
Christian lifestyle. (Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:5-6; Matthew
9:37-38; 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians
3:1-11; Revelation 22:17).
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10.
About Education
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Christianity is the faith of enlightenment
and intelligence. In Jesus Christ abide all the treasures
of wisdom and knowledge. In Christian education there
should be a proper balance between academic freedom and
academic responsibility. The freedom of a teacher in a
Christian school, college, or seminary is limited by the
pre-eminence of Jesus Christ, by the authoritative nature of
Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose for which the school
exists. (Deuteronomy 4:1,5,9,14; Nehemiah 8:1-8; Psalms
119:11; Proverbs 4:1-10; Matthew 5:2; Philippians 4:8; 1
Timothy 1:3-7; 2 Timothy 2:15; 3:14-17; James 1:5; 3:17)
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11.
About Stewardship
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God is the source of all blessings, temporary and
spiritual. All that we have and are we owe to
Him. We are under spiritual obligation to serve God
with all of our time, talents, and material possessions; and
we should recognize all these as entrusted to us for God’s
glory and for helping others. According to Scripture,
we should contribute of our means cheerfully, regularly,
systematically, proportionately, and liberally for the
advancement of God’s cause here on earth. (Genesis 14:20;
Leviticus 27:30-32; Malachi 3:8-12; Matthew 6:1-4; Luke
12:16-21,42; Acts 2:44-47;Romans 6:6-22; 2 Corinthians 8-9;
1 Peter 1:18-19)
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12.
About Cooperation
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Christ’s people should, as occasion requires, organize
such associations and conventions as may best secure
cooperation for the great endeavors of the kingdom of
God. Such organizations have no authority over one
another or over the churches. They are voluntary and
advisory bodies designed to elicit, combine, and direct the
energies of our people in the most effective manner.
Cooperation is desirable between various Christian
denominations when the cause is worthwhile and it involves
no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to
Christ and His Word as revealed in the New Testament.
(Exodus 17:12; Judges 7:21; Nehemiah 4; Matthew 10:5-15;
Acts 1:13-14; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17)
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13.
About the Christian and the Social Order
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All Christians are under
obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in our
own lives and in human society. In the spirit of Christ,
Christians should oppose racism, every form of greed,
selfishness, and vice, and all forms of sexual immorality,
including adultery, homosexuality, and pornography. We
should work to provide for the orphaned, the needy, the
abused, the aged, the helpless, and the sick. We should
speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the sanctity
of all human life from conception to natural death. (Exodus
20:3-17; Leviticus 6:2-5; Psalm 101:5; Micah 6:8; Matthew
5:13-16; Mark 1:29-34; Romans 12-14; 1 Corinthians 5:9-10;
Galatians 3:26-28; James 1:27; 2:8)
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14.
About Peace and War
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It is the duty of all Christians to seek peace with all men
on principles of righteousness. The true remedy for
the war spirit is the gospel of our Lord. The supreme
need of the world is the acceptance of Christ’s teachings
in all the affairs of men and nations. Christians
should pray for the reign of the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah
2:4; Matthew 5:9, 38-48; 6:33; Romans 12:18-19; Hebrews
12:14; James 4:1-2)
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15.
About Religious Liberty
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God alone is the Lord of conscience and He has left it free
from the doctrines and commands of men which are contrary to
His Word or not contained in it. No church should be
favored by the state more than others. Since God ordains
civil government, Christians should obey all things that are
not contrary to the revealed will of God in His Word. A
free church in a free state is the Christian ideal. (Genesis
1:27; 2:7; Matthew 6:6-7,24; John 8:36; Acts 4:19-20; Romans
13:1-7; Philippians 3:20; 1 Peter 2:12-117)
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16.
About the Family
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God created the family as the foundational institution of
human society. Marriage is the uniting of one man and
one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. The
marriage relationship models the way God relates to His
people. A husband is to love his wife as Christ loved
the church. He has the responsibility to provide for,
to protect, and to lead his family. The wife, being in
the image of God as is her husband and thus equal to him,
has the God-given responsibility to respect her husband and
to serve as his helper in managing the household and
nurturing the next generation. Parents, if they have
children, are to demonstrate to them God’s pattern for
marriage. Children are to honor and obey their
parents. (Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15-25; 3:1-20; Deuteronomy
6:4-9; Joshua 24:15; Psalm 51:5; Proverbs 1:8; Matthew
5:31-32; Romans 1:18-32; Ephesians 5:21-33; Colossians
3:18-21; Hebrews 13:4)
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Source: Excerpts from the 2000 revision
of The Baptist
Faith and Message
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