DECLARATION OF FAITH
The Declaration of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our beliefs. The Bible itself, Old and New Testaments, as the divinely inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind is the sole and final source of all that we believe. For purposes of AMBC’s faith, doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline, our Pastor(s) and Deacon Board shall serve as AMBC’s final interpretive authority on the Bible’s meaning and application.
This scriptural record we interpret to include the following basic doctrines.
WE BELIEVE THAT GOD’S WORD TEACHES …
1. DIVINE INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE. We believe that the Bible is God’s word, that it was written by men divinely and uniquely inspired, that it is absolutely trustworthy, and that it has supreme authority in all matters. (II Timothy 3:16-17)
2. THE TRINITY. We believe in the triune God. We worship one God in trinity, and trinity in unity, neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance. (Matthew 28:19, Deuteronomy 6:4)
- a. GOD THE FATHER. We believe in God the Father, Creator of heaven and earth, perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power. We rejoice that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (Genesis 1:1; Leviticus 19:2; Job 42:2; Matthew 19:26; Romans 3:21-26; Romans 11:33)
- b. GOD THE SON. We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, sinless in His life, making atonement for the sin of the world by His death on the cross. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His ascension into heaven, His high-priestly intercession for His people and His personal, visible, imminent return to the world according to His promise. (Matthew 1:18,23; 24:14-31; 25:3-34; Luke 24:5-7,15; John 14:2,3; Acts 1:9,11; I Thessalonians 4:16; Titus 2:12, 13; Hebrews 4:14,15; 7:25; Revelation 1:7)
- c. GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT. We believe in the Holy Spirit, who came forth from God to convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment and to regenerate, sanctify, and comfort those who believe in Jesus Christ. (John 15:26; 16:8-11)
3. MAN. We believe that man was created in the likeness and image of God. Through the sin of Adam, man fell from his sinless state, and is born totally depraved and alienated from God. We believe that all men have sinned, by nature and by choice. Every human being is responsible to God in all matters. (Genesis 1:27; Romans 5:12; Psalm 51:5; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:23; 7:15-25; Romans 14; II Corinthians 5:17)
4. SALVATION. We believe that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Therefore, those who repent of their sin and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior (believers) are kept by the power of God and will forever rejoice in God’s presence, and that those who refuse to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (unbelievers) will face judgment and eternal separation from God in hell. (Luke13:3; John 3:16; 17:11; Romans 6:23; Hebrews 9:27; I Peter 1:5; Revelation 20:11-15)
5. SATAN. We believe that Satan is a fallen angel, that he is the deceiver of mankind, and that someday God will cast him into the lake of fire. (Revelation 12:9-10; 20:10; Matthew 25:41)
6. THE CHURCH. We believe in the Church – a living, spiritual body, with Christ as the head and of which all believers (defined above) are members. We believe that a visible church is a company of believers in Jesus Christ, buried with Him in baptism and associated for worship, work, and fellowship. God has laid upon the church the task of presenting to a lost world the need to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and to place Him as Lord and Master of their lives. (Romans 12:4,5; I Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:11-13; 5:23)
7. BAPTISM. We believe that baptism by immersion* (see Exception – Article IV) is the scriptural method and that baptism does not save. It is an act of obedience to the command of Christ and is a testimony to the world of the believer’s faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 6:1-5; Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42)
8. COMMUNION. We believe that communion (the Lord’s Supper) is a symbolic ordinance, picturing Christ’s body broken for our sins and His blood shed for our redemption. It is not a saving ordinance, but helps us remember his death and inspires us while looking forward to His coming. It is to be observed by obedient believers. (I Corinthians 11:23-26)
9. SPIRITUAL GIFTS. We believe that the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. The spiritual gifts are neither necessary nor sufficient as evidence of salvation. The purpose of spiritual gifts is for the edification of the church body. (I Corinthians 12-14)
10. PRAYER. We believe that God hears and answers the prayer of faith in accordance with His own will. (John 15:7; I John 5:14-15)
11. CIVIL GOVERNMENT. We believe that civil government is of divine appointment, and that governors of states and nations should be obeyed when the laws they seek to enforce are not in conflict with God’s Word, the Bible. (Romans 13:1-7; Acts 4:19-20; Matthew 22:21)
12. FAMILY. We believe the family unit is the building block of civilized society and that each member of the family is subject to Scriptural roles as described in Ephesians 5:22-6:4.
13. THE 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 natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. (Psalm 139:1-18.)
14. MARRIAGE, GENDER, AND SEXUALITY. We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. (Gen. 1:26-27)We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. (Gen 2:18-25) We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. (I Cor. 6:18; 7:2-5; Heb. 13:4) We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.
We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including, but not limited to, adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, transgender, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God. (Matt. 5:27-28; 15:18-20; I Cor. 6:9-10)
In summary, we believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of AMBC as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the AMBC members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by AMBC in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, agree to and abide by this Declaration of Faith. (Matt. 5:16; Phil. 2:14-16; I Thess. 5:22)
We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. (Acts 3:19-21; Rom. 10:9-10: I Cor. 6:9-11)
We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31) Hateful, harassing, and bullying behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of AMBC.