Sullivan First Baptist Church

Spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ

What We Believe

 

  • All Scripture is verbally inspired as originally written and therefore infallible and inerrant (II Tim. 3:16-17; II Peter 1:21; Matt. 5:18; I Cor. 2:13).   The Bible IS the Word of God.  We CANNOT accept the misleading statement: “The Bible contains the Word of God”.
  • There is one living and true God who exists in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  (Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 13:14).  The Father is God (I Cor. 8:6); the Son is God (Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1, 14; Heb. 1:8-10); and the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4).
  • The Lord Jesus Christ was born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14; Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38).
  • Christ rose bodily from the dead and ascended unto God the Father (Matt. 28; Mark 16; I Cor. 15; Rom. 1:4).
  • Christ will return:

First, for the “dead in Christ” who will be resurrected bodily; and for those who are alive at His coming.  This resurrection not only precedes His return to earth to reign 1,000 years, but also precedes the Tribulation (I Thes. 4:13-18; 5:9).

Then, to reign 1,000 years on the earth (Rev. 20:1-6; II Tim. 2:12).

  • All men inherit a depraved nature and are lost sinners in need of salvation (Rom. 3:9-19; Eph. 2:1-3).God has provided salvation through offering His Son on the cross of Calvary, and allowing His BLOOD to be shed to atone for our sins (Heb. 9:22-28; John 3:3-21; Romans 5:8-10; Eph. 1:7).
  • We are saved and justified when we recognize ourselves as sinners, and put our trust in Christ as the son of God and His finished work on the cross of Calvary.   Salvation is by grace through faith plus nothing (Rom. 3:24; 4:5; Eph. 2:8-9).
  • Once saved, we cannot be lost; we are eternally secure in Christ (John 3:16; 10:27-29; Phil. 1:6; Rom. 8:38-39).
  • We believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place at the time of conversion and is the act of placing the believer into the body of Christ, but is not a second work of grace (I Cor. 12:13. Gal. 3:27).  It is different than the filling of the Holy Spirit which is an ongoing process that may occur at any time in the believer’s life (Eph. 5:18).  Neither of these aspects is accompanied by unusual signs such as speaking in tongues.
  • The Bible teaches that:

We should regularly participate at the Lord’s table (I Cor. 11:23-32).

All believers should be baptized by immersion as an act of obedience, but not for securing their salvation (Acts 2:41; 19:4-5; Matt. 28:19-20).
The Bible teaches the eternal blessedness of the saved (John 4:14; 5:24; Eph. 2:7).  It also teaches the eternal punishment of the lost (John 5:28-29: Rev. 20:10, 15; Matt. 25:46).

  • The grace of God teaches us to “live soberly, righteously, and godly” (Titus 2:11-13).

Titus 2:13 – “Looking for that blessed hope” of His returning for us.

Col. 3:2-3; 1 John 2:15-17 – Setting our “affection on things above, not on things on the earth.

II Cor. 6:14-18 – Living a life of separation from the world.  We believe in separation “unto God” (Rom. 1:1; 16:17; II Cor. 6:17-18; II Thes. 2:15; 3:6; I Tim. 6:3, 5).