Garden Christian Fellowship, Garden, Michigan

 

WHAT WE BELIEVE

A. THE WORD OF GOD: We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and that it has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. 2 Timothy 3:16, 17; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 Corinthians 2:13; Hebrews 1:1,2; Acts 3:18; Matthew 5:18; 24:35; John 10:35; 16:12-13; 17:17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21.

 

   B. THE TRINITY: We believe that there is but one living and true God, an infinite, all-knowing Spirit, perfect in all His attributes, one in essence, eternally existing in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each equally deserving worship and obedience. Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; 1 Corinthians 8:4; John 4:24; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14.

 

 C. GOD THE FATHER: We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, justice, power, and love. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of people, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. Matthew 28:19, 20; Acts 5:30, 31; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 1:17-23; 3:9; Genesis 1:1-31.

 

  D. GOD THE SON: We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. He is true God and true man. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles and teachings. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal visible return to earth. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; 2 Corinthians 5:19,20; Hebrews 7:23-27; John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Hebrews 1:3; Revelation 20:4-6; 1 John 2:1,2; John 1:1-4

 

 E. GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT: We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father as promised by Christ to glorify the Son and to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ; that He is an abiding helper, comforter, teacher and guide; and is the giver of spiritual gifts for the building up of the church. John 14:16,17; 16:7-14; Matthew 28:19; Romans 8:9, 14, 16, 17; Hebrews 9:14; Ephesians 1:13,14; John 1:33; 1 Corinthians 12-14.

 

F. REGENERATION: We believe that all people are sinners by nature and by choice and are, therefore, under condemnation. We believe that those who repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior are regenerated by the Holy Spirit. Romans 3:9-20, 23; John 3:18,36; Luke 13:1-5; John 1:12,13; Romans 10:8-13; Ephesians 2:4-6; 1 Peter 1:23,25; Romans 6:23; Titus 3:5,6.

 

G. THE CHURCH: We believe in the universal church, a living, spiritual body of which Christ is head and all regenerated persons are members. We believe in the local church, consisting of a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible profession of faith, and associated for worship, work, and fellowship. We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of giving the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world. Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 2:37-47; Romans 12:5-8; 1 Corinthians 12:12, 20; Ephesians 1:22; 4:3-16; Colossians 3:14, 15; 2 Corinthians 11:2; 1 Timothy 3:1-15; Colossians 1:18; Titus 1:5-9; Acts 1:7,8; Luke 24:46-49.

 

H. CHRISTIAN CONDUCT: We believe that Christians should live for the glory of God; that their conduct should be blameless before the world; that they should be faithful stewards of their possessions; and that they should seek to realize for themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ. We believe that any conduct that is immoral or godless is opposed to the purpose of Garden Christian Fellowship which promotes holy living according to the Gospel of Christ.  1 Corinthians 10:30-33; 6:12, 19, 20; 1:8; Philippians 2:15; 2 Peter 3:14, 18; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7; 9:6-8; Ephesians 4:12; 1 Peter 2:2; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Timothy 1:4; 4:7; 2 Timothy 4:4; 1 Samuel 15:23; Galatians 5:20; 1 Corinthians 6:9,10; Romans 13:13; Galatians 5:19-20; Romans 1:24-32.

 

I. MARRIAGE: We believe that marriage is an institution that has been established by God and is the exclusive, covenantal, lifetime union of one man and one woman. An ecclesiastical or civil government’s sanction of a union will be recognized as a marriage only to the extent that it is consistent with the biblical definition of marriage, i.e. a marriage between a husband and wife as the words appear in the original languages of the Old and New Testaments. We believe that legitimate sexual relations are exercised solely within marriage.  Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:1-10; Romans 7:1-4; Ephesians 5:18-33; Leviticus 20:10-16; Romans 1:22-32; 1 Corinthians 6:9-20; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8; Hebrews 13: 4-5.

 

 J. THE ORDINANCES: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the triune God and is a testimony to the world of the believer’s faith in the Savior and of his or her identification with the Church, the visible body of Christ. We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ for commemoration of His death. We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. John 4:1, 2; Matthew 3:16; 28:19-20; Acts 8:36-39; John 3:23; Matthew 26:26-29; Luke 22:15-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-33; Romans 6:3-5.

 

K. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY: We believe that every human being has direct relations with God, and is responsible to God alone in all matters of faith; that each church is independent and must be free from interference by any hierarchy of individuals or organizations. Titus 1:5; Acts 15:19-31; 20:28; 1 Corinthians 5:4-7, 13; 1 Peter 5:1-4.

 

L. THE LAST THINGS: We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His kingdom. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all people, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. John 6:39; Romans 8:10-11, 19-23; 2 Corinthians 4:14; Daniel 12:2; John 5:29; Revelation 20:13-15.