Doctrine
God
We believe in the only true God—John 17:3, the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit—Matthew 28:19-20. He created all things (Revelation 4:11) and upholds
all things by the Word of His power—Hebrews 1:3. In Him we live and move and
have our being—Acts 17:28. He is a God of truth and without iniquity; He is
just and right—Deuteronomy 32:4, and He shall judge the world—Psalm 9:8. We
believe that the Godhead eternally exists in three persons: the Father, the Son
and the Holy Spirit. These three are one God, having precisely the same nature,
attributes and perfections, and are worthy of precisely the same homage,
confidence, and obedience—Mark 12:29; John 1:1-4; Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 4:3-4.
Jesus Christ
We believe in the total deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe He is the
manifestation of God in the flesh. We believe He was conceived by the Holy
Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. We believe Him to be true God and true
man—John 1:1, 1:14, 1:18; John 14:8-9; 1 Timothy 3:16.
Holy Spirit
We believe that the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus
Christ—John 16:14. The Holy Spirit regenerates the sinner upon belief in
Christ, baptizing the believer into one body, of which Christ is the head. The
Holy Spirit indwells, guides, instructs, fills, comforts, and empowers the
believer for godly living—Mark 13:11; John 14:26; John 16:13; Romans 5:5; 1
Corinthians 3:16. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, of God's
righteousness and of coming judgment—John 16:8-11. While we believe that the
Scriptures do not teach that certain gifts have ceased, they indicate that use
of the gifts vary according to the need that each gift meets. Harvest Bible
Chapel does not encourage the use of "sign gifts." Instead, we seek
to emphasize the more excellent way of love as well as zeal for the more
edifying gifts—John 16:8; 13:15; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 1:22; 4:11-12; Romans
8:9-17; 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 12:4-5, 12:11-13, 12:19; Galatians 5:25;
Hebrews 4:1-4; 2 Corinthians 12:12.
Scriptures
We believe the Scriptures of the Old Testament and New Testament are verbally
inspired by God and inerrant in their original writings. We believe
the sixty-six books of the Old Testament and the New Testament are
God's complete and sufficient revelation and therefore carry God's authority
for the total well-being of mankind—Psalm 119:97-104; Psalm 119:160; Matthew
5:18; John 5:46-47; John 10:35; 2 Timothy 3:15-16.
Man
We believe man was created in innocence under the law of his Maker, but by
voluntarily transgressing, fell from his sinless and happy state. Consequently,
all mankind is sinful. All people are sinners not only by inheritance, but also
by their own choice and therefore are under just condemnation without defense
or excuse. We believe that without exception every man and every woman is
totally depraved and needs a Savior—Genesis 3:1-6; Romans 3:10-19; Romans 1:18,
Romans 1:32.
Salvation
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice. We believe that
each person who by faith receives Him as personal Savior is justified on the
basis of Jesus Christ's shed blood on
Resurrection
We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord Jesus Christ,
His ascension into heaven and His present life for us as High Priest and
Advocate—Acts 1:3; Acts 1:9; Hebrews 7:25-26.
Heaven, Hell, and the Return of Christ
We believe in the blessed hope: the personal, premillennial return of the
Lord Jesus Christ. His return has a vital bearing on the personal life and
service of the believer—1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. We believe in the bodily
resurrection of both the saved and the lost. The saved are raised to eternal,
conscious bliss in heaven—Matthew 25:34; John 14:2; 2 Corinthians 5:1;
Revelation 2:7. The lost are raised to eternal torment in hell in conscious
separation from God—Matthew 8:12; Matthew 10:28; Matthew 13:49-50; Mark
9:47-48; Luke 12:5; Revelation 21:8.
Church
Upon accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, a believer becomes part of His
body, which is the church. There is one church universal, composed of all those
throughout the world who acknowledge Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The
Scriptures command believers to gather in order to devote themselves to
worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of the ordinances (baptism
and communion), fellowship, service to the body through the development and use
of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world in fulfillment of the command
of Christ to make disciples of all believers—Ephesians 5:23; Romans 12:1; Acts
2:42-46; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Matthew 28:18-20. Wherever God's people meet
regularly in obedience to this command, there is the local expression of the
church under the oversight of elders and other supportive leadership. The
church's members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the ultimate
purpose of glorifying Christ—Ephesians 4:16.
Missions
Realizing that the cause of Christ extends beyond any one local fellowship,
we commit ourselves to an ongoing ministry of extending the call of Christ to
make disciples around the world—Matthew 28:19-20.
