We, as members of Hope Community Church of Newburyport, believe the scriptures teach that:
The Bible, composed of the sixty-six (66) canonical books of the Old and New Testaments is inspired of God by verbal, plenary inspiration and is inerrant in the original autographs. It is the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.
There is one God, the creator and preserver of all things, infinite in being and perfection. He exists eternally in three persons: The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost, who are of one substance and equal in power and glory; co-equal, co-eternal, and co-existent.
Man, created in the image of God, through disobedience, fell from his sinless state at the suggestion of Satan. This fall plunged man into a state of sin and spiritual death, and brought upon the entire race the sentence of eternal death. From this condition man can be saved only by the grace of God, through faith, on the basis of the saving work of Christ, any by the agency of the Holy Spirit.
The eternally pre-existent Son became incarnate without human factor, by being born of the Virgin Mary. Thus in the Lord Jesus Christ divine and human natures were united in one person, both natures being whole, perfect and distinct. To affect salvation, He lived a sinless life and died on the cross as the sinner’s substitute, shedding His blood for the remission of sins. On the third day He rose from the dead in the body which had been laid in the tomb. He ascended to the right hand of The Father where He performs the ministry of intercession. He shall come again, personally and visibly, to complete His saving work and to consummate the eternal plan of God. He is the only and sufficient mediator between God and man.
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Triune God.He applies to man the work of Christ. By justification and adoption man is given a right standing before God; by regeneration, sanctification and glorification man’s nature is renewed. He is the indweller of believers and exercises the power of God in their lives.
The believer, having turned to God in penitent faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, is accountable to God for living a life separated from sin and characterized by the Fruit of the Spirit. It is his responsibility to contribute by word and deed to the universal spread of the Gospel.
Every believer is a priest and has been given at least one gift by The Holy Spirit to minister as a member of the body of Christ. The discovery and development of his gift or gifts is integral to the edification and growth of the body. Only those who have been born again by The Spirit of God compose the church universal and are eligible for membership in the local assembly. The church is gathered regularly for worship, fellowship and instruction and is scattered for expression of their faith, using their God-given gifts both to edify and evangelize.
Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer in Christ, in the name of The Father, and Son and Holy Ghost; to show forth, in a solemn and beautiful emblem, our faith in the crucified, buried and risen Savior, with its effect, in our death to sin and resurrection in a new life; that it is prerequisite to the privileges of a church relation.
The Lord’s Supper is a provision of bread and wine, as symbols of Christ’s body and blood, partaken of by believers in Christ to commemorate the suffering and death of Christ, showing their faith and participation in His finished work on the cross, and their hope of eternal life through his resurrection from the dead. Its observance is to be preceded by faithful examination.
Civil government is of divine appointment, for the interest and good order of human society; and that magistrates are to be prayed for, conscientiously honored and obeyed, except only in things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the only Lord of the conscience, and the Prince of the kings of the Earth.
The church is committed to fulfill the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus to go into all the world and disciple all nations, baptizing them in the name of The Father, Son and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that Jesus has commanded.
The local church is totally autonomous and shall have neither policy, doctrines, nor actions dictated by ecclesiastical authorities or bodies, but shall be held accountable for all of the above mentioned to the Lord, Jesus Christ; these having been determined by Holy Scriptures.
The end of the world system is approaching; that at the last day, Christ will descend from Heaven, and raise the dead from the grave for final retribution; that a solemn separation will take place; that the wicked will be adjudged to endless sorrow and the righteous to endless joy; and this judgment will fix forever the final state of men in Heaven or Hell on the basis of their personal commitment to Jesus Christ.
