|
Statement
of Fundamental Truths of the Assemblies of God
The Bible is
our all-sufficient rule for faith and practice. This Statement
of Fundamental Truths is intended simply as a basis of
fellowship among us (i.e., that we all speak the same thing, 1
Corinthians 1:10; Acts 2:42). The phraseology employed in this
Statement is not inspired nor contended for, but the truth set
forth is held to be essential to a full-gospel ministry. No
claim is made that it covers all Biblical truth, only that it
covers our need as to these fundamental doctrines.
1) The Scriptures Inspired 9) Sanctification
2) The One True God 10) The Church and Its Mission
3) The Adorable Godhead 11) The Ministry
4) The Fall of Man 12) Divine Healing
5) The Salvation of Man 13) The Blessed Hope
6) Ordinances of the Church 14) The Millennial Reign of Christ
7) The Baptism in the Holy Ghost 15) The Final Judgment
8) Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy Ghost 16) The New Heavens
and the New Earth
1) The Scriptures Inspired
The Bible is our all-sufficient rule for faith and practice.
This Statement of Fundamental Truths is intended simply as a
basis of fellowship among us (i.e., "That we all speak the same
thing" 1 Cor. 1:10; Acts 2:42). The phraseology employed in this
Statement is not inspired or contended for, but the truth set
forth is held to be essential to a Full-Gospel ministry. No
claim is made that it contains all Biblical truth, only that it
covers our need as to these fundamental doctrines.
The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally
inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the
infallible, authoritative rule of faith and conduct (2 Tim.
3:15-17; I Thess. 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).
2) The One True God
The one true God has revealed Himself as the eternally
self-existent "I AM," the Creator of heaven and earth and the
Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed Himself as
embodying the principles of relationship and association as
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deut. 6:5; Isaiah 43:10-11;
Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22).
3) The Adorable Godhead
Terms
Defined
The terms
"Trinity" and "persons", as related to the Godhead, while not
found in the Scriptures, are words in harmony with Scripture,
whereby we may convey to others our immediate understanding of
the doctrine of Christ respecting the Being of God, as
distinguished from "gods many and lords many." We therefore may
speak with propriety of the Lord our God, who is One Lord, as a
trinity or as one Being of three persons, and still be
absolutely scriptural. (Matthew 28:19; II Corinthians 13:14;
John 14:16-17).
Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead:
Christ taught a distinction of Persons in the Godhead which he
expressed in specific terms of relationship, as Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, but that this distinction and relationship, as to
its mode is inscrutable and incomprehensible, because
unexplained. (Luke 1:35; I Corinthians 1:24; Matthew 11:25- 27;
28:19; II Corinthians 13:14; I John 1:3-4).
Unity of the One Being of Father, Son and Holy Ghost:
Accordingly, therefore, there is that in the Son which
constitutes Him the Son and not the Father; and there is that in
the Holy Ghost which constitutes Him the Holy Ghost and not
either the Father or the Son. Wherefore the Father is the
Begetter, the Son is the Begotten, and the Holy Ghost is the one
proceeding from the Father and the Son. Therefore, because these
three persons in the Godhead are in a state of unity, there is
but one Lord God Almighty and His name one. (Zechariah 14:9;
John 1:18; 15:26; 17:11, 21).
Identity and Cooperation in the Godhead:
The Father, the
Son and the Holy Ghost are never identical as to Person; nor
confused as to relation, nor divided in respect to the Godhead;
nor opposed as to cooperation. The Son is in the Father and the
Father is in the Son as to relationship. The Son is with the
Father and the Father is with the Son, as to fellowship. The
Father is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father, as
to authority. The Holy Ghost is from the Father and the Son
proceeding, as to nature, relationship, cooperation and
authority. Hence, neither Person in the Godhead either exists or
works separately or independently of the others. (John 5:17-30,
32, 37; John 8:17-18).
The Title, Lord Jesus Christ:
The appellation, "Lord Jesus Christ," is a proper name. It is
never applied, in the New Testament, either to the Father or to
the Holy Ghost. It therefore belongs exclusively to the Son of
God. (Romans 1:1-3, 7; II John 3).
The Lord Jesus Christ, God with Us:
The Lord Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature, is
the proper and only Begotten of the Father, but as to His human
nature, He is the proper Son of Man. He is, therefore,
acknowledged to be both God and man; who because He is God and
man, is "Immanuel," God with us. (Matthew 1:23; I John 4:2, 10,
14; Revelation 1:13, 17).
The Title, Son of God:
Since the name "Immanuel" embraces both God and man in the one
Person, our Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the title, Son of
God describes His proper deity, and the title Son of Man, His
proper humanity. Therefore, the title, Son of God, belongs to
the order of eternity, and the title, Son of Man, to the order
of time. (Matthew 1:21-23; II John 3; I John 3:8; Hebrews
1:1-13, 7:3)
Transgression of the Doctrine of Christ:
Wherefore, it is a transgression of the Doctrine of Christ to
say that Jesus Christ derived the title, Son of God, solely from
the fact of the incarnation, or because of His relation to the
economy of the redemption. Therefore, to deny that the Father is
a real and eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and
eternal Son, is a denial of the distinction and relationship in
the Being of God; a denial of the Father and the Son; and a
displacement of the truth that Jesus Christ is come in the
flesh. (John 1:1, 2, 14, 18, 29, 49; 2:22, 23, 4:1-5; Hebrews
12:2, II John 9).
Exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord:
The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by Himself purged
our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
angels and principalities and powers having been made subject
unto Him. And having been made both Lord and Christ, He sent the
Holy Ghost that we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our knees
and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the
Father until the end, when the Son shall become subject to the
Father that God may be all in all. (Acts 2:32-36; Romans 14:11;
I Corinthians 15:24-28; Hebrews 1:3; I Peter 3:22).
Equal Honor to the Father and to the Son:
Wherefore, since the Father has delivered all judgment unto the
Son, it is not only the express duty of all in heaven and on
earth to bow the knee, but it is an unspeakable joy in the Holy
Ghost to ascribe unto the Son all the attributes of Deity, and
to give Him all the honor and the glory contained in all the
names and titles of the Godhead (except those which express
relationship. See paragraphs b, c, and d), and thus honor the
Son even as we honor the Father. (John 5:22-23; Philippians
2:8-9; Revelation 4:8-11; 5:6-14; 7:9-10).
The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ
The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The Scriptures
declare:
His virgin birth (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31, 35).
His sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; I Peter 2:22).
His Miracles (Acts 2:22; 10:38).
His substitutionary work on the cross (I Corinthians 15:3; II
Corinthians 5:21).
His bodily resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:39;
I Corinthians 15:4).
His exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9-11; 2:33;
Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:3)
4) The Fall of Man
Man was created good and upright; for God said, "Let us make man
in our image, after our likeness." However, man by voluntary
transgression fell and thereby incurred not only physical death
but also spiritual death, which is separation from God (Genesis
1:26-27; 2:17; 8:6; Romans 5:12-19).
5) The Salvation of Man
Man's only hope of redemption is through the shed blood of Jesus
Christ the Son of God.
Conditions to Salvation
Salvation is received repentance toward God and faith toward the
Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing to regeneration and renewing
of the Holy Ghost, being justified by grace through faith, man
becomes an heir of God, according to the hope of eternal life
(Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians 2:8; Titus
2:11; 3:5-7).
The Evidences of Salvation
The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the
Spirit (Romans 8:16). The outward evidence to all men is a life
of righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24; Titus 2:12).
6) Ordinances of the Church
Baptism in Water:
The ordinance of baptism by immersion is commanded in the
Scriptures. All who repent and believe in Christ as Savior and
Lord are to be baptized. Thus they declare to the world that
they have died with Christ and that they also have been raised
with Him to walk in newness of life (Matthew 28:19; Mark 1:16;
Acts 10:47-48; Romans 6:4).
Holy Communion:
The Lord's Supper, consisting of the elements - bread and the
fruit of the vine - is the symbol expressing our sharing the
divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ (II Peter 1:4); a
memorial of His suffering and death (I Corinthians 11:26); and a
prophecy of His second coming (I Corinthians 11:26); and
enjoined on all believers "till He come!"
7) The Baptism in the Holy Ghost
All believers are entitled to and should ardently expect and
earnestly seek the promise of the Father, the baptism in the
Holy Ghost and fire, according to the command of our Lord Jesus
Christ. This was the normal experience of all in the early
Christian Church. With it comes the enduement of power for life
and service, the bestowment of the gifts and their uses in the
work of the ministry (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-8; I Corinthians
12:1-31). This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the
experience of the new birth (Acts 8:12-17; 10:44-46; 11:14-16;
15:7-9). With the baptism in the Holy Ghost come such
experiences as an overflowing fullness of the Spirit (John
7:37-39; Acts 4:8), a deepened reverence for God (Acts 2:43;
Hebrews 12:28), and intensified consecration to God and
dedication to His work (Acts 2:42), and a more active love for
Christ, for His Word and for the lost (Mark 16:20).
8) The Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy Ghost
The baptism of believers in the Holy Ghost is witnessed by the
initial physical sign of speaking with other tongues as the
Spirit of God gives them utterance (Acts 2:4). The speaking in
tongues in this instance is the same in essence as the gift of
tongues (I Corinthians 12:4-10, 28), but different in purpose
and use.
9) Sanctification
Sanctification is an act of separation from that which is evil,
and of dedication unto God (Romans 12:1-2; I Thessalonians 5:23;
Hebrews 13:12). The Scriptures teach a life of "holiness without
which no man shall see the Lord" (Hebrews 12:14). By the power
of the Holy Ghost we are able to obey the command: "Be ye holy,
for I am holy" (I Peter 1:15-16). Sanctification is realized in
the believer by recognizing his identification with Christ in
His death and resurrection, and by faith reckoning daily upon
the fact of that union, and by offering every faculty
continually to the dominion of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:1-13;
8:1-2, 13; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 2:12-13; I Peter 1:5).
10) The Church and Its Mission
The Church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God through
the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of her
great commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit, is an
integral part of the General Assembly and the Church of the
First-born, which are written in heaven (Ephesians 1:22-23;
2:22; Hebrews 12:23). Since God's purpose concerning man is to
seek and to save that which is lost, to be worshipped by man,
and to build a body of believers in the image of His Son, the
priority reason-for-being of the Assemblies of God as part of
the Church is:
To be an agency of God for evangelizing the world (Matthew
28:10, 20; Mark 16:15-16; Acts 1:8).
To be a corporate body in which man may worship God (I
Corinthians 12:13).
To be a channel of God's purpose to build a body of saints being
perfected in the image of His Son (I Corinthians 12:28; 14:12;
Ephesians 4:11-16).
The Assemblies of God exists expressly to give continuing
emphasis to this reason-for-being in the New Testament apostolic
pattern by teaching and encouraging believers to be baptized in
the Holy Spirit. This experience: Enables them to evangelize in
the power of the Spirit with accompanying supernatural signs.
(Mark 16:15-20; Acts 4:29-31; Hebrews 2:3-4). Adds a necessary
dimension to worshipful relationship with God. (I Corinthians
2:10-16; 12:13-14). Enables them to respond to the full working
of the Holy Spirit in expression of the fruit and gifts and
ministries as in New Testament times for the edifying of the
body of Christ. (I Corinthians 12:28; 14:12; Galatians 5:22-26;
Ephesians 4:11-12; Colossians 1:29).
11) The Ministry
A divinely called and scripturally ordained ministry has been
provided by our Lord for the threefold purpose of leading the
Church in: (1) Evangelization of the world (Mark 16:15-20), (2)
Worship of God (John 4:23-24), (3) building a body of saints
being perfected in the image of His Son (Ephesians 4:11-16).
12) Divine Healing
Divine healing is an integral part of the gospel. Deliverance
from sickness is provided for in the atonement, and is the
privilege of all believers (Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17;
James 5:14-16).
13) The Blessed Hope
The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ and
their translation together with those who are alive and remain
unto the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed hope of
the church (Romans 8:23; I Corinthians 15:21, 52; I
Thessalonians 4:16-17; Titus 2:13).
14) The Millennial Reign of Christ
The second coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints,
which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of
Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one thousand
years (Zechariah 14:5; Matthew 24:27-30; Revelation 1:7;
19:11-14; 20:1-6). This millennial reign will bring the
salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21- 22; Zephaniah
3:19-20; Romans 11:26-27) and the establishment of universal
peace (Isaiah 11:6-9; Psalm 72:3-8; Micah 4:3-4)
15) The Final Judgment
There will be a final judgment in which the wicked dead will be
raised and judged according to their works. Whosoever is not
found written in the Book of Life, together with the devil and
his angels, the beast and the false prophet, will be consigned
to everlasting punishment in the lake which burneth with fire
and brimstone, which is the second death (Matthew 25:46; Mark
9:43-48; Revelation 19:20; 20:11-15; 21:8).
16) The New Heavens and the New Earth
"We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new
earth wherein dwelleth righteousness" (II Peter 3:13; Revelation
21:22).
|
