ARTICLE 1-NAME AND PURPOSE

SECTION 1.01-NAME-This congregation of believers shall be known as the Journey Bible Fellowship Church.

SECTION 1.02-PURPOSE-This congregation is organized as a church exclusively for charitable, religious, and educational purposes within the meaning of Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (or the corresponding provision of any future United States Revenue Law), including, but not limited to, for such purposes, the establishing and maintaining of religious worship, the building of churches, parsonages, schools, chapels, radio stations, television stations, rescue missions, print shops, daycare centers, and camps; the evangelizing of the unsaved by the proclaiming of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the education of believers in a manner consistent with the requirements of Holy Scripture, both in Sunday and weekday schools of Christian education; maintaining of missionary activities in the United States and any foreign country.

ARTICLE 2-STATEMENT OF FAITH AND COVENANT

SECTION 2.01-STATEMENT OF FAITHThe following comprise the Scriptural beliefs of the church and its members.

The Holy Scriptures: The Bible in its original documents, both Old Testament and New Testament, is the inspired Word of God: the written record of His supernatural revelation of Himself to man. It is absolute in its authority, complete in its revelation, final in its content, and without error or contradiction in its statements. II Timothy 3:15-17, John 10:35, Psalm 89:34; Hebrews 6:18, II Peter 1:20-21, II Peter 3:16, I Thessalonians 2:13.

Dispensationalism: We believe that the Scriptures must be interpreted in a literal sense and reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Genesis 1:28; I Corinthians 9:17; II Corinthians 3:9-18; Galatians 3:13-25; Ephesians 1:10; 3:2-10; Colossians 1:24-25; Revelation 20:2-6.

The Godhead: There is one God eternally existent, Creator of heaven and earth. His person is manifested in three ways: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Isaiah 9:6; John 14:6-9; I Timothy 3:16; I John 5:7; Genesis 1:2; John 10:30, 5:18; Philippians 2:5-6

The person and work of Jesus Christ: The Lord Jesus Christ is fully God the Father, who being born of a virgin, took on flesh and dwelt on earth. He was sinlessly perfect, and He gave Himself as the substitutionary sacrifice by shedding His blood and dying on the cross. He then came back from the dead to pay for all sins, (past, present, and future) and His eternal life is given to all that believe. We believe that the Lord Jesus ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Intercessor and Advocate. II Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 2:9; Titus 2:14, Hebrews 10:10-14; Hebrews 9:12-28; Acts 13:38-41; I Peter 2:24; I John 3:5;  Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1-2; Colossians 1:13,19; 2:8-9

Predestination and free will: God is absolutely sovereign, and in His sovereignty gave man a free will to accept, or reject the salvation He has provided for man. It is God’s will that all would be saved, and that none would perish. God foreknows, but does not predetermine any man to be condemned or to be saved. God permits man’s destiny to depend on man’s choice. All believers’ destiny is predetermined. However, it is each individual’s choice whether to believe or not. I Timothy 2:4; II Thessalonians 2:13; II Peter 3:9; John 6:64-65 (V35); Acts 10:34; I Corinthians 1:21; Ephesians 1:5-14; Romans 8:29-30; Romans 9:30-32.

Salvation: Man is saved by undeserved mercy through faith, and nothing of man enters into his salvation. It is a free gift. Man’s efforts, no matter how good or well intended, have nothing to do with salvation, either before or after he is saved. Salvation is by the finished work of Christ on the cross, and nothing can be added to what Christ has already done.  Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 11:6; Colossians 2:13; Titus 3:5; Romans 3:22.

Eternal security: Every true child of God possesses eternal life, and is, therefore, safe and secure for all eternity, because he is justified by faith, sanctified by God, and sealed by the Holy Spirit. He cannot lose his salvation. However, when a Christian sins, he can lose his fellowship, joy, power, testimony and reward; and incur God’s chastisement. Our relationship to God as His son is eternal, being established by the new birth. Fellowship, however, is conditional upon obedience. I Corinthians 3:1-17; Hebrews 12:5-11; I Corinthians 11:30-32; John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:38-39; I Corinthians 1:4-8; I Peter 1:4-5.

-We believe that it is the privilege of every child of God to rejoice in the assurance of his salvation. Assurance comes from the promises in God’s Word, and is in no way related to the actions or reactions of the believer after he has trusted Christ as his Savior. God’s Word, however, while clearly giving absolute assurance to all believers, also forbids the use of Christian liberty as a license to sin. Romans 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15.

Repentance: Biblical repentance is necessary for salvation. The Greek word for repent is metanoeo, which means: “To change one’s mind.” It does not mean: “To turn from sin.”  That would add works to salvation. Repentance for salvation refers to a change of mind from man’s way of salvation to acceptance of God’s way of salvation. Many teach repentance incorrectly by including some form of human effort or righteousness such as willingness to turn from sin or turning from sin. This is heresy and confuses people. It adds works to salvation and causes many not to understand God’s free gift. II Corinthians 7:9-10; Hebrews 12:17; Matthew 21:28-32; Hebrews 6:1.

The two natures: A true child of God has two births: one of the flesh and one of the spirit. This gives the believer a new nature. The flesh is neither good nor righteous. The spirit man does not commit sin. The results is warfare between the spirit and the flesh, which continues until death, or the return of the Lord. The flesh nature does not change in any way after the new birth; however, it can be controlled or subdued by the new man. John 3:3-7; Romans 7:15-25; Romans 8:8; Galatians 5:17; I John 3:9; I Peter 1:23; I John 5:18; I John 1:8.

The church: The church began with the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and is composed of all true believers. All believers are baptized by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, which is the church. Water baptism is a testimony to the world of what Christ has done for us, and is not essential for salvation. Acts 1:8; I Corinthians 6:19-20; Acts 2:1-4; I Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:5; Acts 10:47.

Resurrection: There will be a resurrection of the saved and the lost. The saved will be raised to eternal life, and the lost will be raised to eternal conscious punishment. These two resurrections are separated by at least one thousand years. I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Daniel 12:2: Revelation 20:5-15; Matthew 25:41.

-We believe that the souls of the saved are, at death, absent from the body and immediately present with the Lord in conscious bliss awaiting the first resurrection when spirit, soul, and body will be reunited. Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; I Thessalonians 4:16-17.

-We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain after death in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection. With their soul and body united, they will appear at the great White Throne Judgment, and will be cast into the Lake of Fire to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; I Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Revelation 20:1-15.

Second coming: We believe in the personal, premillenial, pretribulational return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I Thessalonians 1:10; II Thessalonians 2:18; Revelation 3:10; Luke 21:36; Titus 2:13; Isaiah 26:17-21; Isaiah 27:1; Revelation 4:4.

Creation: We believe that the days in Genesis chapter one were literal days. We reject evolution, the Day Age theory, and theistic evolution as unscriptural theories of origin.

Civil Government: We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home 2) the church 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 5:22-24; Hebrews 13:17; I Peter 2:13-14.

Family relationships: We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God, but that God has ordained distinct and separate functions for men and women in the home and in church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders of the church as pastor and elders. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination in the church. Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; I Timothy 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12.

-We believe that God has ordained the family to be the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love the wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit to the spiritual leadership of the husband as the church submits to the headship of Christ. Children are a heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values, and leading them through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalm 127:3-5; Proverbs 19:18; 22: 15; 23:13-14; Mark 10:6-12; I Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-33; Ephesians 6:1-4; Colossians 3:18-21; Hebrews 13:4; I Peter 3:1-7.

satan: satan is a person. He is the author of sin, and he and his angels will be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. Ezekiel 28:15,17; Isaiah 14:12-15; Revelation 20:10; Matthew 25:41.

The person and work of the Holy Spirit: We believe that Holy Spirit convicts every man of sin, righteousness, and judgment; and that He regenerates all who have believed. Each member of the human race is fallen, sinful, and lost without Christ. Regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for salvation of man. The moment a person receives Christ as his Savior, immediately the Holy Spirit indwells him, and seals him unto the day of redemption. Romans 2:23; John 3:7; I Corinthians 6:19; Ephesians 1:13-14; Luke 24:49; Titus 3:5; John 16:8-11; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1-2

-We believe that God bestows spiritual gifts on all believers so that they can do the work of the ministry.

-We believe that sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the miraculous gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the necessary sign of baptism of the Holy Spirit. I Corinthians 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22.

-The miraculous gift of tongues (languages) was a manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s power solely for the demonstration of God’s wisdom, purpose, and  power in the establishment of the early church, and was understood by all that heard it in their native language. Acts 2:6-8.

-God can heal, but physical healing is not in the atonement. God heals miraculously, today, when it is His perfect will to do so. Healing cannot be claimed through the guarantee of the atonement. At times it is God’s will for sickness not to be removed. II Corinthians 12:8-10; James 5:14-16.

Fellowship with God: I John 1:9 is not a verse for salvation, but a precious promise to believers for cleansing, and forgiveness. I John 1:9 does not guarantee restoration of fellowship or of physical damage caused by sin. It is heresy to teach that confession of sin produces spiritual fruit. Confession places a Christian in a position where he can have fellowship, if confession is followed by obedience. I John 1:6-7 teaches that fellowship is the result of a Christian’s walk, not simply as a result of confession of sin. Spirituality, of which fellowship is a part, comes from the Christian’s obedience to God. II Peter 1:5-8; Colossians 1:10; John15:8; I John 1:6-7; Galatians  5:2.

-The true child of God is not under the law, but under grace. He is saved by grace, and disciplined by grace. Romans 6:14 -15, Romans 11:6, II Corinthians 3:17.

Sexuality: We believe that God commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of marriage. We believe that any form of homosexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, lesbianism, bisexuality, or pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance. Genesis 2:24; 19:5; Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1:26-29; I Corinthians 5:1; 6:9; I Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4.

Marriage: We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one man and one woman. Ephesians 5:31; I Corinthians 7:2; Mark 10:6-12; Genesis 2:23-24.

-God intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. God hates divorce. Although divorced, and divorced and remarried persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service, they may not be considered for the office of pastor or elder. Malachi 2:14-17; Matthew 19:3-12; Romans 7:1-3; I Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6.

Abortion: We believe that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion is the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. This sin, as all others, can be forgiven by Jesus Christ. Job 3:16: Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1-5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44

Lawsuits: We believe that God prohibits Christians from bringing lawsuit against another believer or church for personal disputes. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. I Corinthians 6:1-8; Ephesians 4:31-32.

Giving: We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth that God has entrusted to him, is obligated to support the church financially. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been given. Genesis 14:20; Proverbs 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; I Corinthians 16:2; II Corinthians 9:6-7; Galatians 6:6; Ephesians 4:28; I Timothy 5:17-18; I John 3:17.

The Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe. We do believe, however, that the foregoing Statement of Faith accurately represents the teaching of the Bible and, therefore, is binding upon all members. All literature in the church shall be in complete agreement with the Statement of Faith.