Doctrinal Statement

The Doctrinal Statement of Calvary Baptist Church

1.  We believe the Holy Bible is the Word of God.  We accept fully the writings of the entire Old and New Testament as the inspired, inerrant, and objective Word of God.  We believe the Bible is the final authority in all matters of doctrine, duty, and decisions as individuals and as a New Testament Church.
~ Psalm 119:89; II Tim. 3:15-17; I Thess. 2:13.

2.  We believe in the Godhead. We believe in the only true God, the Creator, Who is eternal, loving, just, merciful, holy, and unchanging, and that God exists in three persons:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, equal in every divine attribute and executing distinct but complementary offices in the work of redemption.  
​~ Col.2:9,  Matt. 28:19; Matt. 3:14-17.

3.  We believe that Jesus Christ is God’s Only Begotten Son...that he pre-existed with God the Father before His birth in Bethlehem...that he was supernaturally conceived by the Holy Spirit in the body of the virgin Mary...that He lived a totally sinless and perfect life...that He died on the cross for the sins of the whole world...that He was buried and supernaturally raised out of the grave and declared the victorious Son of God over sin, death, hell and the grave...that He is presently seated at the right hand of God in the place of authority in Heaven...that He is coming back to the earth soon to bodily resurrect the dead in Christ and to rapture every living believer to be carried to Heaven with Him.  John ​~ 3:16; Col. 1:17; Is. 7:14; Lk. 2:26-38; I Pet. 2:22, 24; Rom. 1:1-4; Heb. 7:25, I Thess. 4:13-18.

4.  We believe in the Holy Spirit.  We believe that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person, equal with God the Father and God the Son.  We believe the Holy Spirit convicts the sinner, regenerates the sinner, indwells and seals the believer at the point of initial salvation, and that He fills and empowers the believer in order that he may live a holy and fruitful life.  We believe every Christian should live his life under the control of the Holy Spirit of God.  We believe that the evidence of the fullness or control of the Holy Spirit is in living a godly, holy, fruitful, and witnessing life.  We do not accept the teaching that any of the sign gifts are to be sought as evidence of the Holy Spirit’s fullness.  We believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is an experience that takes place at the time of salvation, and is not separate from salvation.  We believe that there are many fillings of the Holy Spirit after our salvation experience.
​~ John 15:26-27; John 16:7-11; Rom. 8:1-14; I Cor. 12:13; Eph. 5:18.

5. We believe that Man is a Sinner.  We believe that Adam, the first man, was created in the image of God and in innocence.  However, by his voluntary transgression against the will and law of God, he fell into sin and incurred not only physical death, but spiritual death, which is separation from God.  Consequently, all human beings are born with a sinful nature and are in need of redemption. 
​~ Psalm 51:5; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:23; Ephesians 2:1-4.

6.  We believe in Salvation. We believe that salvation is by grace through faith, that it is the free gift of God.  We believe that man is saved by faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.  We believe a person must repent of his sin and by faith receive and trust the Person and provision of Jesus Christ as Lord in order to be saved.  We believe that salvation is a present reality, that one can be saved and can know that he is saved, and can enjoy his life of salvation.  We believe that coming to faith in Christ, or “being saved,” is the most important experience in every individual’s life.
​~ Ephesians 2:8-9; Rom. 10:9, 10, 13; Heb. 9:22; Rom. 5:1-19; Matt. 16:26.       
   
7.  We believe in Heaven.  We believe that Heaven is a real place.   We believe it is a lovely place, a perfect place, a place which will be populated by the saints of God form all ages.  We believe the most important thing about Heaven is the presence of the Lord Himself. We believe a person must make proper preparations to go to Heaven, and that preparation is to receive Jesus Christ as one’s own Lord and Savior.  
​~ John 14:1-6; Hebrews 12:22-24; Rev. 21:10-17; 22:1-2.

8.  We believe in Hell.  We believe that Hell is a real place, that it was prepared for the devil and his angels, and that all of those who die outside of the Lord Jesus Christ will spend eternity in Hell.  We believe that Hell is a literal place of physical, mental, spiritual, and eternal suffering.  We believe that every person will spend eternity either in Heaven or Hell.  
​~ Luke 16:19-31; Rev. 20:11-15; Matt. 13:42; Matt. 25:41; Mark 9:43, 46.

9.  We believe that Satan is a real person, that he was created, that he originally lived in Heaven, but was cast out of Heaven when he rebelled against God.  He is totally sinful.  He is deceptive.  He is powerful, and we believe that he is the leader of a vast host of evil spirits who seek to keep unsaved people lost, who seek to divide and deceive New Testament Churches, and who seek to devour and deceive individual Christians.  We believe that Christ defeated the Devil at the cross, and that the Christian has authority and power over the Devil now, through the Lord Jesus Christ.  We also believe that Satan will ultimately be cast into the lake of fire at the end of the age.  
​~ Is. 14:12-17; Ezek. 28:11-l9; Eph. 6:12; Gen. 3:1; II Cor. 11:14; Rev. 12:11; I John 4:4.

10.  We believe in the Christian life.  We believe the greatest privilege of the Christian is to live for Jesus in this present age.  We believe the Christian life is a supernatural life.  It is Christ living His life in us and through us.  We believe it is a spiritual life.   It is the Holy Spirit of God empowering and enabling us to be what God wants us to be.  It is a warfare life.  It is a constant struggle between the flesh and the spirit.  It is a life of separation.  We believe the Christian life is one of separation from the ways of the world.  It is a life of faith, which is total commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.  It is living by the promises of God and in obedience to the commands of God. It is a life of progress, spiritual growth, and maturity, where we become more and more like Jesus.  It is a life of fruitfulness where the fruit of the Spirit is exhibited in our lives in the way we live and in the witness of our lives as we lead other people  to saving faith in Jesus Christ.  We believe that witnessing is a necessary and normal part of the Christian life.  Gal. 2:20; Gal. 3:23; ​~ Ga. 5:17; Gal. 3:11; Gal. 4:19; Eph. 5:18; Gal. 5:22-23; Acts 1:8, Titus 2:11-13.

11.  We believe in the Local Church.  We believe that the local church is God’s instrument in this present age and that all Christians should both belong to and be an active part of the local New Testament Church.  We believe the church is a body of baptized believers in whom Jesus Christ lives and over whom He lords, and is to live under the direction and discipline of the Holy Word of God.  They are united together in the Holy Spirit for the purpose of evangelizing the lost, building up the saved, and glorifying the Lord.  We believe the church belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ, that He purchased it with His own blood, and we believe that the members of His church should love Christ and all the members of the body...and that they should  be faithful to its purposes.  We believe in the separation of church and state.  We believe the church is a God-governed body with the pastor serving as the spiritual leader of the body.     
​~ Matt. 16:18; Eph. 3:21; Acts 2:41-47.

12.  We believe in Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as Church Ordinances.  We believe that baptism by immersion is the only scriptural mode.  We believe that baptism does not save, but it is an act of obedience to the command of Christ, and a testimony to the world of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  We believe that baptism identifies you with Jesus Christ and with the people of God.  Rom. 6:1-5;  Matthew 28:19-20.  We further believe that the Lord’s Supper is a symbolical ordinance which pictures Christ’s body broken for our sins and His blood shed for our redemption.  We do not believe it is a saving ordinance, but rather symbolical.  We believe that every born-again, baptized believer should take the Lord’s Supper as an act of worship, praise, remembrance, and gratitude to Jesus Christ for what He has done for the sinner. 
​~ I Corinthians 11:23-24.

13.  We believe in Giving.  We believe that every Christian should give at least ten percent of his income to the Lord through the local church.  We further believe that every Christian should go beyond the tithe in his giving to Spirit-directed giving.  We believe the Christian’s time, spiritual ability, and money ought to be given back to God as an act of dedication and love to Jesus Christ and in order to fulfill the Great Commission.  
​~ Matt. 28:18-20; Lev. 27:30; Mal. 3:10; Luke 6:38.

14.  We believe in World Evangelism.  We believe that it is the responsibility and privilege of every member of the local church to do everything he can to make the gospel of Jesus Christ available to as many people as possible.  Hence, we believe that evangelism begins at home as we lead people to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Then evangelism spreads into the community, the city, the state, and the nation, and to the world.  We believe that the energies of our church ought to be totally directed to getting the gospel to the masses of the world.  We believe it is our solemn responsibility as a church to do everything we can to fulfill the Great Commission.  Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:44-49; John 20:21-23; Acts 1:8.

Calvary Baptist Church is part of the Southern Baptist Convention. Locally we are part of the Holston Baptist Association and of the Tennessee Baptist Convention.