Our Canon of Faith - The Final Call Doctrinal Statements of Belief
4/27/07
Revised 01-22-2008
As a Christian group promoting the truths of scripture, it is most appropriate to display our position on the fundamentals of Scriptures, mostly regarding the basics of the Christian faith. In order to successfully function as an online Christian group, every person must respect and not promote any other view contrary to the fundamentals of the doctrinal statement (views on the end times and others that are not necessarily fundamental are exceptional), even though you may disagree with it. Here at the Final Call, we are here to magnify Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and await the arrival of His kingdom on earth. As Bible believing Christians, we, as a group have read, understood, and agree to the following principals of faith in order to accomplish our mission and goals here on this group. We present to you, our canon of faith.
1. The Scriptures*
We believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, verbally inspired in the whole and in the parts, the all-sufficient rule of faith and nature practice (2 Tim 3:16; 2 Pet 1:20-21)
2. God*
We believe in one God, eternally existing in three Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who created all things (Matt 28:19-20; Acts 5:3-4; Heb 1:1-3; Gen 1:1). We believe in the historicity of the entire narrative of Genesis, including God's creation, of the material universe in six literal days, a literal Adam and Eve as the parents of all mankind, a literal fall, and a universal flood (Exo 20:9-11; Rom 5:12; 2 Pet 2:5). We believe in the virgin birth, the sinless perfection, the bodily resurrection and ascension into heaven of Jesus Christ, and in His present life there for us as High Priest and Advocate (Matt 1:20-23; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Cor 15:3-4; Acts 1:9; Rom 8:34).
3. The Return and Reign of Jesus Christ
We believe, first, that Christ will return as He ascended to gather all believers unto Himself (the rapture), both the living and the dead, in bodily form to us while also receiving our glorified bodies simultamiously. as well as believing, secondly, that Christ will return, visible to all, a second time for the purpose of all opposition to His rule, especially the Anti-Christ. (1 Cor 15:24-28; Phil 3:20-21; Jude 14-15; Rev 2:26-27, Rev 3:21, Rev 20:1-6, Rev 19, Rev 21)
4. The Fall of Man
We believe that man has fallen based upon Adam's voluntary will to disobey God band live in sin as well as believing that man has fallen from God in such a way that he is no longer able to fellowship with God in his fallen state. (Gen 3; Rom 1, Rom 5:12-21).
5. Total Depravity
We believe that man is so corrupt, in mind, heart, and spirit that he can do nothing that will ever please God apart from salvation as well as believing that man's will is so evil that he cannot save himself but is in need of salvation. (Rom 3:9-18, 5:6-10)
6. The Bondage and Freedom of the Will of Man
We believe that man's will is inherently evil and that all he does is consider wickedness and unrighteouness before God as well as believing that man is able to perform moral good, but is still evil because his deeds are not accredited to God as righteousness but as sin. (Isa 64:6; Rom 3:10-18) I do not believe that man can do anything good to glorify God apart from salvation. I do not believe that man has the right to choose between good and evil apart from God because of his sinful nature.
7. Regeneration
We believe that the Holy Spirit must change a person's hear to accept the gospel and prompt them to be saved and changes the spiritual deadness into spiritual life and begins in them the process of holiness and new life. as well as believing the Holy Spirit entitles one to have faith once one is quicken by His power. (John 6:44,2 Cor 15:7)
8. Repentance
We believe that repentance is necessary for salvation, which means that one must first confess their sins before the Lord and then openly confess faith in Jesus Christ for salvation; thus a changed heart and lifestyle must accompany a repented invidividual because it demonstrates the authenticity of their turning away from sin and turning to Jesus Christ and has a new nature to please God.(Rom 6-7, 10:9-10, Cor 5:17; 1 John 3:7-10)
9. Salvation
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins as a vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who believee in Him are justified on the basis of His shed blood, and are born of the Holy Spirit and thereby become the children of God (Rom 5:8-9; 1 Cor 15:3, 2 Cor 5:21; Rom 3:24-26; John 3:3-6; John 1:12). We believe those born again by the Spirit of God have eternal salvation and can never be lost (Rom 8:28-39; John 10:27-30; Rom 5:1-11).
10. Justification
We believe that one is justified by their faith in Christ alone and not by works, that good deeds accompany the faith expressed solemnly as a demonstration of one's love and dedication to Christ and will be reward upon the Christian judgment as well as believing a saved person is found righteous before God and because of their faith is accredicated as righteousness before Him thanks to the death of Christ and His atonement of sin. (Eph 2:8, James 2:14-26, Rom 4:1-3, 1 Cor 3:13, 4:2, 2 Cor 5:10; 1 Pet 4:10).
11. Sanctification
We believe that God works within man spiritually to change his heart from participating in sin and gives man the responsibility of avoiding sin as well as believing that sanctification is a lifetime process that will never be acheived fully in this life but will only be reached or completed in glory. (Rom 6:, Col 3:5).
12. Union with Christ
We believe that believers are seated with Christ in heavenly places upon salvation, even before death, and is part of the Body of Christ and receives all spiritual blessings in the heavenly realm, and is known also as the Bride of Christ or the Church and that all believers are part of God's family through Jesus Christ and will one day reign with Him in heaven. (Eph 1:3-14).
13. Perseverance
We believe that those whom God has saved will be perserved holy unto the Lord because of the work of the Holy Spirit until the physical death occurs and that the Holy Spirit changes the believer to move away from sin progressively and turns to more acts of righteousness and holiness. (John 11:25-26; Col 3:1-17)
14. Eternal Security
We believe that the Holy Spirit eternally secures the believer from spiritual death and nothing that the believer does will affect i tand that the believer is eternally secured and it cannot be lost or taken away by anyone else including the individual. (John 5:24, Eph 1:-13-14).
15. Assurance of Salvation
We believe that the believer can be assured of salvation prior to death and glory because of the promise of the Holy Spirit being our seal and someday resurrecting us just like Christ did. (Eph 1:13-14, 1 Thess 4:13-18)
16.The Church*
We believe the Church is an elect company of believers baptized by the Holy Spirit into one body; its mission is to witness concerning its head, Jesus Christ, preaching the Gospel among all nations (Eph 1:3-4; 1 Cor 12:13; Acts 1:8). We believe that water baptism and the Lord's Supper are the ordinances of the Church in this age (1 Cor 11:23-26; Acts 2:4). We believe the Christian is not under the Law but that the grace of God is sufficient for the maintenance of a life of obedience to the Word of God (Rom 8:9; Eph 4:30;1 Cor 12:7-11; Gal 5:16-18; Eph 5:18; 1 John 2:27).We believe the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary and that speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or the filling of the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:20, Heb 2:3-4; 1 Cor 14:1-40). We believe that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection (1 Cor 15:50-54; 2 Cor 12:7-10). We believe that God frequently chooses to answer the prayer of believers for physical healing (James 5:14-18).
The Last Days
As an eschatogolical group warning the world of the terrible fate that awaits it as well as the blessed hope awaiting the Christian church and the tribulation saints, we have a fixed stance on how the events of what's called the "Tribulation Period" and will be explained further on the site. Below is the order in which we all agree on the following events and the estimated timing of their happening according to scripture (only the major events will be listed). We believe that the world will experience a time known as the Tribulation Period in which seven things will happen:
1. The Rapture of the Church (prior to the tribulation period, so doesn't count)
2. Coming of the Antichrist
3. Tribulation for 3.5 years (three and a half years)
4. War in Heaven
5. Great Tribulation (3.5 years)
6. 2nd Coming of Christ
7.Defeat of Antichrist and gentile nations
8.End of Tribulation, Beginning of earthly 1,000 year kingdom of Christ on earth
(Gen 3:15;Isa 60-62, 65:17-25, 66:10-24; Jer 23:1-8, Jer 33; Dan 2:36-45, Dan 7-12; Matt 24; Luke 21:10-38; 2 Thess 2; 1 John 4:3; Revelation 1-22)
Hence, is our faith rooted solemnly on scripture and God's eternal, breathed Word that will soon manifest in the fulfillment of the final things to come. Amen!!!
*The following is a part of an evangelical school doctrinal statement of beliefs, which matches closely to what our group promotes and stands for (see www.bible.edu)
Please note
To be a member of this group, I am only requiring you to be a Christian and to personally agree to respect this statment while on the Final Call MSN Group. Even if you disagree, that's fine, just as long as you don't promote activitely "inside" the group. Outside the group, you are more than welcome to express what you believe if it is contrary to our group. Also, to help ease confusion on the statement, explanation of doctrinal statement will be posted on the site Study/Commentary board for clarification. The link to that page is here Study/Commentary. If after reading and help clarifying the doctrinal statement beliefs you still disagree, then please abide by your conscience and do what you think is best, even if it means not joining. Remember, I am not forcing anyone to join, but I do want everyone to understand where we as a group is coming from in our beliefs. Thank you and God bless you for understanding.) If further clarification about the doctrinal statement is needed, please contact Ninjaearth at any time. God bless!!!
