What We Believe
Here at Arp Emmanuel Baptist Church we are a distinctly Southern Baptist Church and a part of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC). Below is a statement of our beliefs as a body of believers. If you would like to learn more about what we believe, please read the Baptist Faith and Message.
We Believe:
God, the Father
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.
Jesus Christ, God the Son
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He rose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory and will literally, visibly return again someday to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
God, the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make mankind aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the very moment of salvation. He amply provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily.
The Scripture
All Scripture of the Old and New Testaments is verbally inspired by God, and inerrant in the original writings and is the sole and final authority in faith and life. It contains no mixture of error and is our complete roadmap for living.
Human Beings
Man is the special creation of God, made in His own image. He created us male and female as the crowning work of His creation. The gift of gender is thus part of the goodness of God's creation. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. All humanity therefore inherits a nature and an environment of sin. Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship. Christ died for all humanity and every person of every race possesses full dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
Salvation and Security
Salvation is God's free gift to us but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin's penalty. Those who have put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation have the promise of eternal life as a permanent possession, and one's salvation cannot be lost or forfeited. It is the privilege of every believer to have a present and continuing assurance that he/she possesses salvation.
Eternity
People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.
Baptism
Baptism is by immersion after salvation and is done in obedience to Jesus Christ's command.
The Church
This congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ. It is an autonomous, local congregation of baptized, growing believers that seek to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each member is responsible and accountable to Christ as Lord. The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.
The members of AEBC are directed to associate themselves together for instruction, worship, prayer, fellowship, service, and the administration of the ordinances – baptism and the Lord's Supper. They are likewise to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
The Return of Christ
We believe in the imminent, personal return of Jesus Christ. He will descend from heaven to receive to Himself both His own who are alive and remain until His coming and the earthly remains of all who have died in Jesus. This event is the blessed hope set before us in Scripture. For this we should be constantly looking because no man knows the time of His coming.
The Christian Walk
The Christian is commanded in the Word of God to live a godly life; in the world, but not of it. This can only be accomplished by living in dependence upon the Holy Spirit so as to reveal the fruit of the Spirit. The life of the believer should be fruitful in spiritual service and lived for the glory of God.