Purpose

The purpose of First Baptist Church of Plainfield shall be the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the administration of the ordinances of the New Testament, the spiritual growth of its members, and the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world.

Statement of Faith

Scriptures

The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, and are the only sufficient, certain, and authoritative rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience. [2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Psalm 119:105; Proverbs 30:5]

God

There is but one God, the Maker, Preserver, and Ruler of all things, having in and of Himself all perfections, and being infinite in them all; and to Him all owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience. [Genesis 1:1, 26-27; Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 90:1-2; James 1:17]

Trinity

God is revealed to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, and being.  [Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 3:21-22; John 14:7-11; Corinthians 13:14]

Humankind's Condition

God originally created man in His own image and free from sin; but, through the temptation of Satan, Adam transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original holiness and righteousness; thereby, his posterity inherits a nature corrupt, wholly opposed to God and His law, and is under condemnation.  As soon as man is able to understand an immoral action, he becomes an actual transgressor. [Genesis 1:27; Genesis 3; Isaiah 53:6a; Isaiah 59:1-2; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:23]

Mediator

Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, born of a virgin, is the divinely appointed mediator between God and man.  Having taken upon Himself human nature yet without sin, He perfectly fulfilled the law, suffered, and died upon the cross for the salvation of sinners.  He was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended to His Father, at whose right hand He ever lives to make intercession for His people.  He is the only Mediator, the Prophet, Priest, and King of the Church, and Sovereign of the Universe. [Isaiah 9:6-7; Isaiah 53; John 3:16-17; Romans 1:1-4; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Colossians 1:13-20; Hebrews 4:14-15]

Salvation

Salvation involves the redemption of mankind, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer.  In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, sanctification, and glorification. [John 3; John 14:6; Romans 1:16; Romans 6:23; Romans 4, 5, and 8; Ephesians 2; Titus 3:5-6]

Regeneration

Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of God's grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus.  It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. [2 Corinthians 5:17]

Repentance and Faith

Repentance and Faith are inseparable experiences of grace.  Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God.  Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior. [Habakkuk 2:4; Matthew 3:12; Mark 1:15; Acts 17:30; Hebrews 11:6; 2 Peter 3:9]

Justification

Justification is God's gracious and full forgiveness of sin for all sinners who believe in Christ.  They receive Him and His righteousness by faith; not for anything wrought in them or done by them, but on account of the obedience and satisfaction of Christ.  Justification brings the believer into a relationship of peace and favor of God. [Romans 3:23-24; Romans 8:30; Galatians 2:16]

Sanctification

Sanctification is the experience, beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to God's purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual perfection through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him.  Growth in grace should continue throughout the regenerated person's life. [Exodus 13:2; Romans 6:22; 1 Corinthians 1:30]

Glorification

Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed. [1 Corinthians 2:7-9; 1 Peter 5:4; Revelation 22:1-5

Perseverance of the Saints

All true believers whom God has accepted through Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere to the end. [John 10:29; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 1:3-5]

The Church

A New Testament Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith an fellowship of the gospel, observing the two ordinances of Christ, committed to His teachings, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to make disciples, and extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. [Matthew 16:16-18, Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 2:41-47; Ephesians 1:22-23, Ephesians 4:11-16; Colossians 1:18]

Baptism

Christian baptism is a Church ordinance and is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.  It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer's death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus.  It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead.  [Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 8:35-39; Acts 10:44-48; Galatians 3:27-28]

Lord's Supper

The Lord's Supper is a Church ordinance and a symbolic act of obedience whereby professing believers, through partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming. [Matthew 26:26-29; Luke 22:19-20]; 1 Corinthians 11:23-34]

The Lord's Day

The Lord's Day is a Christian observance and should be spent in exercises of worship and spiritual commitment and devotion, both public and private.  We should keep the Sabbath holy. [Exodus 20:8; Mark 16:2; Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2]

The Resurrection and The Judgment

God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end.  According to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge all people in righteousness.  The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place of everlasting punishment.  The righteous in their resurrected and glorified bodies will receive their reward and will dwell forever in Heaven with the Lord. [Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 16:19-31; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 2 Peter 3-7; Revelation 20:1-22]

Separation of Church and State

We believe in the total independence and separation of church and state.  We believe in the freedom of the individual conscience; in the voluntary principle, not the coercive principle, in religion.

Priesthood of Believers

We believe that all Christians are servant ministers of God.  We have direct access to God in the Name of Christ to cry out salvation, for forgiveness of sin. [1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 1:9]