WHAT WE BELIEVE
The Doctrinal Affirmations of Crosswalk Church | 2007
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We affirm that there is only one living and true God eternally existing in three Persons- Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections. All are equally deserving of honor, worship, and obedience. Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; John 17:3; I Corinthians 8:4; Matthew 28:19.
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We affirm the absolute sovereignty of God the Father who orders and carries out all things according to His own will and purpose for His own glory. God the Father is sovereign in creation, providence, and redemption. As Creator, God is Father to all men but He is spiritual Father only to believers. Psalm 103:19; Psalm 135:6; Psalm 22:8; Ephesians 1:3-14; Romans 8:14; II Corinthians 6:18.
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We affirm the total deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the second person of the Trinity He is co-equal, co-eternal, and consubstantial with the Father. John 10:30; 14:9; Revelation 1:8.
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We affirm the incarnation (God becoming man) and in the incarnation the second person of the Trinity accepted all the essential characteristics of humanity and in doing so became the God-man. He was fully God and fully man. John 1:1, 14; Philippians 2:5-8; Colossians 2:9.
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We affirm the virgin birth, the sinless life, the crucifixion, literal and physical death, bodily resurrection, ascension and the certainty of the glorious return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23,25; Luke 1:26-35; Hebrews 4:15; Matthew 27:50; Mark 15:37; Luke 23:46; John 19:30; Luke 2:23; Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42; Matthew28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-10;Acts 3:15; Romans 4:24; Ephesians 1:20; Revelation 1:5,18; Acts 1:9-11; I Thessalonians 4:16-18; Revelation 22:7.
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We affirm that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through the shedding of His blood and sacrificial death on Calvary’s cross. We also affirm that his death was voluntary, vicarious, and substitutionary, and totally satisfactory to the Father for the redemption of sinful man. Consequently, the Lord Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man. John 10:15; Romans 3:24,25; 5:8; I Peter 2:24; I Timothy 2:5. We affirm the doctrine of the imputation (reckoning or counting) both of our sins to Christ and of His righteousness to us, whereby our sins are fully forgiven and we are fully accepted. We believe this truth is essential to the Gospel. II Corinthians 5:19-21.
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We affirm the Holy Spirit is a divine person, co-eternal and co-equal with God the Father and God the Son. He possesses all the attributes of deity including, intellect, emotions, will, omnipresence, omnipotence, and omniscience. The Holy Spirit’s activity is to execute the divine will of God in relation to mankind. He convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. We also affirm that the Holy Spirit glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ in all He does. We believe the Holy Spirit apportions gifts to each one as He wills according to grace. Acts 1:8; I Corinthians 2:10-13; Ephesians 4:30; I Corinthians 12:11; Hebrews 9:14; Psalm 139:7-10; Isaiah 40:13,14; Romans 15:13; John 16:8-11; 14; Romans 12:3-8; I Corinthians 12,13,14.
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We affirm the Bible is God’s written revelation to man. We affirm that the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament are given to us by God the Holy Spirit and are therefore inspired (God breathed), inerrant (without error), and infallible (cannot be mistaken). The Bible carries the authority of God for man’s wellbeing. We affirm that the 66 books that make up the Bible constitute a closed cannon. There are no additional writings that can claim the authority of the Bible. The Scriptures are not for private interpretation and we believe it has been God’s intent from the beginning for the message to be clear and understandable. While there may be several applications of any particular passage of Scripture, there is only one true interpretation. It is the responsibility of the believer to ascertain carefully the true meaning of Scripture along with the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. Psalm 119:160; II Timothy 3:15-17; II Peter 1:20,21; II Peter 1:3,4; Revelation 22:7,18,19. While we do not advocate only one particular translation of the Bible, we do discourage the use of paraphrases in personal Bible study and devotions.
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We affirm that all mankind is sinful and therefore has incurred the penalty of spiritual and physical death, is subject to the wrath of God and is incapable of doing what is acceptable to God apart from divine grace. We utterly deny the idea of the inherent goodness of man and believe that every man, woman, and child is born totally depraved and in desperate need of a Savior. Man possesses no innate abilities to remedy his sin and is thereby totally dependent on God’s grace through the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ for genuine salvation. Matthew 19:17; Romans 3:10-18,23; 5:12.
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We affirm that salvation is wholly of God on the basis of the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ according to the Scriptures. We deny that human merit or works are sufficient for salvation and that the grace and faith God grants to sinners to be saved is solely of His sovereign grace and mercy. We affirm that before the foundation of the world, He chose in Christ those whom He regenerates, saves, and sanctifies. We affirm that once a person is saved, they are kept by God’s power and are therefore, eternally secure. John 1:12; Ephesians 1:4-7; 2:8-10; Titus 3:4-7; John 5:24; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 5:9,10; 8:1,31-39; Hebrews 7:25; 13:5; Jude 24,25. (See our more detailed statement on salvation and explanation of how a person is saved on our website or in print)
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We affirm that sanctification is a progressive work by which the believer is conformed to the likeness of Christ through obedience to the Word of God and the empowering of the Holy Spirit. We believe that sanctification ends at death when a believer is then glorified. John 17:17,19; Romans 6:1-22; 8:29,30; II Corinthians 3:18; Jude 24.
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We affirm the Biblical teaching of a literal heaven as the eternal home of the righteous and a literal hell as the eternal place of torment for the wicked. John 14:1-3; II Corinthians 5:8; II Timothy 4:18; Revelation 21,22; Luke 16:19-26; Jude 6; Revelation 20:11-15.
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We affirm that upon receiving salvation through Jesus Christ, the believer is placed into a spiritual body, the church, and the bride of Christ, of which Christ is the head. There is one church universal, composed of all believers throughout the world and the ages that have salvation by grace, through faith, in Jesus Christ. We also affirm the existence of local church bodies that exist in order for believers to gather together to learn God’s word, to pray, worship, observe the ordinances of baptism and communion and serve the needs of others, especially the needs of other believers. We believe that local churches are to be autonomous bodies under the oversight of elders and other supportive leadership. The church’s members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the ultimate purpose of glorifying the Head of the church Jesus Christ. The local church is to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. I Corinthians 12:13; Hebrews 10:25; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:3-8; I Corinthians 12:12-31; Ephesians 4:11-16.
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"We believe that marriage is always to be between one man and one woman only. Homosexual unions and same-sex marriages, even if sanctioned by the civil authorities, are aberrations of God’s law (Genesis 1:28, 2:18; Leviticus 18:22, 20:13; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; 1 Timothy 1:10) and thus ungodly and not permissible; neither is it biblical, godly or permissible for a man to have more than one wife at the same time or a woman to have more than one husband at the same time (Genesis 2:24, Malachi 2:13-15, Matthew 19:4-6), nor for a couple to live together as husband and wife outside of the covenant of marriage (Hebrews 13:4)."
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