Doctrinal Statement
April 4, 2022 2024-05-16 10:48Doctrinal Statement
Preamble
DBC stands for historic Evangelical Christianity because it is rooted in the Word of God. Our doctrinal statement summarizes its key theological commitments. We focus on the essentials and embrace divergent perspectives on other questions in mutual respect and a concern to let nothing stand in the way of Gospel unity.
We believe the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of man and the divine and final authority for all Christian faith, life, and conduct.
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe Jesus Christ, without any change in His eternal deity, became man through conception by the Holy Spirit and virgin birth, that He died on the cross, a perfect and complete sacrifice, in our stead and for our sins, according to the Scriptures. He arose bodily from the dead, and ascended into heaven where, at the right hand of the Majesty on high, He is now our High Priest and Advocate.
We believe that the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and during this age to convict of sin and regenerate the sinner upon believing in Christ, at the time of regeneration baptizing the believer into one body of which Christ is the Head; and to indwell, guide, instruct, fill and empower the believer for godly living and service.
We believe that man was directly created by God in His own image, but fell into sin. The entire human race is, therefore, lost; and only through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and regeneration of the Holy Spirit, can salvation and spiritual life be obtained.
We believe that the atoning death of Jesus Christ, and His resurrection, provide the only ground of justification and salvation for all who believe, and that only those who receive Jesus Christ by personal faith are born of the Holy Spirit and thus become children of God.
We believe in the personal, pre-millennial, pre-tribulation return of our Lord Jesus Christ, and that this blessed hope has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead, of the believer to everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord, and of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting and conscious punishment.
We believe that the church is composed of all such persons who, through saving faith in Jesus Christ, have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are united together in the Body of Christ, of which He is the Head.
We believe that water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are ordinances to be observed by the church during this present age. They are, however, not to be regarded as means of salvation.
We believe that all the saved should live in such manner as will honour and glorify and not bring reproach upon their Saviour and Lord, and that it is commanded of God to remain separate from false doctrines, sinful pleasures, practices and associations.
We believe in the personal existence of Satan whose main objective is to frustrate the purpose of God.
