HOUSTON FRIEND PERSONAL DOCTRINAL STATEMENT BIBLIOLOGY

I believe God reveals Himself, in the general sense, through nature and conscience to all, which makes everyone accountable to God (Psalm 19; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:14-15). God also reveals Himself specifically for salvation, worship, and good works through the prophets/apostles, prayer, the Spirit, Scripture, and the person of Jesus Christ, who is the ultimate revelation of God (Acts 1:21-26; Ephesians 2:20, 3:5; Hebrews 4:12; 1 John 1:1-3, 2 Timothy 3:16-17). I believe the canon of the Bible is complete. I believe the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament were produced by the will of God and were carried along by the Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16-17). I believe God, through the Holy Spirit, superintended the writing of Scripture without overriding background or the personality/style of the human writers, while still maintaining the infallibility of every word (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Luke 1:1-4; 2 Peter 1:21, 3:16). I believe that the autographs of Scripture are without error and the manuscripts are reliable. The Bible is true in all that it asserts, historically and in all matters of faith and practice (Matthew 5:17-18; John 10:31-38; Hebrews 4:12). GOD I believe God is the ultimate and personal being who created and sustains all (Genesis 1:1; 17:1). I believe He is actively involved in His creation and reveals Himself, but that He cannot be known exhaustively (1 Kings 8:60; Job 11:7; Jeremiah 31:34; Romans 11:33-36). Some attributes of God are as follows:

2 1. Sovereignty (Psalm 33:9; 174:4; Acts 17:24-28; Ephesians 1:11, 14) 2. Righteousness (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 11:7; 145:17; Daniel 9:7; Matthew 11:21) 3. Justice (Deuteronomy 32:4) 4. Love (Lamentations 3:22-23; Ephesians 2:4; 1 John 4:8) 5. Aseity (Genesis 21:33; John 8:58; Acts 15:18) 6. Omniscience (Psalm 139:1-11, 16; Isaiah 40:13-14) 7. Omnipotence (Genesis 17:1; Exodus 6:3; Jeremiah 32:27; Acts 17:24-28) 8. Omnipresence (1 Kings 8:27; Psalm 139:1-11, 16; Jeremiah 23:24) 9. Immutability (Exodus 3:13-14; Numbers 23:19; Psalm 102:27; Malachi 3:6; James 1:17) 10. Truthfulness/Faithfulness (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 33:9; Romans 3:4; Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18) 11. Holiness (Leviticus 11: 44-45; Joshua 24:19; Psalm 99:3; Habakkuk 1:12; 1 Peter 1:15; 1 John 1:5) 12. Unity (Exodus 3:13-14; Leviticus 11:44-45; Deuteronomy 6:4) I believe there is one God (Deuteronomy 4:35, 39). I believe He exists in three Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), each as fully God performing different roles, still one in essence (Ephesians 4:6; Mark 14:62; John 10:30-33; 14:16-17; 1 Peter 1:2).

CHRIST I believe that Jesus is fully God and fully man. Jesus, as the second person in the trinity, maintained his fully deity and full humanity, displaying attributes of both natures without a formula for mixture, loss, or transfer of any essential part of Himself (Matthew 26:63-64; John

3 8:40; Colossians 2:9; Phillipians 2:6; Hebrews 2:17; Romans 8:3). I believe Jesus existed always as God and became a man through a physical birth from the Virgin Mary by the work of the Holy Spirit (John 1:1-17; 8:58, 1 Corinthians 10:4; Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:35). I believe Jesus, in His divinity, was completely sinless and in His humanity was able to be tempted (John 15:10; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 3:5; Matthew 4:1-10; 1 Peter 2:21). As a man, He gave up the independent exercise of His divine attributes, staying in submission to the will of the Father (Phillipians 2:5-11; John 5:19, 30). I believe that Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose from the dead after three days (John 19:28-34; Matthew 27:59-60; 28:6). He then appeared to multitudes of people and ascended into heaven (Luke 24; John 20:27; 1 Corinthians 15:3-19; Acts 1:3-9). I believe Jesus will return, rule on the earth, and judge (Revelation 19-21) I believe Jesus death was for the sins of all of humanity, giving the opportunity of eternal life for all who believe (Hebrews 10:1-10; John 3:16). I believe His resurrection is the cornerstone of faith, that because He rose from the dead, what He said and did is absolutely validated (1 Corinthians 15:3-19).

ANTHROPOLOGY AND SOTERIOLOGY I believe God created everything, including humankind, in His image (Genesis 1:1, 26-27). I believe Genesis is the historical account of creation. I believe humans were given dominion over the earth and all its vegetation and inhabitants (Genesis 1:28). Therefore, humans have a responsibility to care for it (Genesis 1:26). I believe God did not use an evolutionary process to advance life (Genesis 2:7).

4 Although Adam and Eve were created without sin, they fell by their own decision (Genesis 3:1-22). As a result, I believe sin tainted all humanity, and no one is righteous on their own (Romans 3:10; 5:12-21). I believe sin is distortion or perversion of Gods character (Genesis 3:1-6), rebellion (Leviticus 26:40; Isaiah 1:2), and missing the mark of Gods standard (Judges 20:16; Proverbs 19:2; Leviticus 24:15). I believe each person is made up of three parts, body, soul, and spirit (Hebrews 4:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Corinthians 2:11-3:4). I believe the atonement is penal and substitutionary, once and for all (Leviticus 16:1522; Romans 3:25-26; Ephesians 5:2; Hebrews 10:10-14). I believe that to receive justification, one must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 4:7-12; 16:31-32; John 3:14-18, 36; 20:30-31). I believe that justification is by grace through faith in Christ, not as a result of works (Ephesians 2:8-9; Matthew 7:21-23). I believe that one who is justified can apostatize, but all believers are eternally secure in Christ, sealed by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:12-15; Ephesians 4:30).

PNEUMATOLOGY, ECCLESIOLOGY, AND ESCHATOLOGY I believe the Holy Spirit is a person, the third member of the trinity (Matthew 28:19). The Holy Spirit can speak, be grieved, resisted, and quenched (Acts 7:51; 8:29; Ephesians 4:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19). I believe the Holy Spirit is an agent of the Father and was directly involved in creation (Genesis 1:2). The Holy Spirit has been active since creation, and works now in believers lives through salvation, baptism, and sanctification (Genesis 20:6; Numbers 27:16-19; John 3:5; Romans 8:15; 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 12:13). I believe the Church is made up of all believers. The Church that began at Pentecost now manifests itself in individual congregations (Acts 2; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:1). I

5 believe Christ is the head of the church, and its purpose is to glorify God through the equipping of believers (Ephesians 3:21; 4:12-15). I believe that the church also exists to spread the gospel to unbelievers and promote community, unity, and fellowship among believers through the demonstration of the love that Christ exemplified (Matthew 28:16-20; Acts 1:8; 11:9; Ephesians 4:1-6; 2 Corinthians 8:4). I believe there is a correct order to be followed in the Church. I believe in a congregationally led church and a plurality of elders (Acts 11:30). I believe men and women are equal in value but have different roles (Genesis 1:27; 1 Timothy 2:12). I believe the church is to develop the spiritual gifts given to each believer for the purpose of edifying others (1 Corinthians 12-14; Ephesians 4:11-12). I believe in a Historic/Dispensational Premillenial view of the end times. I believe that at Christs second coming, He will usher in the millennium. I believe Israel and the Church are distinct, but that the Church is also spiritual Israel (Galatians 6:14-16). I believe everyone will be judged, the sheep will be separated from the goats, and all believers will be judged for their actions (Matthew 25:32; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; Revelation 19-20).