River in the
Desert Ministries
Statement of Faith
River in the
Desert Ministries aligns itself with the General
Council of the Assemblies of God on the…
STATEMENT OF
FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS
The Bible is
our all-sufficient rule for faith and practice. This
Statement of Fundamental Truths is intended simply
as a basis of fellowship among us (i.e., that we all
speak the same thing, 1Corinthians 1:10; Acts 2:42).
The phraseology employed in this statement is not
inspired or contended for, but the truth set forth
is held to be essential to a full-gospel ministry.
No claim is made that it contains all biblical
truth, only that it covers our need as to these
fundamental doctrines.
1. The
Scriptures Inspired
The
Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are
verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of
God to man, the infallible, authoritative rule of
faith and conduct (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1
Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).
2. The One
True God
The one true
God has revealed himself as the eternally
self-existent “I AM,” the Creator of heaven and
earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further
revealed himself as embodying the principles of
relationship and association as Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:10,11;
Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22).
THE ADORABLE
GODHEAD
(a) Terms
Defined
The terms
trinity and persons, as related to the godhead,
while not found in the Scriptures, are words in
harmony with Scripture, whereby we may convey to
others our immediate understanding of the doctrine
of Christ respecting the Being of God, as
distinguished from “gods many and lords many.” We
therefore may speak with propriety of the Lord our
God, who is One Lord, as a Trinity or as one Being
of three persons, and still be absolutely scriptural
(examples, Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; John
14:16,17).
(b)
Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead
Christ taught
a distinction of persons in the godhead which He
expressed in specific terms of relationship, as
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but that this
distinction and relationship, as to its mode is
inscrutable and incomprehensible, because
unexplained (Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 1:24; Matthew
11:25-27; 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 John 1:3,4).
(c) Unity of
the One Being of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Accordingly,
therefore, there is that in the Father which
constitutes Him the Father and not the Son; there is
that in the Son which constitutes Him the Son and
not the Father; and there is that in the Holy Spirit
which constitutes Him the Holy Spirit and not either
the Father or the Son.
Wherefore,
the Father is the Begetter; the Son is the Begotten;
and the Holy Spirit is the One proceeding from the
Father and the Son. Therefore, because these three
persons in the godhead are in a state of unity,
there is but one Lord God Almighty and His name one
(John 1:18; 15:26;17:11,21; Zechariah 14:9)
(d) Identity
and Cooperation in the Godhead
The Father,
the Son, and the Holy Spirit are never identical as
to person; nor confused as to relation; nor divided
in respect to the godhead; nor opposed as to
cooperation. The Son is in the Father and the Father
is in the Son as to relationship. The Son is with
the Father and the Father is with the Son, as to
fellowship. The Father is not from the Son, but the
Son is from the Father, as to authority. The Holy
Spirit is from the Father and the Son proceeding, as
to nature, relationship, cooperation, and authority.
Hence, no person in the godhead either exists or
works separately or independently of the others
(John 5:17-30,32,37; 8:17,18).
(e) The
Title, Lord Jesus Christ
The
appellation Lord Jesus Christ, is a proper name. It
is never applied in the New Testament either to the
Father or to the Holy Spirit. It therefore belongs
exclusively to the Son of God (Romans 1:1-3,7; 2
John 3).
(f) The Lord
Jesus Christ, God With Us
The Lord
Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature,
is the proper and only Begotten of the Father, but
as to His human nature, He is the proper Son of Man.
He is, therefore, acknowledged to be both God and
man; who because He is God and man, is “Immanuel,”
God with us(Matthew 1:23; 1 John 4:2,10,14;
Revelation 1:13,17).
(g) The
Title, Son of God
Since the
name Immanuel embraces both God and man, in the one
person, our Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the
title Son of God describes His proper deity, and the
title Son of Man, His proper humanity. Therefore,
the title Son of God belongs to the order of
eternity, and the title Son of Man to the order of
time (Matthew 1:21-23; 2 John 3; 1 John 3:8; Hebrews
7:3; 1:1-13).
(h)
Transgression of the Doctrine of Christ
Wherefore, it
is a transgression of the doctrine of Christ to say
that Jesus Christ derived the title Son of God
solely from the fact of the Incarnation, or because
of His relation to the economy of redemption.
Therefore, to deny that the Father is a real and
eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and
eternal Son, is a denial of the distinction and
relationship in the Being of God; a denial of the
Father and the Son; and a displacement of the truth
that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh (2 John 9;
John 1:1,2,14,18,29,49; 1 John 2:22,23; 4:1-5;
Hebrews 12:2).
(i)
Exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord
The Son of
God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by himself purged
our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty
on high, angels and principalities and powers having
been made subject unto Him. And having been made
both Lord and Christ, He sent the Holy Spirit that
we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our knees and
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of
God the Father until the end, when the Son shall
become subject to the Father that God may be all in
all (Hebrews 1:3; 1 Peter 3:22; Acts 2:32-36; Romans
14:11; 1 Corinthians 15:24-28)
(j) Equal
Honor to the Father and to the Son
Wherefore,
since the Father has delivered all judgment unto the
Son, it is not only the express duty of all in
heaven and on earth to bow the knee, but it is an
unspeakable joy in the Holy Spirit to ascribe unto
the Son all the attributes of deity, and to give Him
all the honor and the glory contained in all the
names and titles of the godhead except those which
express relationship (see paragraphs b, c, and d),
and thus honor the Son even as we honor the Father
(John 5:22,23; 1 Peter 1:8; Revelation 5:6-14;
Philippians 2:8,9; Revelation 7:9,10; 4:8-11).
3. The
Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ
The Lord
Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The
Scriptures declare:
a. His virgin
birth (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31,35).
b. His
sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22).
c. His
miracles (Acts 2:22; 10:38).
d. His
substitutionary work on the cross (1 Corinthians
15:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
e. His bodily
resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke
24:39; 1 Corinthians 15:4).
f. His
exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9,11;
2:33; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:3).
4. The Fall
of Man
Man was
created good and upright; for God said, “Let us make
man in our image, after our likeness.” However, man
by voluntary transgression fell and thereby incurred
not only physical death but also spiritual death,
which is separation from God (Genesis 1:26,27; 2:17;
3:6; Romans 5:12-19).
5. The
Salvation of Man
Man’s only
hope of redemption is through the shed blood of
Jesus Christ the Son of God.
(a)
Conditions to Salvation
Salvation is
received through repentance toward God and faith
toward the Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing of
regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, being
justified by grace through faith, man becomes an
heir of God according to the hope of eternal life
(Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians
2:8; Titus 2:11; 3:5-7).
(b) The
Evidences of Salvation
The inward
evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the
Spirit (Romans 8:16). The outward evidence to all
men is a life of righteousness and true holiness
(Ephesians 4:24; Titus 2:12).
6. The
Ordinances of the Church
(a) Baptism
in Water
The ordinance
of baptism by immersion is commanded in the
Scriptures. All who repent and believe on Christ as
Savior and Lord are to be baptized. Thus they
declare to the world that they have died with Christ
and that they also have been raised with Him to walk
in newness of life (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts
10:47,48; Romans 6:4).
(b) Holy
Communion
The Lord’s
Supper, consisting of the elements—bread and the
fruit of the vine—is the symbol expressing our
sharing the divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ
(2 Peter 1:4); a memorial of His suffering and death
(1 Corinthians 11:26); and a prophecy of His second
coming (1 Corinthians 11:26); and is enjoined on all
believers “till He come!”
7. The
Baptism in the Holy Spirit
All believers
are entitled to and should ardently expect and
earnestly seek the promise of the Father, the
baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire, according to
the command of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the
normal experience of all in the early Christian
church. With it comes the enduement of power for
life and service, the bestowment of the gifts and
their uses in the work of the ministry (Luke 24:49;
Acts 1:4,8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31). This experience
is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of
the new birth (Acts 8:12-17; 10:44-46; 11:14-16;
15:7-9). With the baptism in the Holy Spirit come
such experiences as an overflowing fullness of the
Spirit (John 7:37-39; Acts 4:8), a deepened
reverence for God (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 12:28), an
intensified consecration to God and dedication to
His work (Acts 2:42), and a more active love for
Christ, for His Word, and for the lost (Mark 16:20).
8. The
Initial Physical Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy
Spirit
The baptism
of believers in the Holy Spirit is witnessed by the
initial physical sign of speaking with other tongues
as the Spirit of God gives them utterance (Acts
2:4). The speaking in tongues in this instance is
the same in essence as the gift of tongues (1
Corinthians 12:4-10,28), but different in purpose
and use.
9.
Sanctification
Sanctification is an act of separation from that
which is evil, and of dedication unto God
(Romans
12:1,2; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 13:12).
Scriptures teach a life of “holiness without which
no man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). By the
power of the Holy Spirit we are able to obey the
command: “Be ye holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter
1:15,16).
Sanctification is realized in the believer by
recognizing his identification with Christ in His
death and resurrection, and by faith reckoning daily
upon the fact of that union, and by offering every
faculty continually to the dominion of the Holy
Spirit (Romans 6:1-11,13; 8:1,2,13; Galatians 2:20;
Philippians 2:12,13; 1 Peter 1:5).
10. The
Church and Its Mission
The Church is
the body of Christ, the habitation of God through
the Spirit, with divine
appointments
for the fulfillment of her Great Commission. Each
believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of
the general assembly and church of the firstborn,
which are written in heaven (Ephesians 1:22,23;
2:22; Hebrews 12:23).
Since God’s
purpose concerning man is to seek and to save that
which is lost, to be worshiped by man, to build a
body of believers in the image of His Son, and to
demonstrate His love and compassion for all the
world, the priority reason-for-being of the
Assemblies of God as part of the Church is:
a. To be an
agency of God for evangelizing the world (Acts 1:8;
Matthew 28:19,20; Mark 16:15,16).
b. To be a
corporate body in which man may worship God (1
Corinthians 12:13).
c. To be a
channel of God’s purpose to build a body of saints
being perfected in the image of His Son (Ephesians
4:11-16; 1 Corinthians 12:28; 14:12).
d. To be a
people who demonstrate God’s love and compassion for
all the world (Psalms 112:9; Galatians 2:10; 6:10;
James 1:27).
The
Assemblies of God exists expressly to give
continuing emphasis to this reason-for-being in the
New Testament apostolic pattern by teaching and
encouraging believers to be baptized in the Holy
Spirit. This experience:
a.
Enables them to evangelize in the power of the
Spirit with accompanying supernatural signs (Mark
16:15-20; Acts 4:29-31; Hebrews 2:3,4).
b. Adds
a necessary dimension to a worshipful relationship
with God (1 Corinthians 2:10-16; 1 Corinthians
12-14).
c. Enables
them to respond to the full working of the Holy
Spirit in expression of fruit and gifts and
ministries as in New Testament times for the
edifying of the body of Christ and care for the poor
and needy of the world (Galatians 5:22-26; Matthew
25:37-40; Galatians 6:10; 1 Corinthians 14:12;
Ephesians 4:11,12; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Colossians
1:29; Galatians 5:22-26).
11. The
Ministry
A divinely
called and scripturally ordained ministry has been
provided by our Lord for the fourfold purpose of
leading the Church in: (1) evangelization of the
world (Mark 16:15-20), (2)worship of God (John
4:23,24), (3) building a Body of saints being
perfected in the image of His Son (Ephesians
4:11,16), and (4) Meeting human need with ministries
of love and compassion (Psalms 112:9; Galatians
2:10; 6:10; James 1:27).
12. Divine
Healing
Divine
healing is an integral part of the gospel.
Deliverance from sickness is provided for in the
Atonement, and is the privilege of all believers
(Isaiah 53:4,5; Matthew 8:16,17; James 5:14-16).
13. The
Blessed Hope
The
resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in
Christ and their translation together with those who
are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is
the imminent and blessed hope of the Church (1
Thessalonians 4:16,17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:13; 1
Corinthians 15:51,52).
14. The
Millennial Reign of Christ
The second
coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints,
which is our blessed hope,
followed by
the visible return of Christ with His saints to
reign on the earth for one thousand years (Zechariah
14:5; Matthew 24:27,30; Revelation 1:7; 19:11-14;
20:1-6). This millennial reign will bring the
salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21,22;
Zephaniah 3:19,20; Romans 11:26,27) and the
establishment of universal peace (Isaiah 11:6-9;
Psalm 72:3-8; Micah 4:3,4).
15. The
Final Judgment
There will be
a final judgment in which the wicked dead will be
raised and judged according to their works.
Whosoever is not found written in the Book of Life,
together with the devil and his angels, the beast
and the false prophet, will be consigned to
everlasting punishment in the lake which burneth
with fire and brimstone, which is the second death
(Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 19:20;
20:11-15; 21:8).
16. The New
Heavens and the New Earth
“We,
according to His promise, look for new heavens and a
new earth, wherein dwelleth
righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21,22).
Statement
of Fundamental Truths is the official delineation of
the
Assemblies of God’s 16 doctrines. These truths are
non-negotiable beliefs
that all
Assemblies of God churches adhere to.
|
