What We Believe

Discover the foundational truths that guide our faith and shape our community.

The following are the core beliefs of East Somerset Baptist Church based on the foundational truths taught in the Bible. All of our teaching and ministry is rooted in and flows out of these biblical doctrines.

There is one eternally existing God who has three distinct persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. He is the creator of all that exists, both visible and invisible, and is worthy of all glory and praise. God is perfect in love, power, holiness, goodness, knowledge, wisdom, justice, and mercy. He is unchangeable and therefore is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

God has revealed himself to us through his son, Jesus Christ, who is the visible image of the invisible God, through the holy Scriptures, and even through creation itself.

All of the Bible is inspired of God and not only contains, but is the Word of God and is the all sufficient rule for faith and practice. The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God's revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. All Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried.

Humans, both male and female, were created in God's image for His glory. The first humans, Adam and Eve, were created without sin and appointed as caretakers of the rest of God's creations.

When Adam and Eve chose not to obey God, they ceased to be what they were made to be and became distorted images of God. This caused them to fall out of fellowship with God and fractured all of creation ever since that time. All have sinned and are hopelessly lost.

Jesus Christ came to reconcile us with God. He lived a life without sin and willingly died on the cross to pay the penalty for our transgressions. God raised him from the dead and now, by grace, offers as a free gift eternal life to all who accept Christ, by faith, as their Lord and Savior. Salvation can be found in Christ alone.

The moment a person trusts Jesus as their personal Savior, they are regenerated through the power and indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit and given eternal life. They instantly and eternally become a child of God, eternally secure in Christ. God deals with believers as His children, loving and leading them, chastising disobedience and rewarding faithfulness and obedience. He dwells with them in life, never to leave or forsake them. They will dwell with Him forever in heaven.

A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of scripturally baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth.

Jesus was bodily raised from the dead, appeared to His disciples, ascended into heaven, and is now at the right hand of the Father. As Christ was raised from the dead, so shall His saints be bodily resurrected.

Jesus is returning personally, bodily and visibly just as He promised. His return will be the crowning event of the Gentile age. When Jesus returns, numerous events in heaven and on earth will transpire. They include the catching away of the saints, the resurrection of the dead in Christ, tribulation on earth, Christ's return in glory, the judgment of nations and the establishment of His Millennial kingdom. The Millennial reign of Jesus will be followed by the resurrection of the unrighteous unto eternal punishment in the lake of fire. Then, the new heaven and the new earth will be unveiled and the righteous shall enter into the eternal age.

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