Our Beliefs & Doctrine
In addition to the general overview of our church’s doctrinal beliefs below, here are some other things you may be interested in knowing:
Graceway is a Southern Baptist church.
We are participating members of The Southern Baptist Convention.
We confess the Baptist Faith and Message (2000) as well as a harmonization of the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689).
We adhere to the five solas of the reformation and affirm the doctrines of grace as they are so clearly expressed and taught throughout all of Scripture.
Our body is led by elders (also called pastors and overseers in the Scriptures) of which there is a plurality.
-
We believe the purpose of every individual believer is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ in every area of life.
-
We believe the Bible is inerrant, infallible, and eternal.
It is the supreme standard and authority by which everything is to be measured and held accountable, especially our faith and lifestyle.
-
We believe that God is eternal, sovereign, all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-present.
He is revealed to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, yet without division of nature, essence, or being.
-
We believe that Jesus Christ is God the Son, who was born of a virgin, who was sinless, who died for our sins, who arose bodily, and who will return visibly.
-
We believe that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone.
There is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and salvation is a permanent work of God.
-
We believe the church (universal & local) is the body of Christ made up of born-again believers united by repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and living in submission to the Word of God, and sent into the world to shine the glory of God.
We believe the local church is an autonomous body of believers who are in doctrinal harmony to obey Christ, teach the Bible, share the gospel with the unsaved, encourage one another, and help believers mature in the Lord.
-
We believe that baptism is for believers only and is by full immersion to reflect the picture of one's union with Christ in His death and resurrection (Rom. 6:1-14).
We believe that the Lord’s Supper is a memorial of the Lord’s death for us (1 Corin. 11:23-31). Both are local church ordinances to be observed by the members of a local church.
-
We believe that heaven (for the saved, those who have repented of their sins and believed in Jesus Christ alone) and hell (for the unsaved) are literal places and are both permanent and eternal.
-
We believe the gospel is to be shared with everyone. It is the responsibility of every believer to be a faithful witness and to support missions.
It is the work of the Holy Spirit through the presentation of the gospel that will draw the elect to faith in Christ.
-
We believe that members of Graceway are to live holy, dedicated lives and use their spiritual gifts in ministry, being faithful to the regular and special meetings of the church.
When open sin occurs, the process in Matthew 18 will be used to bring about restoration.
“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.”
If you have questions, feel free to contact us!