What We Believe

• The Sovereignty of God - The sovereignty and grace of God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This sovereignty is expressed in what He has created, provided, revealed, redeemed and will finally judge.

• The Lordship of Christ - Jesus is Lord is the distinctive confession of faith. As individuals and as churches, we seek to make Jesus Lord of every aspect of our lives.

• The authority of the Bible - We believe that the Bible is the Word of God and that the Holy Spirit through the Bible shows us God's way for living. As radical believers, we believe the bible is divinely inspired and entirely trustworthy and authoritative in all matters of faith and conduct. We seek to root our lives in the revelation of God's truth.

• Justification by grace alone through faith alone - Man is universally sinful and guilty and in this fallen state is subject to God's wrath and condemnation. However, we believe that the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus the incarnate Son of God is the sole and all-sufficient ground of redemption from the guilt and power of sin and from its eternal consequences.
  
  We rejoice in the justification of the sinner solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ crucified and risen from the dead.

• Baptism for believers - On the basis of the New Testament, we claim that baptism is for believers only. Baptism is only for those who are able to declare Jesus is Lord. As a symbol of Jesus' claim on their lives, we practise baptism by immersion, in which candidates symbolise their desire to die to self and to live for Christ. The believer is baptised into the body of Christ by the Holy Spirit and regenerated, indwelt, illuminated and sanctified by the same Holy Spirit.

• A Believer's Church - We understand the church as a body and community of believers gathered by the Holy Spirit with Jesus Christ as Head for spreading the gospel to all men. In this community we are free to worship and serve God. Central to Baptist worship is prayer and praise, listening to God's word in preaching and a gathering around the Lord's Table.

• The return of Christ - We look for and expect the Lord Jesus Christ to return personally and visibly to reign one day in Power and Glory but also to take His Church to be with Him in a blissful eternal state we call Heaven.

• The priesthood of all believers - In the Baptist model of a believer's church every member has a role to play, whether in teaching, faith-sharing, evangelism, social action, pastoring, guiding, serving, prophetic insight, praying, healing, administration or hospitality.

• The church meeting - In a Baptist church, an illustration of the priesthood of all believers is the church meeting. This is the occasion when members come together to prayerfully discern God's will for their life together. In Baptist churches the final authority rests not with the ministers or deacons but with the members gathered together in church meetings. It is the church meeting which, for instance, appoints ministers, elders, deacons, and others who exercise various forms of leadership within a local congregation, agrees financial policy and determines mission strategy. Church meetings tend to take place mid-week, normally on a monthly or bi-monthly basis. Local churches will usually call a minister to serve among them. The minister functions as a church member with special responsibilities in caring for the members and leading in the church's mission. Their authority is in the affirmation of the congregation acting under God's guidance. They are almost invariably recognised by the wider family of churches.

• Interdependence - Baptist churches have always come together in regional, national and international associations for support and fellowship. On the basis of the New Testament, we believe that churches should not live in isolation from one another but rather be inter-dependent.

• Sharing the faith - We believe that each Christian has a duty to share their faith with others. William Carey was a Baptist who is known as the father of the modern missionary movement. Along with this emphasis on evangelism, however, we recognise that mission includes social action and involves promoting justice, social welfare, healing, education and peace in the world.

• Religious freedom - Religious freedom for all has always been a keystone of the Baptist way. Within Baptist churches, tolerance for differences of outlook and diversity of practice is encouraged.

• How are Baptists different from other Christians? - In other Christian traditions, church membership is not always clearly defined. In a Baptist context, baptism involves not only commitment to Christ, but also commitment to Christ's Church. For Baptists, church membership involves a commitment not only to work together to extend Christ's Kingdom, but also to love one another and stand by one another whatever the cost.

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