God
We believe in the only true God (John 17:3), the Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19-20). He created all things
(Revelation 4:11) and upholds all things by the Word of His power (Hebrews
1:3). In Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). He is a God of
truth and without iniquity, He is just and right (Deuteronomy 32:4) and He
shall judge the world (Psalm 9:8).
We believe that the Godhead eternally exists in three
persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These three are one God,
having precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections, and are worthy of
precisely the same homage, confidence and obedience (Mark 12:29; John 1:1-4;
Matthew 29:19-20; Acts 4:3-4).
Jesus Christ
We believe in the total deity of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We believe He is the manifestation of God in the flesh. We believe He was
conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. We believe Him to be
true God and true man (John 1:1, 1:14, 1:18; John 14:8-9; 1 Timothy 3:16).
Holy Spirit
We believe in the total deity of the Holy Spirit and
that His ministry is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:14). The Holy
Spirit regenerates the sinner upon belief in Christ, baptizing the believer
into one body of which Christ is the head. The Holy Spirit indwells, guides,
instructs, fills, comforts and empowers the believer for godly living (Mark
13:11; John 14:26; John 16:13; Romans 5:5; 1 Corinthians 3:16). The Holy Spirit
convicts the world of sin, of God’s righteousness and of coming judgment (John
16:8-11).
While we believe that the Scriptures do not teach that
certain gifts have ceased, they indicate that use of the gifts vary according
to the need that each gift meets. Harvest Bible Chapel does not encourage the
use of “sign gifts.” Instead, we seek to emphasize the more excellent way of
love as well as zeal for the more edifying gifts (John 16:8; 13:15; Titus 3:5;
Ephesians 1:22; 4:11-12; Romans 8:9-17; 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 12:4-5,
12:11-13, 12:19; Galatians 5:25; Hebrews 4:1-4; 2 Corinthians 12:12).
Scriptures
We believe the Scriptures of the Old Testament and New
Testament are verbally inspired by God and inerrant in their original writings.
We believe the 66 books of the Old Testament and the New Testament are God’s
complete and sufficient revelation and therefore carry God’s authority for the
total well-being of mankind (Psalm 119:97-104; Psalm 119:160; Matthew 5:18;
John 5:46-47; John 10:35; 2 Timothy 3:15-16).
Man
We believe man was created in innocence under the law of
his Maker but, by voluntarily transgressing, fell from his sinless and happy
state. Consequently, all mankind is sinful. All people are sinners not only by
inheritance, but by their own choice and therefore are under just condemnation
without defense or excuse. We believe that without exception every man and
every woman is totally depraved and needs a Savior (Genesis 3:1-6; Romans
3:10-19; Romans 1:18, Romans 1:32; Romans 5:1-2).
Salvation
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice.
We believe that each person who by faith receives Him as personal Savior is
justified on the basis of Jesus Christ’s shed blood on Calvary. Each person who
receives Christ as personal Savior is born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby
becomes eternally secure as a child of God. We believe the Holy Spirit baptizes
each believing person into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation and
that there is no second baptism of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:37-39; 2
Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 12:13).
Resurrection
We believe in the resurrection of the body of our Lord
Jesus Christ, His ascension into heaven and His present life for us as High
Priest and Advocate (Acts 1:3; Acts 1:9; Hebrews 7:25-26).
Heaven, Hell and the Return of Christ
We believe in the “blessed hope”: the personal,
premillenial return of the Lord Jesus Christ. His return has a vital bearing on
the personal life and service of the believer (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We
believe in the bodily resurrection of both the saved and the lost. The saved
are raised to eternal, conscious bliss in heaven (Matthew 25:34; John 14:2; 2
Corinthians 5:1; Revelation 2:7) the lost are raised to eternal torment in hell
in conscious separation from God. (Matthew 8:11; Matthew 10:28; Matthew
13:49-50; Mark 9:47-48; Luke 12:5; Revelation 21:8).
Church
Upon accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, a
believer becomes part of His body, which is the church. There is one church
universal, composed of all those throughout the world who acknowledge Jesus
Christ as Savior and Lord. The Scriptures command believers to gather in order
to devote themselves to worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of
the ordinances (baptism and communion), fellowship, service to the body through
the development and use of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world in
fulfillment of the command of Christ to make disciples of all believers
(Ephesians 5:23; Romans 12:1; Acts 2:42-46; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Matthew
28:18-20).
Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to
this command, there is the local expression of the church – under the oversight
of elders and other supportive leadership. The church’s members are to work
together in love and unity, intent on the ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ
(Ephesians 4:16).
Missions
Realizing that the cause of Christ extends beyond any one local
fellowship, we commit ourselves to an ongoing ministry of extending the call of
Christ to make disciples around the world (Matthew 28:19-20).