Our Beliefs
The Bible
The Bible, consisting of all 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, is the Word of God, divinely inspired revelation from God Himself concerning Himself, His being, nature, character, will and purposes; and concerning humanity, our nature, need, duty and destiny. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as originally received, are inspired by God, entirely trustworthy, and are without error or misstatement.
1 Corinthians 2:12-13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Peter 1:24-25; 2 Peter 1:19-21; Revelations 22:18-19The Trinity
We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons, that these are equal in every divine perfection and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.
Matthew 28:19, 2 Corinthians 13:14, 1 Peter 1:2God the Father
God the Father is creator and ruler of the universe. The Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments, teaches us that His character is good, holy, just, gracious, loving, and unchanging. No one has seen the Father and we come to know Him through Jesus Christ His Son, through the Holy Spirit and through His Word. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of all people and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him in Jesus Christ.
Malachi 2:10; Matthew 6:9, John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 3:14-15; James 1:17; 1 John 4:12-13Jesus Christ
We believe in Jesus Christ, the divine Son of God. We believe in the scriptural account of His virgin birth, His death on the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice, providing redemption for the sins of the world through His shed blood, His bodily resurrection, His ascension and glorification, His continual intercession for all believers and His personal, visible return for His Church.
Matthew 1:18-25; Acts 1:9-1; Colossians 1:13-15The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity. He convicts of sin, righteousness, and judgment and reveals Christ and His Salvation. The Holy Spirit works in regeneration, sanctification, empowerment for service as well as the calling and gifting of individuals for service in the Church which is the body of Christ. Believers are to be filled with the Holy Spirit to serve God more effectively. The evidence of a spiritually mature life is the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians.
John 3:5-7, 4:24, 16:7-14; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:7-26; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Ephesians 5:18; Galatians 5:6-25Creation
God created the universe, and everything in it, out of nothing, by the power of His Word, and it was good. God created Adam and Eve, male and female, in His image, without sin, as recorded in Genesis. Today, every human being, though fallen, continues to bear the image of God and has dignity, value, and worth from conception to natural death.
Genesis 1,2; Psalms 102:25; Mark 10:6; John 1:1-3; Romans 8:20-24Angels
Holy Angels
Angels are created beings and, therefore, are not to be worshipped. They were created to serve and worship God and are active in carrying out His purposes today.
Luke 2:9-14, 4:8; Colossians 2:18-19; Galatians 1:8; Hebrews 1:6-7, 14; Revelations 5:11Satan
We believe that Satan is a personal being of limited spiritual powers which are subject to the omnipotence of God. We believe that he is a fallen angel, the declared enemy of God, the deceiver of men and the accuser of the believers. He was defeated by the Lord Jesus Christ through His death on the cross and will be eternally punished in the lake of fire prepared for him and his angels.
Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 14:12-17; 25:41; Matthew 4:1-11; Romans 16:20; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15; Ephesians 2:2; Hebrews 2:14; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelations 20:10Sin
Sin is the failure, intentional or not, to obey God. The whole human race fell into sin when Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Jesus Christ is the only human being who has never sinned. Everyone else has been separated from God by sin. Though sinful people still do good things, there is nothing a person can do to make up for their own sin and be reconciled to God.
Isaiah 64:6; John 3:3-5; Romans 3:10-12,23; 5:12,14,18; Ephesians 2:1, 4:17-18Salvation
By His death upon the cross, the Lord Jesus made a perfect atonement for sin, appeased the wrath of God against sinners, and provided a basis by which God can deal in mercy with sinners.
Isaiah 53:4-6, 11; Acts 3:19, 16:31, 17:30; Romans 3:23-28, 5:1, 5:10-11; Hebrews 9:28, 10:10; Galatians 3:13; 2 Corinthians. 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:6In order to be forgiven for our sins we must repent of our sins and have faith in Jesus. Repentance means accepting what God says about our sin and ourselves over whatever we might think or feel on our own. Faith in Jesus means that we believe that He is God, that his death paid for all our sins, that God raised Him from the dead, and that we need to trust and obey Him.
John 3:16,18,36; Acts 2:37-38; 16:31; 20:21; Romans 10:9; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 2 Corinthians 7:9-11; 1 John 5:1Assurance
Everyone who has sincerely repented of their sin and has faith in Jesus can be confident they will be reconciled to God.
John 6:47, 10:27-29; Romans 5:10-11; 8:33-39; 2 Corinthians 5:17-19; Ephesians 2:8-10, 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 3:5-8; 1 John 5:11-12The Church
The Bible calls the church the body of Christ. The church includes everyone who repents and has faith in Jesus Christ. A local church is an organized group of born again believers. They are united by their faith in Jesus and seek to obey His teaching including the celebration of Baptism and the Lords’ Supper. The local church is characterized by the Fruit of the Spirit, and the gifts of the Spirit with a view to evangelizing, discipling and equipping.
Matthew 16:18, 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:22-23, 3:1-6, 4:11-12; Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22-23; Hebrews 3:6Godly Lifestyle (Sanctification)
We believe that every child of God is to conduct his public and private life in accordance with the Word of God. All born again believers should live in a way that does not bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. A Godly life will increasingly reflect God’s nature in purity and holiness, as we learn to walk in the Spirit, abide in Christ, and turn away from sin.
Romans 6:13, 7:15-23, 8:12-13, 12:1-2; Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:23; Titus 2:11-12The Ordinances
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed these ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s supper.
Baptism
Baptism is commanded by Jesus. We practice water baptism for believers in the name of the triune God as a public testimony of repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. We believe that water baptism is symbolic of our burial with Christ in death and our resurrection with him to newness of life.
Matthew 28:19; Acts 8:36-38; Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12Lord's Supper
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has instituted the Lord’s supper in commemoration of His death. It is expected that all members of the congregation prepare themselves by spiritual self-examination and participate in Holy Communion as often as possible. Other Christian believers who love Jesus Christ and desire to participate with us in Holy Communion are welcome. We believe that these ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew 26:26-29; Luke 22:14-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-24Divine Healing
God heals the sick in response to the prayer of faith and according to His Sovereign will.
James 5:14-16Christian Stewardship
Tithing was instituted by God in the Old Testament and was a pattern for the people who worshipped God. In the New Testament era, we are no longer living under the Old Testament Covenant. However, grace should produce as much or more than that prescribed by the Old Testament Covenant. Regular, systematic giving is clearly taught in the New Testament. Christians honour and worship God when they conscientiously and systematically give generously of their income, time, talents, and resources.
Malachi 3:10, I Corinthians 16:1, 2, 2 Corinthians. 9:6-8Marriage and Sexuality
God instituted marriage as a sacred, lifelong union between one man and one woman, for the purpose of bonding in love, nurture and support, sexual intimacy, and the procreation of children. Marriage between one man and one woman is the only legitimate place for sexual intimacy, and anyone who is not married, for whatever reason, is called to self-control and abstinence.
God calls and equips some people to be single, and those who receive this gift have unique opportunities to serve Christ and the church in ways that are not possible for married people. Single people are in no way to be considered “second-class” Christians.
Marriage reflects the mystery of God’s love in Christ for His bride, the church. Those called to marriage are to submit to one another in love, and to equip each other for Christian service. Because Christian faith affects all of life, believers should only marry other believers, in order not to be “unequally yoked.” However, if a Christian is married to an unbeliever, God’s grace allows for them to remain married for the sake of both the unbelieving spouse and any children they might have.
Rejection of one’s biological gender is a rejection of the image of God within that person. The church is called to minister to those afflicted by sexual sin of any and every kind by teaching the truth with gentleness and love.
Every marriage service in Tofield Community Church shall be performed by an ordained pastor. Premarital counselling with the pastor is mandatory.
Genesis 1:27-28, 2:18-24; Leviticus 18:22; Proverbs 5:18-19; Malachi 2:13-16; Matthew 5:31-32, 19:4-9; 1 Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 7:10-11; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Ephesians 5:22-23; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10Child Dedication
A service of child dedication shall be held when requested. This service shall include:
a) The dedication of children to the Lord.
b) The dedication of the parents to the raising of the children in the Lord.
c) The commitment of support from the congregation to the children and their parents.
1 Samuel 1:11; Jeremiah 1:5; Matthew 18:10; Ephesians 6:1-4The Family
God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed of persons related to one another by marriage, blood, or adoption. Children, from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord. Parents are to demonstrate to their children God's pattern for life.
Christian parents grow in their ability to nurture their children through exemplary living including humility, the giving and receiving of forgiveness, prayer, worship, instruction in God’s word, and godly discipline. Children are to honor and obey their parents.
Genesis 1:26-28, 2:15-25, Exodus 20;12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 1 Samuel 1:26-28; Psalms 127, 139:13-16; Proverbs 1:8, 6:20-22, 17:6, 18:22, 22:6, 15, 29:15,17, 31:10-31; Matthew 5:31-32, 18:2-5; Mark 10:6-12; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-33; 6:1-4; Colossians 3:18-21; 1 Timothy 5:8; Titus 2:3-5; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1-7Church Cooperation
We believe that we should cooperate with other evangelical Christian churches in special functions which promote the cause of Christ.
1 John 2:19The Christians’ Relationship to Society
All followers of Christ are called to seek to make the moral will of Christ supreme in their lives and to be salt and light in human society. In order to promote these ends, Christians should be ready to work with all people of good will in any good cause, making peace as much as depends on them, always being careful to act in the spirit of love without compromising their loyalty to Christ and His truth.
Deuteronomy 10:12; Psalm 101:5; Micah 6:8; Matthew 5:13-16, 43-48, 22:36-40; Luke 10:27-37; John 15:12; Acts 4:19-20, Romans 12–14; 1 Corinthians 6:1-7; 10:23-11:1, 13:1-13; Colossian 3:12-17; James 1:27, 2:8, 5:29Civil Governments
The government was established by God for the welfare of society to promote and protect the good and to restrain and punish evil. Therefore, we consider it the duty of Christians to pray for rulers and for those who are in authority over them and to give due loyalty, respect, and obedience to them.
Christians are also encouraged to take an active interest in government at all levels. When the demands of the government conflict with the commands of Christ, Christians are called to carefully and prayerfully obey God in all circumstances.
Exodus 18:21-22; 2 Samuel 23:3; Daniel 3:17-18; Matthew 22:21; Acts 4:19-20; 23:5; Romans 13:1-17Oaths
We do not believe in taking oaths. We practice affirmation instead.
Matthew 5:33-37, James 5:1Discipline
We believe in the practice of scriptural church discipline.
Matthew 18:15-18Future Things
Jesus Christ will personally and physically return to the earth to be reunited with His church and establish His kingdom. Only God the Father knows when that will happen.
Zechariah 14:4-11; 1 Corinthians 15:50-54; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 3:10; 20:1-6Eternity
People were created by God to live forever and will be bodily resurrected after death. There will be a final judgment, where those who have followed Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord will be eternally with God, while those who have not put their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord will spend eternity in hell, separated from God.
Matthew 25:31-46; John 14:1-4; Acts 1:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Revelation 20:11-15, 21:1-22:5