Hickory Ridge Community Church

ls 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. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation. (Exodus 24:4, Deuteronomy 4:1-2; 17:19; Joshua 8:34; Psalms 19:7-10; 119:11, 89, 105, 140; Isaiah 34:16; 40:8; Jeremiah 15:16; 36:1-32; Matthew 5:17-18; 22-29; Luke 21:33; 24:44-46; John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Acts 2:17 - 47.; 17:11; Romans 15:4; 16:25-26; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12; 1 Peter 1:25; 2 Peter 1:19-21)

God- We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God the Father- Perfect in holiness, boundless in love, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ, His Son (John 3:16). God the Son- We believe in Jesus Christ, God the Son, pre-existent with the Father, begotten by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He is sinless in nature and life, infallible in His teaching, making atonement for the sins of the world by His substitutionary death on the cross. We believe in the personal, pre-millenial and pre-tribulation return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to rapture His church (1 Thes. 4:13-18). We also believe He will return after the tribulation with His Saints to set up His thousand-year reign here on earth. God the Holy Spirit- We believe in the Deity and personality of the Holy Spirit. We believe that He came from God to convince and convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He also regenerates, sanctifies, indwells, comforts, and instructs those who put their faith in Jesus Christ (Eph. 4:30; John 16:13; 1 Thes. 5:19). Man- We believe that man was created in the image of God, and that man sinned, thereby incurring not only physical death, but also spiritual death, which is eternal separation from God. We believe that all human beings are born with a sinful nature, and in the case of those who reach moral responsibility, become sinners in thought and deed by choice (Rom. 5:12 & 19). Satan-We believe in the active reality and personality of Satan, a fallen angel, who will one day be completely defeated and placed in hell along with the other angels who fell with him (Rev. 12:9-10; Isa.14:12-15). Salvation- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scripture, as a substitutionary sacrifice. We believe all who by faith receive Him as their personal Savior are justified on the grounds of His shed blood on Calvary and His resurrection from the dead. They are born again of the Holy Spirit, thereby becoming children of God (1 John 14:6; John 3:3-7). The Church- We believe in the visible church, which is composed of believers in Jesus Christ, who have been baptized by immersion, and who assemble for and actively practice the six principles of Fellowship, Evangelism, Discipleship, Ministry, Worship and Prayer. We believe the church has two ordinances as defined in Matthew 28:19-20. Baptism- We believe that baptism is an ordinance of the church, not a work leading to or aiding in salvation. It is the immersion of the believer in water in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as a testimony of the believer's identification with the Lord Jesus in His death, burial and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-5). Lord's Supper-We believe that the Lord's Supper, as directed by Christ, is an ordinance of the church for all believers. We observe this ordinance periodically as a remembrance of Christ's substitutionary death, burial and resurrection until He returns, being careful to examine our lives and purify our hearts before partaking (Matt. 26:26-30; Mark 14:17-26; 1 Cor. 11:25-29). Last Things-We believe in the bodily resurrection of all the dead, the saved to eternal life in Heaven, and the unsaved to eternal suffering in hell (John 10:27-29). We are pre-tribulationists in that we believe Christ will return for the rapture of the church before the seven years of tribulation occur. Following the seven years of tribulation will be the second coming of the Lord, in which we will return with Christ to establish his thousand-year reign on the earth. Assurance-We believe in the eternal security of the believer, based upon God's ability to keep us secure in Him (John 10:27-28). Once a person is truly saved, he or she cannot lose his or her salvation. Christian Living-We believe that every true believer should manifest the Christian life in a consistent walk with the Holy Spirit, so that he or she may be fully yielded to the indwelling Christ (2 Cor. 6:14 – 7:1)