Mt. Zion All Nations Bible Church
“Evangelizing, Equipping, Edifying, Exalting”
Confession of Faith
Confessions declare the church’s faith with conviction, joy and freedom. Historically, they emphasize the right of individuals to interpret the scripture as led by the Holy Spirit, the priesthood of the believer, and freedom of religion. However, these do not mean there is an absence of doctrines that we cherish and believe. In an age in which many forces increasingly threaten to erode orthodox Christian doctrines, it is incumbent on believers to clarify the non-negotiables of faith. The following affirmations are an attempt to articulate such essentials in the midst of a pluralistic religious landscape. We believe that these are central Christian tenets necessary for maintaining sound doctrine.
We wish to clarify that salvation is God’s free gift of grace and is received through simple faith in Jesus Christ and repentance of sin. Salvation is not the result of cognitive assent to doctrinal statements.
We recognize that confessions do not replace or supplement the Bible and its authority. Nor are they a substitute for the living dynamic relationship which we have in Jesus Christ. Additionally, we invite the individual believer to choose other words so as to express the following beliefs in a personal manner. This confession attempts only to confirm some of what is central to the faith, and by intent it is silent on less weighty matters and peripheral issues. However, it is our conviction that what is written here represents a consensus of doctrine, which will aid in guarding the deposit of truth which we believe is revealed in scripture.
Vision Statement
The primary vision of Mt. Zion All Nations Bible Church is to develop a “center” for the equipping of God’s people for VICTORIOUS KINGDOM LIVING in every area of life through the preaching and teaching of the “whole” counsel of God’s word through contemporary and creative as well as traditional methods of worship and training; we seek to lead people of various social economic and ethnic backgrounds to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and to cultivate and enhance a more intimate personal relationship with the Lord in the life of all believers through prayer, praise, study of the word and fellowship among saints thereby making “true disciples.”
“Evangelizing, Equipping, Edifying, Exalting”
What We Believe
We believe in the triune God – the eternally self-existent, I AM, the creator of heaven and Redeemer of mankind manifested in three persons: Almighty Father, Divine Son, and Holy Spirit. I John 5:7, Genesis 1:1; John 1:1, 4:24; Matthew 10:20; II Corinthians 3:17-18.
2. We believe the Bible as the inspired, infallible, Word of God, free from error in the original autographs and the only rule of faith, guide for practice and indisputable and ultimate authority of the revelation of God, His will and His way. II Timothy 3:16-17; Psalms 19:7-11; II Peter 1:16-21.
3. We believe in the Deity (divine nature) of Jesus Christ, the incarnation of the Son, born of a virgin, the very God for whom and by whom all things were created. I John 1:1-10.
4. We believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as our payment for sin, that He, by the grace of God, tasted death for every man and that all must be born again through faith in Him, or are forever lost. Redemption is accomplished by the cross and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, by grace, through faith, believing in the heart that God raised Him from the dead. Salvation is by Jesus Christ and none other, for God had highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and of things in earth, and of things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Hebrews 2:9; John 3:1-18, 6:44-49; Ephesians 2:8; Romans 10:9; Philippians 2:9-11.
5. We believe in the physical resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and that He ascended bodily into heaven, and is now at the right hand of the Father as our mediator, high priest, and advocate. Acts 3:12-26; John 20; Hebrews 9:24; I Corinthians 15:12-28.
6. We believe in water baptism and Holy Communion (the Lord’s Supper) as the ordinances of the church, which are to be observed as public declaration of salvation through Jesus and in commemoration of His death, burial and resurrection in victory over Satan, death, hell and the grave.
Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 22:19-20.
7. We believe in the personal, visible, imminent return of Jesus Christ both “for” His Saints and “with” His Saints to reign in victory.
I Thessalonians 4:13-18; I Corinthians 15:50-55; Revelation 19:19-20, 20:1-6.
8. We believe in the authority of the believer over the enemy, Satan, and the victory to be gained by the exercise of that authority in the areas of deliverance, healing and holiness. Ephesians 1:20-23, 6:10-17.
9. We believe in the personality and reality of Satan as the enemy of the kingdom of God and the Saints of the Lord; and in his ultimate defeat by the Lord Jesus Christ and potential defeat in the lives of Spirit – filled believers, clothed in the armor of God.
Revelation 12:9-10; Matthew 4:2-11; Isaiah 14:12-17; John 8.
10. We believe in the autonomy of the local church as an independent entity with regard to matters of government, policy operation and discipline. I Corinthians 5:5; I Thessalonians 3:6, 14-15; Acts 6:3-5, 11:22, 14:23; Titus 1:5.
11. We believe in the endless and continuing ecclesiastical value of all spiritual gifts for the uplifting of believers and the body of Christ until the end of this church age is fulfilled by the glorious event the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I Corinthians 12-14; Romans 12:3-7; Ephesians 4:11-12; I Corinthians 13:10.
12. We believe in the Divine personhood of the Holy Spirit and His present day ministry to believers which includes the sovereign distribution of spiritual gifts to believers to empower them for service in the contemporary church. I Corinthians 12.
13. We believe in the formal and intentional praise and worship of the Almighty God as a proper spirit-led corporate acknowledgment and response to His person and work. Psalms 46-50; John 4:23.
14. We believe in Jesus Christ as the Baptizer with the Holy Spirit whereby He, by means of the Holy Spirit, brings men and women at salvation into relationship with Himself and His Body, the Church. Believers are never commanded to be baptized with the Holy Spirit; it is in fact the baptism of the Holy Spirit that makes one a part of the Body of Christ. All believers have been baptized by Christ with the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 3:11; John 1:33; I Corinthians 12:13.
15. We believe in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit for all Christians; it is in fact this indwelling of the Holy Spirit that verifies and validates the believer as a part of the Body of Christ, for He only indwells believers. Romans 8:14-24.
16. We believe in the spirit-filled life as necessary, valuable and an issue of obedience for all believers who are commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge that, within the Body of Christ, the term filled with the Holy Spirit is often used interchangeably with the term baptism of the Holy Spirit. When referring to the controlling presence and power of the Holy Spirit as a result of the submissive will and desire of the believer, we allow such alternation of terms. We believe it is the will and command of God that every believer be filled with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18.
17. We believe all believers are exhorted to be filled, walk in, be led by and live in the power of the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18; Galatians 5:16, 18, 25.
18. We believe that it is God’s desire that all believers live life under the control of, or being continuously filled with, the Holy Spirit. We believe there are many fillings and there is to be the ongoing filling ministry of the Spirit in the life of the believer for empowerment to effectively and victoriously live a life that glorifies God. Acts 1:8, 2:4, 3:10, 4:8, 4:31.
19. We believe the Holy Spirit fills or empowers believers for service in the Kingdom of God. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is the result of continuing submission to Divine power and control. Acts 1:8; Ephesians 5:18.
20. We believe the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the filling of the Holy Spirit are distinct, separate, valid and valuable ministries of the Holy Spirit which may occur at the same time as salvation. Being filled with the Holy Spirit may and should occur subsequent to salvation in obedience to biblical exhortation. The baptism of the Holy Spirit occurs once and for all at salvation. Being filled with the Holy Spirit should not only be a continuous reality, but an ongoing characteristic of the believer’s consecrated holiness.