A Summary of the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith

1. We believe in the one true and living God, in three Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, who is invisible, personal, omnipresent, eternal, dependent on none, unchanging, truthful, trustworthy, almighty, sovereign, omniscient, righteous, holy, good, loving, merciful, long-suffering and gracious.

2. We believe that Almighty God has revealed all that is necessary to life and salvation in the sixty-six books of Holy Scripture, which are the Word of God. The Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments, being God-breathed, are infallible and inerrant in all their parts and are, therefore, trustworthy in all that they affirm concerning history, science, doctrine, ethics, religious practice, or any other topic. The authority of the Bible is derived from its Author and not from the opinions of men. While we believe in the ongoing power and ministry of the Holy Spirit in regenerating, equipping, illuminating, leading, and teaching God’s people, we also believe in the final authority and sufficiency of the Bible over all areas of faith and practice.

3. We believe that God made our first father Adam perfect, holy and upright. He was appointed representative and head of the human race thereby exposing all his offspring to the effects of his obedience or disobedience to God’s commands.

4. We believe that Adam fell from his original righteousness into sin and brought upon himself and all his offspring death, condemnation and slavery to sin.

5. We believe it to be utterly beyond the power of fallen man to love God, to keep His laws, to understand the Gospel, to repent of sin or trust in Christ.

6. We believe that God, before the foundation of the world, and for his own glory, elected a great host of men and women to eternal life as an act of free and sovereign grace. This election was in no way dependent upon his foresight of human faith, decision, works or merit.

7. We believe that God sent his Son into the world, conceived of the virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit, unchangeably sinless, both God and man, born under the Law, to live a perfect life of righteousness, on behalf of his elect people.

8. We believe that God’s Son died at Calvary as a sacrifice to satisfy the wrath of God and bring about reconciliation, redemption and atonement for his elect people. God testified to the acceptance of his Son’s work by raising him from the dead.

9. We believe that God’s Son ascended to the right hand of his Father and is enthroned in glory, where he intercedes on behalf of his people and rules over all things for their sake.

10. We believe that God the Son has poured out the Holy Spirit to work alongside the preached word. The Spirit of God regenerates the elect sinner and draws him irresistibly to repentance towards God and faith in Christ the Saviour.

11. We believe the elect, who are called by grace, are justified in the sight of God on account of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ alone. This righteousness is received by faith alone.

12. We believe that all who are regenerated, called and justified shall persevere in holiness and never finally fall away.

13. We believe that the moral law of God is summarized in the Ten Commandments and that all the Ten Commandments continue today to be the standard of righteousness which every child of God ought to love and obey.

14. We believe all believers are duty-bound to join a local church as a member whenever possible bringing themselves under church government and discipline. We also believe that baptism and the Lord’s Supper are gospel ordinances belonging only to regenerated believers and are to be practiced in the context of such local churches.

15. We believe that our corporate worship must be regulated by the Scriptures alone and that we are not free to impose extra elements into our worship before God. We believe that the Scriptures teach that only men – biblically qualified men – are to hold the only two offices Christ has given to the Church, that being elder and deacon.

16. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ shall come again to raise the dead, both righteous and unrighteous, and that the righteous shall enjoy everlasting life and the wicked shall endure everlasting punishment

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU COME?

We hope that you will visit us soon!  If you visit us, here’s what you can expect:

• Preaching: We believe that preaching (proclaiming, heralding) the Bible is the main event in the worship service (2 Timothy 4:1-2).  Our sermons are typically 30-45 minutes long.
• Bible Reading: We believe that the public reading of Scripture is an important part of the worship service (1 Timothy 4:13).
• Prayer: We believe that public prayer from the pulpit is an important part of the worship service (1 Timothy 2:1-2).
• Communion: We observe the Lord’s Table on the first Sunday of each month.  The Lord’s Table is intended for believers who are living in communion with God and other believers.
• Dress Code:  There is none.  Some men wear shirts or ties.  Some women wear dresses.  Generally, most people dress up a little, like they would for something important.  We do ask that young ladies avoid immodest, body-revealing outfits.
• Children: We have a changing mat and supporting resources for babies and books to read for infants and toddlers.  We also have a Sunday school on a Sunday afternoon at 4 o’clock. We encourage children of all ages to sit under the Word of God and hear the sermons preached as the sermons are mostly accessible for all. It’s OK with us if you child makes a little noise, but if you feel it may be distracting you or others away from the Word of God, there is a backroom where you can take your child and listen to the sermon being preached
• Library: We have a library with classic Christian literature, available for you to borrow. We also have some free literature available too.  Just ask.
• Music: Music is an important part of worshipping God (Psalm 33:2-3; Colossians 3:16). We sing predominately traditional hymns with some contemporary Psalms, hymns and spritual songs. The content of the songs we sing are what we find to be the most important as the worship is for God and not for man.  The songs are sung from a Christian Hymn Book.
• Atmosphere: The best way to describe the atmosphere of our gatherings is holy joy (Psalm 29:2; Psalm 47:1).  While we don’t intend to be stale and mechanical (John 4:24), we do believe that our worship services should be orderly (1 Corinthians 14:40).

May you experience the blessing of God as we worship His great name together!

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

 The word “gospel” means “good news.”  But it presupposes bad news. The bad news is that all people, including you, are sinners. That is, we have all rebelled against God, our Creator, by violating His holy law (summarized in the Ten Commandments) in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Therefore, on our own we all stand condemned by God to an eternity in hell, separated forever from His mercy and goodness because of our sins.

But the good news is that because of His great and undeserved love, God sent forth His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to become a real human being. Jesus the God-man lived a perfectly righteous life and then died as a sacrificial substitute for our sins on the cross. After three days, Jesus was raised from the dead. Forty days after His resurrection, Jesus ascended bodily into heaven where He is now ruling and reigning until He comes again to judge the world. All who give up their rebellion against God and put their trust in Jesus for their salvation receive a full pardon and the gift of eternal life. The gospel is both the way to become a Christian and the way to live as a Christian.

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU COME?

We hope that you will visit us soon!  If you visit us, here’s what you can expect:

• Preaching: We believe that preaching (proclaiming, heralding) the Bible is the main event in the worship service (2 Timothy 4:1-2).  Our sermons are typically 30-45 minutes long.
• Bible Reading: We believe that the public reading of Scripture is an important part of the worship service (1 Timothy 4:13).
• Prayer: We believe that public prayer from the pulpit is an important part of the worship service (1 Timothy 2:1-2).
• Communion: We observe the Lord’s Table on the first Sunday of each month.  The Lord’s Table is intended for believers who are living in communion with God and other believers.
• Dress Code:  There is none.  Some men wear shirts or ties.  Some women wear dresses.  Generally, most people dress up a little, like they would for something important.  We do ask that young ladies avoid immodest, body-revealing outfits.
• Children: We have a changing mat and supporting resources for babies and books to read for infants and toddlers.  We also have a Sunday school on a Sunday afternoon at 4 o’clock. We encourage children of all ages to sit under the Word of God and hear the sermons preached as the sermons are mostly accessible for all. It’s OK with us if you child makes a little noise, but if you feel it may be distracting you or others away from the Word of God, there is a backroom where you can take your child and listen to the sermon being preached
• Library: We have a library with classic Christian literature, available for you to borrow. We also have some free literature available too.  Just ask.
• Music: Music is an important part of worshipping God (Psalm 33:2-3; Colossians 3:16). We sing predominately traditional hymns with some contemporary Psalms, hymns and spritual songs. The content of the songs we sing are what we find to be the most important as the worship is for God and not for man.  The songs are sung from a Christian Hymn Book.
• Atmosphere: The best way to describe the atmosphere of our gatherings is holy joy (Psalm 29:2; Psalm 47:1).  While we don’t intend to be stale and mechanical (John 4:24), we do believe that our worship services should be orderly (1 Corinthians 14:40).

May you experience the blessing of God as we worship His great name together!