What We Believe

Why Two Doctrinal Statements?

New Hope came into being in March, 2006, as a result of a merger between Faith Evangelical Free Church and The Berean Church. Since our merger we have maintained our affiliations with both the Free Church and the Berean Fellowship. We have also kept both of our statements of faith. As you read them you will notice there is really very little difference between the two.

The Basics

The Evangelical Free Church of America is an association of some 1,300 autonomous churches united by a mutual commitment to serve our Lord Jesus Christ with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and obedience to the Word of God. We are committed to cooperate with one another in ministry and fellowship as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission which Christ has entrusted to His Church. The growing ministry of the EFCA currently extends to some 45 countries of the world.

What Does "Evangelical" Mean?

The term Evangelical refers to our commitment to the proclamation of the Gospel and to the authority of Scriptures as being inerrant in the original autographs and the only safe and sufficient guide to faith and practice.

What Does "Free" Mean?

The term Free refers to our form of church government as being congregational. Evangelical Free Churches depend upon the active participation of lay people in the decisions and directions.

Statement of Faith of
The Evangelical Free Church of America

The doctrinal position of The Evangelical Free Church of America
is summarized in our twelve-article Statement of Faith.

We Believe:

The Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men and the Divine and final authority for Christian faith and life.
In one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
That Jesus Christ is true God and true man, having been conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He died on the cross, a sacrifice for our sins according to the Scriptures. Further, He arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven, where, at the right hand of the Majesty on High, He is now our High Priest and Advocate.
That the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and, during this age, to convict men, regenerate the believing sinner, and indwell, guide, instruct and empower the believer for godly living and service.
That man was created in the image of God but fell into sin and is, therefore, lost, and only through regeneration by the Holy Spirit can salvation and spiritual life be obtained.
That the shed blood of Jesus Christ and His Resurrection provide the only ground for justification and salvation for all who believe, and only such as receive Jesus Christ are born of the Holy Spirit and, thus become children of God.
That water baptism and the Lord's Supper are ordinances to be observed by the Church during the present age. They are, however, not to be regarded as means of salvation.
That the true Church is composed of all such persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are united together in the Body of Christ of which He is the Head.
That only those who are, thus, members of the true Church shall be eligible for membership in the local church.
That Jesus Christ is the Lord and Head of the Church and that every local church has the right, under Christ, to decide and govern its own affairs.
In the personal and premillennial and imminent coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and that this "Blessed Hope" has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer.
In the bodily resurrection of the dead; of the believer to everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord; of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment.

The Berean Fellowship of Churches

Articles of Faith

We are a Christ-centered, grace-oriented fellowship of churches committed to the following doctrines:

I. BIBLE

We believe the Bible, consisting of both the Old and New Testament Scriptures in their entirety, is the only divinely inspired, inerrant, objectively true, and authoritative written Word of God, and the only infallible rule of faith and practice. The divine inspiration of Scripture extends to each word of the original manuscripts, but not to the various copies or translations of Scripture. The Bible should be interpreted literally, grammatically, contextually, and historically. Gen. 1-3; Deut. 29:29; John 10:35; 2 Tim. 3:15-17; 2 Pet. 1:21; 1 Cor. 2:13.

II. GOD

We believe in only one God, the Creator, who is infinite, personal, eternally existing in three persons, revealed to us in Scripture as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Gen. 1:1; Deut. 6:4; Isa. 43:10; 44:6; 45:22; Matt. 28:19; John 4:24; 5:26; Col. 1:16-19; 1 Cor. 8:4.

III. JESUS CHRIST

We believe that Jesus Christ is God the Son who has neither beginning nor ending. He was conceived in the flesh by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, and is fully God and fully man. Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and arose bodily on the third day. He ascended into heaven and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father as our only mediator, high priest, and advocate. Matt. 1:23-25; John 1:1; 14:3; Acts 4:12; 1 Cor. 15:3, 4, 20; Phil. 2:5-11; 1 Tim. 2:5-6; Heb. 4:14-16; 1 Pet. 2:22.

IV. HOLY SPIRIT

We believe the Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity. He is a person, not a force. The Holy Spirit's ministries include: Convicting all people of sin; calling, regenerating, indwelling, and baptizing believers into the Body of Christ; setting them apart to a holy life; and teaching, keeping, and empowering them day by day. The Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts to each believer according to His will. God in His sovereignty still works in miraculous ways. However, we understand that the sign gifts have served their purpose and should not be expected in the church today. John 3:5-8; Acts 1:8; 5:3-4; 16:7-14; 1 Cor. 2:9-12; 3:16; 12:3-13, 28-31; 13:8-11; Gal. 5:16-25; Eph. 1:13-14; 5:18; Heb. 2:3-4.

V. HUMAN RACE

We believe that both man and woman were created in the image of God to enjoy a personal relationship with Him. As a result of deliberate disobedience they fell from their sinless state and they and all their descendants became sinners. Consequently, they cannot save themselves and apart from the grace of God in Jesus Christ, they are condemned to a place of eternal torment. Gen. 1:26-27; 2:7; Matt. 5:20-48; John 3:16-18, 36; Rom. 2:6-16; 5:12-21; 6:23; 2 Thess. 1:6-9; Rev. 20:13-15.

VI. SALVATION

We believe we are saved solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ alone. This salvation was purchased by the substitutionary death and shed blood of Jesus Christ for the sins of every person and is offered to everyone as a free gift. The person who has trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior is eternally secure, and can enjoy the assurance of salvation. We believe that at death believers enter eternal glory and that unbelievers enter eternal torment. Acts 16;31; 20:20- 21; Rom. 3:28; 10:9; 1 Cor. 15:3-4; John 1:12; 3:16; 10:28; Eph. 2:8-9; Phil. 1:6.

VII. SANCTIFICATION

We believe that every believer has been sanctified, set apart with a perfect standing before God. As we yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit, we will experience spiritual growth in holiness, but we will not experience perfection in conduct. Future rewards are determined by our obedience to the Lord. Heb. 10:10; Phil. 3:12 ; Rom. 6:13 -19; 1 Cor. 3:8.

VIII. CHURCH

We believe that Christ is the Head of the Church, which is His body. All who have trusted in Him as Savior are members of it. Christians should commit themselves to worship, instruction, fellowship, stewardship, and service in a local church. The church is responsible to represent Jesus Christ in the world through godly living and evangelism. All believers are commanded to participate in two church ordinances, believers' baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper. Matt. 26:26-29; 28:18-20; Acts 2:42; 1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:22 , 23; 2:19 -22; 3:6-10; 4:11 -13; 5:23 -27; 1 Thess. 2:14; Heb. 10:25; 1 Pet. 2:9-10; 1 John 4:17.

IX. SATAN

We believe that Satan was created an angelic being. He became the author of sin, our adversary and accuser, and the great deceiver of the nations. He will finally be overcome by the Lord Jesus Christ and suffer eternal punishment in the lake of fire. Gen. 3:1; Job 1:6-12; Matt. 4:3-11; John 8:44; 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 John 3:8; 5:19; Rev. 12:9-10; 20:10.

X. FUTURE EVENTS

We believe, on a day known only by God the Father, Jesus will rapture His church to deliver it from the judgments that God will pour upon the earth. After this terrible period, the Lord Jesus Christ will return in glory to establish His Millennial Kingdom on the earth. This will be followed by the final judgment of the wicked in the lake of fire and eternal bliss for God's children in a new heaven and a new earth. John 14:3; Acts 1:7, 11; Rom. 8:1; 1 Cor. 15:20, 23; 2 Cor. 5:10; Phil. 1:23; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 11:15; 19:11 -21:5.