Church by the Chesapeake in Calvert County, Maryland

Our Beliefs

* In essential beliefs - we have unity.

"There is one Body and one Spirit...there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of us all..." Ephesians 4:4-6

* In non-essential beliefs - we have liberty.

"Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters . . .Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands of falls... So then each of us will give an account of himself to God ... So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God." Romans 14:1,4,12,22

* In all our beliefs - we show love.

"...If I hold in my mind not only all human knowledge but also the very secrets of God, and if I have the faith that can move mountains - but have not love, I amount to nothing at all." 1 Corinthians 13:2

THE ESSENTIALS WE BELIEVE:

1. The Bible

We believe that the Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments are verbally inspired and without error in the original manuscripts. We believe the Bible has supreme authority over faith and conduct for the believer in Jesus Christ.

2. The Trinity

We believe there is but one living and true God, who is one in essence, while eternally existing in three distinct persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit and that these three are equal in every divine perfection.

3. God the Father

The first person of the Trinity is an infinite personal Spirit who is perfect in every attribute and action. He orders and directs all things according to His own will, pleasure, and grace. He has decreed all things that come to pass for His own glory. He graciously involves Himself in the affairs of men, hears and answers prayer, and saves from sin and eternal condemnation all who come to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.

4. God the Son

The second person of the Trinity, is Jesus Christ who is both the eternal Son of God and virgin-born Son of man - fully God and fully man. We believe in His sinless life, miracles, and teachings. We believe that his substitutionary atoning death is the only provision for forgiveness of sin and eternal salvation. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His physical ascension, His perpetual intercession for His people and His personal visible return to this earth to establish His earthly kingdom.

5. God the Holy Spirit

The third person of the Trinity executes the will of God in the world of men. It is the Holy Spirit who applies the salvation Jesus Christ secured through His death upon the cross. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. We believe the Holy Spirit indwells, baptizes and seals every believer in Christ and that He is our abiding helper, teacher, and guide. We believe the Holy Spirit empowers the Church to live a lifestyle pleasing to God, endowing it with special gifts which equips believers to accomplish distinct ministries for the common good of the Church.

6. The Nature of Man

We believe that man was directly created in the image of God in order to fulfill God's will and enjoy His fellowship on this earth. In the garden, man fell by a voluntary act of personal disobedience to the will of God; therefore, all men are spiritually dead and subject to the certainty of both physical and spiritual death apart from Jesus Christ. The fall of man was a once-for-all historical fact, causing all to become subject to the wrath of God inherently corrupt and utterly incapable of choosing or doing that which is acceptable to God apart from divine grace. All men are now sinners by nature, choice and divine declaration.

7. Salvation

We believe that Christ's death for our sins in the only sufficient sacrifice. All who believe in Him are declared justified by the Father on the grounds of Jesus' death and resurrection. All who receive the Lord Jesus Christ by grace through faith have been regenerated by, and baptized in the Holy Spirit. They are thereby the children of God forever and members in the one true Church. This salvation results in righteous living and good works as the believer submits his/her life to the Word of God and the direction of the Holy Spirit.

8. The Church

We believe that all who have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit belong to the one true church and are directed by the Scriptures to associate themselves with a local congregation. The local church is the only visible representation of Christ, who is the one supreme authority of the Church. The local church is autonomous in its relationships and elects its own members to the roles of leadership. The local church is to lead men to Christ and to mature them in the faith. We believe the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church:

Baptism - the immersion of a believer after a credible profession of faith in Christ to symbolize unity with Christ and His Church

Communion - the symbolic commemoration of Christ's redemptive death.

9. The Future

We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ and the bodily resurrection for all men, the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. We believe in the rapture of the Church, the second coming of Christ, the final judgment, the millennial reign of Christ and the eternal happiness of the righteous.