At Mackay Baptist Church, we believe that God has revealed Himself to us (and continues to reveal Himself) through His Word which is living and active, sharper than a two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). God’s Word defines for us our beliefs and principles, most importantly the revelation of Jesus Christ, who is God made flesh, who was born as a man and voluntarily accepted death on the cross as a means to pay the price and penalty for our sin. Yet, after three days in the grave, He arose and lived amongst us for 40 days before returning to Heaven to be seated at the right hand of the Father.
The following statement of beliefs describes the principals upon which our faith is based:
- The Bible is the Divinely inspired Word of God and the supreme authority and basis for all our beliefs and practices. (II Timothy 3:16&17, II Peter 1:20 & 21)
- God exists as one God in three persons the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19, Ephesians 2:18, Hebrews 9:14, Deuteronomy 6:4)
- The Lord Jesus Christ is both divine, the only begotten Son of God, and human, the son of the Virgin Mary, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. (Philippians 2:6-11, Colossians 1:15-20,Isaiah 7:14, Galatians 4:4)
- All people are born sinful and separated from God; and in need of God’s saving grace. (Romans 3:10 – 18, 23, John 3:16)
- The Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished the forgiveness of sin and the freedom from the penalty and power of sin by his perfect obedience, death, resurrection, and present intercession. (John 14:6, Acts 4:12, I Peter 3:18, I Peter 2:24, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 7:25)
- The Holy Spirit brings about the new birth and eternal life in the believer. He sanctities, seals, and empowers (I Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 1:13 &14, II Timothy 1:7)
- Salvation is only possible through repentance to God, and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. (Acts 2:38, Acts 4:12, Acts 16:30-31, Acts 20:21)
- The dead will be resurrected and the final judgment of all people by the Lord Jesus Christ will happen. (II Thessalonians 1:6-10, Hebrews 9:27, Revelation 20;1-15)
- The Lord Jesus will return visibly and gloriously to claim His own. (Acts 1:11, I Thessalonians 4:13-18)
- The two Ordinances of the Lord Jesus Christ – namely, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, are of perpetual obligation; Baptism being the immersion of believers upon the profession of their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and a symbol of the fellowship of the regenerate in His death, burial and resurrection; (Romans 6:4) the Lord’s Supper being a memorial, until He comes, of the sacrifice of the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Luke 22:19 & 20)
We believe that the Word of God defines for us the indisputable and uncompromising principles upon which our faith is based. Were it not for the Word of God, our faith would be baseless. We recognise that the Word is not prescriptive towards the styles by which our faith is expressed in worship and we embrace the diversity of culture and style that God has fashioned in us to express our love and affection for Him.
We believe that the Holy Spirit is living and active in the lives of all Christians and that He dwells within us from the moment that we accept Christ as our saviour and repent of our sin (Acts 2:38). He alone chooses to whom specific spiritual gifts are given. Some gifts may even be considered miraculous. All gifts, however, are given for the purposes of building up the Church (1 Corinthians 14:26) and bringing glory to God (1 Peter 4:10-11).