Note: If you don't fully agree with this Statement of Faith. Then don't worry about it we can be merciful on you and agree to disagree! This ministry and the churches use the 1769 King James Bible.
This is what we believe:
The Triune Godhead / Trinity (God the Father the Soul of God who dwells in the Unseen Unseen Soul Realm, God the Son / Word of God the Lord Jesus Christ the Flesh of God who dwells in the Seen Flesh Realm / God the Holy Spirit who dwells in the Unseen Spirit Realm) / God is Three separate / different Persons in One Person
Repentance (changed way of thinking and not behavior), Belief, Salvation by faith alone by trusting in the finished work of the cross without works (sola fide means faith alone in Latin), confession of sins, confession of Jesus Christ as Lord, trust in Jesus Christ alone as Lord on the good ground in the heart, and eternal security
Conviction of Sin, Righteousness, and Judgement of the world by the Holy Spirit, Spiritual Sealing (Spiritual Circumcision) of the Holy Spirit, Spiritual Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the Spiritual Quickening of the Holy Spirit (Quickening means to make alive / born again)
Believer's baptism in water by immersion or by sprinkling if immersion cannot be done according to the Didache, feet washing, the Lord's Supper, and child dedications only with believers
New Heaven and New Earth reconciled with God for the rest of eternity for the Saved Saints and Hell & the Lake of Fire and Brimstone from God for the Lost Sinners separated from God for thousands of years after the New Heaven and New Earth are made. But after thousands of years all men and women will be saved and only Satan and his angels will be left to burn in the Lake of Fire forever. That is how there is no pain in the New Heaven and New Earth and this is godly inclusionism and apart of the Revelation of the Mystery. If man and woman burned in the lake of fire forever then the New Heaven and New Earth would be in pain and sorrow forever. But there will be no more sorrow or pain with Jesus Christ preaching the gospel in hell and even in the Lake of Fire after the great white throne judgement. The Antichrist and the False prophet are both going to be Satan the dragon in disguise demon possessing them. So those two men after thousands of years can be set free and the dragon Satan can burn in hell forever in their place because he was really the Antichrist and the False Prophet in disguise.
The Lord Jesus Christ went down to hell for three days and three nights to preach the gospel to the captives in hell after the cross in the Spirit to set the captives free from the old earth before the flood and then ascended to the Father to sit at the right hand of power after his resurrection on the third day. Jesus Christ has been preaching the gospel in hell for thousands of years ever since the fall from the beginning and even will to all things are fulfilled. According to Ancient Church Elder Clement of Alexandria in the Stromata Chapter VI and the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 3:18-20, 1 Peter 4:5-6, also according to the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:7-10, and also according to the Prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 61:1 and Isaiah 42:5-7. This is apart of the Revelation of the Mystery!
Pretribulation Resurrection & Rapture of the body of Christ
Body of Christ (Not of a Denomination / Nondenominational / Apostolic / The New Testament Churches didn't claim to be of a Denomination)
The Local Church and the Universal Church the Body of Christ
Congregationalist where a church votes on matters of affairs and Pastors, Elders, and Deacons help lead and maintain the Church
Premillemialism
7 Heavens according to Irenaeus in the Against Heresies Books
Eternal Life
Inspiration, inerrancy, and preservation of all books in the Bible according to the lists of Canon by Martin Luther, Irenaeus, and Hippolytus because Irenaeus and Hippolytus had same list of Canon as Apostle and Prophet John the Revelator who was also the great grandfather of Hippolytus and Hippolytus with Irenaeus preserved the canon with real apostolic succession within the Against Heresies Books of Irenaeus and Hippolytus
Continuation of the Spiritual Gifts for the body of Christ in the dispensation of grace and during the times of the gentiles (Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, Faith, Healing, Miracles, Prophecy, Discernment of Spirits (Mind Reading like the Angels and the Lord Jesus Christ), Tongues, Interpretation of Tongues, and Etc)
Creation made in six days and God rested on the seventh day
Prayer and Fasting
Dispensational Theology, Covenant Theology (Real Covenant Theology and not fake Covenant Theology), and God's Plans within Ages Theology
Predestination and Freewill
Celebrate Easter and the Nativity which is the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ
Great Commission
The written Word of God is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice (Sola Scriptura means scripture alone in Latin)
Pure Religion, Completion in Christ, and Pure Grace
Alms / Charity / Grace Giving
Rightly Dividing (Dissecting) the Word of God
Spiritual Warfare
Marriage between one Man and one Woman
Separation of Church and State
Real Apostolic Bishop Succession like in the Against Heresies books of Irenaeus and Eusebius church history books lists of Apostolic Bishop Succession
Renewal Theology (Restoration of offices of Apostle and Prophet)
Five-Fold Ministry Offices, Elders, and Deacons (Offices of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher, Elder, and Deacon are all still active for the Dispensation of Grace and Great Commission)
The Apostolic Doctrine from the Didache and the Against Heresies Books of Irenaeus and Hippolytus
Use the Enoch Hebrew Calendar from 1 Enoch and not the Pharisee Calendar from the Oral Torah which is the Babylon Talmud that the Jews are using in Israel
This is what we don't believe:
Baptism of Infants
Pagan Yoga and pagan martial arts like Kung Fu and Karate
Salvation by works of man / iniquity
Calvinism and Arminianism
Strong drinks like Beer, Whisky, Liquor, Vodka, wine with alcohol and etc (This apostolic ministry and the churches connected to this ministry will not be using alcohol with wine but wine without alcohol)
Amillennialism and Postmillennialism
Midtribulation rapture and post tribulation rapture of the body of Christ (the body of Christ is not going through the seven year tribulation period)
Sorcery, Witchcraft, Magic (Black Magic), Necromancy, Alchemy, and Etc.
Fake Mind Reading like Telepathy
Reincarnation
Free Masonry, Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholicism, Apostate Protestantism (Examples: Mormonism and Jehovah Witnesses) / (The body of Christ is not Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Protestant)
Oneness Pentecostal Heresy
Evolution, Atheist, and Agnostic
Worldly Prosperity gospel, Worldly Poverty gospel, Cessationism, Hyper-Grace, Hyper-Inclusionism, Hyper-Pentecostalism, Hyper-Dispensationalism (preaching of two different gospels and going over 9 dispensations in the written Word of God)
Denominations and other Defiled religions (There are not supposed to be over +45,000 denominations, and there is a great falling away from the sound doctrine of the faith, and there is only one church for the dispensation of the grace of God which is the body of Christ)
Second man made church denomination Letter Membership (Examples: Baptist Letter Membership, Methodist Letter Membership, Pentecostal Letter Membership, Presbyterian Letter Membership, Lutheran Letter Membership, and Etc) If you are saved then you already have church membership of God's real Church in the Body of Christ and a Church Letter Membership is not necessary to have membership in the Body of Christ
Keeping the law / Legalism (Examples: Sabbath keeping and tithes and offerings)
Word of men (Examples: Worldly Psychology, Worldly Psychiatry, Worldly Sociology, Worldly Pagan Astrology, Worldly Pagan Astronomy, Babbling in fake tongues, False Prophetic Words (Example: Business Advice, Prosperity Prophetic Words, Automobile Industry Advice), and False Personal Prophecy, False Spiritual Gifts, and Etc)
Sodomite (Gay) Marriage
Antinomianism (Grace is a license to sin with no morals for the born again believer / believing the law of Moses is not good, spiritual, holy, and righteous / anti-law of Moses / against the law of Moses / opposing the law of Moses)
Rejection of all types of abortion such as surgical abortion, IVF (In Vitro Fertilization), Abortion Pills, and all other processes that end life after conception
Universalism, Inclusionism, Exclusionism, and Annihilationism
Not celebrating pagan holidays like Halloween, Saint Patrick's day, Valentine's day, and etc. (We celebrate the Nativity which is the birth of Christ without paganism like Christmas trees and celebrate Easter without the Easter Bunny)
Rejection of fake fabricated Apostolic Pope Bishop Succession in the Roman Catholic Church (The word "Pope" is not even in the Bible"), rejection of office of Monk, and rejection of office of Nun
Women don't need to hold authority of an office over a man in an office in the church during the Dispensation of Grace
Women don't administer the ordinances/sacraments only a man in office in the church administers the ordinances/sacraments
School of Alexandria's Statement of Faith (St. Gregory Thaumaturgus)
There is one God, the Father of the living Word, who is His subsistent Wisdom and Power and Eternal Image: perfect Begetter of the perfect Begotten, Father of the only-begotten Son. There is one Lord, Only of the Only, God of God, Image and Likeness of Deity, Efficient Word, Wisdom comprehensive of the constitution of all things, and Power formative of the whole creation, true Son of true Father, Invisible of Invisible, and Incorruptible of Incorruptible, and Immortal of Immortal and Eternal of Eternal. And there is One Holy Spirit, having His subsistence from God, and being made manifest by the Son, to wit to men: Image of the Son, Perfect Image of the Perfect; Life, the Cause of the living; Holy Fount; Sanctity, the Supplier, or Leader, of Sanctification; in whom is manifested God the Father, who is above all and in all, and God the Son, who is through all. There is a perfect Trinity, in glory and eternity and sovereignty, neither divided nor estranged. Wherefore there is nothing either created or in servitude in the Trinity; nor anything superinduced, as if at some former period it was non-existent, and at some later period it was introduced. And thus neither was the Son ever wanting to the Father, nor the Spirit to the Son; but without variation and without change, the same Trinity abides ever.
APOSTLES' CREED (700 CE) I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended to the grave and hell. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy all-embracing Body of Christ the Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. NICENE-CONSTANTINOPOLITAN CREED (381 CE) We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, visible and invisible.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy universal and apostolic Body of Christ Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen. I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended to the grave and hell. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy all-embracing Body of Christ the Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. LAUSANNE COVENANT, 1974 INTRODUCTION: We, members of the Church of Jesus Christ, from more than 150 nations, participants in the International Congress on World Evangelization at Lausanne, praise God for his great salvation and rejoice in the fellowship he has given us with himself and with each other. We are deeply stirred by what God is doing in our day, moved to penitence by our failures and challenged by the unfinished task of evangelization. We believe the Gospel is God's good news for the whole world, and we are determined by his grace to obey Christ's commission to proclaim it to all mankind and to make disciples of every nation. We desire, therefore, to affirm our faith and our resolve, and to make public our covenant.
1. THE PURPOSE OF GOD: We affirm our belief in the one-eternal God, Creator and Lord of the world, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who governs all things according to the purpose of his will. He has been calling out from the world a people for himself, and sending his people back into the world to be his servants and his witnesses, for the extension of his kingdom, the building up of Christ's body, and the glory of his name. We confess with shame that we have often denied our calling and failed in our mission, by becoming conformed to the world or by withdrawing from it. Yet we rejoice that even when borne by earthen vessels the gospel is still a precious treasure. To the task of making that treasure known in the power of the Holy Spirit we desire to dedicate ourselves anew. (Isa. 40:28; Matt. 28:19; Eph. 1:11; Acts 15:14; John 17:6, 18; Eph 4:12; 1 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 12:2; II Cor. 4:7)
2. THE AUTHORITY AND POWER OF THE BIBLE: We affirm the divine inspiration, truthfulness and authority of both Old and New Testament Scriptures in their entirety as the only written word of God, without error in all that it affirms, and the only infallible rule of faith and practice. We also affirm the power of God's word to accomplish his purpose of salvation. The message of the Bible is addressed to all men and women. For God's revelation in Christ and in Scripture is unchangeable. Through it the Holy Spirit still speaks today. He illumines the minds of God's people in every culture to perceive its truth freshly through their own eyes and thus discloses to the whole Church ever more of the many-colored wisdom of God. (II Tim. 3:16; II Pet. 1:21; John 10:35; Isa. 55:11; 1 Cor. 1:21; Rom. 1:16, Matt. 5:17,18; Jude 3; Eph. 1:17,18; 3:10,18)
3. THE UNIQUENESS AND UNIVERSALITY OF CHRIST: We affirm that there is only one Saviour and only one gospel, although there is a wide diversity of evangelistic approaches. We recognise that everyone has some knowledge of God through his general revelation in nature. But we deny that this can save, for people suppress the truth by their unrighteousness. We also reject as derogatory to Christ and the gospel every kind of syncretism and dialogue which implies that Christ speaks equally through all religions and ideologies. Jesus Christ, being himself the only God-man, who gave himself as the only ransom for sinners, is the only mediator between God and people. There is no other name by which we must be saved. All men and women are perishing because of sin, but God loves everyone, not wishing that any should perish but that all should repent. Yet those who reject Christ repudiate the joy of salvation and condemn themselves to eternal separation from God. To proclaim Jesus as "the Saviour of the world" is not to affirm that all people are either automatically or ultimately saved, still less to affirm that all religions offer salvation in Christ. Rather it is to proclaim God's love for a world of sinners and to invite everyone to respond to him as Saviour and Lord in the wholehearted personal commitment of repentance and faith. Jesus Christ has been exalted above every other name; we long for the day when every knee shall bow to him and every tongue shall confess him Lord. (Gal. 1:6-9;Rom. 1:18-32; I Tim. 2:5,6; Acts 4:12; John 3:16-19; II Pet. 3:9; II Thess. 1:7-9;John 4:42; Matt. 11:28; Eph. 1:20,21; Phil. 2:9-11)
4. THE NATURE OF EVANGELISM: To evangelize is to spread the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins and was raised from the dead according to the Scriptures, and that as the reigning Lord he now offers the forgiveness of sins and the liberating gifts of the Spirit to all who repent and believe. Our Christian presence in the world is indispensable to evangelism, and so is that kind of dialogue whose purpose is to listen sensitively in order to understand. But evangelism itself is the proclamation of the historical, biblical Christ as Saviour and Lord, with a view to persuading people to come to him personally and so be reconciled to God. In issuing the gospel invitation we have no liberty to conceal the cost of discipleship. Jesus still calls all who would follow him to deny themselves, take up their cross, and identify themselves with his new community. The results of evangelism include obedience to Christ, incorporation into his Church and responsible service in the world. (I Cor. 15:3,4; Acts 2: 32-39; John 20:21; I Cor. 1:23; II Cor. 4:5; 5:11,20; Luke 14:25-33; Mark 8:34; Acts 2:40,47; Mark 10:43-45)
5. CHRISTIAN SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: We affirm that God is both the Creator and the Judge of all people. We therefore should share his concern for justice and reconciliation throughout human society and for the liberation of men and women from every kind of oppression. Because men and women are made in the image of God, every person, regardless of race, religion, colour, culture, class, sex or age, has an intrinsic dignity because of which he or she should be respected and served, not exploited. Here too we express penitence both for our neglect and for having sometimes regarded evangelism and social concern as mutually exclusive. Although reconciliation with other people is not reconciliation with God, nor is social action evangelism, nor is political liberation salvation, nevertheless we affirm that evangelism and socio-political involvement are both part of our Christian duty. For both are necessary expressions of our doctrines of God and man, our love for our neighbour and our obedience to Jesus Christ. The message of salvation implies also a message of judgment upon every form of alienation, oppression and discrimination, and we should not be afraid to denounce evil and injustice wherever they exist. When people receive Christ they are born again into his kingdom and must seek not only to exhibit but also to spread its righteousness in the midst of an unrighteous world. The salvation we claim should be transforming us in the totality of our personal and social responsibilities. Faith without works is dead. (Acts 17:26,31; Gen. 18:25; Isa. 1:17; Psa. 45:7; Gen. 1:26,27; Jas. 3:9; Lev. 19:18; Luke 6:27,35; Jas. 2:14-26; Joh. 3:3,5; Matt. 5:20; 6:33; II Cor. 3:18; Jas. 2:20)
6. THE CHURCH AND EVANGELISM: We affirm that Christ sends his redeemed people into the world as the Father sent him, and that this calls for a similar deep and costly penetration of the world. We need to break out of our ecclesiastical ghettos and permeate non-Christian society. In the Church's mission of sacrificial service evangelism is primary. World evangelization requires the whole Church to take the whole gospel to the whole world. The Church is at the very centre of God's cosmic purpose and is his appointed means of spreading the gospel. But a church which preaches the cross must itself be marked by the cross. It becomes a stumbling block to evangelism when it betrays the gospel or lacks a living faith in God, a genuine love for people, or scrupulous honesty in all things including promotion and finance. The church is the community of God's people rather than an institution, and must not be identified with any particular culture, social or political system, or human ideology. (John 17:18; 20:21; Matt. 28:19,20; Acts 1:8; 20:27; Eph. 1:9,10; 3:9-11; Gal. 6:14,17; II Cor. 6:3,4; II Tim. 2:19-21; Phil. 1:27)
7. COOPERATION IN EVANGELISM: We affirm that the Church's visible unity in truth is God's purpose. Evangelism also summons us to unity, because our oneness strengthens our witness, just as our disunity undermines our gospel of reconciliation. We recognize, however, that organisational unity may take many forms and does not necessarily forward evangelism. Yet we who share the same biblical faith should be closely united in fellowship, work and witness. We confess that our testimony has sometimes been marred by a sinful individualism and needless duplication. We pledge ourselves to seek a deeper unity in truth, worship, holiness and mission. We urge the development of regional and functional cooperation for the furtherance of the Church's mission, for strategic planning, for mutual encouragement, and for the sharing of resources and experience. (John 17:21,23; Eph. 4:3,4; John 13:35; Phil. 1:27; John 17:11-23)
8. CHURCHES IN EVANGELISTIC PARTNERSHIP: We rejoice that a new missionary era has dawned. The dominant role of western missions is fast disappearing. God is raising up from the younger churches a great new resource for world evangelization, and is thus demonstrating that the responsibility to evangelise belongs to the whole body of Christ. All churches should therefore be asking God and themselves what they should be doing both to reach their own area and to send missionaries to other parts of the world. A reevaluation of our missionary responsibility and role should be continuous. Thus a growing partnership of churches will develop and the universal character of Christ's Church will be more clearly exhibited. We also thank God for agencies which labor in Bible translation, theological education, the mass media, Christian literature, evangelism, missions, church renewal and other specialist fields. They too should engage in constant self-examination to evaluate their effectiveness as part of the Church's mission. (Rom. 1:8; Phil. 1:5; 4:15; Acts 13:1-3, I Thess. 1:6-8)
9. THE URGENCY OF THE EVANGELISTIC TASK: More than 2,700 million people, which is more than two-thirds of all humanity, have yet to be evangelised. We are ashamed that so many have been neglected; it is a standing rebuke to us and to the whole Church. There is now, however, in many parts of the world an unprecedented receptivity to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are convinced that this is the time for churches and para-church agencies to pray earnestly for the salvation of the unreached and to launch new efforts to achieve world evangelization. A reduction of foreign missionaries and money in an evangelised country may sometimes be necessary to facilitate the national church's growth in self-reliance and to release resources for unevangelised areas. Missionaries should flow ever more freely from and to all six continents in a spirit of humble service. The goal should be, by all available means and at the earliest possible time, that every person will have the opportunity to hear, understand, and to receive the good news. We cannot hope to attain this goal without sacrifice. All of us are shocked by the poverty of millions and disturbed by the injustices which cause it. Those of us who live in affluent circumstances accept our duty to develop a simple life-style in order to contribute more generously to both relief and evangelism. (John 9:4; Matt. 9:35-38; Rom. 9:1-3; I Cor. 9:19-23; Mark 16:15; Isa. 58:6,7; Jas. 1:27; 2:1-9; Matt. 25:31-46; Acts 2:44,45; 4:34,35)
10. EVANGELISM AND CULTURE: The development of strategies for world evangelization calls for imaginative pioneering methods. Under God, the result will be the rise of churches deeply rooted in Christ and closely related to their culture. Culture must always be tested and judged by Scripture. Because men and women are God's creatures, some of their culture is rich in beauty and goodness. Because they are fallen, all of it is tainted with sin and some of it is demonic. The gospel does not presuppose the superiority of any culture to another, but evaluates all cultures according to its own criteria of truth and righteousness, and insists on moral absolutes in every culture. Missions have all too frequently exported with the gospel an alien culture and churches have sometimes been in bondage to culture rather than to Scripture. Christ's evangelists must humbly seek to empty themselves of all but their personal authenticity in order to become the servants of others, and churches must seek to transform and enrich culture, all for the glory of God. (Mark 7:8,9,13; Gen. 4:21,22; I Cor. 9:19-23; Phil. 2:5-7; II Cor. 4:5)
11. EDUCATION AND LEADERSHIP: We confess that we have sometimes pursued church growth at the expense of church depth, and divorced evangelism from Christian nurture. We also acknowledge that some of our missions have been too slow to equip and encourage national leaders to assume their rightful responsibilities. Yet we are committed to indigenous principles, and long that every church will have national leaders who manifest a Christian style of leadership in terms not of domination but of service. We recognise that there is a great need to improve theological education, especially for church leaders. In every nation and culture there should be an effective training programme for pastors and laity in doctrine, discipleship, evangelism, nurture and service. Such training programmes should not rely on any stereotyped methodology but should be developed by creative local initiatives according to biblical standards. (Col. I:27,28; Acts 14:23; Tit. 1:5,9; Mark 10:42-45; Eph. 4:11,12)
12. SPIRITUAL CONFLICT: We believe that we are engaged in constant spiritual warfare with the principalities and powers of evil, who are seeking to overthrow the Church and frustrate its task of world evangelization. We know our need to equip ourselves with God's armour and to fight this battle with the spiritual weapons of truth and prayer. For we detect the activity of our enemy, not only in false ideologies outside the Church, but also inside it in false gospels which twist Scripture and put people in the place of God. We need both watchfulness and discernment to safeguard the biblical gospel. We acknowledge that we ourselves are not immune to worldliness of thoughts and action, that is, to a surrender to secularism. For example, although careful studies of church growth, both numerical and spiritual, are right and valuable, we have sometimes neglected them. At other times, desirous to ensure a response to the gospel, we have compromised our message, manipulated our hearers through pressure techniques, and become unduly preoccupied with statistics or even dishonest in our use of them. All this is worldly. The Church must be in the world; the world must not be in the Church. (Eph. 6:12; II Cor. 4:3,4; Eph. 6:11,13-18; II Cor. 10:3-5; I John 2:18-26; 4:1-3; Gal. 1:6-9; II Cor. 2:17; 4:2; John 17:15)
13. FREEDOM AND PERSECUTION: It is the God-appointed duty of every government to secure conditions of peace, justice and liberty in which the Church may obey God, serve the Lord Jesus Christ, and preach the gospel without interference. We therefore pray for the leaders of nations and call upon them to guarantee freedom of thought and conscience, and freedom to practise and propagate religion in accordance with the will of God and as set forth in The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We also express our deep concern for all who have been unjustly imprisoned, and especially for those who are suffering for their testimony to the Lord Jesus. We promise to pray and work for their freedom. At the same time we refuse to be intimidated by their fate. God helping us, we too will seek to stand against injustice and to remain faithful to the gospel, whatever the cost. We do not forget the warnings of Jesus that persecution is inevitable. (I Tim. 1:1-4, Acts 4:19; 5:29; Col. 3:24; Heb. 13:1-3; Luke 4:18; Gal. 5:11; 6:12; Matt. 5:10-12; John 15:18-21)
14. THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: We believe in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Father sent his Spirit to bear witness to his Son; without his witness ours is futile. Conviction of sin, faith in Christ, new birth and Christian growth are all his work. Further, the Holy Spirit is a missionary spirit; thus evangelism should arise spontaneously from a Spirit-filled church. A church that is not a missionary church is contradicting itself and quenching the Spirit. Worldwide evangelization will become a realistic possibility only when the Spirit renews the Church in truth and wisdom, faith, holiness, love and power. We therefore call upon all Christians to pray for such a visitation of the sovereign Spirit of God that all his fruit may appear in all his people and that all his gifts may enrich the body of Christ. Only then will the whole church become a fit instrument in his hands, that the whole earth may hear his voice. (I Cor. 2:4; John 15:26;27; 16:8-11; I Cor. 12:3; John 3:6-8; II Cor. 3:18; John 7:37-39; I Thess. 5:19; Acts 1:8; Psa. 85:4-7; 67:1-3; Gal. 5:22,23; I Cor. 12:4-31; Rom. 12:3-8)
15. THE RETURN OF CHRIST: We believe that Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly, in power and glory, to consummate his salvation and his judgment. This promise of his coming is a further spur to our evangelism, for we remember his words that the gospel must first be preached to all nations. We believe that the interim period between Christ's ascension and return is to be filled with the mission of the people of God, who have no liberty to stop before the end. We also remember his warning that false Christs and false prophets will arise as precursors of the final Antichrist. We therefore reject as a proud, self-confident dream the notion that people can ever build a utopia on earth. Our Christian confidence is that God will perfect his kingdom, and we look forward with eager anticipation to that day, and to the new heaven and earth in which righteousness will dwell and God will reign forever. Meanwhile, we rededicate ourselves to the service of Christ and of people in joyful submission to his authority over the whole of our lives. (Mark 14:62; Heb. 9:28; Mark 13:10; Acts 1:8-11; Matt. 28:20; Mark 13:21-23; 1 John 2:18; 4:1-3; Luke 12:32; Rev. 21:1-5; II Pet. 3:13; Matt. 28:18)
CONCLUSION: Therefore, in the light of this our faith and our resolve, we enter into a solemn covenant with God and with each other, to pray, to plan and to work together for the evangelization of the whole world. We call upon others to join us. May God help us by his grace and for his glory to be faithful to this our covenant! Amen, Alleluia!
For more information: www.lausanne.org We also believe in the The Apostles Doctrine: The Didache (Greek for "The Teaching")