RESOLUTION 75:01: Vision of the Bible Presbyterian Church
The Reformed Faith rightly expresses and summarizes the grand truths of Scripture in a consistent and biblical manner. But truth left unattached to the heart and soul of man damages his whole person and jeopardizes the very nature of a personal, vital, living relationship with his holy God. We strive to passionately proclaim from our pulpits, in our
activities, and in our homes, the application of God’s Word to all of life.
We, as the Bible Presbyterian Church, unite to bring the rich biblical nature of the Reformed Faith to our ministries:
• edifying the saints by the faithful preaching of the Word,
• bringing confidence to our evangelism and missions,
• establishing faith in our children, and
• bowing humbly before the Throne of Grace in satisfying submission to the Triune God.
The chief passion of the Bible Presbyterian Church is to behold God, proclaim Christ to the entire world, and pursue godliness.
1. To “Behold God” means that we rely on His Spirit as we consider and think about how God has revealed Himself in His Word. It means that we meditate upon, and are captivated by, His beautiful nature and wonderful works. God expects us to rightly know Jesus Christ, the full revelation of Himself, in all of His glory. God expects us to appreciate His greatness and supremacy. God expects us to be pleasure-filled when we meet with Him in public and private worship.
2. To “Proclaim Christ to the entire world” means that we continue in the footsteps of the Apostles by proclaiming the Kingdom of God to all men. There is no other name under heaven by which a man can be saved but through the person and work of Jesus Christ. We are called to make Him known through our actions and our words. We accomplish this by serving others in Christ’s name and by telling them of the hope that is within us. The Gospel is not intended to remain in the sanctuaryof the local church but it is to be expressed in our lives, in our city, in our country, and in the entire world. We look to the Church for encouragement, leadership, and greater opportunity as we stand as a witness to Jesus Christ.
3. To “Pursue Godliness” means that we engage in the personal quest for holiness, pleasing God. It also means that we earnestly contend for the faith in our congregation, denomination, and in the larger context of Church as a whole in the midst of a fallen society. We want to live what we know to be true about God and what He requires of us! To reflect His glory is a joy, not the burden of law. No matter if it is in the quiet thinking of our minds or the active words of our mouths, we want to daily strive toward pleasing God. In essence, we want to joyfully live the two greatest commandments (loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to love our neighbor as ourselves).
The Bible Presbyterian Church strives to exhibit and rejoice in a living, warm-hearted Calvinism. We are Presbyterian and confessional by conviction and in our practice. We affirm the Westminster Standards to be a good summary of Scripture teaching and we act accordingly in matters of ordination and polity. Ultimately, then, the Scriptures provide our only “rule of faith and practice.” Therefore, we love the exegetical preaching of “the whole counsel of God” from the unity of the Old and New Testaments. We affirm and declare the power of the finished work of Jesus’ vicarious blood sacrifice on the cross, rejecting the social gospel, seeker-driven messages, and “political correctness.” We are not content to possess the gospel solely for ourselves; rather, having received mercy and experienced the love of Christ in our own hearts, we are compelled by the love of Christ to be zealous for doing the work of biblical evangelism in every land and to every people. Biblical discipline in love and humility is an outworking of our desire to faithfully apply God’s authoritative Word to the heart needs of fallen people, with the purpose of restoring them to communion and fellowship with the body. Our worship is marked by a vibrancy that comes from each communicant bringing his or her own offerings before the Lord with a full heart, within the bounds of the Word of God. Finally, we are committed to the principle of Sola Scriptura in every aspect of life in the church, home, and society, submitting ourselves to its absolute authority as the very Word of God. Because this is so, we oppose and speak out against wickedness in government and society, apostasy in churches and men, and rebellion against God wherever it appears. We seek a biblical ecumenicity with all faithful branches of the Christian Church (especially those in the Reformed tradition) without compromising truth and purity.