Oak City Church stands in line with the beliefs and creeds of historically accepted Christianity. Accordingly, our statement of faith consists of two main things – the apostle’s creed and 9 core beliefs that we feel define our faith.
God, the creator of the universe, has existed eternally in three different persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. (Genesis 1:1,26,27,3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; I Peter 1:2; II Corinthians 13:14)
Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sin of all people by dying on a cross. He rose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. (Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5;John 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14,15; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; I Timothy 6:14,15; Titus 2:13)
The Holy Spirit is co-equal with God the Father and God the Son. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He equips every believer with gifts needed for building up the church. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily. (John 16:7-13, 14:16,17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18)
The Bible, God’s revelation to us, was written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is completely true and is the supreme source of guidance for Christian beliefs and Christian living. (II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20,21; Psalm 119:105,160,12:6;Proverbs 30:5)
People were created in God’s image, to be like Him in character and they are the supreme work of God’s creation. As such, all human beings have inherent dignity and worth and should be loved and respected. Through the sin of Adam, all humans have inherited a heart of disobedience towards God that results in both spiritual and physical death and brings the need for redemption and salvation. Left alone we are helpless to remedy the situation. We are not capable of doing anything good and can do nothing to save ourselves. Only because of God’s grace through Jesus can we experience salvation. (Genesis 1:26-27; Psalms 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a, 59:1,2; Romans 3:22-23,5:12; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12)
Salvation comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ and belief in what he has done for us through his life, death and resurrection. As we turn from a life of sin and experience God’s forgiveness, we turn to a life of faith in God and we are saved. Salvation is a gift of God’s grace and is maintained by God’s grace and not the effort of any Christian. Accordingly, all of those saved by faith in Christ are secured in Christ forever. (Romans 5:1,6:23; Ephesians 2:8,9; John 14:6,1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:26, John 10:29; II Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 10:10,14; I Peter 1:3-5)
The end of the world will come about in God’s time and in a way that He chooses. At that time Jesus will return in all of his glory and will rule and reign as the king of a new heaven and new earth.
When a person has been saved through faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit places that person in union with all believers, past and present, into one spiritual “body” that is the body of Christ. This body is called the church. We believe in the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament. We believe in the autonomy of the local church, free of any external authority or control. (Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Acts 14:27; 18:22, 20:17; 1 Timothy 3:1-3; Titus 1:5-11; Acts 13:1-4, 15:19-31, 20:28, Romans 16:1,4; 1 Peter 5:1-4)