"A DECLARATION OF

--Luke 1:1.

1. We believe in the infallible verbal inspiration of the whole Bible, 2 Tim. 3:16.
    
2. The Triune God, Matt. 28:19.
    
3. The Genesis Account of Creation.
    
4. The Virgin Birth of Jesus Christ, Matt. 1:20.
    
5. The Deity of Jesus Christ.
    
6. His crucifixion and suffering as vicarious and substitutionary.
    
7. The bodily resurrection and ascension of Christ and the bodily resur-rection of His saints, 1 Cor. 15.
    
8. The second coming of Christ, personal and bodily as the crowning event of this Gentile age, Acts 1:11.
    
9. The Bible doctrine of eternal punishment of the finally impenitent, Matt. 25:46.
    
10. We also hold in common what real Baptists have ever held: That the Great Commission was given to the churches only. That in kingdom activities the church is the unit and only unit that the churches have, and should exercise equal authority, and responsibili-ty should be met by them according to their several abilities.
     
11. That all cooperating bodies such as associations, or committees, etc., are, and properly should be, the servants of the churches.
     
12. We believe that the Great Commission teaches that there has been a succession of Missionary Baptist Churches from the days of Christ to this day.
     
13. We believe that baptism, to be valid, must be administered by a scriptural Baptist Church.
     
14. We believe that Jesus Christ established His church during His ministry on earth and that it is always a local, visible assembly of scripturally baptized believers in covenant relationship to carry out the Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ, and each church is an independent, self-governing body, and no other ecclesiastical body may exercise authority over it. We believe that Jesus Christ gave the Great Commission to the New Testament churches only, and that He promised the perpetuity of His churches (Matt. 4:18-22; Matt. 16:18; Matt. 18:15-18; Matt. 28:19, 20; Mark 1:14-20; John 1:35-51; Eph. 3:21).