Declaration of Faith
and
Doctrinal Commitments
Declaration of Faith | Doctrinal Commitments
The Church of God believes the whole Bible to be completely and equally inspired and that it is the written Word of God.
The Church of God has adopted the following Declaration of Faith as its standard and official expression of its doctrine.
We Believe:
- In the verbal inspiration of the Bible.
- In one God eternally existing in three persons; namely, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
- That Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of the Father,
conceived of the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary. That
Jesus was crucified, buried, and raised from the dead. That He
ascended to heaven and is today at the right hand of the
Father as the Intercessor.
- That all have sinned and come short of the glory of God and
that repentance is commanded of God for all and necessary for
forgiveness of sins.
- That justification, regeneration, and the new birth are
wrought by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ.
- In sanctification subsequent to the new birth, through faith
in the blood of Christ; through the Word, and by the Holy
Ghost.
- Holiness to be God's standard of living for His people.
- In the baptism with the Holy Ghost subsequent to a clean
heart.
- In speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance
and that it is the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy
Ghost.
- In water baptism by immersion, and all who repent should be
baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost.
- Divine healing is provided for all in the atonement.
- In the Lord's Supper and washing of the saints' feet.
- In the premillennial second coming of Jesus. First, to
resurrect the righteous dead and to catch away the living
saints to Him in the air. Second, to reign on the earth a
thousand years.
- In the bodily resurrection; eternal life for the righteous,
and eternal punishment for the wicked.
The following Doctrinal Commitments represent the core beliefs of the denomination as outlined in Scripture.
- Repentance. Mark 1:15; Luke 13:3; Acts 3:19.
- Justification. Romans 5:1; Titus 3:7.
- Regeneration. Titus 3:5.
- New birth. John 3:3; 1 Peter 1:23; 1 John 3:9.
- Sanctification subsequent to justification. Romans 5:2; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; Hebrews 13:12.
- Holiness. Luke 1:75; 1 Thessalonians 4:7; Hebrews 12:14.
- Water baptism. Matthew 28:19; Mark 1:9, 10; John 3:22, 23; Acts 8:36, 38.
- Baptism with the Holy Ghost subsequent to cleansing; the enduement of power for service. Matthew 3:11; Luke 24:49, 53; Acts 1:4-8.
- The speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance as the initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Ghost. John 15:26; Acts 2:4; 10:44-46; 19:1-7.
- The Church. Exodus 19:5, 6; Psalm 22:22; Matthew 16:13-19; 28:19,20; Acts 1:8; 2:42-47; 7:38; 20:28; Romans 8:14-17: 1 Corinthians 3:16, 17; 12:12-31; 2 Corinthians 6:6-18; Ephesians 2:19-22; 3:9, 21; Philipians 3:10; Hebrews 2:12; 1 Peter 2:9; 1 John 1:6, 7; Revelation 21:2, 9; 22:17.
- Spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:1, 7, 10, 28, 31; 1 Corinthians 14:1.
- Signs following believers. Mark 16:17-20; Romans 15:18, 19; Hebrews 2:4.
- Fruit of the Spirit. Romans 6:22; Galatians 5:22, 23; Ephesians 5:9; Philippians 1:11.
- Divine healing provided for all in the Atonement. Psalm 103:3; Isaiah 53:4, 5; Matthew 8:17; James 5:14-16; 1 Peter 2:24.
- The Lord's Supper. Luke 22:17-20; 1 Corinthians 11 : 2 3 - 2 6.
- Washing the saints' feet. John 13:4-17; 1 Timothy 5:9, 10.
- Tithing and giving. Genesis 14:18-20; 28:20-22; Malachi 3:10; Luke 11:42 ; 1 Corinthians 16:2 ; 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 ; Hebrews 7:1-21.
- Restitution where possible. Matthew 3:8; Luke 19:8, 9.
- Premillennial second coming of Jesus. First, to resurrect the dead saints and to catch away the living saints to Him in the air. 1 Corinthians 15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17; 2 Thessalonians 2:1.
- Second, to reign on the earth a thousand years. Zechariah 14:4; 1 Thessalonians 4:14; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Jude 14, 15; Revelation 5:10; 19:11-21; 20:4-6.
- Resurrection. John 5:28, 29; Acts 24:15; Revelation 20:5, 6.
- Eternal life for the righteous. Matthew 25:46; Luke 18:30; John 10:28; Romans 6:22; 1 John 5:11-13.
- Eternal punishment for the wicked. No liberation nor annihilation. Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 3:29; 2 Thessalonians 1: 8, 9; Revelation 20:10-15; 21:8.
For more information concerning our doctrinal stance and practical commitments,
read the Declaration of Faith of the Church of God,
(with headquarters in Cleveland, Tennessee).
