WHAT WE BELIEVE
The Apostle's Creed
I believe in God
The Father Almighty;
Maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord,
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
Born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, dead and buried:
He descended into the grave;
The third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
And sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From where he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit; The holy catholic Church;
The Communion of Saints; The Forgiveness of sins;
The Resurrection of the body;
And the life everlasting.
Amen.
The Apostle's Creed is an ancient summary of the essential teaching of the twelve apostles, Jesus' first disciples. Everyone who chooses to follow Jesus is commanded to be baptised into the same faith as those first followers.
'Creed' comes from the Latin word credo, meaning ‘I believe and trust’.
The Apostle's Creed is used throughout the world, in different denominations and in many different languages. It declares a shared faith, can provide a basis for Christian teaching, is sometimes used in prayer and devotion and helps to define 'orthodox' (correct) Christian teaching in relation to false interpretations.
The Apostle's Creed is a good place to begin defining your own Christian faith.
Elim Foundation Truths
As part of the Elim church, we adhere to the 12 Foundation Truths, defined here.
The Bible
We believe the Bible, as originally given, to be without error, the fully inspired and infallible Word of God and the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and conduct.
The Trinity
We believe that the Godhead exists co-equally and co-eternally in three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - and that these three are one God, sovereign in creation, providence and redemption.
The Saviour
We believe in the true and proper deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His real and complete humanity, in His sinless life, in His authoritative teaching, in His substitutionary and atoning sacrifice through His blood shed, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His heavenly intercession and His second advent to receive His Church.
The Holy Spirit
We believe in the deity of the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and the Son and the necessity of His work in conviction of sin, repentance, regeneration and sanctification, and that the believer is also promised an enduement of power as the gift of Christ through the baptism in the Holy Spirit with signs following. Through this enduement, the believer is empowered for fuller participation in the ministry of the Church, its worship, evangelism and service.
Humanity
We believe in the inherent dignity and value of every person, as created in God’s image and likeness, male and female, to be in fellowship with God and serve God’s purposes in creation. Yet on account of the universal sinfulness of all people due to the Fall, humanity is subject to God’s righteous wrath and condemnation.
Salvation
We believe in the necessity for salvation of repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ by which the sinner is pardoned and accepted as righteous in God’s sight. This justification is imputed by the grace of God because of the atoning work of Christ, is received by faith alone and is evidenced by the Fruit of the Spirit and a holy life.
The Church
We believe in the spiritual unity and the priesthood of all believers in Christ and that these comprise the universal Church, the Body of Christ.
The Ministry
We believe in the ministries that Christ has set in His Church, namely, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers and in the present operation of the manifold Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to the New Testament.
The Ordinances
We believe in the baptism of believers by immersion in water in obedience to the command of Christ and in the commemoration of Christ’s death by the observance of the Lord’s Supper until His return.
The Commission
We believe that the Gospel embraces the needs of the whole man and that the Church is therefore commissioned to preach the Gospel to the world and to fulfil a ministry of healing and deliverance to the spiritual and physical needs of mankind.
The Coming King
We believe in the personal, physical and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to reign in power and glory.
The Future State
We believe in the resurrection of the dead and in the final judgement of the world, the eternal conscious bliss of the righteous and the eternal conscious punishment of the wicked.