(a)
Reconciliation
We
believe God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. The offering Christ
freely made on the cross is the perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins
of the world, redeeming man from all sin, so that no other satisfaction is required.
"Just
as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
15that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. "For God so loved
the world that he gave his one and only Son,[b] that whoever believes in him shall
not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in
him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because
he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.[c] 19This is the verdict:
Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because
their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not
come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives
by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he
has done has been done through God."" (John 3:14-21)
"For
if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of
his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his
life!" (Romans 5:10)
(b)
Justification
We
believe that justification, declaring us righteous before God, delivers us from
the penalty of sin. We are never accounted righteous before God through our works
or merit. Penitent sinners are justified or accounted righteous before God only
by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
"For
we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law."
(Romans 3:28)
"Therefore,
since we have been justified through faith, we[a]have peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ," (Romans 5:1)
"...know
that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.
So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith
in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will
be justified." (Galations 2:16)
(c)
Regeneration
We
believe regeneration is the renewal of a man in righteousness through Jesus Christ,
by the power of the Holy Spirit, whereby we are made partakers of the divine nature
and experience newness of life. By this new birth the believer becomes reconciled
to God and is enabled to continually serve Him with both will and affections.
"...he
saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.
He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,"
(Titus 3:5)
(d)
Sanctification
We
believe sanctification is a progressive process of separation from that which
is evil and of dedication unto God. It is the work of God's grace through the
Word and the Spirit, by which those who have been regenerated and justified are
cleansed from sin in their thoughts, words and acts, and are enabled to live in
accordance with God's will, and to strive for holiness without which no one will
see the Lord. Believers are called to live as overcomers of the power of sin and
increasingly exhibit the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
"But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galations
5:22-23)
"May
God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole
spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."
(1 Thessalonians 5:23)
"Make
every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no
one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14)
"And
so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his
own blood." (Hebrews 13:12)
"To
the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to
be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ—their Lord and ours:" (1 Corinthians 1:2)
"No
temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he
will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,
he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." (1 Corinthians
10:13)
"What
shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no
means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3Or don't you know that
all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?"
(Romans 6:1-13)
Glorification
is the complete and final sanctification and deliverance from the presence of
sin and will be accomplished at the second coming of the Lord.
