What We Believe
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~The BIBLE FOUNDATION~
of River Church, Alabama
~The TRUTH and the AUTHORITY of the BIBLE~
We believe….
♦…. that the Bible is God speaking to men. It is literally a living word inspired by heaven. It is the final authority in knowing God as He is and understanding the life He has given. It is both the standard and the access for true, satisfying success in all areas of living on earth and in heaven.
♦…. that the Old Testament was given to introduce by type and shadow God’s love-offer to bring mankind into a higher relationship and better covenant of sonship and family with Him.
♦…. that the New Testament gospel books [Matthew, Mark, Luke & John] detail the life, love, purpose and example of Jesus and His total pursuit of redemption for every person ever born, all at His cost.
♦…. that the Letter Books [Epistles] reveal everything concerning men being re-fathered from above by the new birth into an overcoming life in Christ Jesus.
♦…. that the Bible is the end of all things to all beings, above, in and under the earth, being absolute, eternal and unchanging truth.
♥♥ Why We Believe....
The TRUTH and AUTHORITY of the BIBLE....
♥ I will praise your name for your loving-kindness and your truth; for you have magnified your word above all your name. {Psalm 138:2 NKJV}
♥ All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. {2nd Timothy 3:16-17}
♥ God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power. {Hebrews 1:1-3}
♥ For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. {Hebrews 4:12-13NKJV}
~The ETERNAL GODHEAD~
We believe….
♦…. that God is Triune in nature and expression, which is somewhat understood as the greater parallel of the lesser human makeup of spirit, soul and body: three facets of one composite.
♦…. that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are each equally divine and absolutely one in all things.
♥♥Why we Believe The ETERNAL GODHEAD....
♥ The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. {2nd Corinthians 13:14}
♥ For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. {1st John 5:7}
~MAN and HIS ORIGINAL PURPOSE~
We believe….
♦….that man was created in the image of God and that his purpose is to have relationship and fellowship with Him as a son while exercising dominion over all the works of His hands.
♥♥Why We Believe MAN and HIS ORIGINAL PURPOSE....
♥ God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth…. {Genesis 1:26a}
♥ Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I [JESUS] say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my father which is in heaven. {Matthew 18:18-19 }
♥ Behold, I [Jesus] give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. {Luke 10:19}
♥ …. as he [Jesus] is, so are we [born-again Christians] in this world. {1st John 4:17}
~The FALL of MAN~
We believe….
♦…. that by willful rebellion and voluntary disobedience the first man left His place in God and fell from sinlessness and perfection.
♥♥Why we Believe The FALL of MAN...
♥ …. by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…. death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come…. through the offense of one many be dead…. by one man’s offense death reigned by one…. by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation…. for as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. {Romans 5:12&14 & 15b-16a & 17a-19}
~SALVATION~
We believe….
♦…. that all men, having no righteousness of their own, are without hope and totally lost, judged guilty and condemned by their personal sin unto eternal judgment.
♦…. that while they were still sinners, Jesus died and shed His sinless blood for all men, literally becoming sin with every man’s sin and weakness on the cross, redeeming every man from the law of sin and death in His work there.
♦…. that all who believe in and receive by confession that Jesus Christ is their personal Lord and Savior are instantly born again, being re-fathered from above and justified by Him, transformed into the righteousness of God in Him instantly and in a mere moment of time.
♥♥Why We Believe SALVATION....
♥ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. {John 3:16}
♥ But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ. {Romans 5:8 & 12 & 17}
♥ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. {Ephesians 2:8-9}
♥ That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. {Romans 10:9-10}
♥ For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. {2nd Corinthians 5:21}
~THE PENALTY OF SIN~
We believe….
♦…. that man’s sin problem has been totally dealt with by Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross and His subsequent resurrection from the dead.
♦…. that Jesus became sin with man’s sin. All of every man’s sin was on that cross. It died.
♦…. that the new man in Christ is free from the dominion of sin, being made alive in Christ’s victory over sin and death.
♦…. that Christians are not considered sinners or even sinners saved by grace, but new creations in Christ by the power of His shed blood. Sin is no longer imputed unto any man that is in Christ because the applied blood of Jesus is the absolute and only antidote for sin.
♦…. that when born again Christians do sin, they have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, who has cleansed them from all unrighteousness.
♥♥Why We Believe The PENALTY of SIN
♥ Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. {Romans 4:8 & 6:14}
♥ There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. {Romans 8:1-2}
♥ For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. {2nd Corinthians 5:21}
♥ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness…. if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. {1st John 1:9 & 2:1B & 2B}
~SPIRIT BEINGS: SATAN, DEMONS AND ANGELS~
We believe….
♦…. that there is a literal devil called satan who, being filled with pride, has chosen to be the eternal adversary of God and His precious creation, mankind.
♦…. that there also exist other disembodied spirit beings, each having power to influence but none having positional authority over God’s man in the earth: 1.] demons, who, as is their leader, satan, are fallen beings cooperating with the devil against man, and 2.] angels, who are willing and able ministers unto God for every heir of salvation in the earth.
♥♥Why We Believe SPIRIT BEINGS:
....satan, Demons & Angels
♥…. they brought unto him [Jesus] many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick…. {Matthew 8:16}
♥…. lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. {2nd Corinthians 2:11}
♥ Are they [angels] not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salva-tion? {Hebrews 1:14}
♥ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour…. {1st Peter 5:8}
~HEALING In REDEMPTION~
We believe….
♦…. that divine healing is the power of God to heal all the sick, the weak, the injured and those in pain every day. Divine healing is available for everyone because it was totally purchased as an right and inheritance by the redeeming work of Jesus through the shedding of His own blood.
♦…. that the receiving of divine healing is not influenced by or granted according to: any sufficient term of being a faithful Christian; having a history of works, service and sacrifice; incessant begging before God or any promising to do more and better for Him if he will help; touting any record of past innocence or making a flawless case based on a life of abstinence from worldly vices. Believing the truth of God’s Word and receiving His grace and goodness transacts healing to all men exactly as it does in the regeneration of every man in the new birth.
♦…. that it is God’s will for every Christian to understand and dutifully minister healing to all people that are in bodily, mental or emotional need or torment and to expect total restoration for them according to mercy and the authority of the believer.
♦…. We Do Not believe in the doctrine and practice of cessationism [the belief that healings, demonstrations and supernatural acts done by Jesus, the Apostles, and others, and recorded in the New Testament, are now discontinued after the end of Bible times and according to heaven’s so-called design for various ambiguous and religiously convenient reasons. Cessationists believe that modern Christians cannot expect New Testament interventions at all, or at least not to be a common or normal life-practice and that even then, these kinds of supernatural signs are not relevant to a traditional Christian life] because it is not supported by Scripture, is contradicted by vast worldwide testimonies of reliable record and is contrary to our own regular and consistent supernatural experiences and testimonies of complete restorations [Since 1997] in ministry at River Church.
♥♥Why We Believe HEALING in REDEMPTION
♥ Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies. {Psalm 103:2-4}
♥ Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. {Isaiah 53:4-5} [an OT prophecy about Jesus' coming and purpose]
♥ ....they brought unto him [Jesus] many that were ;possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias [53:4-5 written above] the prophet, saying, himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. {Matthew 8:16-17}
♥ Who his own self [Jesus] bare our [the whole world's] sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by who stripes ye were healed. {1st Peter 2:24}
~HOLY SPIRIT NOW!~
We believe….
♦…. that Christians that are filled with the Holy Spirit are suddenly enabled to live a life more pleasing unto God. They are empowered to do the works of Jesus as His indisputable witnesses and to meet the needs of humanity by boldly exercising their inherent authority through His very name, all the while being supernaturally sustained and protected in Him.
♦…. that every born again believer is qualified to receive this subsequent-to-salvation and enabling Holy Spirit experience that allows him/ her to access heaven’s exact plan and provision by praying in the language of the Holy Spirit [a brand new tongue] at will.
♦…. that believers that undertake to pray in the Holy Ghost, themselves not knowing the exact will of God for their life, enable Him to create the perfect petition unto heaven for His angels to guide and provide a better life than a believer that can only pray according to His knowledge, feelings and experience. Praying in tongues gives license to heaven to cause situations that might challenge believers to change until everything turns out amazing—unto a blessed life
♥♥Why We Believe in HOLY SPIRIT NOW!
♥Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me [Jesus], the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. {John 14:12}
♥ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. {Acts 1:8 & 2:1-4}
♥ Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. {Acts 19:4-6}
♥ …. the Holy Spirit helps us in our weaknesses. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. {Romans 8:26-29NLT}
♥ But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost….. {Jude 1:20}
~THE CHURCH—THE BODY OF CHRIST~
We believe….
♦…. that the church is the worldwide sum of all peoples who are born again, being regenerated each one in their spirit man unto a new creation in Christ Jesus and every one receiving the Spirit of Christ to permanently dwell within.
♦…. that the church is the body of Christ, inseparable from its head in purpose and authority, raised up with Him and being seated together with Him in heavenly places.
♦…. that God has positioned each member of the body of Christ into the whole as it has pleased Him. His assignments and graces for each member differ in calling and function, yet each and all are serving Jesus, the head of the church, even as they serve one another. Every member, great or small is equally important in the body, whether functioning in leadership or by helps, all serving the Lord Jesus and receiving their reward based on their faith towards God.
♥♥WHY We BELIEVE in The CHURCH-the Body of Christ...
♥ Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. {Romans 8:9b}
♥ But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. {1st Corinthians 12:18}
~JUDGEMENT~
We believe….
♦…. that only those naturally born on planet earth are given a body to house their soul and spirit. While that body is alive, it is their citizenship and passport in the world, with rights, jurisdictions and authority that disembodied spirit beings do not have.
♦…. that the judgment of God for mankind’s sin, disobedience and rebellion [Demanding Death & Eternal Separation from God] is justified and legally right. Jesus, the sinless son of God, who loved all men even when they were still in their sinfulness, was crucified and became a sin offering for everyone. Therefore, their sentence of death was commuted to Jesus that day on the cross and he died for every man.
♦…. that Jesus paid the total price to defeat sin and death, neither of which could legally hold Him since he had no agreement with the devil and was Himself without sin. As the judgment against man was paid on the cross, Jesus was raised from the dead unto glory by God’s resurrection power. The age of grace began that day, which means that God is not dispensing judgment for being a sinner to those living on earth at this time.
♦…. since resurrection day, and while alive on earth in His body, every person experiences God’s absolute grace and goodness continually. It is present even in the hardest of crises. But during every person’s life and before death, every man is also responsible to acknowledge and account for his creator, his sinful nature and therefore his need for a personal savior. God has revealed Himself to all men in everything on earth: from simply looking at the wonders in the sky, to observing the divine designs of creation in and around Him, to experiencing the amazing life he has been given that he did nothing of himself to create or sustain. As a detailed witness to inspire man’s own conclusions, God has also reaffirmed His unmerited love to each person by writing His personal plan of grace for them within the Bible. Now every man, woman, boy and girl is confronted with the hopeless reality of his own spiritual condition. It is then that he can discover and become desperate for the only way of salvation from an impending eternal separation from God: to call upon His goodness and love and receive His son Jesus as his savior.
♦…. that though it is not reckoned while in this earthly life, there is yet a day of final Judgment—that when anyone loses their body at death, they are brought to account according to what they did with their spirit [the Inward Man of the Heart] while living in the age of grace: whether to be born again by faith into God’s family or choose not to believe on the truth of salvation that was witnessed to them. Regular verdicts of both blessings or setbacks and pain in the earth are not sent from heaven as men think of a referee judging a sports match. God does not punish, withhold or destroy to teach or chasten anyone. The devil is mean and hates mankind. He steals, kills and destroys when he can. But, life in man’s body is fairly reckoned to each person by the measure of their own cooperation with or rebellion against civil, natural and spiritual laws, such as obeying safety rules, respecting the absoluteness of gravity, harboring strife and revenge, refusing and releasing forgiveness, cooperating with seedtime and harvest, motives held, words spoken and deeds done. Though men blame God for arbitrary judgment, it is His goodness that leads men to repentance.
♦…. that Jesus is Life and is the total sum of all life. If any person leaves the earth [Body Death] without receiving that God-kind of life, he is then judged according to his default sin nature [Spirit Death], which is rebellion and lawlessness [the Same as the devil]. Without receiving Jesus as savior to receive His life of righteousness, every man must bear the just penalty of his own unrighteousness alone, which, following physical death, is eternal death and therefore, separation from God, without whom, there is no life.
♦…. that the one who physically dies in his sins without accepting Christ is hopelessly and eternally lost in the lake of fire, and therefore, has no further opportunity of hearing the Gospel or repenting for not believing that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life, no man coming to the Father apart from Him.
♦…. that the lake of fire is literal. Just as the after-earth experience of the righteous is described as eternally joyful and satisfying unto everlasting, so is the absolute sentence of all that are damned without Christ to endure torment and suffering forever without hope of change.
♥♥Why We Believe in JUDGMENT....
♥ …. he [God] is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. {Luke 6:35b}
♥ …. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me [Jesus], and receiveth not my words, hath one [God] that judgeth him…. the same shall judge him in the last day. {John 12:47-48}
♥ The thief [devil] cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I [Jesus] am come that they [all the world] might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. {John 10:10}
♥ And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent: because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness…. {Acts 17:30-31a}
♥ For the invisible things of him [God] from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they [people in the world] are without excuse…. {Romans 1:20}
♥ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. {Ephesians 2:8-9}
♥ And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment…. {Hebrews 9:27}
♥ And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. {Revelation 20:15}
~FAITH TOWARDS GOD~
We believe….
♦…. that we are to have faith towards God based upon the promises of God recorded in the Bible. The fulfillment of those promises is based upon God’s unwavering faithfulness.
♦…. that a Christian’s faith is that God has, is and will keep His Word, which is the expression of His character, integrity and the righteousness of His being.
♥♥Why We Believe in FAITH TOWARDS GOD....
♥ I will praise your name for your lovingkindness and your truth; for you have magnified your word above all your name. {Psalm 138:2NKJV}
♥ …. thy [God’s] word is truth. {John 17:17}
♥ For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him amen…. {2nd Corinthians 1:20}
♥ For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself…. {Hebrews 6:13}
♥ Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. {Hebrews 11:11}
♥ Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature…. {2nd Peter 1:4}
~
THE KINGDOM OF GOD~
We believe….
♦…. that born-again believers have been regenerated by Holy Spirit into God’s sons according to the image and ability of the Lord Jesus Christ.
♦…. that the kingdom of God is what Jesus taught, preached and demonstrated.
♦…. that believers are commanded, empowered and equipped to continue and duplicate His ministry just as He did and with His results, depending totally that Holy Spirit is the enabler of this work.
♦…. that Jesus, who is the Word of God, is the pattern and example for every Christian to conduct their life, release their faith and advance His kingdom.
♥♥Why We Believe in The KINGDOM of GOD....
♥ And he [Paul] spake boldly…., disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God. {Acts 19:8}
♥ For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. {1st Corinthians 4:20}
♥ Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. {1st John 4:17}
~THE CHRISTIAN MISSION~
We believe….
♦…. that the new birth empowers every believer to live a supernatural life on earth.
♦…. that the Lordship of Jesus is the core of the Christian lifestyle, which is loving God in every thought, deed and expression and loving all men just as God loves the saints.
♦…. that the Lordship of Jesus is demonstrated by living a lifetime of [1.], giving to others spiritually by personally making disciples and [2.], encouraging, enabling and funding others to also multiply themselves both locally and in foreign lands, using every Biblical opportunity.
♥♥Why We Believe in The CHRISTIAN MISSION....
♥ Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. {Matthew 7:12}
♥ When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required. {Luke 12:48bNLT}
♥ …. Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you…. {Matthew 28:18—20a}
~JESUS IS COMING SOON!~
We believe….
♦…. that the coming of Jesus again is imminent.
♦…. that before He comes, He will appear in the sky and gather the saints, both dead and alive in a moment of time to return to heaven to celebrate His victory in new bodies.
♦…. that at the end of the tribulation, He shall return to earth as Kings of kings and Lord of lords, and together with His saints, who shall be kings and priests, shall reign for a thousand years on the earth.
♥♥Why We Believe JESUS is COMING SOON!...
♥ Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven. {Acts 1:11}
♥ For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. {1st Thessalonians 4:16-17}
♥ …. and hast redeemed us to God…. and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. {Revelation 5:9b-10}
♥ Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. {Revelation 20a}