Baptist Distinctives

• B – Bible is the sole authority for faith and practice
• A – Autonomy of the local church
• P – Priesthood of the believer
• T – Two church ordinances: baptism and the Lord’s supper
• I – Individual soul liberty
• S – Saved church membership
• T – Two church offices: pastor and deacon
• S – Separation of church and state

*The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 is our confession of faith (*You can read the full Baptist Faith and Message 2000 here.), however, here is a summary of the essentials we believe:

• The Holy Bible is the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God.
• There is one God who reveals Himself in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
• Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, begotten and not made, and by Him all things were created. The Son of God became incarnate through the virgin birth. He lived a sinless life, performed many miracles, and then died as a vicarious atoning sacrifice for our sins. On the third day, He was raised from the dead and then He ascended to heaven where He sat down on the right hand of the Father. One day He will return in power and glory to judge the living and the dead.
• Jesus commanded us to go make disciples of the nations and He empowers us through the Holy Spirit to be His witnesses. 
• Mankind was created by God in His image. Male and female, He created them. However, mankind fell from the first estate, and therefore, all people are sinners in need of salvation.
• Salvation is the saving from God’s wrath for sin and the promise of eternal life with God. Salvation of the individual soul is accomplished by God’s grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is not by works. When God saves a person, they are sealed by the Holy Spirit and will not be lost.
• The church is made up of believers in Jesus Christ united in faith. The church has two offices, Pastors (also known as elders or overseers) and Deacons. The role of the church is to make Christ known and to worship Him in Spirit and in truth and to love one another as Christ commanded us. The Holy Spirit gives gifts to the church for the building up of the church.
• Baptism is the immersion of the believer in water. It is not regenerative but is a sign and seal of regeneration and an act of obedience on the part of the believer.
• The Lord’s Supper is a remembrance of Christ’s death on the cross for our sins. It is to be performed regularly. The elements used are unleavened bread and wine (the juice of the grape). It is a time of spiritual communion between Christ and His Church.
• Marriage was instituted by God in creation and is a covenant between one man and one woman.