Declaration of faith of Brazos Abiertos
One God
There is only one God, who lives eternally represented in 3 persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. John 10:30; John 14:26; Philippians 2:5-7
One and only Way to salvation
We can have a personal relationship with God through salvation; it is a gift of God to mankind. It is not a result of what we do but through the undeserved favour of God. If we admit that we have sinned (repentance) and believe in the death, buriel and resurrection of Christ and accept Him as our Lord, we will be able to live eternally with God. Ephesians 2:8,9; Romans 5:1; Romans 3:24; John 3:16
One single Bible
The Bible is the infallible Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and contains all the answers to the problems of mankind. 2 Timothy 3:16,17; 2 Peter 1:20,21; Revelation 22:18,19
Declaration of faith
Article 1: I believe in God, the Father, the Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth.
Artícle 2: I believe in Jesus Christ, the one and only Son of God, our Lord, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, Who suffered under Pontius Pilate, who was crucified, dead and buried, who entered the realm of death, who rose from the dead on the third day and ascended to heaven, and is seated on the right hand of God, the almighty Father, from which He will come again.
Article 3: I believe in the Holy Spirit, in the Church, which is one, holy and universal, in the communion of saints, in the forgiveness of sins, in the resurrection of the dead and in eternal life.
Article 4: I believe that the Lord Jesus reigns in His Church and that for that reason He has sent his Apostels and that until His return He still sends them with the task to teach, forgive sins in His name and to baptize with water and in the Holy Spirit.
Article 5: I believe that those chosen by God for a ministry are solely instituted by Apostels, and that the power, the blessing and the sanctification for their service find their origin in the Apostolic ministry.
Article 6: I believe that the Holy Baptism with water is the first step towards man’s renovation in the Holy Spirit, and that the person baptized is adopted in the congregation of those who believe in Jesus Christ and profess He is their Lord.
Article 7: I believe that the Lord’s Supper has been instituted by the Lord Himself to remember Him. If we savour the Lord’s Supper in a dignified way it gives us the communion of life with Jesus Christ, our Lord. It is celebrated with bread without yeast and wine (or juice); both must be seperated and subministered by somebody in charge of a church ministry and authorized by the Apostel.
Article 8: I believe that those baptized with water must receive the gift of the Holy Spirit through an Apostel in order to reach the holy filiation and the prerequisite for the primogeniture.
Article 9: I believe that the Lord Jesus will come again as certain as he rose to heaven and that He will bring with Him the first of the dead and the living who expected His coming and were prepared; that He will return with them to earth after the heavenly wedding ceremonies, that He will establish His kingdom of peace and that they will reign with Him as royal priesthood. At the end of the kingdom of peace He will perform the final judgement. After that God will create a new heaven and earth and will live among His people.
Article 10: I believe that I am commited to obeying the worldly authorities, always under the condition that by doing so no divine laws are transgressed.
We further believe
God is love and He loves all people. He longs to reach those who are poor, oppressed, widows en widowers, orphans and to heal the broken-hearted. Psalms 68:5,6; 1 John 4:16
Man is created in the image of God, but seperated by Him through sin. Genesis 1:26; 1 Timothy 2:5
We believe in the baptism in water, just as was taught and demonstrated by Jesus, as the way in which believers identify themselves with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Baptism is not a prerequisite for salvation but gives a public testimony of repentance and the need to receive forgiveness. Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:4; Matthew 3:13-17
God gives talents and spiritual gifts to all believers. Their purpose is to strengthen, to extend God’s people (the church) and as proof of the existence and power of God to non-believers. The gifts of the Spirit are active and of great importance today. 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 1 Peter 4:10
To achieve the overall plan of God, which is that all people believe and understand the complete inheritence they have in God, He will be able to use us, with our disposition, very personally. In the church this is translated as: ‘He has a personal plan with my life.’ Matthew 28 and Jeremiah 29:11.
Sanctification is the continuous process of allowing God’s spirit to develop in us. This process of sanctification lasts a life time. Romans 6:19; Galatians 5:22-25
Divine health is activated in the lives of people nowadays through Jesus, who is the Healer. This health includes physical, mental, emotional and spiritual restauration. Luke 9:11; Matthew 9:35; Acts 10:38; Matthew 10:1
Jesus will come back and forever take to heaven all those that have accepted Him as Saviour. Acts 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Hebrews 9:28
And finally, we are called to announce to the world all that we believe in favour of His worship and extension of His kingdom. Matthew 28:19,20
