Akita Bible Baptist Church Confession of Faith

We believe and confess the following:

The Scriptures

① We believe that Scripture is God’s written revelation for mankind. Because Scripture is God`s written revelation, we believe that the sixty-six books in the Bible are the Word of God, given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. (Verbal Plenary Inspiration) (I Cor. 2:7-14; II Pet. 1:20-21). ② We believe the Word of God to be an objective and propositional revelation (I Cor. 2:13; I Thes. 2:13), the words of which were fully inspired by the Spirit (II Tim. 3:16). It is God-breathed, infallible and without error in the original writings. ③ We believe and teach that the application of the literal, grammatical-historical interpretation of Scripture is the most appropriate. This means that we acknowledge that the Creation in the first chapters in Genesis occurred in six days, interpreting it literally (Gen. 1:31; Ex. 31:17). ④ We believe that only Scripture defines the absolute standard of faith and its applications (Matt. 5:18; John 10:35; 16:12-13; 17:17; I Cor. 2:13; II Tim. 3:15-17; Heb. 4:12; II Pet. 1:20-21). ⑤ We believe that Scripture was divinely inspired by God, and therefore was written by two authors. This signifies that the Holy Spirit guided the human authors in a special manner, using the differences in their personal characteristics and writing styles, so that they would record the Word of God (II Pet. 1:20, 21) with error neither in part nor in whole (II Pet. 1:20, 21). ⑥ Although we can find several applications for each part of Scripture, we believe that there is only one correct way of interpreting them. The meaning of Scripture is found in the interpreter’s fervent application of the literal, historical-grammatical method of interpreting, with the help of the Holy Spirit (John 7:17; 16:12-15; I Cor. 2:7-15; I John 2:20). All believers are held accountable for carefully examining the true intention and the meaning of Scripture, in light of the fact that the correct application of the Truth is valid for all generations. However, men do not have the right to judge the Truth that is revealed in Scripture; it is the Truth in Scripture that judges men.

God

① We believe that there is no god other than the living, one true God (Ex. 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; I Cor. 8:4). This God is the infinite all-knowing Spirit (John 4:24) and is perfect in all of His attributes. God is one in nature, existing eternally as three Persons - the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 13:14), each of whom are worthy of our adoration and submission.

God the Father

② We believe that God the Father, who is the first Person of the Trinity, orders and decides all things based upon His purpose and His grace (Psa. 145:8; I Cor. 8:6). This God is the creator of all things (Gen. 1:1−31; Eph. 3:9). God the Father almighty who alone is perfect, rules this world and is sovereign in His creation, providence and redemption (Psa. 103:19; Rom 11:36). His role in the Trinity is fatherhood, and this is revealed in His relationship with mankind. Although He is the Father of all mankind as their Creator (Eph. 4:6), He is the spiritual father only of believers (Rom 8:14; II Cor. 6:18). He has predestined all things for His glory (Eph. 1:11). He sustains, leads and controls everything continuously (I Num. 29:11). Although He is a sovereign God, He is not the creator of sin, nor is he in favor of it (Hab. 1:13). His creations who have moral understanding and intelligence will be held accountable by Him (I Pet. 1:17). By His Grace, He had chosen those who would be His people before the world began (Eph. 1:4−6). He saves all those who come to Him from their sins, and becomes their Father through adoption (John 1:12; Rom 8:15; Gal 4:5; Heb. 12:5-9).

God the Son

③ We believe that Jesus Christ, the second Person of the Trinity, possesses all the characteristics of God and that He is co-equal with God the Father. We believe that the Son has the same characteristics and nature as the Father, and that he coexists with the Father eternally (John 10:30; 14:9).④ We believe that God the Father created the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them through His son Jesus Christ, according to His will (John 1:3; Col. 1:15-17; Heb. 1:2). ⑤ We believe that Christ abandoned His function as God in His incarnation (God becoming human), but that He did not abandon His essence as God, neither in His status, nor in His nature. The Eternal One who is the Second Person of the Trinity accepted every basic nature that comes along with being human, and became both God and human (Phil. 2:5-8; Col. 2:9). ⑥ We believe that Jesus Christ represents both humanity and divinity with an indivisible unity (Mic. 5:2; John 5:23; 14:9-10; Col. 2:9). ⑦ We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was born of a virgin (Isa. 7:14; Mat. 1:23, 25; Luke 1:26-35), and that He is the incarnation of God (John 1:1, 14). We believe that this incarnation took place to point to God, redeem mankind and to establish rule over His Kingdom (Psa. 2:7-9; Isa. 9:6; John 1:29; Phil. 2:9-11; Heb. 7:25-26; I Pet. 1:18-19). ⑧ We believe that in His incarnation, the Second Person in the Trinity set aside every privilege as God without abandoning His Godly attributes, that He took His position as the Son and the very nature of a servant (Phil. 2:5-8). ⑨ We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through shedding His own blood and dying on the cross as a sacrifice. His death was voluntary, which paid for our sins, redeemed mankind and satisfied God’s wrath. (John 10:15-18; Rom. 3:24-25; 5:8; I Pet. 2:24). ⑩ We believe that those who believe in the Lord will one day be free from the consequences of sin, the condemnation that comes with it, the power of sin and the existence of sin itself, based on the effectiveness of the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that those sinners are declared just, given eternal life and are added into the Family of God (Rom. 3:25; 5:8; 9:2; II Cor. 5:14-15; I Pet. 2:24; 3:18). ⑪ We believe that our justification is established through Christ’s physical resurrection from death as it is written in Scripture, and that Christ has ascended to heaven, where He sits at the right hand of God the Father and intercedes for us as our Defender and High Priest (Matt. 28:6; Luke 24:38-39; Acts 2:30-31; Rom 4:25; 8:34; Heb. 7:25; 9:24; I John 2:1). ⑫ We believe that through the resurrection of Christ, God proved the divinity of His Son and that Christ’s work of redemption on the cross was sufficient. The physical resurrection of Jesus is also the guarantee that every believer will receive eternal life in the future (John 5:26-29; 14:19; Rom. 4:25; 6:5-10; I Cor. 15:20, 23). ⑬ We believe that Jesus Christ will accept the Church that is His body when the rapture takes place, and that He will return in glory to establish His millennial Kingdom on earth (Acts 1:9-11; I Thes. 4:13-18; Rev. 20). ⑭ We believe that God will judge all people including 1) believers (I Cor. 3:10-15; II Cor. 5:10), 2) those who exist on earth when the glorious return takes place (Matt. 25:31−46), and 3) all those who had died without knowing Christ when the great white throne judgement takes place (Rev. 20:11-15), through our Lord Christ Jesus (John 5:22-23). Christ is the Intercessor between God and men (I Tim. 2:5) and the head of the Church which is Christ’s body (Eph. 1:22; 5:23; Col. 1:18). He is the final Judge of those who did not put their trust in Christ as their Lord and Savior, as well as the King who will come and reign on David’s throne as the King of this world (Matt. 25:14-46; Acts 17:30-31).

God the Holy Spirit

⑮ We believe that the Holy Spirit is God, that He is eternal and that he did not come from elsewhere. We believe that He possesses every Godly attribute and personality such as wisdom (I Cor. 2:10-13), emotions (Eph. 4:39), will (I Cor. 12:11), eternity (Heb. 9:14) and truth (John 16:13). He is omniscient (Isa. 40:13−14), omnipresent (Psa. 139:7-10) and omnipotent (Rom. 15:13). The Holy Spirit is co-equal to the Father and the Son in all the Godly attributes, having the same nature (Matt. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 28:25-26; I Cor. 12:4-6; II Cor. 13:14; Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 10:15-17).⑯ We believe that it is through the work of the Holy Spirit that the will of God for humanity is accomplished. The Holy Spirit has sovereignly worked in the creation (Gen. 1:2), the Incarnation (Matt. 1:18), the written Revelation (II Pet. 1:20-21) and the work of salvation (John 3:5-7).⑰ We believe that the work of the Holy Spirit in building the Body of Christ and completing it, which is unique to this time, started on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came from the Father as Christ had promised (John 14:16-17; 15:26). His work includes convicting the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. He gives the Lord Jesus Christ all the glory, and transforms believers into the image of Christ (John 16:7−9; Acts 1:5; 2:4; Rom. 8:29; II Cor. 3:18; Eph. 2:22).⑱ We believe that the Holy Spirit is a supernatural and sovereign Person in His divinity, who baptizes all believers into the body of Christ (I Cor. 12:13). The Holy Spirit dwells within the believers, purifies them, teaches them, gives them strength to serve and protects them until the day of redemption (Rom. 8:9-11; II Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13).⑲ We believe that the Holy Spirit led the apostles and the prophets into all Truth as their teacher when they wrote the Scriptures, which is God’s revelation (II Pet. 1:19-21). The Holy Spirit dwells within believers from the moment they are saved, thus all who are born again in the Spirit are responsible for being filled with, and ruled by, the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:9-11; Eph. 5:18; I John 2:20, 27).⑳ We believe that the Holy Spirit gives His spiritual gifts to the Church. He does not boast in His power or gifts, but rather praises the glory of Christ through redeeming those who are lost and nurturing the believers in the Holy faith (John 16:13, 14; Acts 1:8; I Cor. 12:4-11; II Cor. 3:18).㉑ God the Holy Spirit teaches that He gives all gifts for the perfection of the saints, according to His sovereignty. We believe that some works such as speaking in tongues and miraculous signs that occurred in the beginning of the Church formation period were to show and prove that the apostles were revealers of God’s truth. However, we believe that those are not continuing characteristics that are given to the believers throughout their lives (I Cor. 12:4-11; 13:8-10; II Cor. 12:12; Eph. 4:7-12; Heb. 2:1-4).

Man

① We believe that man was created by God in His image and likeness. Man was created without sin and with rationality, intelligence, free will and moral obligations to God (Gen. 2:7, 15-25; Jas. 3:9).② We believe that God’s purpose for the creation of man was for man to accomplish God’s purpose for him in this world through praising of the glory of God, enjoying communion with God and living according to His will. (Isa. 43:7; Col. 1:16; Rev. 4:11).③ We believe that man lost their purity due to Adam’s sin of disobedience against God’s will and His word that was revealed to him, and that it led man to be an innately fallen being deserving of both spiritual and physical death. Man became an object of God’s wrath, incapable of choosing what pleases God unless it is through His grace. Man is doomed as he does not possess the power to get rid of his own sins. It is because of this that salvation is completely given through the work of our Lord Jesus Christ’s redemption, by God’s grace (Gen. 2:16, 17; John 3:36; Rom. 3:23; 6:23; I Cor. 2:14; Eph. 2:1-3; I Tim. 2:13, 14; I John 1:8).④ We believe that every person in every era except Christ has inherited a corrupted nature from Adam, due to the fact that all of humanity comes from Adam. Therefore, all mankind is a sinner in essence, through personal choices, and by God’s declaration (Psalm 14:1-3; Jer. 17:9; Rom. 3:9-18, 23; 5:10-12).

Salvation

① We believe that salvation is given by God’s grace, through the blood Jesus Christ shed for man’s redemption, not through man’s accomplishments or deeds. (John 1:12; Eph. 1:4-7; 2:8-10; I Pet. 1:18, 19).

Predestination

② We believe that predestination is an act of God, where He chose those who would be converted, saved and sanctified in Christ, before the creation of the world (Rom. 8:28-30; Eph. 1:4-11; II Thes. 2:13; II Tim. 2:10; I Pet. 1:1, 2).③ We believe that this sovereign predestination does not deny people’s responsibility of repenting and believing in Christ as their Lord and Savior, and that it does not contradict with that responsibility (Eze. 18:23, 32; 33:11; John 3:18, 19, 36; 5:40; II Thes. 2:10-12; Rev. 22:17). However, sovereign predestination brings about God’s desired result, as sovereign grace contains the way to receive salvation and the salvation itself. Those who are called to be with Him approach with faith without exception, and God receives those who draw near to Him in faith (John 6:37-40, 44; Acts 13:48; Jm. 4:8).④ We believe that the undeserved grace of God is given to mankind solely based on His sovereign grace and mercy, not based on the sinner’s choices or God’s foreknowledge of the decisions he would make (Eph. 1:4-7; Ti. 3:4-7; I Pt. 1:2).

Regeneration

⑤ We believe that regeneration is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, which gives men godly nature and life (John 3:3-8; Ti. 3:5). It happens when a sinner repents and responds in faith to the salvation God has provided, by the help of the Holy Spirit. We believe that it is solely accomplished through God’s Word and the power of the Holy Spirit (John 5:24). True regeneration is shown in the person’s fruits that prove his repentance, followed by righteous attitudes and deeds (I Cor. 6:19-20; Eph. 5:17-21; Phil. 2:12; Col. 3:12-17; II Pet. 1:4-11).

Justification

⑥ We believe that justification is an act of God, where those who repent from their sins by faith (Isa. 55:6, 7; Luke 13:3; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 11:18; Rom. 2:4; II Cor. 7:10) and confess Christ is their sovereign Lord (Rom. 10:9, 10; I Cor. 12:3; II Cor. 4:5; Phil. 2:11) are proclaimed righteous by God (Rom. 8:30, 33). This righteousness has nothing to do with people’s virtues or deeds (Rom. 3:20; 4:6). It is because our sins were placed onto Christ (Col. 2:14; I Pet. 2:24), and His righteousness became ours (I Cor. 1:2, 30; 6:11; II Cor. 5:21). Because of this, God is “just, and he declares sinners to be right in His sight when they believe in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26).

Sanctification

⑦ We believe that all believers are saints who are declared holy, as they are set apart by God through His justification. Becoming a saint is an instant change brought about in the believer’s status, which is not to be confused with progressive sanctification. Justification is about the believer’s position and not about his present walk or condition (Acts 20:32; I Cor. 1:2, 30; 6:11; II Thes. 2:13; Heb. 2:11; 3:1; 10:10, 14; 13:12; I Pet. 1:2)⑧ We believe in progressive sanctification that occurs by the work of the Holy Spirit. This is when a believer is progressively conformed to the likeness of Christ through his obedience to Scripture and the encouragement of the Holy Spirit. This allows the believer to walk with God according to His will, resulting in a transformation into Christ’s likeness (John 17:17, 19; Rom. 6:1-22; II Cor. 3:18; I Thes. 4:3, 4; 5:23).⑨ We believe that although those who have been saved struggle between their new selves in Christ and the sinful nature of their flesh, they have enough help through the power of the Spirit who dwells in them to be victorious over sin. We believe that this struggle has no end, and that it continues as long as earthly life goes on. Therefore, every doctrine that teaches that it is possible to eradicate sin completely in this lifetime is unbiblical. Although complete eradication of sin cannot happen in this lifetime, the Holy Spirit gives them victory over sin (Gal. 5:24; Eph. 4:22-24; Phil. 3:12; Col. 3:9, 10; I Pet. 1:14-16; I John 3:5-9).

Guarantee

⑩ We believe that the salvation of all those who were once saved and redeemed is eternally guaranteed in Christ, as they are protected by God`s power (John 5:24; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom 5:9, 10; 8:1, 31-39; I Cor. 1:4-9; Eph. 4:30; Heb. 7:25; 13:5; I Pet. 1:4, 5; Jude 24).⑪ We believe that rejoicing in the assurance of our salvation according to the teachings of Scripture is one of the privileges believers have. At the same time, we also believe that Scripture clearly states that Christians should not use this freedom as an excuse to fulfill our own fleshly desires or have a sinful lifestyle (Rom. 6:15-22; 13:13, 14; Gal. 5:13, 16, 17, 25, 26; Ti. 2:11).

Separation

⑫ We believe that through Scripture, throughout both the Old and New Testament, we are required to be set apart from sin (II Cor. 6:14-7:1; II Tim. 3:1-5). We believe that God commands us to be separated from all apostasy and sinful, secular acts (Rom. 12:1, 2; II Cor. 7:1; Heb. 12:14; Ti. 2:11-14; I John 3:1-10).　⑬ We believe that all who have been saved should exemplify their love towards God, and live in a way that does not disgrace the name of our Lord and Savior. This way of living comes from our deepest gratitude towards God who gave His Grace to undeserving people such as us (Rom. 12:1, 2; II Cor. 7:1; Heb. 12:14; Ti. 2:11-14; I John 3:1-10).

The Church

① We believe that through the Holy Spirit, all who believe in Christ become part of one spiritual Body which is the Church (I Cor. 12:12, 13), and that they are added to the bride of Christ. The Head of this Body is Christ (Eph. 1:22; 4:15; Col. 1:18). ② We believe that the Church, which is Christ’s Body, was founded on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-21, 38-47), and that it will be perfected on the day of the rapture, when Christ returns for His people (I Cor. 15:51-52; I Thes. 4:13-18). ③ We believe that the Church is a unique organization made by Christ, which consists solely of born-again believers, and that it was an unrevealed mystery until the day of Pentecost (Eph. 2:11-3:6, Eph. 3:1-6; 5:32). ④ We believe that the Church is different from the nation of Israel (I Cor. 10:32). ⑤ We believe that the New Testament teaches clearly about the definition, establishment and continuity of the local churches (Acts 14:23, 27; 20:17, 28; Gal. 1:2; Phil. 1:1; I Thes. 1:1; II Thes. 1:1). We believe that those who are part of the spiritual Body are commanded to live life together with their local churches (I Cor. 11:18-20; Heb. 10:25). ⑥ We believe that Christ is the only one who is supreme, and that He has the highest authority in the Church as it is written in the Scriptures (Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:18), and that church leadership, gifts, systems, rules and worship are ordained by His sovereignty. Scripture states that the elders - (men called bishops, pastors or overseers; Acts 20:28; Eph. 4:11) and the deacons should serve under Christ, functioning as leaders of their churches. Both the elders and the deacons must have all the qualities that Scripture details (I Tim. 3:1-13; Ti. 1:5-9; I Pet. 5:1-5). ⑦ We believe that these leaders should lead and rule the church as Christ’s servants (I Tim. 5:17-22), and that they possess the Christ-given authority to do so. The congregation must follow their leadership (Heb. 13:17). ⑧ We believe in the necessity of discipleship (Matt. 28:19, 20; II Tim. 2:2), all believers’ responsibility towards each other (Matt. 18:15-17), and discipline for church members who are living in sin, according to biblical standards (Matt. 18:15-22; Acts 5:1-11; I Cor. 5:1-13; II Thes. 3:6-15; I Tim. 1:19, 20; Ti. 1:10-16). ⑨ We believe in the autonomy of local congregations. They are autonomous, not controlled by outside forces, without any personal and/or systematic hierarchies (Tit. 1:5). Our church believes that although it is biblical for true churches to cooperate for preaching and evangelical purposes, each local congregation must decide on how they will cooperate and how much they would do, in accordance to their pastors and their biblical interpretation and application (Acts 15:19-31; 20:28; I Cor. 5:4-7, 13; I Pet. 5:1-4). ⑩ We believe that the purpose of the existence of the Church is to bring glory to God (Eph. 3:21) through building one another up in faith (Eph. 4:13-16), teaching Scripture (II Tim. 2:2, 15; 3:16-17), maintaining the communion (Acts 2:47; I John 1:3), keeping the ordinances (Luke 22:19; Acts 2:38-42) and preaching the gospel to all nations (Matt. 28:19; Acts 1:8). ⑪ We believe that all believers are called to serve (I Cor. 15:58; Eph. 4:12; Rev. 22:12). ⑫ We believe that the cooperation of the church members is crucial for the accomplishment of God’s purposes on earth. For this reason, God gave His Church spiritual gifts. We believe that God chose some to equip others for works of service (Eph. 4:7-12), and that He gave unique and special spiritual gifts to each member of the Body of Christ (Rom. 12:5-8; I Cor. 12:4-31; I Pet. 4:10, 11). ⑬ We believe two kinds of gifts were given to the early churches. The first concerns miracles, such as direct revelation and healing, which was given to the apostles temporarily to prove that their message was worth believing (II Cor. 12:12; Heb. 2:3, 4). The other is the gift concerning works of service, which was given to them for their growth, so that they could build each other up. Now that the revelation of the New Testament is completed, the only standard for proving a person’s message is Scripture, and the gifts that used to give people credibility in their teachings have ceased (I Cor. 13:8-12). The only gifts that are given today are those that have to do with the work of building each other up, which is not related to new special revelation (Rom. 12:6-8). ⑭ We believe that although no one has the gift of healing today, God hears our prayers of faith, and heals those who are sick or in pain according to His perfect will (Luke 18:1-8; John 5:7-9; II Cor. 12:6-10; Jam. 5:13-16; I John 5:14, 15). ⑮ We believe that two ordinances are given to the local congregation: baptism and the Holy Communion (Acts 2:38-42). ⑯ Immersion baptism that those who have become Christians receive (Acts 8:36-39) is a beautiful testimony demonstrating the believer’s faith in the Savior’s crucifixion, burial, and resurrection, which symbolizes the person’s death to his sins and the connection with Christ, brought about by His resurrection (Rom. 6:1-11). Baptism also signifies that the person has become a part of the visible body of Christ ( the Church) (Acts 2:41,42). ⑰ We believe that the Holy Communion must continue until the day of Christ’s Second Coming, as a remembrance and a declaration of Christ’s death, and that it must be partaken in only after solemn self-examination (I Cor. 11:23-32). ⑱ We believe that Christ’s special presence is there in the moment of Holy Communion, and that it is a time where we can have a real communion with Him, even though the bread and the wine (juice) are nothing more than a symbol of Christ’s body and blood (I Cor. 10:16).

Angels

Holy Angels

① We believe that angels should not be worshipped, as they are part of God’s creation. Angels were created as beings who are higher than humans, to serve and worship God (Luke 2:9-14; Heb. 1:6, 7, 14; 2:6, 7; Rev. 5:11-14).

Fallen Angels

② We believe that Satan is one of the angels who was created, and that he is the creator of sin. He became worthy of God’s judgement through rebelling against his Creator (Isa. 14:12-17; Eze. 28:11-19). He took many with him when he fell (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 2:1-14), and brought sin into mankind by tempting Eve (Gen. 3:1-15). ③ We believe that Satan was publicly declared the enemy of both God and men, (Isa. 14:13, 14; Matt. 4:1-11; Rev. 12:9, 10) that he is the ruler of this world who was defeated through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that he will receive eternal punishment in the lake of fire (Isa. 14:12-17; Eze. 28:11-19; Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

The End Times

Death

① We believe that upon physical death, the immaterial consciousness of the person is not lost (Rev. 6:9-11), and that the souls of the believers are separated from their bodies (Jam. 2:26) whereupon they immediately pass into paradise (Luke 23:43; II Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23). We believe that for those who are saved, this separation will last until the first resurrection begins (Rev. 20:4-6) and the Second Coming takes place (I Thes. 4:13-17). The soul and the body of Christians will be reunited and transformed into one glorious body when this Second Coming happens, and we will spend eternity with the Lord (I Cor. 15:35-44; 50-54; Phil. 3:21). Until then, the souls of those who were saved in Christ remain in joyful communion with Jesus Christ (II Cor. 5:8). ② We believe that every person will be resurrected into their physical bodies. Those who were saved will be resurrected into eternal life (John 6:39; Rom. 8:10, 11, 19-23; II Cor. 4:14), and those who were not saved will be resurrected into judgment and permanent punishment (Dan. 12:2; John 5:29; Rev. 20:13-15). ③ We believe that the souls of those who were not saved before they died dying will be placed under God’s judgment until the Second Resurrection takes place when their souls will be reconnected with their physical body (John 5:28; Luke 16:19-26; Rev. 20:13-15). In their resurrected state, they will be brought to the Great White Throne Judgement (Rev. 20:11-15), whereupon they will be thrown into hell, which is the lake of fire (Matt. 25:41-46), and will be forever cut off from God (Dan. 12:2; Matt. 25:41-46; II Thes. 1:7-9).

Rapture of the Church

④ In terms of the rapture of believers, we support the theory that holds it will take place before the Tribulation (John 14:1-3; I Cor. 15:51-53; I Thes. 4:15-5:11, I Cor. 3:11-15; II Cor. 5:10). We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ Himself will return with His physical body (I Thes. 4:16).

The Great Tribulation

⑤ We believe that God’s judgment towards the faithless world (Jer. 30:7; Dan. 9:27; 12:1; II Thes. 2:7-12; Rev. 16) will begin immediately after the rapture of the Church (John 14:1-3; I Thes. 4:13-18). This judgment will be at its peak when Christ returns to earth with great glory (Matt. 24:27-31; 25:31-46; II Thes. 2:7-12). We believe that in that moment, saints from the Old Testament era and those who were saved during the Tribulation will be resurrected, and that those who are alive will be judged (Dan. 12:2-3; Rev. 20:4-6; Matt. 25:31-46).

The Second Coming and the Millennial Kingdom

⑥ We believe that the Tribulation will be followed by Christ’s descent to earth, where He will sit on the throne of David (Matt. 25:31; Luke 1:32, 33; Acts 1:10, 11; 2:29, 30) and establish the Messianic Kingdom, which will last for a thousand years (Rev. 20:1-7). Those who are resurrected in this time will reign in Israel and all the nations on earth with Christ (Eze. 37:21-28; Dan. 7:17-22; Rev. 19:11-16). This rule will take place after the Antichrist and the false prophets are defeated, and Satan is removed from this world (Dan. 7:17-27; Rev. 20:1-6). ⑦ We believe that the establishment of this Kingdom will be the fulfillment of God’s promises for the nation of Israel (Deut. 28:15-68, Isa. 65:17-25; Eze. 37:21-28; Zech. 8:1-17). This means that although Israel is temporarily cast away as a result of their transgression (Matt. 21:43; Rom. 11:1-26), it will open its eyes again through repentance, and be led into the land of blessings (Jer. 31:31-34; Eze. 36:33-38; Rom. 11:25-29). ⑧ We believe that the Millennial Kingdom will be ruled by the Lord, and that it will be characterized by harmony, justice, peace, righteousness and long life (Isa. 11; 65:17-25; Eze. 36:33-38). We believe that the Millennial Kingdom will come to an end when Satan is released (Rev. 20:7).

Judgment of the Unbelievers

⑨ We believe that Christ, who is the Judge of all (John 5:22), will resurrect and judge everyone, from the least to the greatest. ⑩ We believe that this resurrection that will take place to judge the dead unbelievers is a physical one, where they will be judged (John 5:28, 29) and thrown into the lake of fire, where they will be punished forever while being fully conscious (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:11-15).

Eternity

⑪ We believe that the Millennial Kingdom, the temporary release of Satan and the judgment of the unbelievers (II Thes. 1:9; Rev. 20:7-15) will be followed by the believers’ passage into eternal glory with God, whereupon this world will pass away (II Pet. 3:10) and be replaced by the New Earth where only the righteous exist (Eph. 5:5; Rev. 20:15, 21, 22). After that, the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, will descend from heaven (Rev. 21:2), and become the habitation of the saints, where they will eternally rejoice in communion with God and each other (John 17:3; Rev. 21, 22). Our Lord Jesus Christ will finish His work of salvation, whereupon He will hand the Kingdom over to God the Father (I Cor. 15:23-28), where God who is three in one will reign forever (I Cor. 15:28).

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