Our Positional Statement

Church Life

Our views regarding church life and practice are expressed in our Distinctives statement.

Church Leadership

The biblical qualifications for elders and deacons are stated in 1 Timothy 3; Titus 1 and Acts 6. Our understanding of two of these qualifications is stated below:

• "The husband of one wife" (1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6), literally a "one-woman man". This quality describes a husband living in a pure marriage relationship without adulteress relationships or attitudes. We do not believe that this qualification, in and of itself, disqualifies one who has been divorced and remarried from holding the office of elder or deacon, nor does it prohibit a single man from serving.
• "Able to teach" (1 Timothy 3:2). While elders are not required to be "vocational pastors" as such, we believe that, in order to fulfill their responsibility of feeding and leading the flock, each elder must have a knowledge of sound doctrine and must be able to use it to instruct, to exhort, and to refute those who contradict (see further Titus 1:9).

Tongues

We do not accept as scriptural the doctrine that the gift of tongues is a necessary, inevitable, or usual accompaniment of a baptism in, by, or with the Spirit.

For this reason we accept the following three statements as defining the doctrinal boundaries for all members:

• The gift of tongues or speaking in tongues is not an indispensable evidence of the baptism or the filling of the Holy Spirit. Nor is it a requirement for spiritual maturity.
• The Scripture indicates the primary purpose of tongues was to function as a sign and not for personal edification (1 Corinthians 14:20-27).
• The gift of tongues, as all other gifts, is given by the Spirit sovereignly to whom He wills (1 Corinthians 12:11); therefore, not everybody will speak in tongues (1 Corinthians 12:29,30), and there are no grounds for feelings of inferiority or superiority in this regard.

Healing

We believe God heals physically with or without means in answer to prayer offered in faith and in accord with His sovereign will. Healing cannot be claimed by faith on the same unconditional basis as salvation. The new covenant blessing of full and complete healing for all believers awaits the redemption of our bodies at the return of Christ.

New Testament Signs and Wonders

We believe the New Testament miracles done by Christ and certain men who followed Him had a particular significance for that place and time. While God may work such miracles in the world today, we do not believe their absence necessarily indicates the presence of sin, or unbelief in the church.

Interpretation of Scriptures

We believe that the Bible is to be interpreted in its normal, usual sense, and that it is understood as the believer is guided by the Spirit of God. The illuminating work of the Spirit does not change the meaning of Scripture, nor does He give additional revelation of equal authority with the Bible.

Divorce and Remarriage

There are many dear Christian people who have been deeply hurt by divorce and are confused about the possibilities of remarriage. Because of the significance of this matter, a fuller statement concerning our position on divorce and remarriage was necessary. This information is contained in our paper, A Biblical Perspective on Divorce & Remarriage.