207 N Dooly St, Montezuma, Georgia 31063, United States
What We Believe
PURPOSE
The purpose of the First Baptist Church shall be to maintain the public worship of God, to witness to all men of the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ, to exalt the Christian way of life, to aid members in growth in Christian maturity, and, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, to cooperate with other churches and Christian groups in promoting the Christian faith and in extending the Kingdom of God throughout the earth.
BELIEFS
Primary Article of Faith. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, and are the only sufficient, certain, and authoritative standard by which all human conduct, beliefs, and religious opinions are to be tried. The criterion by which the Scriptures are to be interpreted is Jesus Christ
Statement of Baptists Ideals
1. Authority: (1) Christ as Lord. The ultimate source of authority is Jesus Christ the Lord, and every area of life is to be subject to His Lordship. (2) The Scriptures. The Bible as the inspired revelation of God's will and way made full and complete in the life and teachings of Christ, is the authoritative rule of faith and practice.
The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God actively revealing Himself and His will to man. He therefore interprets and confirms the voice of divine authority.
The Individual
(1) His Worth. Every individual is created in the image of God and therefore merits respect and consideration as a person of infinite dignity and worth. (2) His Competence. Each person is competent under God to make his own moral and religious decisions and is responsible to God in all matters of moral and religious duty.
His Freedom. Every person is free under God in all matters of conscience and has the right to embrace or reject religion and to witness to his religious beliefs, always with proper regard for the rights of other persons.
The Christian Life
(1) His Worth. Every individual is created in the image of God and therefore merits respect and consideration as a person of infinite dignity and worth. (2) His Competence. Each person is competent under God to make his own moral and religious decisions and is responsible to God in all matters of moral and religious duty.
His Freedom. Every person is free under God in all matters of conscience and has the right to embrace or reject religion and to witness to his religious beliefs, always with proper regard for the rights of other persons. 3. The Christian Life: (1) Salvation by Grace. Salvation from sin is the free gift of God through Jesus Christ, conditioned only upon trust in and commitment to Christ the Lord. (2) The Demands of Discipleship. The demands of Christian discipleship, based on the recognition of the Lordship of Christ, relate to the whole of life and call for full obedience and complete devotion. (3) The Priesthood of the Believer. Each Christian, having direct access to God through Christ, is his own priest and is also under obligation to become a priest for Christ in behalf of other persons. (4) The Christian and His Home. The home is basic in God's purpose for human well-being, and the development of Christian family life is a supreme concern of all believers in Christ. (5) The Christian as a Citizen. The Christian is a citizen of two worlds – the kingdom of God and the State - and is responsible to obey the law of the land as well as to obey the higher law of God.
The Church
Its Nature. The church, in its inclusive sense, is the fellowship of persons redeemed by Christ and made one in the family of God. The church, in its local sense, is a fellowship of baptized believers, voluntarily banded together for worship, nurture, and service. Its Membership. Membership in the church is a privilege properly extended only to regenerated persons who voluntarily accept baptism and commit them selves to faithful discipleship in the body of Christ. (3) Its Ordinances. Baptism and the Lord's Supper, the two ordinances of the church, are symbolic of redemption, but their observance involves spiritual realities in personal Christian experience. (4) Its Government. The church is an autonomous body, subject only to Christ, its head. Its democratic government, properly reflects the equality and responsibility of believers under the lordship of Christ. (5) Its Relation to the State. Church and state are both ordained of God and are answerable to him. They should remain separate, but they are under the obligation of mutual recognition and reinforcement as each seeks to fulfill its divine function. (6) Its Relation to the World. The church is to be responsibly in the world; its mission is to the world, but its character and ministry are not to be of the world.