Statement of Faith

  • We believe there exists one true and living God, eternally existing in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections; these execute distinct, but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.

    (Deuteronomy 6:4; Acts 5:3,4; II Corinthians 13:14; Matthew 3:16; 28:18,19; Ephesians 2:18,21,22; I Peter 1:2; I Jude 20,21).

  • We believe in God, the Father, an infinite, personal being, perfect in holiness, goodness, wisdom, power, and love. We believe that He concerns Himself with individual human affairs, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.

    (Matthew 5:45; 11:25; John 3:16; Ephesians 2:10; I John 3:1).

    1. We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternally existing Son of God, became a man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin, Mary. He lived a perfect and sinless human life so that He might reveal God and redeem His people.

      (Luke 1:35; John 1:1,2, 14, 18).

    2. We believe that Jesus Christ accomplished our complete redemption through His atoning death on the cross, when acting as our representative, He substituted His life to pay the penalty for our sins and thus simultaneously satisfied both God’s love and righteousness; a redemption made sure to us by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead on the third day.

      (Romans 3:24, 25; 5:8-10; Ephesians 1:7; I Peter 2:24)

    3. We believe that Jesus Christ ascended into heaven and is now at the right hand of God the Father where He acts as our High Priest continually and perpetually representing us before the Father, interceding on our behalf and acting as our advocate in Heaven.

      (Acts 1:9-11; Romans 8:34; I Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:3; 6:191,20; 7:24; 9:24; I John 2:1,2).

    1. We believe that the Holy Spirit, who comes from the Father and the Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, is the Supernatural Agent who regenerates the believer’s spirit, sets the believer apart for God, and baptizes all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling each equally and permanently, and preserving each one forever.

      (Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 6:11; 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:13,14)

    2. We believe that every person, at the moment of exercising faith in Christ as Savior, immediately possesses the full measure of the Holy Spirit

      (Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Galatians 4:6; I Thessalonians 4:8)

    3. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the Divine Teacher who guides believers into all truth; that He sovereignly bestows spiritual gifts upon each believer; and that it is the privilege and duty of all believers to be controlled and empowered (filled) with the Spirit to the glory of God and the benefit of the church.

      (John 16:13; I Corinthians 12:4-11; 13:8; I Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12; 5:18)

  • We believe the sixty-six books of the Bible present truth and are the literal Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written by men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and preserved by the Holy Spirit so as to be reliable, having supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct, and that it is a complete revelation of God’s will for all people.


    (Psalm 19:7; 119:105; Proverbs 30:5,6; II Timothy 3:16, 17; II Peter 1:20,21; Jude 3).

  • We believe that all people are sinners by nature and by choice and are, therefore, under condemnation to spend eternity separated from the presence of God. We believe that salvation is the free gift of God offered by Him, and on the basis of His grace, to sinners, which must be received solely by personal faith in, and only in, the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary.

    (John 3:18; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 8:9-11; II Corinthians 5:10,17; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8,9; Philippians 3:4-9; Colossians 2:13,14; I Peter 1:18,19; I John 1:8,9)

  • We believe that once saved, all believers are kept by the power of God, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and interceded for by Christ; therefore, their salvation is secure in Christ forever

    (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:38,39; Ephesians 1:13,14; I Peter 1:5; I John 5:11-13; Jude 24)

    1. We believe that the universal church, which is the body (of which God is the Head) and bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all believers. This present Church Age began at Pentecost and will be terminated at the rapture.

      (Matthew 16:16-18; Romans 12:5; I Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:22)

    2. We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local congregation the primary task of using their talents and spiritual gifts to make unbelievers disciples of Jesus Christ, and has laid upon the leaders of the local congregation the primary task of shepherding and so equipping the believers.

      (Matthew 28:19,20; Ephesians 4:11-16; I Peter 5:2)

    3. We believe that worship of the Most High God is the fundamental response of all creation. We believe true worship of God must be personal even in the context of corporate worship. We believe that the Church of God should meet regularly for corporate worship and fellowship.

      (Nehemiah 9:6; Revelation 15:4; John 4:12-14; Acts 2:42; Hebrews 10:25)

    4. Gateway Church has been formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Our supreme desire is to know Christ and to be conformed into His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.

    5. We are not a denominational church, nor are we opposed to denominations as such, only their over-emphasis of the doctrinal differences that have led to the division of the Body of Christ. We are a non-denominational congregation.

    6. We believe that the only true basis of Christian fellowship is His (Agape) love, which is greater than any differences and without which we have no right to claim ourselves as Christians. In our services we focus on a “personal relationship” with God through song, worship, prayer and the clear teaching of the Word of God. We teach both expository and topical studies. We do not encourage speaking loudly in tongues or the interruption of our services with prophecy. We encourage the use of spiritual gifts as long as they are used properly, decently, and with order so that the church may be edified. It is because we believe that God will not interrupt Himself that we have specific “prayer meetings ” that provide the right context to the exercise of spiritual gifts.

    7. We believe: Worship of God should be Spiritual and affect all areas of our lives. Therefore: We remain flexible and yielded to the leading of the Holy Spirit to direct our worship.

    8. We believe: Worship of God should be Inspirational. Therefore: We place emphasis on quality music and other inspiring arts in our worship.

    9. We believe: Worship of God should be Intelligent. Therefore: Our services are founded upon the teaching of the Word of God that He might instruct us how He would be worshipped.

    10. We believe: Worship of God is Fruitful. Therefore: We look for His love in our lives as the supreme manifestation that we have truly been worshipping Him.

    1. We believe that the Christian life consists of a dynamic relationship (abiding) with Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit such that the fruit of the Spirit is produced in the believer’s life, in contrast to our natural desires.

    2. We believe that all believers should strive to live in harmony with other believers and actively seek reconciliation as necessary and as outlined in the Bible
      (Matthew 18:15-19).

    3. We believe that all believers should live in separation from all religious apostasy, all sinful pleasures, practices, and associations as commanded by God

      (Romans 12:1,2; 14:13,21; 1Corinthians 6:9-10; II Corinthians 6:14 through 7:1; I Timothy 3:1-5; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11).

    4. We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning; that marriage is sanctioned by God, and joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one’s sex, or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God. We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture or the doctrines of the congregation.

    (Leviticus 18:22; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; 7:2; Romans 1:26-28; Hebrews 13:1-25).

  • We believe that Satan was created by God and held the highest rank of all angelic creatures; that he sinned through pride, thereby becoming the author of sin and the cause of Adam’s original sin; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and all creation , though he operates only under the allowance of God; all of which will finally result in his being eternally punished in the Lake of Fire

    (Genesis 3:1-19; Job 1:9-12; Isaiah 14:12-17; Matthew 4:1-11; 25:41; Revelation 20:10)

  • We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but Adam sinned, and in sinning, his image was corrupted; this corrupted image was passed on to his children and thus, in Adam, the entire race became alienated from God and inherited a sin nature. This nature is totally depraved and is utterly helpless to remedy its lost condition apart from the grace of God.

    (Genesis 1:25-27; Psalm 14:1-3; 16:2; 53:1-3; Jeremiah 17;9; Matthew 19:17; Mark 10:18; Luke 18:19; Romans 3:10-19, 22, 23; 5:12; Ephesians 2:1- 3,12)

  • The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, is the sole and final source of all those who believe. For purposes of church doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline, our Team of Elders is the church’s final interpretive authority on the Bible’s meaning and application.

    (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Thessalonians 2:13- 15; 2 Timothy 2:15; Hebrews 13:17).

    We believe that our supreme desire is to know Christ and to be transformed into His image by the power of His Holy Spirit being alert of all possible heresies.
    We Encourage: The teaching of the sovereignty of God above all: No matter what we say or confess we are subject to God, not the other way around. The teaching of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in a true believer: Demons have no dominion over the life of a believer who surrenders all to the control of the Holy Spirit. Demons can attack believers, but they cannot possess them. The teaching that Christians are to be a positive influence in all areas of society: The ultimate goal is to disciple people of all nations. The teaching that God wants us to prosper spiritually first: As a result, other areas of our lives will be affected positively. God wants us to be rich spiritually first and foremost. The teaching of listening to prophesy that is filtered through God’s Word: No prophesy will ever supersede Scripture. The teaching that some aspects of psychology and philosophy (well done) can be used for helping others: The Sciences should be studied responsibly but they should never be used for interpreting Scripture. The Bible stands alone and is best for interpreting itself. The teaching of the use of all spiritual gifts: Gifts must focus all attention on God not the gifted person. The gifts are not to be used to attract attention to people, their experiences or signs and wonders. The attention should always be focused on God and bringing Him the glory.

  • The church will observe regularly the two New Testament ordinances of water baptism for those believers who seek to be obedient to God, and the Lord’s Supper. These ordinances are observed in obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ, as acts of love and devotion, and are not considered to be necessary for our salvation.

    1. .We believe that this present age will be climaxed by the visible, physical return of Jesus Christ to the earth with power and great glory to introduce the millennial age (the Second Coming, (not to be confused with the Rapture)), to bind Satan and cast him into the Lake of Fire, to lift the curse which now rests on the whole creation, and to bring the whole world to a knowledge of God. We believe that the rapture occurs prior to the 7 years of the Great Tribulation. b. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all people: believers to eternal life; and unbelievers to judgment and everlasting punishment.

      (Zechariah 14:4-5; Romans 8:19-23; Revelation 20:1-3; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Revelation 20:5, 6, 12, 13)

    2. We believe that the souls of believers are, at death, absent from the body and present with God, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord.

      (Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:31; Thessalonians 4:16,17)

    3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain after death, in conscious misery until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment.

      (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; Revelation 20:11-15)