Beliefs

"One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism"
- Ephesians 4:5 (NIV)

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”
- A Common Statement about Christian Belief

When discussing important matters of belief, these statements are important to remember.

Christ is our cornerstone. He alone is the solid rock on which we stand.

At First Baptist Church Muncie, we believe what Christians throughout the ages have held dear.

Our Basic Beliefs

There is One Triune God revealed to us as Father, Son, & Holy Spirit.

God is Love.
God is Spirit.
God is Holy.

God created heaven and earth, all things visible and invisible.

The world God created is good.

Humanity was created in God’s image. We rebelled and turned from God – insisting on our own way.

This is called sin, and it corrupts all of creation.

Jesus came as the Holy One of Israel and the incarnation of God: he is fully human and fully God.

He was born of the Virgin Mary.

Jesus lived a perfect life in complete love and obedience to the Father, walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.

In him, the Kingdom of God has come.

In his suffering death on the cross, and in his rising again on the third day, according to the Scriptures, Jesus completed our salvation and the redemption of the world.

Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return again on the last day to judge the living and the dead and make all that is wrong right.

The Holy Spirit inspired the Bible, sanctifies believers, and calls and equips the church, the people of God, to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ and to make disciples of all nations.

Christian life begins with conversion to Christ, empowered by the prior work of the Holy Spirit to regenerate (give us a new birth). Faith in Christ is how we are justified and forgiven.

There are two sacraments, or ordinances, which the Lord commanded the church to practice until he returns: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper (communion).

Our Confession & Denominational Identity Statement

Holy Scripture is our source for faith and practice.
We recognize there will be diversity in views and interpretation among believers.

As a guide to Christian teaching and to simply describe common beliefs in our community, FBCM adopted a historic confession as a congregation.
As our by-laws & constitution say:

“Recognizing and honoring the differences that exist among believers, this Church generally ascribes to the New Hampshire Confession of Faith 1833.”

You can find more information about that confession and view a more recent Identity Statement from our denomination below.

New Hampshire Baptist Confession of Faith (1833)

When seeking to form a missionary society which we partner with to this day, a Baptist pastor and scholar named J. Newton Brown helped create a confession of belief with other believers. It came to be known as the New Hampshire Baptist Confession of Faith of 1833 (NHCF 1833), and has served as a framework for many later Baptist Confessions– especially here in the United States.

Confessions are important expressions of our biblical interpretation. But, as the NHCF itself says, it is ultimately Holy Scripture itself which “is, and shall remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.”

See Full Confession [PDF]

The General Board of the American Baptists Churches - USA released an identity statement in 2005. While not binding on congregations or individuals, this statement represents an expression of the faith of American Baptists in the 21st century. You can read the document split into two parts below.

We Are American Baptists

An Expression of Christian Faith Representative of American Baptists adopted by the General Board, American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A., November 2005

American Baptists worship the triune God of the Bible, who is eternally one God in three persons. This one, true God is most clearly revealed to us in the incarnate Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

American Baptists proclaim the Good News of the atoning death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, knowing that salvation (forgiveness of sins, release from guilt and condemnation, reconciliation with God) and eternal life are granted in grace to all who trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

This Gospel is the central message of the Bible.

American Baptists believe that the Bible, composed of the Old and New Testaments, is the divinely inspired Word of God, the final written authority and trustworthy for faith and practice.

It is to be interpreted responsibly under the guidance of the Holy Spirit within the community of faith. The primary purpose of the Bible is to point to Jesus Christ, the living Lord of the Church.

Although Baptists have produced numerous confessions to express our common understandings of Christian faith, we hold the Scriptures, the Old and New Testaments, as our final authority. We accept no humanly devised confession or creed as binding.

American Baptists affirm that God is sovereign over all and that this sovereignty is expressed and realized through Jesus Christ.

Therefore, we affirm the Lordship of Christ over the world and the church. We joyously confess that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord.

We are called in loyalty to Jesus Christ to proclaim the power of the Holy Spirit, the Good News of God’s reconciling grace, and to declare the saving power of the Gospel to every human being and to every human institution.

We celebrate Christ’s charge to “make disciples of all nations” and to bear witness to God’s redeeming reign in human affairs.

American Baptists are summoned to this mission in common with all Christians. With the whole body of Christ, we also believe that God has been revealed in Jesus Christ as in no other, and that “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:18).

We anticipate the day when every creature and all creation, on earth and beyond, will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11).

God has given this particular community of believers called Baptists a distinctive history and experience. As we share in common with Christians everywhere, so Baptists everywhere celebrate a common heritage.

THEREFORE

With Baptist brothers and sisters around the world, we believe:

That the Bible is the final authority and trustworthy for faith and practice. It is to be interpreted responsibly under the guidance of God’s Holy Spirit within the community of faith;

That the Church is a gathered fellowship of regenerated believers, a sign of the coming universal reign of God;

That the freedom to respond to the Lordship of Christ in all circumstances is fundamental to the Christian gospel and to human dignity; and

That witness to Christ is the ongoing task of every Christian and of every church.

Within the larger Baptist family, American Baptists emphasize convictions which direct our special task and ministry.

We affirm that God through Jesus Christ calls us to be...

A Redeemed People Who claim a personal relationship to God through Jesus Christ;
Who follow the Lord in believer’s baptism;
Who gather as a believer’s church;
Who share in the meal of the kingdom known as the Lord’s Supper;
Who honor the priesthood of all believers; and who live their faith as visible saints.

A Biblical People Who affirm the centrality of Scripture in our lives;
Who pursue the study of God’s inspired Word as a mandate for faith and practice; and who seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the understanding of Scripture, while respecting the common interpretation of Scripture within the community of believers.
Who submit to the teaching of Scripture that God’s design for sexual intimacy places it within the context of marriage between one man and one woman, and acknowledge that the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Biblical teaching.

A Worshiping People Who gather regularly to praise God;
Who receive nourishment by communion with the Risen Christ;
Who share an open and public confession of faith; and who believe that personal devotion brings vitality to corporate celebration.

A Mission People Who strive to fulfill the Great Commission to make disciples;
Who invite persons to receive salvation and follow Christ; who engage in educational, social, and health ministries;
Who seek justice for all persons; and who provide prayer and financial support to sustain a worldwide mission outreach.

An Interdependent People Who affirm the Church’s unity as given in Jesus Christ;

Who gladly embody in our practice the ministry of the whole people of God; who recognize God’s gifts for ministry and honor all offices of pastoral ministry;
Who live and work together “in association”; and who bring the free church tradition to cooperative and ecumenical Christianity.

A Caring People Who care for the needy, the weak, and the oppressed;
Who care for the earth and for all its creatures.

An Inclusive People
Who, gifted by a variety of backgrounds, find unity in diversity and diversity in unity;
Who embrace a pluralism of race, ethnicity, and gender; and who acknowledge that there are individual differences of conviction and theology.

A Contemporary People
Who have a remembrance for the past and a vision for the future;
Who are committed to religious liberty and to the separation of church and state;
Who call our present world to make Jesus Christ Lord of all life; and who trust the Holy Spirit for insight and power to live in the present age.

We further believe That God has called us forth to such an hour as this;
That we live with a realizable hope;
That all things are held together in Christ;
That all creation will find its ultimate fulfillment in God;
That we shall see the One whose we are; and
That Jesus shall reign for ever and ever.

Learn More About Baptists