Statement of Faith

1 Corinthians 3:10-11: "According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation, and another builds thereon. But let every man take heed how he builds thereupon. For no other foundation can a man lay than what is laid, which is Jesus Christ."

Jude 1:3-4:  "Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was necessary for me to write unto you, and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into licentiousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ."

We Believe:

1. That there is only one God, creator of the heavens and the earth, revealed as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That there exists a real Heaven of everlasting bliss for those who are written in the Lambs Book of Life, and a real Hell, where the worm dies not, for those that are not found written in the Book of Life; That the only way to be written in the Book of Life is through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ at the Cross of Calvary. (Genesis 1:1, Deuteronomy 6:4, Psalms 9:17, Isaiah 5:14, 14:9, Mathew 5:22, 10:28, Mark 9:45, Luke 12:5, 16:19-31, John 1:1-14, John 10:30, 2 Corinthians 12, 13:14, Mark 12:29, John 15:26, I Peter 1:4, 2 Peter 2:1-9, Revelation 3:12, 19:1, 20:11-15, 21)

2. That Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. He lived a sinless life and had a miraculous ministry. He was crucified and died for the sins of the world, was buried and descended into hell. On the third day He rose from the dead bodily, ascended to Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father interceding as our High Priest. He will return bodily and visibly, in power and glory at the consummation of all things to judge the living and the dead and establish His eternal kingdom on earth. (Isaiah 7:14, Mathew 1:18-23, Acts 2:27-33, Hebrews 4:14-16, I Corinthians 15:3-4, Acts 1:9-11, Ephesians 4:8-10, I Timothy 3:16, Revelation 19-22, 1:7)

3. That man was created in the image of God, but through disobedience sinned and spiritually died. As a consequence, the entire human race inherited spiritual death. That in this degenerate condition, man cannot have communion with God, and is unable to regenerate himself in his own strength, wisdom or goodness. The only way man can change and come alive again in his spirit is by the New Birth experience. This happens when a person believes in his heart and confesses with his mouth by faith that Jesus Christ died at the Cross of Calvary for his sins, and was raised from the dead to save him from eternal death in Hell and give him eternal life. (Genesis 1-3, Isaiah 64:6, Romans 5:8-19, 6:23, John 3:1-8, Romans 3:22-24, Titus 3:5-7, Ephesians 2:1-9, Romans 8:8-10, John 3:16, Acts 10:43)

4. The Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible word of God and the rule for faith and conduct. No denomination, church or individual has the authority to establish any doctrine or teaching that goes contrary to the scriptures that have been accepted and embraced by the early Church Fathers and Christian Church. (2 Timothy 3:15-17, 2 Peter 1:21, Mathew 24:35, Romans 15:4, Luke 24:27)

5. That every believer after conversion must be baptized by immersion in water in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in obedience to the gospel. Baptism being a sign of the circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that has been obtained by faith in conversion, symbolic of the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ as the old man has died, been buried and has risen to new life. (Mathew 28:19, Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Romans 4:9-11, Romans 6:1-14, Acts 8:12-16, 36-37, Acts 10:44-48, Acts 19:5). The baptism of the Holy Spirit, with the manifestation of tongues and the gifts of the spirit, is for every believer to empower and anoint them for evangelism. (John 14:26, Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4-8, 2:1-4, 5:12, 10:45-46, 19:6, Galatians 3:14, 4:5-6, I Corinthians 12, 14, Hebrews 2:3-4)

6. That marriage is a faithful, exclusive and lifelong union between one man and one woman, joined as husband and wife in an intimate partnership of love and life.  This union was founded by God and is backed by the word of God. Marriage therefore exists for the mutual love of both spouses, and for the procreation and nurturing of offspring. God intends for believers to only be sexually active within the bonds of marriage. The institution of matrimony between one man and one woman is morally essential to the continuance of the human race.  The institution of marriage is a blessed and holy ritual that brings both honor and favor from God.  Marriage is more than a civil contract; it is a love union that reflects the manner in which the LORD Jesus Christ personally loves his bride and is united with her. (Genesis 2:18, 21-25, Malachi 2:16, Mathew 19:6, Romans 1:25-28, 1 Corinthians 6:13,18, Galatians 5:19, 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Ephesians 5:22-23, Hebrews 13:4, 1 Peter 3:1-7, 2 Peter 2:6, Jude 1:7)

7. That sanctification is a process that starts in the life of every believer at the moment of conversion, and continues on through life as the person, under the gentle guidance of the Holy Spirit and the fully restored five-fold ministry offices of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, changes his life and conduct and starts living a holy life, being transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ, from glory to glory. (Romans 8:19, I Corinthians 13:8-13, 2 Corinthians 3:17-18, 2 Corinthians 7:1, Ephesians 2:20-22, 4:11-16, 5:25-27, Colossians 1:28, 3:5-14, Hebrews 12:14, I Peter 1:15, I John 2:15-17, 3:2-3)

8. That the Divine Government, Order, Power and Authority of God flow from the Head (Jesus) down and manifest on the Earth through His Body (The Church), establishing His Kingdom in nations, cities, churches and homes, bringing order where there is chaos, light into darkness, clarity to confusion, healing to sickness and disease, blessing to curses, deliverance to oppression and depression, illumination to the ignorant, and salvation to the lost. (Mathew 28:18-20, Romans 13:1-7, Ephesians 1:18-23, Philippians 2:9-11, I Timothy 3:1-12, 5:1-14, Titus 2, 3:1-11, I Peter 2:11-18, 3:1-12)

9. The healing for mans body, soul and spirit was provided for in the New Covenant by the wounds, bruises and stripes Jesus received in His atoning death. Jesus Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, sin, sickness and death. (Isaiah 53:5; John 10:10; Acts 4:30; 10:38; I Corinthians 12:9; Galatians 3:13-14; James 5:13-16; I Peter 2:24)

10.  In the ordinance of the Lords Supper, that symbolizes the communion, fellowship and spiritual unity of all believers, which together make up the Body of Christ. In essentials we need to agree and in non-essentials we need to exercise tolerance, but in all things we need to show the love of God, and treat each other with the same kind of love (agape) that Jesus loved us, without regard of race, background, or religion. That we must always strive to walk in this love, without which no one has a right to call himself a Christian. (Mathew 22:36-40, 26:26-28, Mark 14:22-24, Luke 22:17-20, John 13:34-35,15:9-17, 17:20-21, 26, I Corinthians 10:16-17, 11:23-30, I Thessalonians 3:12, I Peter 1:22-23, I John 4:6-12, 16-21)

11. In the priesthood of all believers, that is having direct access to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That everyone has gifts and callings from God placed in them at the time of conception, activated by the Holy Spirit and the laying-on of hands by the presbytery, but ordained of God before the foundation of the Earth, to do good works prepared for them in advance. That one of the purposes of the five-fold ministry offices is to train, teach, perfect and release the saints to function in their gifting and callings in the local church body, and wherever the Lord sends them. (Mathew 27:51, I Timothy 4:14, 2 Timothy 1:6, Ephesians 2:10, 4:11-12, Hebrews 4:16, I Peter 2:5-10, Revelation 1:6, 5:10, 20:6)

12. That Tithing is holy unto the Lord, and a Covenant of giving established during the times of Abraham prior to the dispensation of the law. It was required under the Law of Moses, confirmed by Jesus Christ, after the order of Melchizedek, as He came to fulfill the law. We being the children of Abraham need to practice it today as part of the Testament Covenant that the Lord established. That the principle of sowing and reaping, as well as giving liberally and joyfully is well established in the Word of God. That the finances should be used to support the kingdom of God, the five-fold ministry offices, the widows, orphans, and poor. (Genesis 14:18-23, 28:20-22, Proverbs 3:9-10, Malachi 3:7-11, Mathew 6:19-21, Mark 12:41-44, Luke 6:38, Romans 15:26, 2 Corinthians 9:6-8, I Timothy 5:3-11).

Be It Therefore Resolved That We,

1. Reserve the right to defend such beliefs privately and publically.

2. Reserve the right to require such beliefs as standards of morality in any/all leadership/membership positions. 

3. Train, teach, disciple, counsel and otherwise instruct said beliefs when discussing pre-marriage dating, marriage, sexuality, parenting and other related topics.

4. Reserve the right to implement any/all formats of communication including but not limited to radio, television, books or pamphlets, internet and cellular devices when discussing said beliefs.

5. Endorse and support, at our discretion, civic, religious or social organizations which embrace common beliefs and oppose, at our discretion, civic, religious or social organizations holding contrary beliefs.

We Conclude: 

That these positions taken and agreed to by The Appearance Ministries, are both scripturally and morally fundamental.  And that our position to marital infidelity, homosexuality and/or same-sex marriage is not an illustration of unreasonable discrimination or animosity toward any persons or groups of people.  This statement of faith was not written for the purpose of injuring, offending or abusing any person or persons.  We hold the position that all societies must respect the basic human dignity of all individuals. 

2008 The Appearance