What We Believe

WHAT WE BELIEVE

The Church of God Believes in:

The Holy Trinity -------------- Matthew 28:19, I Peter 1:2

A Personal God ------------- St. John 4:24

A Divine Christ -------------- St. John 1:1, 14

An Infallible Inspired Bible ---- II Timothy 3:16-17

Salvation From Sin ------------- Matthew 1:21

The New Birth ------------- St. John 3:3-7

Justification ---------------- Romans 5:1, Philippians 3:9

Sanctification ---------------- I Thessalonians 5:23

Unity Of God's People ---------- St. John 17:21, Ephesians 4

Divine Physical Healing --------- James 5:14-16

The Ordinances -------------- Matthew 28:19-20, John 3:13-1 I Corinthians11:23-34

Eternal Life ----------------- Romans 6:23

What We Must Do To Be Saved? Acts 16:30

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23 Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Acts 16:31 Each one must turn from sin, return to God, and be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you also shalt receive this gift, the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19 Salvation comes from trusting Jesus Christ. It is within easy reach of each of us. It is as near as our own hearts and mouths. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Christ is the risen Lord, you will be saved. Romans 10:8-12

Statement of Faith

We Believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God. We Believe in the Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood and in His bodily resurrection, and in His personal return in power and glory. We Believe that for the salvation of the lost and sinful man, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential. We Believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is able to live a Godly life. We Believe in the resurrection of the saved unto the resurrection of life and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation. We Believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. We Believe in the imminent return of Jesus Christ in person, bodily, visible and that He will establish His Kingdom.

HOW WE VIEW MEMBERSHIP

No pastor decides that a person will or will not be admitted to membership in a local group. Neither congregations nor congregational leaders vote on who shall be received as members. The Church of God believes that when one accepts Jesus Christ as Savior, God places that person in the Church (Acts 2:47; I Corinthians 12:18). Salvation alone is criteria enough for membership in any congregation. One maintains membership by participating in the worship services and fellowship of the congregation. The Church of God has effectively carried on an expanding ministry in more than sixty countries and established strong congregations that are involved in both person-oriented spiritual ministries and community-oriented social ministries. If you go to a Church of God congregation in Detroit, Michigan or in Charlotte, North Carolina and say I would like to join the church, do not be surprised if the pastor or a layperson says, “My friend, if you are a Christian, you are already a member of God’s church. We invite you to worship here and we will help you get acquainted and find your place in the work of this congregation.” We may refer to each other as “brothers” and “sisters” in the Lord. It is the way of expressing our commitment and love for each other, both as friends and as children of God.

You join God’s Church by:

The Spirit-Filled Life The believer’s experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit may be viewed from at least four perspectives:

Cleansing. The Holy Spirit cleanses the attitudes, mindset, habits, and spirit of the believer. Sanctification is the word used to refer to his cleansing and setting aside for the use of God (Ezekiel 42; Daniel 5). The Holy Spirit works in the believer to purify and set aside for God’s use. ( I Peter 1:13-16; I Thessalonians 4:3-8; Hebrews 2:11; 10:10)

Consecration. Consecration (commitment) is the act of the believer. Persons who have accepted forgiveness of sins and the gift of eternal life offer themselves to be fully blessed and used by God. (Romans 12:1-1) Consecration is presenting everything about our personality, including our physical bodies, to God for His use, in a act of worship.

Calling. This is the part where the Holy Spirit and the Spirit-filled life work together. The Spirit cleanses, the believer consecrates himself or herself, and together the Spirit of God and the believer work out the calling. The calling is the task(s), which the believer accepts in the life of the church in order to help evangelize and serve. As the believer presents their total personality for service to God and humanity, the Holy Spirit considers both the natural abilities of the believer and the need for workers in the church and gifts that believer. (I Corinthians 12)

Convincing Evidence. The most convincing evidence of the Spirit-filled life is holiness. Holy or righteous living includes a faithful study of the teachings of Jesus and continual effort to live out those teachings day by day. The Holy Spirit is the source of power of holy living. (John 16:5-16; Philippians 2:12-13) You will want to read about the Fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:16-26. The experience of the Spirit-filled life begins when the believer opens his or her life to the full work of God’s Spirit in a conscious act of the will. From that point on there is a growth in the Spirit, which produces an increasing awareness of oneness with God, and effectiveness in Christian service.

Historical Note for the Church of God -The church's seminary is Anderson School of Theology in Anderson, Indiana. It is also affiliated with several colleges across North America, including Anderson University, Azusa Pacific University, Gardner College, Mid-America Christian University, Warner Pacific College, and Warner University.

Sunday School

At Seigle Ave. 1st Church of God, we believe that the Sunday School and Bible study is one of the most important ministries of our church. Our classes meet together to study the Bible, fellowship with each other, and minister to each other’s needs. It is very difficult to really get involved in the life of our church without being a part of Sunday School because it’s the key in SAFCOG functioning as it should in evangelism, prayer, discipleship, outreach, fellowship, and ministry. Ministers of SAFCOG play a large part in the classes as teachers and as participants for the adult class, Life Builders Class, and the sessions that occur each Sunday. Leaders of SAFCOG are expected to be committed to attend Bible Study and Sunday school.

Hour of Power - Wednesday night service 7pm – 8pm

We believe that any time we come together to study the Bible is important to each person and especially those in leadership and ministry work. Because of it’s importance to the body of Christ each minister should be an active participant of the Hour of Power Bible study time. Realizing that work or personal matters may prevent you from attending every session it is requested that each minister attend whenever possible. It is an encouragement to the rest of the body of Christ as well as Spiritual food for your soul.