Special Statements 

The Christian Family

The family was instituted back in the second chapter of Genesis on the sixth day of the creation and is made up of the man (husband/father), woman (wife/mother), and children as God grants fruitfulness according to His will. The primary purposes of the Christian home are to glorify, enjoy, and serve the Lord together (Genesis 2:18-25; Joshua 24:14-15; Psalm 127:3-5; 1 Corinthians 10:31).

The husband/father is the head of the household and is responsible to lead his household spiritually, to love his wife as his own body and as Christ loves the Church, to bring up his children according to the discipline and instruction of the Lord and to train them in the way they should go, to work in order to provide for the earthly needs of the household, to be content with his wife, to review and approve or disapprove of commitments made by his wife, and to oversee the marriages of his children. Finally, he is forbidden to deny his wife the opportunity to bear children (Genesis 18:19; 38:8-10; Exodus 20:17; 21:10-11; Numbers 30:13-15; Proverbs 5:15-23; 22:6; Matthew 5:28; 1 Corinthians 7:3-4, 36-38; Ephesians 5:25-33; 6:4; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12; 1 Timothy 5:8; 1 Peter 3:7).

The wife/mother is the helper of the man; and she is to love and respect her husband, be in subjection to her husband, bear children as God grants the ability, love her children, be a faithful keeper of the home, keep the household well supplied with food and clothing, be a disciple of her husband, fulfill his needs as a faithful companion, and exercise charity (Genesis 1:28; 9:1; 2:18; Proverbs 31:10-31; 1 Corinthians 7:2-5; 14:34-35; Ephesians 5:22-24, 33; 1 Thessalonians 2:7; 1 Timothy 2:15; Titus 2:3-5; 1 Peter 3:1-6).

Children are commanded by God to both honor and obey their parents. This is practiced in obedience to their teaching and commands, as well as taking care of them in their old age (Exodus 20:12; 21:15, 17; Proverbs 1:8; 30:17; Mark 7:10; Ephesians 6:1-3; 1 Timothy 5:4, 8).

Christian Marriage

MARRIAGE is to be between a man and a woman. It is not lawful for any person to participate in polyamory or polyandry (Gen. 2:24; Mal. 2:15; Matt. 19:5, 6).

GOD instituted marriage for the mutual help, benefit, and pleasure of husband and wife, for the increase of mankind in accordance with His laws, and for the prevention of immorality (Gen. 1:28; 2:18; 1 Cor. 7:2, 9; Song of Solomon).

IT is biblical for all sorts of people to marry, provided that they are able to give their rational consent. But it is the duty of Christians to marry only 'in the Lord'. In consequence, those who profess the Christian faith should not contract marriages with infidels or idolaters. It is also quite unfitting for godly persons to become partners in marriage with persons who lead wicked lives or who maintain damnable heresies (Neh. 13:25-27; 1 Cor. 7:39; 1 Tim. 4:3; Heb. 13:4).

MARRIAGE must not be contracted within the degrees of blood relationship or kinship forbidden in God's Word. Nor when such incestuous unions occur can they ever be made right in the sight of God, either by any law of man or by the consenting parties, and the persons concerned can never rightly live together as man and wife. (Lev. 18; Mark 6:18; 1 Cor. 5: 1.)

We teach that marriage was given by God as part of His common grace, and that it has no meaning other than as He has provided (Gen. 2:18–24). We teach that marriage is subject to the curse of the Fall but that believers, living in obedience to the Scripture and under the control of the Holy Spirit, can begin to experience peaceful, productive, and fulfilled marriage as intended by God (Gen. 3:16; 1 Peter 3:7).

We teach that the marriages of believers are to illustrate the loving relationship of Christ and His Church, with the husband loving his wife as Christ loves the Church and the wife responding to her husband’s loving leadership as the Church responds to Christ (Eph. 5:18–33).

We teach that as believers’ marriages are to illustrate Christ’s relationship with His Church, believers should choose to marry those who share their faith and regenerate life (2 Cor. 6:14).

We teach that the term “marriage” has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins a man and a woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Gen. 2:23–24).

We teach that marriage is always a public, formal, and officially recognized covenant between a man and a woman. We teach that without such a covenant, which may include a “common law marriage,” where valid in specific cases under pertinent law, prolonged conjugal cohabitation does not establish, and is not equivalent to, marriage (John 4:18).

We teach that where no such covenant exists, or can be discerned, between a cohabiting couple prior to coming to faith in Christ, family units should be preserved to the extent possible and, if otherwise appropriate, solemnization encouraged.

We teach that where a valid marriage has been established prior to coming to faith in Christ, the couple should remain married (1 Cor. 7:24).

We teach that God hates divorce, permitting it only where there are Biblical grounds for it to occur (Mal. 2:14–16; Matt. 5:32, 19:9; Cor. 7:12–15). We teach that remarriage is permitted to a faithful partner, but only when the divorce was on biblical grounds.

We teach that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We teach that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman (Heb. 13:4).

We teach that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pedophilia, pornography, any attempt to change one’s sex or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God (Lev. 18:1–30; Matt. 5:28; Rom. 1:26–29; 1 Cor. 5:1, 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1–8).

We teach that homosexuality, in particular, is subject to God’s wrath of abandonment, is a matter of choice and not inherited status, and epitomizes man’s ungrateful rebellion against God (Rom. 1:18–28).

We teach 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 church.

We teach that the faithful proclamation of the Scripture, including the call to repentance, does not constitute hate speech, or hateful and harassing behavior, but is instead a fundamental part of the church’s loving mission to the world (Matt. 28:16–20; 2 Cor. 5:11–20; 1 Tim. 1:5; 2 Tim. 4:1–2).

We teach that God offers redemption and forgiveness to all who confess and forsake their sin, including sexual sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. We teach that His forgiveness is total and complete (Ps. 103:11–12, 130:3–4; Is. 43:25, 44:22; John 5:24; Col. 2:13–14) and that God imputes the full righteousness of Christ (2 Cor. 5:21) to the believing sinner.

We teach that the forgiven sinner has been cleansed from the guilt of sin, set apart unto God, or made holy, and justified before Him (1Cor. 6:9–11). We teach that any man or woman who has received that forgiveness is “in Christ” and is a “new creature” (2 Cor. 5:17).

Civil Government

God is supreme Lord and King over all the world and has, in that capacity, instituted civil government. He has set up civil authorities, subject to Himself, to rule over communities for His own glory and the public good. For these purposes to be achieved He has given them the powers of life and death, both for the safety and encouragement of all men of good behavior, and for the punishment of the wicked (Romans 13:1-4)

Christian men may accept and carry out the duties of public office when called upon to do so, in which case it becomes their responsibility to maintain justice and peace in accordance with the sound laws of the kingdoms and states which they serve, as long as those laws do not contradict the laws of God as given in Scripture. New Testament teaching authorizes them to wage war when this is found to be just and necessary. Service in public office is not to be carried out by women, but by men only (Exodus 18:21; 2 Sam. 23:3; Ps. 82:3, 4; Isaiah 3:12; Luke 3:14; 1 Corinthians 11:3).

As civil rulers are set up by God for the aforementioned purposes, Christians are to be subject to them in respect of all their lawful requirements, and that, for the Lord's sake and for the sake of the Christian’s conscience, and not merely to avoid punishment. They should offer supplications and prayers for kings and all that are in authority, that under their rule they may live a 'quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty' (Rom. 13:5-7; 1 Tim. 2:1, 2; 1 Pet. 2:17).

Vaccines

We as a church have deeply held religious views regarding vaccinations that are embodied in the following resolution:

We consider decisions regarding the refusal of any vaccination to be determined by the individual and family jurisdiction, and not by the jurisdiction of the state or the church, according to biblical mandate (Romans 13:1).

This is because the family and the church are legitimate governments distinct from the civil magistrate. Accordingly, we reject the subordination of the family and church to the State in matters that God has placed within their particular jurisdictions.

Because scientists and doctors debate the medical risks inherent in various vaccines, including the risk of vaccine enhancement, and because we believe it to be a violation of the sixth commandment to needlessly endanger our health, and because many Christians are concerned that some vaccines are developed using fetal tissues obtained from abortions which are murder according to the Bible, and because Holy Scripture gives parents the responsibility of oversight and care for the physical needs of their children (Deut. 6:7, Prov. 22:6, Eph. 6:1-3, Col.3:20, 1 Tim. 5:8) we maintain that any vaccination may be respectfully refused on religious grounds by any member of this church.

We therefore exhort by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is King over all governments and nations that the refusal of any vaccination be left to the sphere and conscience of individuals and/or families.