top of page

STATEMENT OF FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS

The Bible is our all-sufficient rule for faith and practice. This Statement of Fundamental

Truths is intended simply as a basis of fellowship among us (i.e., that we all speak the

same thing, 1 Corinthians 1:10; Acts 2:42). The phraseology employed in this statement is

not inspired or contended for, but the truth set forth is held to be essential to a full-gospel

ministry. No claim is made that it contains all biblical truth, only that it covers our need as to

these fundamental doctrines.

1. The Scriptures Inspired

The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are verbally inspired of God and are

the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative rule of faith and conduct (2 Timothy

3:15-17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).

2. The One True God

The one true God has revealed himself as the eternally self-existent “I AM,” the Creator

of heaven and earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed himself as

embodying the principles of relationship and association as Father, Son, and 

Holy Spirit

(Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:10,11; Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22).

The Adorable Godhead

(a) Terms Defined

The terms trinity and persons, as related to the godhead, while not found in the

Scriptures, are words in harmony with Scripture, whereby we may convey to others

our immediate understanding of the doctrine of Christ respecting the Being of God,

as distinguished from “gods many and lords many.” We therefore may speak with

propriety of the Lord our God, who is One Lord, as a Trinity or as one Being of three

persons, and still be absolutely scriptural (examples, Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians

13:14; John 14:16,17).

(b) Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead

Christ taught a distinction of persons in the godhead which He expressed in

specific terms of relationship, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but that this distinction

and relationship, as to its mode is inscrutable and incomprehensible, because

unexplained (Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 1:24; Matthew 11:25–27; 28:19; 2 Corinthians

13:14; 1 John 1:3,4).

(c) Unity of the One Being of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Accordingly, therefore, there is that in the Father which constitutes Him the Father

and not the Son; there is that in the Son which constitutes Him the Son and not the

Father; and there is that in the Holy Spirit which constitutes Him the Holy Spirit and

not either the Father or the Son. Wherefore, the Father is the Begetter; the Son is

the Begotten; and the Holy Spirit is the One proceeding from the Father and the Son.

Therefore, because these three persons in the godhead are in a state of unity, there is but

one Lord God Almighty and His name one (John 1:18; 15:26; 17:11,21; Zechariah 14:9).

122

CONSTITUTION

(d) Identity and Cooperation in the Godhead

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are never identical as to person; nor

confused as to relation; nor divided in respect to the godhead; nor opposed as to

cooperation. The Son is in the Father and the Father is in the Son as to relationship.

The Son is with the Father and the Father is with the Son, as to fellowship. The Father

is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father, as to authority. The Holy Spirit

is from the Father and the Son proceeding, as to nature, relationship, cooperation,

and authority. Hence, no person in the godhead either exists or works separately or

independently of the others (John 5:17–30,32,37; 8:17,18).

(e) The Title, Lord Jesus Christ

The appellation Lord Jesus Christ is a proper name. It is never applied in the New

Testament either to the Father or to the Holy Spirit. It therefore belongs exclusively to

the Son of God (Romans 1:1–3,7; 2 John 3).

(f) The Lord Jesus Christ, God With Us

The Lord Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature, is the proper and only

Begotten of the Father, but as to His human nature, He is the proper Son of Man. He

is, therefore, acknowledged to be both God and man; who because He is God and

man, is “Immanuel,” God with us (Matthew 1:23; 1 John 4:2,10,14; Revelation 1:13,17).

(g) The Title, Son of God

Since the name Immanuel embraces both God and man, in the one person, our

Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the title Son of God describes His proper deity, and

the title Son of Man, His proper humanity. Therefore, the title Son of God belongs to

the order of eternity, and the title Son of Man to the order of time (Matthew 1:21–23;

2 John 3; 1 John 3:8; Hebrews 7:3; 1:1–13).

(h) Transgression of the Doctrine of Christ

Wherefore, it is a transgression of the doctrine of Christ to say that Jesus Christ

derived the title Son of God solely from the fact of the Incarnation, or because of

His relation to the economy of redemption. Therefore, to deny that the Father is a

real and eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and eternal Son, is a denial of the

distinction and relationship in the Being of God; a denial of the Father and the Son;

and a displacement of the truth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh (2 John 9; John

1:1,2,14,18,29,49; 1 John 2:22,23; 4:1–5; Hebrews 12:2).

(i) Exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord

The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by himself purged our sins, sat

down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, angels and principalities and powers

having been made subject unto Him. And having been made both Lord and Christ, He

sent the Holy Spirit that we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our knees and confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father until the end, when the Son shall

become subject to the Father that God may be all in all (Hebrews 1:3; 1 Peter 3:22;

Acts 2:32–36; Romans 14:11; 1 Corinthians 15:24–28).

123

ARTICLE V

(j) Equal Honor to the Father and to the Son

Wherefore, since the Father has delivered all judgment unto the Son, it is not

only the express duty of all in heaven and on earth to bow the knee, but it is an

unspeakable joy in the Holy Spirit to ascribe unto the Son all the attributes of deity,

and to give Him all the honor and the glory contained in all the names and titles of the

godhead except those which express relationship (see paragraphs b, c, and d), and

thus honor the Son even as we honor the Father (John 5:22,23; 1 Peter 1:8; Revelation

5:6–14; Philippians 2:8,9; Revelation 7:9,10; 4:8–11).

3. The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ

The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The Scriptures declare:

a. His virgin birth (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31,35).

b. His sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22).

c. His miracles (Acts 2:22; 10:38).

d. His substitutionary work on the cross (1 Corinthians 15:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

e. His bodily resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:39;

1 Corinthians 15:4).

f. His exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9,11; 2:33; Philippians 2:9–11;

Hebrews 1:3).

4. The Fall of Man

Man was created good and upright; for God said, “Let us make man in our image, after

our likeness.” However, man by voluntary transgression fell and thereby incurred not only

physical death but also spiritual death, which is separation from God (Genesis 1:26,27; 2:17;

3:6; Romans 5:12–19).

5. The Salvation of Man

Man’s only hope of redemption is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ the Son of

God.

a. Conditions to Salvation. Salvation is received through repentance toward God

and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing of regeneration and renewing of the

Holy Spirit, being justified by grace through faith, man becomes an heir of God according to

the hope of eternal life (Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Romans 10:13–15; Ephesians 2:8; Titus 2:11;

3:5–7).

b. The Evidences of Salvation. The inward evidence of salvation is the direct

witness of the Spirit (Romans 8:16). The outward evidence to all men is a life of righteousness

and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24; Titus 2:12).

6. The Ordinances of the Church

a. Baptism in Water. The ordinance of baptism by immersion is commanded in

the Scriptures. All who repent and believe on Christ as Savior and Lord are to be baptized.

Thus they declare to the world that they have died with Christ and that they also have been

raised with Him to walk in newness of life (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 10:47,48;

Romans 6:4).

124

CONSTITUTION

b. Holy Communion. The Lord’s Supper, consisting of the elements—bread and

the fruit of the vine—is the symbol expressing our sharing the divine nature of our Lord

Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:4); a memorial of His suffering and death (1 Corinthians 11:26); and

a prophecy of His second coming (1 Corinthians 11:26); and is enjoined on all believers “till

He come!”

7. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit

All believers are entitled to and should ardently expect and earnestly seek the

promise of the Father, the baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire, according to the command of

our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the normal experience of all in the early Christian church.

With it comes the enduement of power for life and service, the bestowment of the gifts

and their uses in the work of the ministry (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4,8; 1 Corinthians 12:1–31).

This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of the new birth (Acts

8:12–17; 10:44–46; 11:14–16; 15:7–9). With the baptism in the Holy Spirit come such

experiences as an overflowing fullness of the Spirit (John 7:37–39; Acts 4:8), a deepened

reverence for God (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 12:28), an intensified consecration to God and

dedication to His work (Acts 2:42), and a more active love for Christ, for His Word, and for

the lost (Mark 16:20).

8. The Initial Physical Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit

The baptism of believers in the Holy Spirit is witnessed by the initial physical sign

of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit of God gives them utterance (Acts 2:4).

The speaking in tongues in this instance is the same in essence as the gift of tongues

(1 Corinthians 12:4–10,28), but different in purpose and use.

9. Sanctification

Sanctification is an act of separation from that which is evil, and of dedication unto God

(Romans 12:1,2; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 13:12). Scriptures teach a life of “holiness

without which no man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). By the power of the Holy Spirit

we are able to obey the command: “Be ye holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15,16).

Sanctification is realized in the believer by recognizing his identification with Christ

in His death and resurrection, and by faith reckoning daily upon the fact of that union, and

by offering every faculty continually to the dominion of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:1–11,13;

8:1,2,13; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 2:12,13; 1 Peter 1:5).

10. The Church and Its Mission

The Church is the body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine

appointments for the fulfillment of her Great Commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit,

is an integral part of the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in

heaven (Ephesians 1:22,23; 2:22; Hebrews 12:23).

Since God’s purpose concerning man is to seek and to save that which is lost, to be

worshiped by man, to build a body of believers in the image of His Son, and to demonstrate

His love and compassion for all the world, the priority reason for being of the Assemblies of

God as part of the Church is:

125

ARTICLE V

a. To be an agency of God for evangelizing the world (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19,20;

Mark 16:15,16).

b. To be a corporate body in which man may worship God (1 Corinthians 12:13).

c. To be a channel of God’s purpose to build a body of saints being perfected in the

image of His Son (Ephesians 4:11–16; 1 Corinthians 12:28; 14:12).

d. To be a people who demonstrate God’s love and compassion for all the world

(Psalm 112:9; Galatians 2:10; 6:10; James 1:27).

The Assemblies of God exists expressly to give continuing emphasis to this reason for

being in the New Testament apostolic pattern by teaching and encouraging believers to be

baptized in the Holy Spirit. This experience:

a. Enables them to evangelize in the power of the Spirit with accompanying

supernatural signs (Mark 16:15–20; Acts 4:29–31; Hebrews 2:3,4).

b. Adds a necessary dimension to a worshipful relationship with God (1 Corinthians

2:10–16; 1 Corinthians 12–14).

c. Enables them to respond to the full working of the Holy Spirit in expression of fruit

and gifts and ministries as in New Testament times for the edifying of the body of

Christ and care for the poor and needy of the world (Galatians 5:22–26; Matthew

25:37–40; Galatians 6:10; 1 Corinthians 14:12; Ephesians 4:11,12; 1 Corinthians

12:28; Colossians 1:29).

11. The Ministry

A divinely called and scripturally ordained ministry has been provided by our Lord

for the fourfold purpose of leading the Church in: (1) evangelization of the world (Mark

16:15–20), (2) worship of God (John 4:23,24), (3) building a Body of saints being perfected

in the image of His Son (Ephesians 4:11,16), and (4) meeting human need with ministries

of love and compassion (Psalm 112:9; Galatians 2:10; 6:10; James 1:27).

12. Divine Healing

Divine healing is an integral part of the gospel. Deliverance from sickness is provided

for in the Atonement, and is the privilege of all believers (Isaiah 53:4,5; Matthew 8:16,17;

James 5:14–16).

13. The Blessed Hope

The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ and their translation together

with those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed

hope of the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:16,17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians

15:51,52).

14. The Millennial Reign of Christ

The second coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints, which is our blessed

hope, followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one

thousand years (Zechariah 14:5; Matthew 24:27,30; Revelation 1:7; 19:11–14; 20:1–6).

This millennial reign will bring the salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21,22; Zephaniah

3:19,20; Romans 11:26,27) and the establishment of universal peace (Isaiah 11:6–9; Psalm

72:3–8; Micah 4:3,4).

126

CONSTITUTION

15. The Final Judgment

There will be a final judgment in which the wicked dead will be raised and judged

according to their works. Whosoever is not found written in the Book of Life, together with

the devil and his angels, the beast and the false prophet, will be consigned to everlasting

punishment in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death

(Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:43–48; Revelation 19:20; 20:11–15; 21:8).

16. The New Heavens and the New Earth

“We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein

dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21,22).

bottom of page