Highlands Community Fellowship
ARTICLE 3. STATEMENT OF FAITH
SECTION 1. THE STATEMENT
This church body shall accept the Bible as the revealed will of God, the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice. For the purpose of maintaining general unity, the following statement of fundamental truths is adopted:
A. The Bible.
The Bible is the verbally inspired word of God in the original languages. It has been translated with practical reliability in the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. It is the infallible, authoritative, rule of faith and conduct in every area of life. (II Timothy 13:15-17; I Thessalonians 2:13; II Peter 1:21).
B. God.
The one true God has revealed Himself as the eternally self-sufficient “I AM”, the Creator of heaven and earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed Himself as eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:10-11; Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22).
C. The Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The Scriptures declare:
(1) His eternal deity (John 1:1-2).
(2) His virgin birth (Matthew 1:23-25; Luke 1:31-35).
(3) His humanity (John 1:14; Philippians 2:5-8).
(4) His sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; I Peter 2:22).
(5) His miracles (Acts 2:22; Acts 10:38).
(6) His substitutionary work on the cross (John 3:16; I Corinthians 15:3; II Corinthians 5:21).
(7) His bodily resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24: 39) .
(8) His exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9; Hebrews 1:3).
(9) His return to judge and to rule forever (I Thessalonians 4:16; Revelation 20:11-15; 22:12-13; Daniel 7:13-14).
D. The Holy Spirit.
God the Holy Spirit comes to indwell all who receive Eternal Life (Acts 2:38; Romans 8:9). He gives power for witnessing (Acts 1:8) and gifts each believer with abilities for the upbuilding of the church (I Corinthians 12:7-11). Each believer is commanded to be continually filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-21) so that God’s power and holiness will be present in the everyday life. (Galatians 5:16, 22-23).
E. Man.
(1) The Fall.
Man was created good and upright, for God had .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 5:18-19).
(2) Salvation.
God’s grace is man’s only hope of redemption through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Salvation and forgiveness of sin is received upon repentance (turning from sin toward God) and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Regeneration is accomplished by the renewing of the Holy Spirit at the time of faith and repentance. Justification is the legal standing of “not guilty” before God that is granted through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. (Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Romans 3:23-26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7).
F. The ordinances.
(1) Baptism.
All who repent and believe on Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord are to be baptized in water. Thus they declare to the world that they have died with Christ and that they have also been raised with Him to walk in newness of life. (Matthew 28:10; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 8:36, 10:44-48; Romans 6:3, 4).
(2) Communion.
The Lord’s Supper, consisting of bread and wine, symbolizes the centrality of Jesus’ death in the Christian faith and reminds us of the inauguration of God’s new covenant. It is commanded for all believers “’til He comes!” (Matthew 26:26-28; Luke 22:19-20; I Corinthians 11:25-26).
G. The Church.
The church is the body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine appointment for the fulfilling of her Great Commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of the church. (I Corinthians 12:12-27). The local church is the primarily established base of operation for the equipping of the true believers to be servants of God as His witnesses, and in the many other ministries of the church. The goal is to have equipped servants who will continue building up the body of Christ in numbers and maturity (Ephesians 4:11-16). The local church is under the direction of its elders. (Hebrews 13:17; I Peter 5:1-2).
H. Last Things.
The Lord Jesus Christ will return visibly and in body. At His appearing, believers, whether living or dead, will receive imperishable bodies like Jesus’ body and will be with Him forever. (I Thessalonians 4:15-17; I Corinthians 15:51-52; Philippians 3:20-21). The eternal state of the people of God will be fellowship with God and participation in the kingdom over which Christ will reign forever (Revelation 21 and 22). There will also be the resurrection and judgment of the wicked according to their deeds (John 5:28-29). Satan, wicked angels, and all people who have not received eternal life face eternal punishment in what Scriptures describe as “the lake of fire”, “the second death”, and “hell” (Matthew 10:28; 25:42-46; Revelation 20:10-15).
ARTICLE 4 ELDERS
SECTION 1. DEFINITION AND DUTIES
Jesus Christ is recognized as the Chief Shepherd of His church. During the physical absence of the Chief Shepherd, the pastoral care of the flock shall be committed to the hands of the elders, who shall consist of men in the congregation who know the Chief Shepherd and reflect His spirit and character. Their duties will be, in general, to equip all believers in the assembly for proper functioning, so that the whole flock may be built up toward Christ-likeness, unity (Ephesians 4:11-16), and the accomplishment of the purposes outlined in Article 2, Section 1.
SECTION 2. NUMBER
The number of elders shall be determined by the needs of the church. There shall be not less than three (3) nor more than five (5) elders, with the exact number to be fixed within these limits by approval of the elders in the manner provided in these Bylaws.
SECTION 3. QUALIFICATIONS AND SELECTION
All elders shall be men who are above reproach in relation to the qualities of maturity given in I Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; and I Peter 5:1-4. Congregational input will be a vital part of recognizing the presence of these qualities
The goal shall be to recognize as elders those men whom the Holy Spirit is appointing for pastoral functioning (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 4:11).
An elder shall be selected by unanimous action of the elders at any regular or special meeting. The term of office shall be indefinite. The initial elders shall be those serving at the time these by-laws are adopted.
An elder may be removed from eldership by unanimous action of the remaining elders at any regular or special meeting.