Below is our answers to 24 common questions visitors often have to a church that might save you a lot of Sunday mornings:

1. What is man’s biggest problem?

Sin.

2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?

Repent and believe the Gospel of Jesus.

3. How do you deliver the salvation message?

We explain the character and attributes of God; His Holiness, justice, mercy, compassion and loving-kindness. Then we explain the depravity and helplessness of man in his sinful condition; using the moral law of God to explain the “exceeding sinfulness of sin.” We then explain man’s dilemma “how can a holy and just God forgive and justify wicked and evil sinners?” As an answer to that question, we present the Cross; God took on flesh and became a man Jesus Christ. He lived a perfect sinless life and offered Himself as a sacrifice for sins and bore the sins of His people on the Cross. We explain penal substitutionary atonement, the resurrection and the new birth. We then urge the hearer to exercise repentance towards God and place their faith in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation. We don’t focus merely on getting a “decision” or a sinner’s prayer from the hearer. We venture to explain how to be saved, but we leave it up to the Holy Spirit to confirm whether a person has been saved.

4. How hard is it to become a Christian?

Becoming a Christian requires a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit to effectually call and to convict the person that comes under the preaching of the Gospel; of sin, righteousness and judgment to come. It is impossible for a person to come to Jesus with saving faith and genuine repentance absent the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit. “No man can come” to Jesus unless the Father “draws him.” We preach the Gospel because that is the means by which God has ordained to save His people. Our duty before God is to be a witness of Christ and the Gospel in every context and situation, according to the grace God has given us to do so, and to be faithful to the same.

5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness and judgment?

We strive, according to the grace God has given us, to keep our preaching and teaching expositional and Gospel-centered. This necessitates a discussion of man’s sin, depravity, sanctification and the carnal nature, etc.

6. How seeker sensitive is your church?

The only Person we are interested in “seeking” is God. Our desire is to be faithful to His message of Salvation and the Scriptures.

7. Who do you do church for, seekers or members?

The church is for genuine Believers to be taught, encouraged, exhorted, admonished and rebuked.

8. Do you dumb down your sermons?

We believe in the perspicuity of Scripture. In other words, the main things are the plain things, and the plain things are the main things. Our goal is to be faithful to the Gospel according to the grace that God has given us, using the Bible itself as our only standard for faith and practice.

9. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?

Expositional.

10. Do your sermons emphasize theology or are they relevant?

Theology.

11. Describe your youth programs.

We are a family-integrated congregation. We don’t have a youth program. We believe that the Biblical model is for families to worship together and sit under preaching and teaching together. The older people should model and teach the younger, but we don’t have a youth minister/pastor or a nursery. Crying babies are welcome.

12. Describe your evangelism programs.

We go out individually and in groups on a regular basis to hand out tracts, Gospels of John, Scriptures and to witness the Gospel one-on-one to people in public places (events, festivals, concerts, streets, sidewalks, highways and byways). We also encourage each other to spread the Gospel in our regular daily lives (through witness and handing out tracts, etc.). We also support Believers overseas in sending them tracts in their own languages, (and English), Gospels of John and Bibles; to the furtherance of the Great Commission.

13. What church growth model do you follow?

Our goal is simply to be faithful to the Gospel and the Scriptures. God determines whether we grow or not.

14. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?

We support a few missionaries that we have a relationship with; and missionaries and pastors located overseas.

15. Do you believe the Bible contains no errors or contradictions?

Yes, the Bible is without error and has no contradictions.

16. Do you believe in a literal 6 day creation?

Yes.

17. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?

Yes.

19. When you distribute the Lord’s Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?

Yes.

20. Can a person who is living in a persistent lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?

1 John is quite clear that those who live in a habitually sinful lifestyle are not genuinely saved.

21. Does your church exercise church discipline?

Yes.

22. Do Sunday school teachers, nursery, and youth volunteers fill out an application to answer questions about their core beliefs, or are all volunteers accepted?

We are a family integrated church so we don’t have these types of offices. If offices were to be created; then the applicant’s beliefs would have to be consistent with our church’s statement of faith (1689 Baptist Confession).

23.What are the essentials of the faith?

The Trinity.
Salvation by Grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone.
The inerrancy and sufficiency of Scripture.

24. Do you have a cross in your sanctuary?

Yes.