Beliefs

Palm View Distinctives

This church receives the Holy Scriptures as its authority in matters of faith and practice. While maintaining alignment with the understanding of Christian truth as outlined in the 2000 “The Baptist Faith and Message” of the Southern Baptist Convention the membership at Palm View First Baptist in an act of transparency and distinctiveness have adopted the following doctrinal statements adapted from the 1689 London Baptist Confession:
We believe God inspired the Holy Scripture, all 66 books of the combined Old and New Testaments.  We believe the Bible is inerrant in the original writings, and it is the Christian’s final authority in faith and conduct.  (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21)

We believe there is only one true, living sovereign, holy, and eternally existent God.  God is infinitely perfect, and He exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The triune God is the creator and sustainer of all things, the source of all truth, and is worthy of worship, confidence, and obedience.  (Deuteronomy 6:4-5; Genesis 1:31)

We believe, by the miracle of the virgin birth—that the Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, and that He became a man without ceasing to be God, to reveal God and to redeem mankind from sin.

We believe Christ died for the sins of all peoples as a substitutionary sacrifice.

We believe He arose bodily from the dead for our justification.

Finally, we believe He is now exalted at the right hand of God as Head of the Church.  Christ is Lord of the individual believer, fulfilling His ministry as our Great High Priest and Advocate.  (John 1:1-3, 14; Matthew 1:18-25; Philippians 2:5-9; Colossians 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Acts 1:11)

We believe the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ.

We believe He convicts the world of sin and regenerates the sinner, baptizing him into the Church (which is the Body of Christ).



We believe He indwells, guides, instructs, and empowers believers for godly living and service.

We believe God gives all believers at least one spiritual gift so we can use these gifts for the strength and outreach of the Church.  (John 14:16-19; 16:7-15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 8:9, 11; Titus 3:5)

We believe Satan is our spiritual adversary, a fallen angel, the author of the fall of man, and the god of this age.  However, we also believe that he is the Christian’s defeated enemy.  His destiny is eternal punishment.  (Job 1:6-12; Mark 8:32)
We believe Adam, the first man, sinned by disobedience.  This act resulted in the fall of all mankind.  Therefore, all people have sinned and lost their ability to live for the glory of God.  Mankind’s fall has incurred both physical and spiritual death on all until there is forgiveness and salvation by the grace of God.  (Genesis 3:1-24; Romans 3:10-23; 5:12-21; 6:23)
We believe God created man in His image.  But man sinned, incurring not only physical death but also spiritual death (separation from God, which all people inherit from Adam).  We believe man is subject to Satan’s power; and that man, within himself, has no means of recovery or salvation.  (Genesis 1:17, 31)

We believe salvation is God’s free gift.  Salvation is neither merited nor secured in part or in whole by any human virtue, work, ceremony, or effort.  We receive God’s gift only through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

In Christ, all true believers have—as a present possession—eternal life, perfect righteousness, and membership in God’s family.  Christians also enjoy every spiritual resource needed for life and godliness and have the divine guarantee that they shall never perish.  God has delivered Christians from all condemnation, and we have eternal security in Christ.  
(Ephesians 2:8-10; 2 Corinthians 5:21)

We believe the universal Church is composed of all who have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, through saving faith in Jesus Christ.  We also believe that those who are thus members of the universal Church are eligible for membership in the local Church.

Furthermore, we hold that the local church is comprised of a regular assembly of people who profess and give evidence that they have been saved by God’s grace alone, for His glory alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. This constitutes a local, living, and loving collection of people who are committed to Christ and committed to each other; resulting in a display of God’s wisdom and glory and a display of counter-cultural, Christ-like love.
(Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Hebrews 10:25, Ephesians 3:10; John 13:35)

We believe that membership in the local church reflects the organic community already existing in the true body of Christ. Membership is a public commitment to Christ and His people, which serves to hold one another accountable.

The membership of Palm View First Baptist Church shall be composed of individuals who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, who affirm the tenets outlined in the Doctrinal Statements, and who offer evidence, by their confession of faith, baptism by immersion, and by their conduct, that they are living in accord with their affirmations.

In presenting oneself for membership, individuals are offering themselves to one another to be encouraged, rebuked, corrected, and served. To enter church membership is to enter into a covenant with the other members and the pastors.

It is a commitment to being meaningfully involved in the lives of other members to do them good spiritually.

Jesus instructed His followers to remember His death and resurrection.  He gave the Church two visible symbols (called “ordinances”) as reminders.  These two ordinances are baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

Baptism by immersion is a one-time act of obedience and identification with Jesus as Lord.  It serves as an outward sign of conscious confession of repentance and faith.

The Lord’s Supper is an ongoing symbol remembering our Lord’s death, burial, resurrection, and promised return.  We observe an open table, the only restriction we place on it is the one found in scripture that one would not eat of it in an unworthy manner.

Participation in these ordinances is not a method of salvation, rather they are an outflow of salvation. (Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 26: 26-29; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32)

We believe God calls us—with a holy calling—to walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  God wants us to live in the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit, so we will not fulfill the lusts of our physical bodies.

We believe the fallen, Adamic nature of the flesh cannot be eradicated in this life.  Therefore, keeping ourselves constantly in subjection to Christ, we must allow God’s Holy Spirit to live through us in a daily “walk” of faith.  Otherwise, the flesh will certainly demonstrate its presence in our lives, to the Lord’s dishonor.  It is the responsibility and privilege of every Christian to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and to seek and to make growing disciples.  (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8)

In addition to these important beliefs, we also believe God has given the parent(s) the responsibility to bring up their child(ren) in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4; Proverbs 22:6) We believe a consistent and whole education will occur ideally when home, church, and school each work closely together and agree on the basic concepts of life.

Because God has ordained marriage and defined it as the covenant relationship between one man, one woman, and Himself, Palm View First Baptist Church will only recognize marriages between a biological man and a biological woman. Further, the Pastors and staff of Palm View First Baptist Church shall only participate in weddings and solemnize marriages between one man and one woman. Couples seeking unity in marriage must complete a pre-marital counseling course facilitated by one of the Pastors at Palm View First Baptist Church.

Finally, the facilities and property of Palm View First Baptist Church shall only host weddings between one man and one woman.

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. (Ps 139.)

All Christians are under obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in our own lives and in human society. Means and methods used for the improvement of society and the establishment of righteousness among men can be truly and permanently helpful only when they are rooted in the regeneration of the individual by the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ.

In the spirit of Christ, Christians should oppose racism, every form of greed, selfishness, and vice, and all forms of sexual immorality, including adultery, homosexuality, and pornography. We should work to provide for the orphaned, the needy, the abused, the aged, the helpless, and the sick. We should speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death.

Every Christian should seek to bring industry, government, and society as a whole under the sway of the principles of righteousness, truth, and brotherly love. In order to promote these ends Christians should be ready to work with all men of good will in any good cause, always being careful to act in the spirit of love without compromising their loyalty to Christ and His truth.

Exodus 20:3-17; Leviticus 6:2-5; Deuteronomy 10:12; 27:17; Psalm 101:5; Micah 6:8; Zechariah 8:16; Matthew 5:13- 16,43-48; 22:36-40; 25:35; Mark 1:29-34; 2:3ff.; 10:21; Luke 4:18-21; 10:27-37; 20:25; John 15:12; 17:15; Romans 12–14; 1Corinthians 5:9-10; 6:1-7; 7:20-24; 10:23-11:1; Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:12-17; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; Philemon; James 1:27; 2:8.

1. God has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by Jesus Christ,(1) to whom all power and judgment is given by the Father. In that day, the apostate angels will be judged.(2)

So also, all people who have lived on the earth will appear before the judgment seat of Christ, to give an account of their thoughts, words, and deeds and to receive a reckoning according to what they have done in the body, whether good or evil.(3)

(1) Acts 17:31; John 5:22, 27. (2) 1 Corinthians 6:3; Jude 6. (3) 2 Corinthians 5:10; Ecclesiastes 12:14; Matthew 12:36; Romans 14:10, 12; Matthew 25:32–46.

2. God’s purpose for appointing this day is to manifest the glory of his mercy in the eternal salvation of the elect, and of his justice in the eternal damnation of the reprobate, who are wicked and disobedient.(4) For at that time the righteous will go into everlasting life and receive fullness of joy and glory with everlasting rewards in the presence of the Lord. But the wicked, who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of Jesus Christ, will be thrown into everlasting torments (5) and punished with everlasting destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power.(6)

(4) Romans 9:22, 23. (5) Matthew 25:21, 34; 2 Timothy 4:8. (6) Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:48; 2 Thessalonians 1:7–10.

3. Christ desires that we be firmly convinced that a day of judgment will come, both to deter everyone from sin (7) and to comfort the godly more fully in their adversity.(8)  For this reason, he has determined to keep the day secret, to encourage people to shake off any fleshly security and always to be watchful, because they do not know the hour when the Lord will come(9) and so that they may always be prepared to say, “Come Lord Jesus; come quickly. Amen.”(10)

(7) 2 Corinthians 5:10, 11. (8) 2 Thessalonians 1:5–7. (9) Mark 13:35–37; Luke 12:35, 36. (10) Revelation 22:20.

This statement of faith does not exhaust the extent of our beliefs. The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, is the sole and final source of all that we believe. For purposes of Palm View First Baptist’s faith, doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline, the Pastor(s) of Palm View First Baptist Church will be the final interpretive authority on the Bible’s meaning and application.