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What we believe about...


A.  THE BIBLE

The entire Bible in its original writings is inerrant, verbally inspired by God, and of plenary authority -
2 Timothy 3:16,17; 2Peter 1:21.

  1. Inerrant;- There are no errors of any kind in the original writings.

  2. Verbally Inspired;- Inspiration extends to the very words which the writers used in the original manuscripts.

  3. Plenary;- Inspiration is full (i.e. All scripture is inspired, or written under the authority of God).

  4. Literal Hermeneutics;- Recognizing the complete inspiration of the Holy Bible (i.e. All scripture is inspired, or written under the authority of God). We adopt and utilize a consistent, literal (historical, grammatical and rhetorical) hermeneutic in every portion of the Scripture.

B.  THE GODHEAD

There is one God, eternally existing in three Persons commonly known as the Trinity - 2 Corinthians 13:14; 2 Peter 1:21.  The three Persons are:

  1. God the Father - 1 Corinthians 8:4-6.

  2. God the Son, Jesus Christ - John 1:1, 14; 10:30-33.

  3. God the Holy Spirit - Acts 5:3,4

C. SATAN

Satan is a being who is the open and declared enemy of God and man.

  1. He is the tempter - Genesis 3:1-14; Matthew 4:1-11.

  2. He disguises himself as an angel of light - 2 Corinthians 11:13-15.

  3. He was judged and triumphed over at the cross - John 16:8-11;
    Colossians 2:15; Hebrews 2:14.

  4. He will be cast into the Lake of Fire forever - Revelation 20:2,10.

D. ETERNAL DESTINY

God in His absolute Sovereignty over Man has graciously given man the ability to choose whether or not to trust Him. This God given power of choice allows each person to respond to GOD's grace, resulting in where one will spend eternity, in heaven with the Holy God or in the Lake of Fire, alone and eternally in concious torment.- Matthew 25:41-46; Revelation 20:11-15.

  1. Man's Problem.  Because Adam sinned, sin was passed down to all men.  Sin will result in physical death, and potentially eternal death - Romans 5:12, 6:23.

    1. All are dead in trespasses and sins - Ephesians 2:1-3.

    2. All have sinned and are unable to save themselves - Romans 3:9-18; 23; 7:18.

    3. No one can work (earn)his/her way into the Kingdom of God (the sinless presence of the True & Holy God, Jehovah-Yasha)Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5.

  2. God's Solution.  By God's grace, God the Father sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth for the purpose of dying for man's sin - Romans 2:4; Galatians 4:4; Philippians 2:5-8.  The basis for salvation is totally dependent upon the work of Jesus Christ on the cross,and Him alone - John 19:30; Hebrews 10:10.  Jesus shed His blood to pay the price for all man's sin - Romans 3:24-28; 5:8,9; 2 Corinthians 5:21.
     
    Definition:  GOD's grace - God's love and free gift toward man even though he does not deserve it, nor ever could deserve it.
    God's Righteousness At Christ Expense
    "grace" according to the Apostle Paul, for the believer, is the 'desire and enablement (power) to perform God's Will'
    1 Corinthians 15:10.

  3. Man's Response.  The means through which an individual receives God's gift of salvation is faith (entrusting one's self to Jesus Christ, alone, as Savior.  by believing (trusting) that Jesus died, was buried, and arose again from the grave, as a complete satisfactory payment for all of their "sin-debt" - Romans 10:9,10; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4.

  4. Election not Selection.  We believe that all the regenerate were elected individually to salvation (Acts 13:48; Rom. 8:28-33; 1 Th. 1:3-5; 2 Th. 2:13-14; 2 Tim. 2:10) in eternity past (2 Tim. 1:9; Rev. 13:8, 17:8). We believe that regenerated members of this Church Age were also elected corporately in eternity past to a position in the Chosen One Himself, Jesus Christ (Is. 42:1; Eph. 1:4; 1 Pt. 2:4, 6, 9). Election was truly based on God's own sovereign and gracious will (Eph. 1:5-6, 11; 2 Tim. 1:9), since God in His justice was not obligated to grant eternal salvation even to lost sinners who place their trust in Him - and yet He freely chose to do so. Though God would have been perfectly just in allowing sinful mankind to perish eternally (Dt. 32:4; Ps. 97:2; Rom. 1:18-20, 2:1-5, 5:16, 18), He is also a God of great love and mercy, and therefore He established in His Sovereignty and Omniscience His perfect plan for lost humanity whereby He freely chose to save all those whom He foreknew He had created in His image that would choose, out of their own volition in response to His pre-venient grace, to trust in His Son for eternal salvation. We affirm, therefore, that God's sovereignty was not diminished in the least by man's will or choice to believe as energized by God's sovereign grace, since the prerogative and decision to elect believers was strictly God's and was not determined or caused by man. We believe this doctrine of conditional election is Scriptural because: In the only two passages in all of Scripture where the divine order is mentioned, God's omniscience foreknowledge (which is not causative) is said to have preceded His Sovereign election and predestination of believers (Rom. 8:29; 1 Pt. 1:2); and just as God had prior knowledge of man's sin-problem and determined to send His Son accordingly (Acts 2:23, 3:13-18, 4:27-28; 1 Pt. 1:18-20; Rev. 13:8), so God in His omniscience must have foreknown from Eternity those whom He had created that would believe and elected them accordingly. In Scripture, God consistently offers His gift of Eternal salvation to any and all based upon the condition of faith, without ever distinguishing that the offer is only for the elect whom He had created consistent with His omniscient foreknowledge (Is. 45:22, 52:10-53:1, 55:1; Mt. 11:28; Jn. 1:12, 3:16, 4:10; Acts 10:43, 11:17-18, 17:30-31; Ti. 2:11; Rev. 21:6). In Scripture, God consistently treats the unregenerate as though they are volitionally capable of choosing His will, without first having to be regenerated by God and given the gift of faith as those whom He has unconditionally elected (Dt. 30:19-20; Josh. 24:15; 1 Kg. 18:21; Is. 1:18-20; Jn. 7:17; Rev. 22:17). In Scripture, God consistently holds man exclusively responsible for his eternal condemnation due to his willful unbelief and rejection of Christ and not due to any supposed unwillingness on the part of God to save the non-elect (Mt. 7:13-14, 23:37; Lk. 13:34; Jn. 1:10-12, 3:18-21, 5:40; Acts 7:51, 13:46-48, 17:11-12, 28:17-27; Rom. 1:18-20; 2 Th. 1:8-10, 2:10-14). It is inconsistent with the just and loving character of God revealed in Scripture (Dt. 32:4; Jer. 9:24; Lam. 3:22; Ezek. 18:23, 32, 33:11; Jn. 3:16-17), in addition to His expressly revealed desire to save all mankind (1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Pt. 3:9), for God to have unconditionally chosen to salvation only the minority of mankind while choosing not to unconditionally elect the rest of humanity. We therefore reject, as unscriptural, the Calvinist doctrine of unconditional election, believing rather that God's election to individual salvation was conditioned upon personal faith for all those who would be mentally capable of such a volitional choice. However, in contrast to conditional, individual election to salvation, we do believe that God unconditionally elected the nation of Israel, the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to be His uniquely blessed representatives above all the other nations of the world (Gen. 12:1-3, 17:19, 25:19-26, 28:10-15; Dt. 7:6-8, 14:2; Ps. 135:4; Is. 41:8-9, 43:10, 44:1-2; Mal. 1:1-4; Rom. 9:1-13, 10:19-11:36).Romans 10:9,10; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4.

  5. Eternal Security.  Once a person trusts in Jesus Christ as one's personal Savior, he is sealed by the Holy Spirit so he cannot lose/forfeit the Eternal salvation Christ has secured. (Note: Eternal Security is not a separate issue/doctrine from "salvation" ie, If one has not trusted in Christ alone to "keep them saved" then they are depending in some measure upon themselves to maintain their own "probation" in lieu of God's accomplished " Eternal Salvation") - Romans 8:38-39; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans11:6.

E.  THE BELIEVER'S WALK

  1. The Exchanged Life;- I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. Galatians 2:20

    2. The believer should seek to grow in the grace & the accurate knowledge of the resurrected, living Lord Jesus Christ. Being transformed by the renewing of our minds thru faith in God's Word we are then able to experience the "exchanged life"* of Christ. This allows us by GOD's grace (the desire & power to do His Will) to glorify God and to please Him in our daily life.  God desires a Christian (one possessed by Christ) to allow Christ to live His life thru us.
    *Each believer partaking of eternal life (Christ's life) was united with Christ and thus was spiritually crucified, buried, raised and enthroned with Christ. The "old man" died at that point in time. The results of co-crucifixion must become an experiential reality to each believer by grace as he/she chooses in faith to walk in submission to the Spirit of God and not after the influence of our flesh if he/she is to walk in victory. Sanctification, then, is Christ, literally, living His life out through the believer.
    NOTE: This is not to be confused with the false teachings of passivity, sinless perfection, or the deification of man. Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 10:31.

    Definition:   Sanctification - "Set apart" unto God from evil resulting in a godly lifestyle.

    1. Positional Sanctification - God sees the Christian as set apart through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit - 1 Corinthians 1:2,30; 2 Thessalonians 2:13.  The Holy Spirit does this work when He identifies the believer with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ - Romans 6:1-5; Colossians 2:12.

    2. Experiential Sanctification - (Godly living) - Everyday conduct which is befitting a person who is set apart unto God.  Leviticus 20:7; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8.

      1. Since the old self was crucified... Romans 6

        1. the believer should not serve sin - v. 6.

        2. the believer is freed from sin and not a slave of sin - vv. 7,19.

        3. THEREFORE, the believer should reckon himself dead to sin - v. 11.

      2. The flesh and the Spirit are at war with each other in the Christian - Galatians 5:17.  There is no good thing in the flesh - Romans 7:18 (cp. Jeremiah 17:9).

      3. The Christian makes the choice to serve sin or to serve righteousness - Romans 6:12-19; 12:1,2.

      4. It is essential that the Christian should sanctify himself to please God and to serve the Master - Colossians 1:9-10; 2 Timothy 2:19-21.

      5. The believer needs to walk by faith to experience true holiness - Galatians 3:3; Colossians 2:6-7.

    3. Ultimate Sanctification - The final perfected state of the believer will be attained only when we see Jesus Christ face to face - Romans 8:29-30; Philippians 3:20-21.

F.  THE BELIEVER'S MISSION

  1. To walk with God - The believer's highest purpose is to have an intimate relationship with God - Galatians 5:16, 25.  The Christian is to glorify God in all he thinks, says, and does.  He is to obey the complete will of God that he should be living to the praise of His glory - 1 Corinthians 10:31; Ephesians 1:6, 12, 14; 3:21; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-3; 1 Peter 4:11.

    Definition:  To glorify God means to magnify, extol, praise, ascribe honor to Him, to acknowledge His being, attributes, and acts.

  2. To proclaim to the world the message of reconciliation - 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; 10:14-16.

  3. To promote the spiritual growth of fellow believers - Ephesians 4:11-16.

G.  THE UNITY OF BELIEVERS

It is God's desire that each believer be diligent to "preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" - Ephesians 4:1-3. All believers are united by the seven unities found in Ephesians 4:4-6.

  1. The believer needs to regard fellow believers as more important than himself - 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Philippians 2:3-5.

  2. The spiritual believer needs to be willing to gently restore fellow believers caught in a sin - Galatians 6:1.

H.   DISPENSATIONAL MATTERS

  1. Practical Dispensationalism
     
    Each doctrine of Scripture is enhanced when Bible teaching includes the life-related focus of the Word of God.  A true understanding of dispensational theology has a very practical and personal application to a Christian's life - 1 Corinthians 8:1; 13:1-2.  There are three significant points in keeping a proper balance of dispensational theology.  They are:

    1. Knowledge - The understanding of the Word of God with sound doctrine - 2 Timothy 2:15; Colossians 1:9.

    2. Wisdom - The putting into practice the knowledge that we have learned - Philippians 4:9; Colossians 1:10.

    3. Love - The attitude of sincere humility we have that God has entrusted us with this understanding of HIS Word - 1Corinthians 8:1(b); 1Corinthians 4:6; Romans 14:19.

  2. The Ministry of the Apostle Paul

    1. The Apostle Paul received a series of revelations directly from God which had never been revealed to mankind previously - Romans 16:25; 2 Corinthians 12:2,7; Galatians 1:12; 2:2; Ephesians 3:3.  The mystery was untraceable (Ephesians 3:8) and was hidden in God (Ephesians 3:9) and, therefore, cannot be found in the Old Testament or the Gospels.
       
      Definition:  Revelation - To uncover, to reveal, or to be manifested to.  Direct communication from God to man.

    2. Paul proclaimed the "Dispensation of the Grace of God" (Ephesians 3:1-2), the "Gospel of the Grace of God" (Acts 20:24), and the "Mystery of the Grace of God" (Ephesians 3:3,6).

    3. Paul was commissioned to dispense GOD's grace through the Body of Christ, and not Israel (Ephesians 3:2), unto the nations which were to be given equal opportunity to come to God through faith in Christ Jesus - Ephesians 2:1-22.

  3. The Body of Christ
     
    There is one Church, known as the Body of Christ, in existence at this present time - Ephesians 1:22,23.  All those that have been saved since its inception are members of this unique Body. The mission and commission of the church is to proclaim the message of reconciliation (II Cor. 5:14-21) and to preach/teach Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery, as first revealed to the Apostle Paul (Rom. 16:25; Eph. 3:1-9; I Tim. 1:16). - 1 Corinthians 12:12-13.  Concerning "the Body of Christ, that is "the Church", It is important to note three specific things:

    1. The Body of Christ is not Israel - 1Corinthians 12:12-13

    2. The Body of Christ, conceived of in the mind of God from Eternity past, was conceived historically in "time on Earth" at Pentecost, fifty days after Christ resurrection as He promised- Acts 2.

    3. The Body of Christ (the Church) conceived as described in Acts 2 and was then consumated with the inclusion of Samaritan & Gentile believers by Acts 8 thru Acts 28.

  4. Spiritual Gifts
     
    Many of the gifts listed in the New Testament were "sign gifts" for a special witness to authenticate to both Jews and Gentiles of the unique power and authority of God in the introduction of this new dispensation of the Church, age where the Grace of God was explained and contrasted to the Law of God.  Here are the conclusions that are drawn:

    1. The spiritual gifts for today are enumerated in Romans 12:3-8 and Ephesians 4:7-12.

    2. The sign gifts, being temporary in character, have ceased - 1 Corinthians 13:8-11; 2 Corinthians 12:12.  They are no longer needed to authenticate the completion of God's Word, the Bible, nor are they expected norm for believers today, and the use of them diminished and ceased in the Biblical record in their unique usage as God completed the revelation of His Word.

    3. Individual believers have gifts which differ according to the grace given to them from God - Romans 12:6.

  5. Water (Ritual Baptism)
     
    Water or ritual baptism is not an essential sacrament, however we do find instruction in Paul's letters regarding its place in the spiritual program of the Body-Church today. But only in a non-essential, non-salvific way.(1 Corinthians 1:13-17)
     
    There is only one Scriptural baptism (i.e. "cleansing" necessary for Eternal Salvation (Ephesians 4:5), namely, Spirit baptism - Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:11-12.  The scriptures verify that the Apostle Paul was not sent to baptize, but to preach the Gospel- 1 Corinthians 1:17.  The ceremonial baptisms of the Bible are related to God's earthly kingdom purposes concerning the nation of Israel - Hebrews 6:1-3; 9:8-10. Water baptism for bornagain, spiritually re-born, members of Christ body, beautifully symbolizes in a public proclamation one's spiritual identification, by faith alone, in the death, burial, & resurrection of the Living Lord Jesus Christ.

  6. The Rapture of the Church
     
    The letters written by the Apostle Paul indicate that Christ will "catch" the church, the Body of Christ, away prior to the prophesied Great Tribulation Period.  The very non-prophesied nature of the Body of Christ would seem to necessitate the Church's completion prior to God beginning His prophetic Tribulation Period - 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

  7. Dispensational Theology
     
    As a result of our literal hermeneutic, we are dispensationalists. (For example, we believe Israel rejected Jesus’ offer to them of the Davidic/ Messianic Kingdom at His First Advent. This resulted in the postponement of the Davidic Kingdom , in its entirety, until the Second Coming of Christ following Daniel’s 70th Week.) In addition to reading the works of dispensational theologians, we believe that as students of God's Word & Church history we should read widely in the written labors of non-dispensational theologians as well, such as Luther, Calvin, Hodge, Warfield, etc. Our goal, however, is to be "Berean" students of the Scriptures to do theology dependent on the convicting & illuminating work of the Spirit of God, thinking through categories of Scripture for ourselves, comparing Scripture with scriptures. We believe that the dispensations are stewardships by which God administers His purpose on the earth through man under varying responsibilities. We believe that the changes in the dispensational dealings of God with man depend upon changed conditions or situations in which man is successively found with relation to God, and that these changes are the result of the failures of man and the judgments of God. We believe that different administrative responsibilities of this character are manifest in the Biblical record, and that they span the entire history of mankind, and that each ends in the failure of man under the respective test and in an ensuing judgment from God. We believe that three of these dispensations or rules of life are the subject of extended revelation in the Scripture: the dispensation of the Mosaic Law, the present dispensation of Grace, and the future dispensation of the Millennial Kingdom. We believe that these are distinct and are not to be intermingled or confused, as they are chronologically successive. We believe that the dispensations are not ways of salvation, nor different methods of administering the so-called Covenant of Grace. They are not in themselves dependent on covenant relationships but are rules of life with responsibility to God which test the submission of man to God's revealed will during a particular time. We believe that, if man does trust in his own efforts to gain the favor of God or salvation under any dispensational test, because of his inherent sin, his failure to satisfy fully the just requirements of God is inevitable and his condemnation is sure. We believe that according to the "eternal purpose" of God (Eph. 3:11), salvation in every dispensation is always "by grace through faith" alone and rests upon the basis of the shed blood of Christ. We believe that God has always been gracious, regardless of the ruling dispensation, but that believers have not at all times been under an administration or stewardship of grace as a rule of life, as is true in the present dispensation (Rom. 6:14; 1 Cor. 9:17-21; Eph. 1:10, 3:2-9; Col. 1:24-27). We believe that it has always been true that "without faith it is impossible to please" God (Heb. 11:6), and that the principle of faith was prevalent in the lives of all the Old Testament saints. However, we believe that it was historically improbable that they should have had as the conscious object of their faith the incarnate, crucified Son, the Lamb of God (Jn. 1:29), and that it is evident they did not comprehend as we do that the sacrifices depicted the person and work of Christ, nor did they fully understand the redemptive significance of the prophecies or types concerning the sufferings of Christ (1 Pt. 1:10-12). However, we do believe that their faith toward God was manifested in other ways, as is shown by the long record in Hebrews 11:1-40, and consequently that their faith was counted unto them for righteousness (Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:3-8; Heb. 11:7).- Acts 2:29-36;Acts 17:11 ; Hermeneutics

I.  THE LORD'S SUPPER
 
The Communion of the Lord's Supper is for the members of the Body of Christ to observe the remembrance of Jesus Christ "until He comes." - 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.

J.  ESCHATOLOGY

  1. Life After Death.  At the time of a person's physical death, a person's spiritual soul and spirit are separated from the physical body - James 2:26a.

    1. The members of the Body of Christ will go to be with the Lord in heaven - 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23.

    2. The unsaved person will go to hell to await judgment at a later time - Luke 12:5; 16:19-31; Revelation 20:14.

  2. Resurrections.  Each person will be resurrected in God's chosen order - 1 Corinthians 15:23-26.

    1. Jesus Christ was the first fruits or the first one to ever be resurrected from physical death to immortality - Luke 24:1-7; Acts 13:30-35; 1 Corinthians 15:23-26.

    2. The members of the Body of Christ that have died will be resurrected at the rapture - 1 Corinthians15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:13.

    3. The Old Testament saints will be resurrected before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ - Isaiah 26:17-19; Matthew 8:10,11.

    4. The Great Tribulation saints will be resurrected at the end of the Tribulation period - Revelation 20:1-10.

    5. All of the unsaved and any of those that have died during the Millennium will be resurrected at the completion of the Kingdom and the short season - Revelation 20:3, 11-15.

  3. God's Plan for the Future.

    1. The rapture of the Body of Christ - 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

    2. The Great Tribulation or the "Seventy Weeks of Daniel" - Daniel 9:24-27; Matthew 24.

    3. The Second Coming of Jesus Christ the Messiah to restore the Kingdom of Israel - Zechariah 14:1-8; Mark 13:32; Revelation 20:1-15.

    4. The Kingdom or Millennial reign of Jesus Christ - Revelation 20:3-4.

    5. The "short season" will follow the thousand year reign of Christ - Revelation 20:7-10.

    6. The eternal state - Revelation 21,22.

      1. The unsaved will be judged and cast into the Lake of Fire - Matthew 25:41, 46; Revelation 20:10-15.

      2. The saved will spend eternity in several abodes:

        1. The Body of Christ will abide in the heavenlies - Ephesians 2:6; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

        2. The Jews will spend eternity upon the new earth and in the New Jerusalem - Revelation 21.

        3. The rest of the saints will spend eternity on the new earth and New Jerusalem - Hebrews 11:4-16.

K.  CIVIL GOVERNMENT

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home; 2) the church; and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God (Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 5:22-6:4; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 3:5-6; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:13-14,17).

L.  LAWSUITS BETWEEN BELIEVERS

We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe Living Vine Church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between its members. We do believe, however that it is permissible for a Christian to seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander (1 Corinthians 6:1-8; Ephesians 4:31-32).

M.  HUMAN SEXUALITY

  1. We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one man and one woman by mutual covenant. (Genesis 2:24; Romans 7:1-3; 1 Corinthians 7:1-3,10; Ephesians 5:22-33).

  2. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage. We believe that any form of premarital sex, homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. (Genesis 2:24; 19:1-11; Leviticus 18:1-30; Matthew 5:27-28; Romans 1:24-32; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4).

  3. We believe men and women are spiritually equal in position before God, but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and church. The husband is to be the head or leader of the family. (Genesis 3:16; 1 Corinthians 11:3; Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 3:18). Accordingly, only men are eligible for the office of Elder and for licensure and installation (ordination) by Living Vine Church. Women may be commissioned as missionaries by the church, but are not eligible to preach in a service, to teach men, (1 Timothy 2:11-12) or to hold the office of Elder. (Galatians 3:28; 1 Timothy 2:8-15; 3:1-7; 4; 5; Titus 1:5-9).

N.  ABORTION

  1. We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being.  Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life.  Abortion is murder.  We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the mental well-being of the mother are acceptable.  (Psalm 51:5-6; 139:13-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1,5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:41-44).



Updated: September 5, 2005
© 2005 Living Vine Church