STATEMENT OF FAITH

The Scriptures:  The Bible is the inspired Word of God, the product of holy men of old who spoke and wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. The New Covenant, as recorded in the New Testament, we accept as our infallible guide in matters pertaining to conduct and doctrine (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).

The Godhead:  Our God is one, but manifested in three Persons - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, being co-equal (Philippians 2:6). God the Father is greater than all, the Sender of the Word (Logos) and the Begetter (John 14:28; John 16:28; John 1:14). The Son is the Word made flesh, the One Begotten, and has existed with the Father from the beginning (John 1:1; John 1:18; John 1:14). The Holy Spirit proceeds forth from both the Father and the Son and is eternal (John 15:26).

Man, His Fall & Redemption:  Man is a created being, made in the likeness and image of God, but through Adam's transgression and fall, sin came into the world. "All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one." Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was manifested to undo the work of the devil and gave His life and shed His blood to redeem and restore man back to God (Romans 5:14; Romans 3:10; Romans 3:23; 1 John 3:8). 
Salvation is the gift of God to man, separate from works and the law, and is made operative by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, producing works acceptable to God (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Eternal Life & the New Birth: Man's first step toward salvation is godly sorrow that works repentance. The New Birth is necessary to all men, and when experienced, produces eternal life (2 Corinthians 7:10; 1 John 5:12; John 3:3-5).

Water Baptism: Baptism in water by immersion is a direct commandment of our Lord and is for believers only. The ordinance is a symbol of the Christian's identification with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection (Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12; Acts 8:36-39).

The Lord's Supper or Holy Communion:  The Lord's Supper, consisting of the elements (bread and a cup of the fruit of the vine) is the symbol expressing our sharing the divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ (II Peter 1:4). It is a memorial of His suffering and death and a prophecy of His Second Coming (I Corinthians 11:26). It is enjoined on all believers until He comes again.

Baptism in the Holy Spirit:  The baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire is a gift from God as promised by the Lord Jesus Christ to all believers in this dispensation and is received subsequent to the New Birth. This experience is accompanied by the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues as the Holy Spirit Himself gives utterance (Matthew 3:11; John 14:16-17; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:38-39; Acts 19:1-7; Acts 2:4).

Sanctification:  The Bible teaches that without holiness no man can see the Lord. We believe in the Doctrine of Sanctification as a definite, yet progressive work of grace, commencing at the time of regeneration and continuing until the consummation of salvation at Christ's return (Hebrews 12:14; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Peter 3:18; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Philippians 3:12-14; 1 Corinthians 1:30).

Divine Healing:  Healing is for the physical ills of the human body and is wrought by the power of God through the prayer of faith, and is by the laying on of hands. It is provided for in the atonement of Christ, and is the privilege of every member of the Church today (Mark 16:18; James 5:14,15; I Peter 2:24; Matthew 8:17; Isaiah 53:4,5)

Resurrection of the Just & the Return of our Lord:  The angels said to Jesus' disciples, "This same Jesus shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." His coming is imminent. When He comes, "the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (Acts 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17). Following the Tribulation, He shall return to earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and together with His saints, who shall be kings and priests, he shall reign for a thousand years (Revelation 20:6).

Hell & Eternal Retribution:  The one who physically dies in his sins without accepting Christ is hopelessly and eternally lost in the Lake of Fire and therefore, has no further opportunity of hearing the Gospel or repenting. The Lake of Fire is literal. The terms "eternal" and "everlasting," used in describing the duration of the punishment of the damned in the Lake of Fire, carry the same thought and meaning of endless existence as used in denoting the duration of joy and ecstasy of saints in the presence of God (Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 19:20).

The Church & Its Mission:  The Church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Holy Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of His great commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of the general assembly and the Church of the firstborn, which was 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 worshipped by man, and to build a body of believers in the image of His Son, the responsibility of the church is: 1.     To be an agency of God for evangelizing the world (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16).2.     To be a corporate body in which man may worship God (1 Corinthians 12:28, 14:12).

Ever Increasing Faith:  Faith of the heart (Romans 10:9-10) is based on the hearing (spiritual understanding) of God's Word (Romans 10:17). Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Christians are saved through faith (Ephesians 2:8), justified by faith (Romans 3:28; 5:1; Galatians 2:16, 3:11), shall live by faith (Romans 1:16-17; Hebrews 10:38), and overcome the world by faith (1 John 5:4).

Statement of Final Authority for Matters of Faith/Belief & Conduct:  The statement of faith does not exhaust the extent of our beliefs. The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God 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 RSM’s faith, doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline, our president and the board of directors is the organization’s final interpretive authority on the Bible’s meaning and application.

Statement on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality:  We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. (Genesis 1:26-27) Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person.We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. (Genesis 2:18-25) We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman what are married to each other. (1 Corinthians 6:18; 7:2-5; Hebrews 13:4) We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God. (Matthew 15:18-20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10)We believe that all who apply to become students at RSM as couples must be legally married as a biological male and female couple and in order to preserve the integrity of RSM as an institution of Christian education, and to provide a biblical role model to all RSM students and the community, they can’t be couples living together.We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of RSM as an institution of Christian education, and to provide a biblical role model to all RSM students and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by RSM in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, agree to and abide by this Statement on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality. (Matthew 5:16; Philippians 2:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:22) We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. (Acts 3:19-21; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11) We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31). Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with scripture nor the doctrines RSM.

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