There is one God: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; who subsist in unity, and also as three separate distinct Persons.
- John 14:7–16
- Genesis 1:1; 1:26–27; 3:22
- Psalm 90:2
- Isaiah 40:28–29
- Matthew 28:19
- 1 Peter 1:2
- 2 Corinthians 13:14
Jesus Christ is God’s Son. He was born of a virgin as both God and man, lived a sinless life, died to atone for the sins of human beings, was buried, arose from the grave, ascended into heaven, and will literally return to earth.
- Matthew 1:22–23
- Isaiah 9:6; 53:5–6
- John 1:1–5; 14:10–30
- Hebrews 4:14–15; 1
- Corinthians 15:3–4
- Romans 1:3–4
- Acts 1:9–11
- 1 Timothy 6:14–15
- Titus 2:13
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures.
Through illumination He enables men to understand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration.
At the moment of regeneration, He baptizes every believer into the Body of Christ. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which they serve God through His church.
He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the guarantee that God will bring the believer into the fullness of the stature of Christ. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.
- Genesis 1:2
- Judges 14:6
- Job 26:13
- Psalms 51:11; 139:7
- Isaiah 61:1-3
- Joel 2:28-32
- Matthew 1:18; 3:16; 4:1; 12:28-32; 28:19
- Mark 1:10,12
- Luke 1:35; 4:1,18-19; 11:13; 12:12; 24:49
- John 4:24; 14:16-17,26; 15:26; 16:7-14
- Acts 1:8; 2:1-4,38; 4:31; 5:3; 6:3; 7:55; 8:17,39; 10:44; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6; 19:1-6
- Romans 8:9-11,14-16,26-27
- 1 Corinthians 2:10-14; 3:16; 12:3-11,13
- Galatians 4:6
- Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; 5:18
- 1 Thessalonians 5:19
- 1 Timothy 3:16; 4:1
- 2 Timothy 1:14; 3:16
- Hebrews 9:8,14
- 2 Peter 1:21
- 1 John 4:13; 5:6-7
- Revelation 1:10; 22:17
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God’s revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. Therefore, all Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.
- Exodus 24:4
- Deuteronomy 4:1-2; 17:19
- Joshua 8:34
- Psalms 19:7-10; 119:11,89,105,140
- Isaiah 34:16; 40:8
- Jeremiah 15:16; 36:1-32
- Matthew 5:17-18; 22:29
- Luke 21:33; 24:44-46
- John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17
- Acts 2:16; 17:11
- Romans 15:4; 16:25-26; 2
- Timothy 3:15-17
- Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12
- 1 Peter 1:25
- 2 Peter 1:19-21
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. There is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.
A. Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of God’s grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences of grace.
Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior.
B. Justification is God’s gracious and full acquittal upon principles of His righteousness of all sinners who repent and believe in Christ. Justification brings the believer unto a relationship of peace and favor with God.
C. Sanctification is the experience, beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to God’s purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual maturity through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Growth in grace should continue throughout the regenerate person’s life.
D. Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
- Genesis 3:15
- Exodus 3:14-17; 6:2-8
- Matthew 1:21; 4:17; 16:21-26; 27:22-28:6
- Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32
- John 1:11-14,29; 3:3-21,36; 5:24; 10:9,28-29; 15:1-16; 17:17
- Acts 2:21; 4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31; 17:30-31; 20:32
- Romans 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25; 4:3ff.; 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18,29-39; 10:9-10,13; 13:11-14
- 1 Corinthians 1:18,30; 6:19-20; 15:10
- 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Galatians 2:20; 3:13; 5:22-25; 6:15
- Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-22; 4:11-16
- Philippians 2:12-13
- Colossians 1:9-22; 3:1
- 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
- 2 Timothy 1:12
- Titus 2:11-14
- Hebrews 2:1-3; 5:8-9; 9:24-28; 11:1-12:8,14
- James 2:14-26
- 1 Peter 1:2-23
- 1 John 1:6-2:11
- Revelation 3:20; 21:1-22:5
Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, the believer’s death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord’s Supper.
The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming.
- Matthew 3:13-17; 26:26-30; 28:19-20
- Mark 1:9-11; 14:22-26
- Luke 3:21-22; 22:19-20
- John 3:23
- Acts 2:41-42; 8:35-39; 16:30-33; 20:7
- Romans 6:3-5
- 1 Corinthians 10:16,21; 11:23-29
- Colossians 2:12
A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes. In such a congregation each member is responsible and accountable to Christ as Lord. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons. While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.
The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.
- Matthew 16:15-19; 18:15-20
- Acts 2:41-42,47; 5:11-14; 6:3-6; 13:1-3; 14:23,27; 15:1-30; 16:5; 20:28
- Romans 1:7
- 1 Corinthians 1:2; 3:16; 5:4-5; 7:17; 9:13-14; 12
- Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:8-11,21; 5:22-32
- Philippians 1:1
- Colossians 1:18
- 1 Timothy 2:9-14; 3:1-15; 4:14
- Hebrews 11:39-40
- 1 Peter 5:1-4
- Revelation 2-3; 21:2-3
As an expanded statement of generally held beliefs among Southern Baptist Churches, Trinity Baptist Church of Texarkana affirms the Baptist Faith and Message (2000).