Detailed Belief...

First and foremost we would describe ourselves as Christians... but you could call us evangelical baptists!

So here we have info about Baptists and Evangelicals... these have been copied from the Baptist Union and Evangelical Alliance websites... please visit them for more information

Who’d be a Baptist?

The response to this question is a resounding "We would!", spoken around the world by forty million people who are members of Baptist churches.

Baptist churches are found in almost every country in the world. As part of the world-wide Christian church, Baptists form one of the largest families of faith, alongside other trinitarian Christian traditions such as Anglicans, Methodists, Reformed, etc.

For Baptists the concept of a family is important. The church is not so much a particular place or building, but rather a family of believers, committed to Christ, to one another and to the service of God in the world.

In this Baptist family everybody is equal, for everybody has a part to play in the service of God. There is no hierarchy of bishops or priests exercising authority over their members. Equality of status, however, does not mean that all have the same role. Each local Baptist church appoints its own leaders - or ministers - to have particular responsibility for preaching, teaching and pastoral care. Working alongside these ministers are also deacons, who together with the minister(s) form the leadership team of the local Baptist church.

Baptists are grass-roots people, with a particular emphasis on the local church. These local churches are self-governing and self-supporting, ranging in size from twenty or so members to many hundreds. Although each Baptist church is an independent entity, Baptist nonetheless have always believed in associating with one another - and so the churches come together in regional, national and international spheres to promote and support the fellowship of Baptists everywhere.

What is an Evangelical?

• An evangelical believes in God as sovereign in Three Persons; God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, being three Persons but one God, sovereign in creation, providence, revelation, redemption and final judgement.

• An evangelical believes in the divine inspiration of the Holy Scripture and its consequent entire trustworthiness and supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct.

• An evangelical believes in the universal sinfulness and guilt of fallen mankind, making him subject to God's wrath and condemnation.

• An evangelical believes in the substitutionary sacrifice of the incarnate Son of God as the sole and all-sufficient ground of redemption from the guilt and power of sin, and from its everlasting consequences.

• An evangelical believes in the justification of the sinner solely by the grace of God through faith alone in Christ crucified and risen bodily from the dead.

• An evangelical believes in the illuminating, regenerating, indwelling, sanctifying and empowering work of God the Holy Spirit.

• An evangelical believes in the priesthood of all believers, who form the universal Church, the Body of which Christ is the Head and which is committed by His command to the proclamation of the Gospel throughout the world.

• An evangelical believes in the importance of the local church for spiritual growth, fellowship and service.

Baptists also play their part ecumenically through membership with Churches Together in England, Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI), the Conference of European Churches and the World Council of Churches (WCC)

The Baptist way of being the church is living together in community - in a family if you like.

• An evangelical believes in the divine institution of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper.

• An evangelical believes in the expectation of the personal, visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ in power and glory.