Five Core Beliefs of The Well at Centerville
1. We believe Jesus is the salvation of the world and by God’s grace we are saved.
2. We believe in the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3. We believe in the redemptive power of God in our lives: God can work miracles and
provide all our needs.
4. We believe the Church is a place of Hope and Restoration: We are loved as we are for
who we are.
5. We believe we are called to serve the local community in tangible and meaningful ways
in worship, outreach, and evangelism.
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Congregational Methodist Church STATEMENT OF DOCTRINE
The Holy Trinity: We believe that the one God exists as three persons relating. The
Father, the source of all life, shares His life, begetting the Son, and His
life as the Spirit proceeds from the Father and Son. The three are united
in substance, equal in the sense of being God, and are distinct in their
personhood.
God the Father: God is a sovereign, just, holy, and loving heavenly Father. It is God’s
nature to share Himself, and therefore exists as trinity. God shared
Himself with sinful man when, because of His love for the world, He
gave His only begotten Son. Because He is the source of all life, all
living things are responsible to Him. He is a rewarder of those who obey
Him, and the Judge of those who do evil.
God the Son, Jesus Christ: God revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. The
Eternal Son came to dwell among men as a man through the incarnation.
The Holy Spirit was the agent of the incarnation, while the Virgin Mary
was the instrument. By taking humanity to Himself, the Son of God lost
nothing of His divinity, but was fully God, and fully human. As the
perfect man, without sin, He gave His life as the perfect sacrifice for
man. Having offered Himself “once for all,” He now exercises His High
Priestly ministry by interceding on behalf of the saints, waiting for the
day when He comes again.
God, the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit, the third person of the trinity, is the giver and
renewer of life. He works to convict of sin, convince of the truth, and call
sinners to life in Christ.
It is the Holy Spirit who applies the work of Christ for salvation, and
sanctification, as well as the empowerment for holy living. He is a
comforter, an encourager, a giver of gifts, and our guide as we walk each
day for Christ.
The Scriptures
The Bible is the Word of God, written by holy men of old as they
were enabled to communicate God’s truth without error. We therefore
believe that the scripture is infallible and inerrant in its original
autographs. The scripture is our rule of faith, and a revelation of God
Himself. Written over a period of 1500 years by as many as 40 authors,
the scripture is authoritative in matters of faith, doctrine, and practice.
Man
God created man in His image, with the ability to relate to God in
freedom, as immortal, spiritual beings. Man’s original state was one of
holiness. After the fall, man became a corrupt expression of God’s
image. Because of the corruption of our nature, man is incapable of any
positive move toward God, except through the work of divine grace. This
grace, which works in advance of our salvation to bring us to favor,
toward salvation, is called prevenient grace. Only through the justifying,
regenerating, sanctifying grace of God can we be saved from the
pervasive corruption of sin, and be conformed to the image of God.
Salvation
Salvation is the process by which God forgives sin, renews man to a
right relationship with God, quickens a soul dead in trespasses and sin,
and draws a soul to sanctification. Full salvation indicates a full
redemption from all the effects of sin. Guilt, separation, death, and
depravity all must be dealt with in salvation. Thus, the work of Christ is
sufficient for all our needs. This salvation is grounded in the love of God,
provided by the atoning work of Christ, and applied by the active work
of the Holy Spirit.
Sanctification
Sanctification is a process beginning with initial sanctification,
occurring at the new birth. It is at this time that the believer receives the
Spirit and is changed. However, it is not long until a new Christian
realizes that an inner battle between flesh and Spirit, or carnality and
grace is happening in his soul. While the believer has been forgiven of
his sins, inbred sin (carnality) still has a hold on the soul. God initiates a
second stage in the sanctification process, bringing the fully committed
Christian to a complete consecration. This is the crucifixion of the self-
centered mind of the carnal Christian. As Wesley said, “The more dead
to sin a Christian is, the more alive to God he becomes.” Thus, when a
believer is fully consecrated, and trusts God for His promise of
cleansing, the Holy Spirit fills the heart, cleanses from carnality and sin,
and empowers for service.
Speaking in Unknown Tongues
The Congregational Methodist Church believes that the gift of
tongues, as stated in the Bible, is the ability to speak in an actual
language, unknown to the speaker, but known to the hearer, for the
purpose of evangelism. We do not accept the modern definition of
tongues as a prayer language, or as ecstatic utterance, or as evidence of
the filling of the Holy Spirit.
The Church
The Christian Church was founded by Christ on the day of Pentecost.
By the infilling of the Spirit, the followers of Christ become the Body of
Christ. Being called out from the world to fellowship with Christ, the
Church is a unique organism. It is universal, being made up of true
believers of all nations, and it is holy, belonging to God.
We believe that God’s plan for the financing of His Church and work
is with the tithes and gifts of its members.
We do not believe that the Congregational Methodist Church, or any
other denomination, is the only true Church, nor that any other orthodox
church is excluded. Those cults claiming to be Christian, but denying
orthodox Christian doctrine, are not accepted as a part of the Body of
Christ.
The Priesthood of all Believers
Whereas in the Old Testament God used specific people as priests, in
the New Testament, God calls all believers to service and ministry.
Through the presence of the Holy Spirit every Christian not only
represents God, but also has been empowered to be an instrument of His
grace to the world. The dual duties of representing God to man and man
to God, belong to every born again Christian. The responsibility of
witnessing, the ministry of prayer, and the use of our spiritual gifts are
included in the privilege of being His priests.
The Christian Life
Once a believer experiences new life in Christ, he strives to live a life
holy and acceptable to God. The Christian life is a daily, disciplined walk
with God. We believe the means of grace (prayer, Bible study,
meditation, corporate worship, and fellowship) are all necessary for
Christian growth.
As Christians, we should focus on reproducing the character or fruit
of the Spirit, in our own character. We should also discover, develop, and
use our personal spiritual gifts within the body.
Eternal Security
As Christians in the Wesleyan Arminian tradition, we believe and
teach that salvation is a relationship based on freedom. In order to love
and trust Christ, we must be free to do so. The atonement provided
through Christ was provided for all men, yet God calls us to turn to Him,
trust Him, and walk with Him. Therefore, we believe in conditional
security, and not unconditional security. While God always loves us, and
nothing can separate us from His love, we always have the freedom to
turn from our relationship with Him. The free will needed to have faith in
Him remains intact throughout our life.
The Sacraments
The Congregational Methodist Church recognizes two sacraments,
Baptism and Communion. Baptism is a testimony to the inner work of
salvation. Whether by immersion, sprinkling, or pouring, baptism itself
does not save, but is a reflection of salvation as a cleansing of sin.
Holy Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, is a celebration of
Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf. Communion in the Congregational
Methodist Church is open to all who believe and not to members only.
Eternal Life
God created man to know Him intimately. Originally, God breathed
into man His own breath, or life. Man, after the Fall, was deprived of the
Spirit, or life of God. Salvation is the re-breathing of that life into the
soul of man. That life, the very breath of God, is the basis of what the
scripture means by eternal life. Jesus said, “This is eternal life that they
may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast
sent.” (John 17:3) Knowing God in an intimate sense is to experience His
life and therefore can be experienced in this life.
Eternal life continues in heaven as we experience God in a new
way—face to face. Eternal life, therefore, starts now and continues in
eternity forever. Those who finally reject the offer of salvation in Christ
will spend eternity separated from God and condemned to suffer in hell
for eternity.
The Second Coming of Christ
We believe that the culmination of human history is designed by God
and will occur according to His timing. The literal interpretation of
scripture reveals that Christ will rapture His faithful in the twinkling of
an eye, after which the anti-christ will be revealed, and the wrath of God
poured out upon the earth. After seven years of tribulation, Christ is
revealed in His glory and comes to reign for one thousand years on the
earth. After this millennial reign, the earth will be destroyed, and a new
heaven and new earth will be provided for the faithful to live in the
presence of God forever.
The Resurrection of the Dead
The Bible teaches that there are two resurrections. The first, the
resurrection of the saved, will occur at the pre-tribulation rapture, when
the dead in Christ arise first, and those who remain are changed in an
instant, escaping death, and meet Him in the air.
The second resurrection, the resurrection of the dead, occurs after the
millennial reign of Christ, at which time they will be judged according to
their works, and condemned to the lake of fire forever.
Uniqueness of Congregational Methodism
The Congregational Methodist Church is unique in that it maintains
the Wesleyan doctrine, but is representative in government. Each church
calls its own pastor and owns its own property. Each church has its own
conferences or business meetings. Each church is represented in its
annual conference and in the General Conference by elected delegates
from its membership and by its pastor. Ministers and laymen have the
same opportunities for participation in the conferences. Local churches
participate in the support of its denominational ministries, missions, and
other cooperative endeavors, by tithes of the churches’ income and by
gifts.
It is said by some that our uniqueness as conservative Methodists in a
day when liberalism is very common, sets us apart. We have held true to
the Gospel as Wesley preached it. We have added no doctrines, nor have
we taken any away. We believe, as Wesley did, that we are to preach the
Christ of the Bible and to spread scriptural holiness throughout the land.
The Mission of the Church
The mission of the Congregational Methodist Church is as changeless
as the heart of God, and that has never changed. God has always loved
us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting
life.” (John 3:16) It is still the desire of God that all should come to
salvation in Jesus Christ. This verse in I Peter 3:9 shows that the purpose
of God is immutable. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as
some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us, not willing that
any should perish, but that all should come unto repentance.” Because
of these treasured beginnings and the immutability of God, the
Congregational Methodist Church is a ‘message driven’ organization that
is dedicated to proclaiming and preserving the Gospel of Jesus Christ
across continents, cultures, and centuries.
Perhaps no portion of scripture details our purpose better than
Matthew 28:18-20, the Great Commission. “And Jesus came and spoke
to them saying, ‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go
ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all
things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you
always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.’”