The Order and Initiation of Salvation
We believe that salvation is entirely the work of God, initiated by His sovereign grace and accomplished through His effectual call (Rom 8:29–30; 2 Thes 2:13–14; Jn 6:44). Those whom God calls are born again by the Holy Spirit, resulting in spiritual rebirth and union with Christ. Scripture teaches that sinners must repent and believe the gospel (Mk 1:15; Acts 16:31; Acts 20:21), and that this response is itself made possible by God’s gracious work in the heart. While Scripture clearly affirms both the sovereign initiative of God and the genuine response of repentance and faith, it does not always present these realities in a strict chronological sequence. What is certain is that all who are saved are brought to new life by the Spirit and respond to the gospel in repentance and faith through God’s grace.
The Necessity and Nature of Regeneration
Because of universal death through sin (Rom 3:10–18, 23; 5:16–21), no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born again (Jn 3:3–8). This new birth is not a physical re-entry into the world, but a supernatural transformation in which God grants a new heart and a new spirit (Ezek 36:26–27; Rom 8:2, 9; 2 Cor 5:17). Through regeneration, the believer is united with Christ in His death and resurrection (Rom 6:3–5), marking the death of the old self and the beginning of a new life in Him. This new nature desires to follow God and live according to His will (Rom 6:11–14; Rom 8:9, 13–14; Tit 2:11–13). Apart from this work, all are spiritually dead and incapable of pleasing God (Rom 8:5–8; Eph 2:1–5). Regeneration is entirely by grace and cannot be achieved by human effort (Rom 3:20; 4:4–5; 9:16; 11:6; Gal 2:16; Eph 2:8–9).
The Inadequacy of Human Effort
No degree of personal reformation, moral achievement, cultural refinement, religious observance, baptism, or any other external act of devotion can make one right with God or secure salvation (Isa 64:6; Rom 3:27–4:15; Tit 3:5). Salvation requires a new nature imparted from above—a life implanted by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God (Jn 1:12–13; Jas 1:18; 1 Pet 1:23). Only those who are born again in this way are truly children of God (Rom 8:14–17).
The Law’s Role and Limitations
Salvation cannot be attained through obedience to the law, for the law was never given as a means of redemption (Gal 3:21). Rather, the law reveals sin (Rom 2:12–15; 3:20; 7:7; Gal 3:22), exposes the depth of human depravity (Rom 8:7; Gal 3:10–11), and even arouses sinful desires by confronting the fallen heart (Rom 7:8–11). Though it cannot save, the law is holy, righteous, and good—reflecting God's perfect character and justice (Rom 7:12). Its purpose is to convict, not to cleanse; to diagnose, not to deliver (Gal 3:23–25). Only through Christ can the righteous requirement of the law be fulfilled in us (Rom 8:3–4).
The Sufficiency of Christ’s Redemption
Redemption has been accomplished solely through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, who was made to be sin for us, dying in our place (2 Cor 5:21; 1 Pet 1:18–19). Nothing can add to the sufficiency of Christ’s blood or the merit of His finished work (Jn 19:30; Heb 10:10–14). Salvation is therefore by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Eph 2:8–9; Rom 3:22–26; Gal 3:13).
The Means and Result of Salvation
We affirm that repentance and faith are the God-given means by which we receive salvation (Mk 1:15; Acts 20:21; Acts 16:31). Faith is not a meritorious work that earns salvation, but the humble reception of God’s free gift of grace (Rom 4:4–5; Eph 2:8–9). In justification, God declares the believing sinner righteous on the basis of Christ’s imputed righteousness (Rom 4:5; 2 Cor 5:21; Phil 3:9). All who are justified are also sanctified—progressively transformed into Christlikeness by the Spirit until the day of glorification (1 Thes 4:3; 2 Cor 3:18; Phil 1:6).
The Security and Perseverance of the Saints
All who place their faith in Christ are regenerated by the Holy Spirit (Tit 3:5), sealed for the day of redemption (Eph 1:13–14), and eternally secure in Him (Jn 10:28–29; Rom 8:38–39; 1 Jn 5:11–13). Yet this security is not passive; it is actively sustained by God, who preserves His people and enables them to persevere in faith to the end as evidence of their new life in the Spirit (Jn 6:39–40; Rom 8:25; 1 Pet 1:5).
The Purpose and Glory of Salvation
Salvation is not ultimately about human benefit, but about the glory of God. He saves to the praise of His glorious grace (Eph 1:6, 12, 14), and all things—including redemption—are from Him, through Him, and to Him (Rom 11:36).
The Unity of Salvation Across Redemptive History
We affirm that Old Testament saints were saved by grace through faith in God’s promise, pointing forward to Christ (Gen 15:6; Rom 3:25; Heb 11:13, 39–40; Gal 3:8–9, 14). Though they lived before the cross, they were justified by faith in the same Redeemer and are united with us in the one people of God.