East Hill Baptist Church is Protestant and Evangelical, standing for the fundamentals of the Christian Faith. It is in membership with the London Baptist Association and is Affiliated with the South-West Group of Baptist Churches. It is also in membership with the Baptist Union of Great Britain and Ireland and subscribes to the following Declaration of Principle.
The Basis of the Union is:
- That our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ God manifest in the flesh, is the sole and absolute authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practices, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and that each Church has liberty under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to interpret and administer His Laws.
- That Christian Baptism is the immersion in water into the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, of those who have professed repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ who “died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again the third day.”
- That it is the duty of every disciple to bear personal witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to take part in the evangelization of the world.
The following Constitution was adopted at a Church Meeting held at the Church on Sunday, 30th October 2016, and takes effect from that date.
Statement of Faith
East Hill Baptist Church is committed to the great truths and abiding fundamentals of the Christian faith as evidenced by its confessional platform:
1. THE WORD OF GOD
We believe the Scriptures (the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments) are the inspired Word of God, inerrant in the original writings, complete as the revelation of God’s will for salvation, and the supreme and final authority in all matters to which they speak.
(2 Timothy 3:16)
2. THE TRINITY
We believe in one God, creator and sustainer of all things, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; that these are equal in every divine perfection and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.
(Genesis 1:26; Matthew 3:16, 28:19; 1 Corinthians 8:6)
3. GOD THE FATHER
We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men and women, hears and answers prayer, and He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.
(1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 4:6; 1 Peter 1:3)
4. JESUS CHRIST
We believe that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal Son, and has precisely the same nature, attributes and perfections as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. He is not only true God, but true man conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. We believe in His sinless life, His substitutionary atonement, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His ascension into heaven, His priestly intercession on behalf of His people, and His personal, visible, return from heaven. We believe that Jesus Christ died at Calvary to bring about propitiation, reconciliation, redemption and atonement for His elect people.
(Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:23; John 17:5, 24; Acts 2:24-32)
5. HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit has been sent from heaven to glorify Christ and to apply His work of salvation. By the mystery of His all-powerful work those dead in sin are brought into spiritual life. They hear the call of God through His Word and are given the desire and ability to repent of sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord. The Holy Spirit indwells all believers, brings assurance of salvation and produces increasing likeness to Christ. He builds up the Church and empowers its members for worship, service and mission.
(Matthew 12:31-33; John 3:6-8; Ephesians 1:13)
6. HUMANITY
We believe God created humanity, male and female, in the image of God and free from sin. We further believe all persons are sinners by nature and choice and are, therefore, spiritually dead. We also believe that the Holy Spirit regenerates those who repent of sin and trust Jesus Christ as Saviour.
(Genesis 1:26)
7. SALVATION
We believe in salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. This salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God, and was purchased by Christ on the cross, and is received through faith apart from any human merit, works, or ritual. We believe salvation results in righteous living, good works, and proper social concern.
(Mark 16:6; John 3:16-17; Acts 2:38)
8. THE CHURCH
We believe that the Church is the spiritual body of which Christ is the head and is composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit. This body expresses itself in local assemblies whose members have been baptized upon a credible confession of faith and have associated themselves for worship, instruction, evangelism, and service. The ordinances of the local church are believers’ baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We also believe in the interdependence of local churches and the mutual submission of Christians to each other in love.
(1 Corinthians 1:2; Colossians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:4-9)
9. SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE
We believe that each local church must be free from interference by any political authority. We also believe all men and women are directly responsible to God in matters of faith and life, and that they should be free to worship God according to the dictates of their consciences.
(Colossians 1:15-20)
10. CHRISTIAN CONDUCT
We believe that the supreme task of every believer is to glorify God in life and conduct and be blameless before the world. Each Christian should be a faithful steward of all possessions and seek to realize in every area of life the full stature of maturity in Christ.
(Romans 12:1)
11. LAST THINGS
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the saved and lost, the eternal existence of all people in either heaven or hell, in divine judgments, rewards, and punishments. We preach Christ crucified, risen and coming again.
(Revelation 20:12)