Statement Of Faith
- God
There is one God, who exists eternally in three distinct but equal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is unchangeable in his holiness, justice, wisdom and love. He is the almighty Creator; Saviour and Judge who sustains and governs all things according to his sovereign will for his own glory.
- The Bible
God has revealed himself in the Bible, which consists of the Old and New Testaments alone. Every word was inspired by God through human authors, so that the Bible as originally given is in its entirety the Word of God, without error and fully reliable in fact and doctrine. The Bible alone speaks with final authority and is always sufficient for all matters of belief and practice.
- Humanity
All men and women, being created in the image of God, have inherent and equal dignity and worth. Their greatest purpose is to obey, worship and love God. God created us male and female, which is identified by our biological sex. Marriage is the exclusive union of one man and one woman and is a picture of the relationship between Christ and his bride the church. Sexual intimacy is a gift from God to be enjoyed only within the context of marriage.
- The Fall
As a result of the fall of our first parents, every aspect of human nature has been corrupted and all men and women are without spiritual life, guilty sinners and hostile to God. Every person is therefore under the just condemnation of God and needs to be born again, forgiven and reconciled to God in order to know and please him.
- The Lord Jesus Christ
The Lord Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life in obedience to the Father. He taught with authority and all his words are true. On the cross he died in the place of sinners, bearing God’s punishment for their sin, redeeming them by his blood. He rose from the dead and in his resurrection body ascended into heaven where he is exalted as Lord of all. He intercedes for his people in the presence of the Father.
- Salvation
Salvation is entirely a work of God’s grace and cannot be earned or deserved. It has been accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ and is offered to all in the gospel. God in his love forgives sinners whom he calls, granting them repentance and faith. All who believe in Christ are justified by faith alone, adopted into the family of God and receive eternal life.
- The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit has been sent from heaven to glorify Christ and to apply his work of salvation. He convicts sinners, imparts spiritual life and gives a true understanding of the Scriptures. He 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.
- The Church
The universal Church is the body of which Christ is the head and to which all who are saved belong. It is made visible in local churches, which are congregations of believers who are committed to each other for the worship of God, the preaching of the Word, the administering of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper; for pastoral care and discipline, and for evangelism. The unity of the body of Christ is expressed within and between churches by mutual love, care and encouragement. True fellowship between churches exists only where they are faithful to the gospel.
- Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
Baptism and the Lord’s Supper have been given to the churches by Christ as visible signs of the gospel. Baptism is a symbol of union with Christ and entry into his Church but does not impart spiritual life. The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of Christ’s sacrifice offered once for all and involves no change in the bread and wine. All its blessings are received by faith.
- The Future
The Lord Jesus Christ will return in glory. He will raise the dead and judge the world in righteousness. The wicked will be sent to eternal punishment and the righteous will be welcomed into a life of eternal joy in fellowship with God. God will make all things new and will be glorified forever.
Position Papers
Church Leadership
Elders & Deacons
As a church family we are led by elders and deacons which is the leadership structure we see within local churches throughout the New Testament (Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy 3:1-13).
As leaders of the church the elders are responsible for maintaining biblical teaching and doctrine, providing pastoral care for the church family, and general oversight of the church as a whole (Acts 20:28; 1 Timothy 5:17; Titus 1:9; 1 Peter 5:1-4). At Sunbridge Road Mission elders serve as part of a team made up of both staff elders (pastors) and non-staff elders. The New Testament makes clear that elders are to be suitably qualified men which includes godly character, doctrinal conviction, and appropriate gifting (1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9). Christ is the head of the church and those serving as under shepherds are to follow his example of servant leadership (1 Peter 5:1-4)
The deacons support the elders in their leadership by taking responsibility for a significant area of ministry within the church (e.g. tech; catering; stewarding). We see this pattern being established in Acts 6:1-6. The New Testament makes clear that deacons are also to be people of spiritual maturity who display godly character, doctrinal conviction, and the ability to carry responsibility faithfully (Acts 6:3; 1 Timothy 3:8-13).
Men & Women
We hold a complementarian position on church leadership. Whilst the New Testament is very clear on the equal worth, dignity, and value of men and women in Christ, we see a distinction in the roles God gives men and women within the local church as they work together (complement one another) in gospel partnership.
The qualifications for elders in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 assume the elders will be men, and this principle is reinforced earlier in the letter where men are given responsibility for the authoritative teaching and spiritual oversight within the church (1 Timothy 2:11-15).
At Sunbridge Road Mission this means the eldership is made up of suitably qualified men. Under their leadership both women and men are encouraged to speak into the life of the church and use their gifts to serve the church family in all kinds of different ways.
This includes the role of deacon which at Sunbridge Road Mission is open to both men and women of appropriate spiritual maturity. The qualifications for deacons in 1 Timothy 3 directly address women deacons in verse 11, and Phoebe is introduced as a deacon in Romans 16:1.
Church Family
We are led by the elders but this is done in dialogue with the wider church family to ensure we maintain a culture of transparency, own decisions corporately, and hear from the wider church family as a whole. In practice this is done through church family meetings every term in which significant decisions (e.g. appointment of a new elder) require the approval of the wider church family.
Baptism
Sunbridge Road Mission practises believers’ baptism on the basis that throughout the New Testament baptism is part of a personal response to Jesus Christ which is accompanied by faith and repentance (Acts 2:38-41). We do not baptise infants, but will gladly dedicate them as a means by which their parents can give thanks to God and commit them to him.
Jesus instructs us to baptise those who choose to follow him as an outward sign of the work he has already done in their lives by his Spirit (Matthew 28:18-20), and as a leadership we are committed to meeting with individuals to help them prepare for baptism. At Sunbridge Road Mission we baptise people through full immersion using the following words:
In accordance with your repentance and the confession of your faith, I baptise you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Marriage, Sexuality, Gender
As a church we believe that marriage has been established by God as a lifelong union between one man and one woman (Genesis 2:24). Sexual intimacy is a gift from God and is to be enjoyed exclusively within the context of marriage.
These convictions are derived from the clear teaching of Scripture in both the Old and the New Testament (Genesis 2; Matthew 19), where marriage is defined by God and intended to point towards the relationship believers can enjoy between themselves and God (Ephesians 5:21-33; Song of Songs).
As a result of these convictions SRM does not conduct wedding ceremonies or bless marriages for same-sex couples.
The first chapter of the Bible tells us that God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27). We believe that God created us male and female, and calls us to live according to our gender identity which is inseparable from our biological sex determined at conception.
Whilst we are convinced this is God’s good design for us as human beings, the reality is that working this out in the details of our lives can sometimes be difficult and complex.
All of us fall short of God’s standards in these areas of our lives and we are committed to responding to all people with both truth and love, as Jesus did. Whatever decisions people might have made in the past, grace and forgiveness is available to all through the cross of Jesus, and our heart is to come alongside one another as we seek to honour God in these areas of our lives.
We are aware that for many people one of the implications of the Bible’s teaching is that faithfulness to God will mean a commitment to celibacy, whether for a season or as a lifelong calling. As a church family we are committed to supporting those who choose to live a celibate lifestyle.
We also recognise that many Christians struggle with sexual temptation (whether homosexual or heterosexual). We prayerfully foster openness and gracious support of one another in such struggles.
Other Doctrinal Convictions
It is important as a church that we contend for the truth and are of one mind on the beliefs outlined above. We are conscious, however, that within the church family people will have different views on a range of other theological positions. Our expectation within this as a church is firstly that all of us continue to allow the Bible to shape our understanding as we are transformed by the renewing of our minds. We also ask that people hold personal doctrinal convictions around other theological issues with a spirit of charity that protects the unity of the church family and gives others freedom to work out their own minds before the Lord (Ephesians 4:3; Romans 14).