Shellbrook Pentecostal Assembly's Statement of Faith /
Ratified on March 16th, 2025
Preamble
Shellbrook Pentecostal Assembly is our church community made up of both adherents and members. We adhere and agree to the PAOC Statement of Essential truths. We have brought in clarification regarding some statements which are not contained in the original Statement of Essential truths. We want to make it clear where we stand as Christians in this world. We believe marriage is between man and a woman. Humanity is created in the image God made with worth and value in the eyes of God. God created this world with a perfect design without the use of evolutionary theory. God’s perfect design was tainted by sin when Adam and Eve disobeyed God. We are all born into sin in the need of a perfect saviour who will forgive us of our sins. We are a church that stands with the Jewish people and the state of Israel. We continue to pray for God’s chosen Jewish people and we are thankful to be grafted into God’s family as gentile Christians (Romans 11:1-36). We know that God loves everyone and that everyone needs to hear the good news of Jesus this is why we will be the hands and feet of Christ in the world around us.
TRIUNE GOD
The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; these three persons are one God, having precisely the same nature, attributes, and perfection, and worthy of precisely the same homage, confidence, and obedience (Mark 12:29; John 1:1-4; Matthew 28:19-20 Acts 5:3-4).
BIBLE
The Scriptures of the Old Testament and New Testament verbally inspired by God and inerrant in the original writing and its different translations. We believe the 66 books of the Old Testament and New Testament are God’s completed and sufficient revelation for the total well-being of mankind. The Bible itself, as the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, is the sole and final source of all that we believe. The Bible contains the true history of our world and gives us clarity on how to live righteous, God pleasing lives amid a sinful culture. We follow God’s commands given to us in His written word because we love Him; because we want to worship Him (2 Timothy 3:10-17).
THE CHURCH
We believe the church must hold a biblical worldview which comes from the knowledge and interpretation of the scriptures (Matthew 7:13-16). Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to this command there is the local expression of the church – under the watch-care of elders, deacons and other supportive leadership. Its members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the one ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ (Ephesians 4:16).
STATEMENT ON THE SANCTICTY OF HUMAN LIFE
We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural/physical death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. (Psalm 139).
STATEMENT ON MARRIAGE, GENDER, AND SEXUALITY
We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. (Gen 1:26-27.) Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person.
We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. (Gen 2:18-25.) We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. (1 Cor 6:18; 7:2-5; Heb 13:4.) We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.
We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God. (Matt 15:18-20; 1 Cor 6:9-10.)
We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of Shellbrook Pentecostal Assembly, and to provide a biblical role model to the members of our church and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by our church in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, agree to and abide by this Statement on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality. (Matt 5:16; Phil 2:14-16; 1 Thess 5:22.)
We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. (Acts 3:19-21; Rom 10:9-10; 1 Cor 6:9-11.)
We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31.) Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of Shellbrook Pentecostal Assembly.
HOSPITALITY AND MISSION
God commands Christians to go out into the world and to preach the gospel to the lost (Matthew 28:19). We will support mission work and evangelism both with our obedience in following and financially.
We believe that we are to build relationships with each other and with those who are not in our church so that the gospel light of Christ will shine through us (1 John 1:5-6). We will do this through hospitality and fulfilling the needs of those in need within our church community. We will take care of each other in our church community showing mercy, grace, and love through our openness and generosity towards one another. We are committed to this openness so that the world may see the light of Jesus shining through our different way of living (John 13:34-35, 1 Timothy 5:3-16).
We will also reach out to the community around us, to Shellbrook, The Parkland Area and the world. We are committed to sending missionaries around the world to show hospitality to preach the true gospel of Jesus Christ. We are committed to going into the communities of Shellbrook and the Parkland area to serve those in need in order they may see the light of Christ shining through this church community. Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior has commanded us to love each, to stand for Christ’s truth, and to love those who need to experience Him and hear His truth.
We are not called to love what the world stands for and to allow that culture into our community rather we are called to love those who live in the world and to live righteously so that Christ’s light changes the world’s culture. (Luke 10:30-37, Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:37-47, 1 John 2:15-18).
ISRAEL: GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE
We know and believe that Israel is God’s chosen people. Israel has a right to their own nation on their own land as much of the Jew’s history resides within that land (Genesis 12:1-3). We currently live in a world where the gospel of Jesus needs to be preached to both the Jews and the gentiles—to the entire world. We believe that Jesus will return and take His saints to be with Him. Certain events that point to Jesus’ return will occur in Israel, the surrounding region. After the millennium reign of Christ, the New Jerusalem will descend and replace the Old Jerusalem. This occurs after the white throne room judgement and the old earth is destroyed to make way for The New Jerusalem. Jesus returning to Earth will be when there is total worldwide peace (Revelation 21-22).
As a church we stand against antisemitism found in the world. We know that the hatred of the Jewish people is a spiritual battle as God’s chosen people will always be persecuted and looked down on. We, as Christians, are called to stand with Israel, to pray for the Jewish people and to share the gospel with them (Revelation 12:13-17, Genesis 12:3, Psalm 122:6, Matthew 24:9-13).
To View the PAOC 2022 SOET please click the link below