The following statement of faith has been adopted by Grace Church Brockley (GCB). We have intentionally omitted many finer points of doctrine and secondary issues.
The leaders of GCB will be allowed to operate according to their own personal convictions on all such matters. However we all uphold the fundamental truths of Christianity revealed in Scripture, contained in orthodox creeds and articles (i.e. Apostles Creed, Nicene Creed, etc), and as summarised in the statement of faith below in its clear and plain meaning and without reservation.
God
We believe that there is one God, who exists eternally in three distinct but equal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He is unchangeable in His holiness, justice, wisdom and love. He is the Almighty Creator, the Saviour and Judge who sustains and governs all things according to His sovereign will and for His own glory.
The Bible
We believe that the Bible, as originally written by men as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit, is the God breathed, inerrant, infallible Word of God. The Word of God is also a plain book; being clear with regard to its central message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Therefore Christians must submit to its supreme authority and sufficiency, both individually and corporately, in every matter of belief, conduct and practice.
Humanity
We believe that all human beings, made by God in His own likeness, have inherent and equal dignity and worth. Our greatest purpose is to obey, worship and love God. However, our sinfulness and guilt has rendered us all subject to God’s wrath and condemnation, and has resulted in our alienation from His life, suppression of His truth, and hostility to His word.
The Lord Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus of Nazareth, God’s incarnate Son, is fully God. He was born of the Virgin Mary. His humanity is real and though tempted in every way as we are; He was and is without sin. He died on the cross, was raised bodily from death and is now reigning over heaven and earth.
Salvation
We believe that salvation from the guilt, penalty, power and presence of sin, is solely through the work of Jesus Christ and by His perfect life, penal substitutionary death, bodily resurrection and exaltation as Lord. He alone is truly God and truly man, the only mediator between God and man. There is salvation through no other person, creed, process or power. The whole of a sinner’s justification, from beginning to end, is by grace alone appropriated through faith alone.
The Holy Spirit
We believe that the person of the Holy Spirit is fully God, sent by the Father 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 true believers, brings assurance of salvation and produces increasing likeness to Christ. He gives gifts to build up the Church and empowers its members for worship, service and mission.
The Church
We believe that the holy universal church is the people of God called out from this world down the ages, and into the Body of Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus Christ is the head of this Church; to which all true believers belong. The Church’s calling is to worship and serve God in the world, to proclaim and defend His truth, to exhibit His character and to demonstrate the reality of His new order.
The Sacraments
Baptism and the Lord’s Supper have been given to the church 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 therefore involves no change in the bread and wine. All its blessings are received by faith.
The Future
We believe this world will end in the personal and visible return in glory of the Lord Jesus Christ to raise all the dead, bringing salvation and judgment to final completion. God will fully establish his kingdom when he creates a new heaven and a new earth wherein the wicked will be condemned to endless punishment, and the righteous to endless joy in a place free from all evil, suffering, decay and death. This judgment will fix forever the final state of human beings in heaven or hell, and in this God will be glorified forever.
Our Mission
We believe the local church must be faithful to the unchanging content of the Christian gospel. We therefore see as a fundamental priority our mission to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to all people, calling them to repentance and faith, and teaching them to obey Him as well as love their neighbour, as they are trained and equipped through the life of a local church. We believe that it is important for local churches and ministers to speak the unchanging truth of the gospel in a way that honours God and yet rightly reflects the culture in which they exist. Yet we are not proponents of any message which falsely seeks to draw into this age the blessings of the age still to come; since this reveals a love for this present world and its pleasures, rather than a longing for the age to come.
Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) Affiliation
Grace Church Brockley is affiliated to the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) and as such align to their statements. This organisation was founded nearly 100 years ago and includes over 500 churches in the UK.