These points outline what we believe about;
1.God, 2.Jesus, 3.The Holy Spirit, 4.The Bible, 5.Salvation, 6.Family &Sexuality, 7.Angels, devil &demons, 8.Prophets &Apostles, 9.Visions &Dreams, 10.Heaven &Hell, 11.Coming of Christ &The end times, 12.Suffering, health, poverty &prosperity, 13.Other religions, 14.The offence of the Gospel, 15.Women preachers, 16.The nation of Israel
1. About the doctrine of God – We believe in one God, the Creator and author of everything that exists; invisible and visible, who is both the Saviour and the Judge of all of mankind. We believe therefore that it is God who is the sovereign governor of our lives (not chance, not luck, not Satan, not karma); who has eternally decreed everything to happen according to His will and pleasure.
We also believe God has clearly revealed Himself through the written Word as One God who is triune (three persons) in nature; God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. (John 1:3, Rom 9:22-23, Eph 1:4-5, Act 5:3-4, 2 Cor 3:17)
2. About the doctrine of Jesus – We believe Jesus is the eternal Son of God, 2nd member of the God-head, who humbled Himself and was born by a virgin woman, lived a perfect sinless life, died hanging on the cross, rose again on the 3rd day, ascended back to heaven and is presently seated at the right hand of the Father; waiting to come again.
This Jesus is therefore the Only Saviour and only Mediator between Holy God and sinful mankind. Therefore we believe anyone can have direct access to God through Jesus Christ (not through Mary, a Seer or Prophet, dead ancestors but through Christ alone).
We believe in both the doctrine of the deity of Christ (God nature) and the human nature of Christ, hence we believe Jesus was both God and a man at the same time (Luke 1:26-34, 1 Cor 15:3-4, 1 Tim 2:5, Heb 4:14-16)
3. About the doctrine of the Holy Spirit - We believe the Holy Spirit is the 3rd person of the God-head who is the presence and the power of God. He is the One who saves sinners, sanctifies believers and empowers ministers. We believe no sinner can come to Christ except they are drawn by the power of the Spirit and that those who do come to Christ are forgiven and changed into new creatures by the Holy Spirit.
We also believe all believers are filled and baptized with the Holy Spirit at the moment of their salvation; however, we do not believe that the evidence of being baptized with the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues because we believe Scripture clearly teaches that not all can speak in tongues but that the Spirit distributes different gifts to different individuals according to His will. Therefore we believe the evidence of being baptized or filled with the Holy Spirit is a changed life that manifests the fruits of the Spirit as taught in Scripture.
We also believe the Holy Spirit is also referred to as The Anointing, therefore we believe Scripture teaches that all believers are anointed. In light of that, we do not believe in an individualist special anointing that some Christians have while others don’t have. We also do not believe in different anointings for doing certain things (e.g. anointing of unlimited success) rather, we believe the Anointing (Holy Spirit) is one, whose ministry is clearly revealed in Scripture.
We do not accept it as the work of the Holy Spirit the popular practice of slaying people to the ground, uncontrollable laughter, drunk anointing behaviour, wiggling on the ground, animal sounds and gibberish tongues. On the contrary, we believe in the true work of the Spirit of Christ as outlined in Scripture. (2 Cor 3:16-18, 1 Cor 1:13, 30, 1 John 2:20, 27)
4. About the Bible – We believe the Bible which contains only 66 books is inspired Scripture; hence we reject the books that are called the Apocrypha, the lost books of the Bible, the book of Mormon, or any other book that claims to be equal to the inspired 66 books that are contained in the Bible. We believe the Bible to be the Word directly from God that was communicated through the hands of men; who wrote exactly what the Eternal One intended them to write. Therefore, we believe the Bible has no error, contradiction and contains all that is necessary for God’s glory, man’s salvation and godly living.
Therefore we believe Scripture alone is enough to make us complete believers (without private dreams and visions) (1 Tim 3:15-17, Prov 30:6).
5. About the doctrine of salvation – We believe all of mankind is naturally lost in sin. Therefore we do not believe there is anyone who is born righteous because there is none righteous, not one. Hence we believe no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born again, which is a process whereby a sinner is drawn by the Spirit of God through the preaching of the Word, then simultaneously forgiven and adopted as a child of God and fellow heir with Christ. We believe salvation, therefore, is 100% a work of God, of which no one can come to the Son except the Father draws Him.
We believe salvation is by faith alone without doing any good works or baptism; therefore he or she who only believes in the Lord Jesus will be saved. However, we believe true salvation is followed by good works. Therefore them that do not have good works as the fruit of their lives cannot have the assurance that they are truly saved.
Finally, we believe salvation to be permanent and eternal. Hence we do not believe a truly saved person can lose their salvation and go to hell. Because there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ; Jesus loses none of His true sheep nor can anyone snatch them out of His hands (Rom 1:23, John 3:3, Eph 2:1-10, Jam 2:14-17, Rom 8:1, John 10:27-29).
6. About family and sexuality – We believe God made Adam and Eve; male and female. Therefore we believe proper marriage is between a man and a woman, who are legally joined by both sides of parents, the national marriage law or traditional law, and the local church if the couple claims to be Christians. Therefore we do not believe the following to be marriage: living together without parental blessing, same-sex relationships and polygamy. (Mat 19:4-6).
7. About angels, the devil and demons – Angels; we do believe angels are part of God’s creation and are sent to minister to believers. However, we do not believe there is enough biblical evidence for individual guardian angels. Neither do we believe in praying to angels nor commanding angels to do our will.
The Devil; we believe the devil is real and around us; he is not yet in hell but he is roaming on earth like a hungry lion seeking to deceive especially the faithful. We believe the devil has enough power to do counterfeit signs and wonders which can indeed dazzle a human mind, although none of that power can match the mighty power of the Eternal One. We do not believe Satan is sovereign over our lives (controls what happens in our lives), nor can he do anything without permission from the One who has all authority – God Almighty. We do believe Christians have been liberated from the power of the devil yet they still live in a world which is Satan’s territory hence they can be deceived or influenced by his cunnings. We do not believe that believers have the power to bind Satan, rather that Satan will continue to operate on earth according to the Eternal plan of God until he is bound for a thousand years during the millennial reign of Christ ( 1 Pet 5:8, 2 Thes 2:9, Rev 13:13, Rev 20:1-3).
Demons; like the devil, we believe demons are real and present in our world. We do believe the demons can possess humans, however, we do not believe they can possess believers; for the Spirit of Christ cannot share a tent with the spirit of devils. We do not believe in anything called the spirit of poverty, the spirits of generational curses, marine spirits or any special classification of demons because there is no scriptural basis for such.
We affirm that Jesus and the apostles occasionally performed casting out of devils on those who were demon-possessed. In the same way, we believe the redeemed also have authority to cast out evil spirits if need be, however, we do not believe in the deliverance ministry but that the primary ministry of the Church is the preaching of the Word and prayer. We believe the preached Word has enough power to deliver people from all powers of darkness through the process of salvation and sanctification (1 Cor 6:19, Act 6:2-4, Col 1:13).
8. About Prophets and
Apostles
Apostles: Evangel Africa believes the gift of apostleship was exclusively given to twelve disciples of Jesus plus Paul. These were given proof of their apostleship in the form of (1.) signs and wonders (raising the dead, curing the crippled and blind, (2.) physical sight of our resurrected Lord (3.) authority to write scripture. We believe the ministry of these men was unique because the Holy Spirit was using them to lay the foundation of the Church. Therefore, with the foundation of the Church having been laid, we do not believe there are apostles today in the similitude of Paul, Peter and the rest of the New Testament Apostles. This we believe is evident by the absence of anyone with the same power (gift of raising the dead) and authority (authority to write Scripture) as Paul, Peter and others. (2 Cor 12:12, 1 Cor 15:5-9, Eph 19:22, 1 Cor 9:1-2)
However, we are aware that there are individuals who are called apostles today. These, we believe can be simply defined as messengers who are sent by the local church to plant churches. (Act 14:14)
Prophets: We believe the Old Testament prophets had an urgent ministry to warn the people of God of their evil and imminent judgment. Even further than that, we believe these men were called to prepare God’s people for the coming Messiah (Jesus). Therefore we believe since we live on the other side of the Cross, the ministry of the Old Testament prophet ended with John the Baptist. Therefore we believe the ministry of any New Testament prophet is to point back to the work and person of the Messiah by using the word of Christ (Bible) to edify the Church and save unbelievers (Mat 11:13, 1 Cor 14:3).
Today’s prophets – Evangel Africa has noticed four concerning issues about many who claim to be prophets today;
(a.) Inaccurate prophecy (according to Scripture, a true prophet of God was always 100% accurate and clear (not accurate today and inaccurate tomorrow) – Never was there a true prophet who prophesied something and it didn’t happen. That is not the case with many if not all who claim to be prophets today.
(b.) Unclear Prophecies (riddles ¶bles in name of prophecy causes more confusion)
(c.) Bad doctrine (Inability to rightly divide and interpret Scripture with accurate, sound, doctrinal and historic preaching).
(d.) Love of money and materialism (it is not a secret that modern prophets are money mongers that seek to define their spirituality by worldly riches)
Because of the above
reasons, we do not trust anyone who claims to be a prophet, nor do
we accept any prophetic ‘word from the Lord’. We have determined to believe
and live by nothing more than Scripture (Deut 18:21-22, 2 Tim 2:15, 1 Tim 6:5).
9. About visions, dreams and new revelations – We do believe what the Bible says in Hebrews 1:2 that God spoke in various ways in the time past, including dreams and visions until He spoke for the last time through His Son. Therefore, we believe through a simple study of the Bible, we get to hear God speaking to us through the words written concerning His Son Christ Jesus. In that vein, we take seriously the warning from Revelation 22:18-19, that no other revelation should be added on top of that which God has revealed in Scripture, either from private dreams or visions.
We believe in Scripture, God has revealed all that is necessary for His own glory, our salvation and godly living. Furthermore, we have noted that throughout Church history, visions and dreams have been the main source of damning heresies and false doctrines; therefore, we do not trust anyone’s dream or vision no matter how sincere they may sound to be. We only accept what comes from the pages of sola Scriptura – Scripture alone!
10. About heaven and hell - We believe in the reality of both heaven and hell. That hell is a real place located somewhere under the earth; with a real fire burning and tormenting real people that have died without salvation through Jesus. Therefore neither do we believe in hell as a metaphor nor do we believe in anything called soul sleep, but that those who die without Christ immediately open their eyes in hell–to be tormented for a season before Judgment day after which they will be thrown in the lake of fire forever. We do not believe that believers can go to hell for committing any sin, big or small, but that the saved are eternally saved no matter what sin they commit it doesn’t take away their salvation because all sins are forgiven once and for all in Christ.
We also believe in a literal heaven, where those who die in Christ immediately become present with Christ in heaven; in the form of souls, that will come with Christ in His coming to be united with the bodies at the resurrection of the dead (Isa 14:9, Luke 16:19-31, 2 Pet 2:9, Rev 20:13-15, 2 Cor 5:6-8, Rev 6:9, 1 Thes 3:13, 1 Cor 15:51-58).
11. About the coming of Christ and the end times – We believe the last days is the time between the ascension of our Lord and His coming again. We believe Christ is coming to take believers, to judge the world and to take the kingdoms of this world to Himself. We believe there are evident signs of His coming as He taught, although we believe no one can calculate or know the exact day of His coming (John 14:3, 2 Thes 1:7-9, Mat 24:4-36)
12. About suffering & health, poverty & prosperity – We believe the fall of Adam introduced thorns and thistles (suffering and pain) in this world, therefore we believe humans beings are born to live under various kinds of pains and sufferings, although we acknowledge that these sufferings are not the same for every person; some experience worse or better than others. Also, we believe God has allowed mankind to flourish and to enjoy the pleasures of the earth to some degree; to till the land through land developments, farming and mining which has vastly contributed to a prosperous world although this prosperity and pleasure does not affect everyone the same way.
We do not believe in the prosperity gospel; the idea that believers are guaranteed health and prosperity because of their relationship with Christ, on the contrary, we believe Christians are equally humans who share the same pleasures and pains of the earth as the rest of mankind does. More so, we believe Christians are warned about the love of money and the idols of this world, because Christ their Lord is sufficient for them with or without money, in sickness and in health, because He has promised a heavenly city for them where an inheritance incorruptible is kept for them (Gen 3:17-18, Job 5:7, Eccl 2:23, 1 Tim 6:5-10, 1 Pet 1:3- 4).
13. About other religions – Evangel Africa has full respect for all religions and their beliefs, however, we do not believe the popular statement that all religions lead to heaven, nor do we believe there is any truth anywhere apart from the truth revealed in the Christian Bible, nor do we believe in any other salvation or light apart from that which is found in Christ (John 14:6, Act 4:12, 1 Tim 2:5).
14. About the offense of the Gospel – We will never by any means deliberately offend any person for doing anything, however, we do believe the Gospel message is inherently offensive and that it does intrude upon people’s privacies. In that regard, Evangel Africa will not by any means dilute, apologize or stop preaching this Gospel because of its offensive nature. Furthermore, we believe the true Gospel message also rebukes and publicly names and shames those who are obvious false preachers or churches according to the standards of Scripture. We know the consequences of publicly mentioning somebody’s name or church (anger from the individual and supporters, even legal action). Therefore, we are prepared to face anything, from criticism to jail time, for the defense of what we believe is the truth (Gal 5:11, Rom 16:17, 1 Cor 1:23, Eph 5:11, 1 Tim 5:20, 1 Tim 1:20)
15. About women preachers – We believe both man and woman have equal value before God, yet we believe they were given different roles before each other and before their Maker. More so, we believe the Spirit of Christ equally saves, sanctifies, indwells and anoints all believers in equal measure including men and women. Even more, we believe all believers are called to preach the Gospel to all nations and to equally labour for the cause of Christ. With all being said, we believe only in the context of the local gathering of believers (church service) are women not supposed to teach or pastor men, rather, their teaching gifts must be poured towards younger women and children. Again, we repeat that this does not hinder ladies from sharing their testimonies using Scripture or to do other church programs including evangelism. We believe Scripture only forbids women to teach or to have authority over men in the setting of the church gathering. (1 Tim 2:11-15, 1 Cor 14:34-38, Tit 2:4, Phi 4:3)
16. About the nation of Israel – We believe the Almighty specifically called the Jews and Israel to be a people for His Name so that He could use them to unveil the Saviour of the world, the Messiah, Christ Jesus. Hence we believe for that purpose, God gave the Israelites the current geographical location called Israel. We believe they have a right as a nation to occupy that land and to exercise sovereign governess upon their state. On the other hand, we are aware of the Palestinians who share the land of Israel and the ongoing conflict between these two parties. We believe Palestinians are equally humans who are equally loved by God and equally deserving of life and protection from the Israelites. Hence we do not support any human rights abuses from the Israelites as much as we do not support any terrorist activities from the Palestinians towards the Israelites (Gen 12:3, Exo 3:8, Deut 32:9-10).
We believe the Israelites have rejected the Gospel of Christ because God is still dealing with the gentiles to call them to salvation, however, we believe the Almighty has a future plan with the Jews to change their hearts and save them with the same Gospel that saves the gentiles. That having been said, we believe the Gospel must be preached even to Jews today because in Christ there is neither Jew nor gentile but all become one body (Rom 11:1-32).
For more questions refer to Sinothi Ncube on ckancube@gmail.com
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