What do we believe?
Doctrines (or the foundations of our faith) are an indispensable part of our lives as believers and part of a church community.
The Bible
The Bible is the sacred and divinely inspired Scripture, the Word of God. It is perfectly true and true, and is an infallible and authoritative rule of faith and conduct. The Bible is an expression of the will of God.
The Eternal God
We believe in the one, living and true God, Who is a triune God - God the Father, God the Son - Jesus Christ and God the Holy Spirit, who are absolutely equal to each other.
God the Father
Creator of heaven and earth, holy and just. Everything is subject to Him, He is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, faithful, unchangeable, ever merciful, longsuffering, and He is love.
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is God, the Eternal and Only Begotten Son of God the Father. He came in the flesh on this earth through the Holy Spirit and virgin birth, lived a sinless life, died a vicarious atoning death on the cross for every sinner, rose from the dead, and continues to intercede before God the Father. Jesus Christ is the Lord who ascended and is now glorified and will return again.
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is God. He lives in believers, helps them to be like Jesus Christ, guides believers and gives them help and strength to live and serve God and gives gifts to believers.
The Fall
Man was created good and righteous, created in God's image. His willful sin and transgression caused his separation from God, whence both the physical and spiritual death inherited by all mankind.
Salvation
The only hope of redemption is repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Through His atoning sacrifice and the blood shed on the cross, salvation is secured for all mankind. The new birth is personal and represents a momentary action of the Holy Spirit, whereby the repentant is saved, justified and adopted into the family of God, becoming a new creature in Jesus Christ and an heir of eternal life.
Eternity
At their death, believers in Jesus Christ go into God's presence. When Jesus Christ returns, every believer will receive a resurrected body. Jesus Christ will judge the ministry of believers. Heaven, where God's presence is, is a place of eternal glory and joy. God will make a new heaven and a new earth.
The church
The Church is the Body of Christ on earth, the bride of God, the Lord's house through the Holy Spirit, in which all believers in the world are included. Believers must be part of a local church. The mission of the church on this earth is to preach the Good News for the salvation of mankind, to build up believers, to show the character of Christ to all people, and to reflect and bring God's glory to this earth.
The spiritual gifts
We believe in the continuing operation of the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of ministry to build up and grow the church.
The last time
Our blessed hope is the coming return of Jesus Christ, Who will gather to Himself all who are His.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are we a sect?
No; but that's what any sect would say too. Therefore, we will not emphasize what we are not, but what we are - we are a Christian church that professes all Christian doctrines accepted in the three main branches of Christianity: Protestantism, Orthodoxy and Catholicism.
The above-listed beliefs (or doctrines) are characteristic and fundamental both to the earliest followers of Jesus Christ (such as the apostle Peter, John or Paul) and to modern religious communities calling themselves "Christians". We believe that Jesus Christ is God, but also that this faith of ours cannot be limited simply to the services we conduct, but that it should influence every area of our lives and relationships. This is why we are extremely passionate about the things we do as a church - faith is a way of life for us.
What do we think of female employees?
God's Word tells us that there is no male or female gender in Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:28). Being part of the church and His body on this earth, God accepts every person - regardless of their origin, ethnicity, social status or gender - into His family based on faith in His name (Gal.3:26, John 1:12 ). Apostle Peter tells us that each of us has received a gift and should be a good steward of it (1 Pet.4:10), and Apostle Paul tells us that in order to perfect the believers and build up the church, the Lord has given gifts of ministry, which are also known as "fold ministry" - apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (Eph. 4:11-16). Nowhere in these passages does it speak of an exclusive choice of people based on their gender or origin. In God's Word - in both the Old and New Testaments - we have many examples of women fulfilling God's call and will alongside men: The New Testament begins with the exposition of the genealogy of Jesus, where four women with questionable pasts are mentioned - something extraordinary unusual for Jewish tradition - Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba. A woman is the first evangelist in the New Testament - a Samaritan woman who meets Jesus and because of whom a whole village knows the living Lord. Women were also the first to whom the risen Christ appeared - Mary Magdalene, the other Mary, Joanna. We see female prophets in both the Old and New Testaments - Deborah, Anna, Philip's daughters. After the ascension of Jesus, a popular pair of ministers - Priscilla and Aquila - taught the believers the Word of God; historical records testify that Priscilla (the lady in the family) was an extremely skilled speaker and teacher of the Word. In the Old Testament we also see Olda - a prophetess whom the Jews turn to in order to explain God's Word to them. In the closing words of one of his epistles, the apostle Paul congratulates Thebes, a deacon and minister in the church in Cenchrea.
At the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the believers present are both men and women, and the words of the prophet Joel, echoing even then, are: "And in the last days, says God, I will pour out of my Spirit on every creature; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. I will also pour out My Spirit on My servants and on My maidservants. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below—blood, fire, and clouds of smoke.” (Acts 2:17-19). Every gift and ministry comes from God, is realized through the power of His Spirit and brings glory to Him. To limit His action on the basis of gender, ethnicity, or origin would be inconsistent with the character and nature of our Lord. God created each person with a purpose and a purpose and equipped them with the necessary gifts, talents and calling to do His will. As there are places and people that only a man would touch and influence, so it is with women; the same goes for ethnicity, background, and even our life history and personality. God uses every part of us - of His handiwork - to do His will. Our role as believers is to be committed to His will and to walk in obedience serving Him. We would love for you to get involved in any of the ministries at Church Philadelphia, which you can read more about here.
What do we think about tithing and giving?
The Bible itself tells us that God loves when we give willingly (2 Cor.9:7). Accordingly, our giving of finances, as of anything else, should be voluntary. Voluntary giving is the way to finance the church's activities, as it is neither a commercial nor a governmental organization and receives no income from other activities. This does not mean that attendees and members are taxed necessarily to donate; everything is voluntary. If you wish to donate, you can learn more here.
The tithe is a principle described in described in the Old Testament even before the giving of the Jewish law, which speaks of setting aside ten percent of our income in the name of God. The concept of tithing is rooted in the fact that nothing we produce as income would be possible without the help and strength of our hands and minds given to us by the Lord. Therefore, believers practice tithing as a tribute to God.