Core Values
Biblical Truth
In a post-truth culture, we value the Truth as recorded in God's word, personified in Jesus Christ, and revealed by the Holy Spirit
Missional Living
As ambassadors of Christ, we value God's call to be on mission with Him by sharing His love and telling His story.
Vital Connections
As members of God's family, we value one another and the relationships that encourage, support, equip, and enhance our journey through this life.
BASIC BELIEFS
Old Fort Baptist Church is committed to carrying out the work of the body of Christ which is outlined in Ephesians 4:11-12: "And he gave some apostles; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." We, as covenant members of this church, subscribe to the doctrinal statement of the "Baptist Faith and Message" as adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in 2000 (BFM2000). The following is a summary of this doctrinal statement.
Baptist Faith and MessageConstitution and Bylaws
I. THE SCRIPTURES
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is the record of God's revelation of Himself to man. There is one and only one living and true God.
II. GOD
God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God.
III. MAN
Man was created by the special act of God, in His own image, and is the crowning work of His creation.
IV. SALVATION
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer.
- Regeneration, or the New Birth, is the work of God's grace whereby believers become new creatures in Jesus Christ.
- Sanctification is the experience, beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to God's purposes.
- Glorification is the ultimation of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
V. GOD'S PURPOSE OF GRACE
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners.
VI. THE CHURCH
A New Testament Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel, observing the two ordinances of Christ, committed to His teachings, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth.
VII. BAPTISM & THE LORD'S SUPPER
Christian Baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Lord's Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of the bread and fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming.
VIII. THE LORD'S DAY
The first day of the week is the Lord's Day. It is a Christian institution for regular observance.
IX. THE KINGDOM
The Kingdom of God includes both His general sovereignty over the universe and His particular kingship over men who willfully acknowledge Him as king.
X. LAST THINGS
God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end.
XI. EVANGELISM AND MISSIONS
It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations.
XII. EDUCATION
The cause of education in the kingdom of Christ is coordinated with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches.
XIII. STEWARDSHIP
God is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are, we owe to Him.
XIV. COOPERATION
Christ's people should, as occasion arises, organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the kingdom of God.
XV. THE CHRISTIAN AND THE SOCIAL ORDER
Every Christian is under obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in his own life and in human society.
XVI. PEACE AND WAR
It is the duty of Christians to seek peace with all men on principles of righteousness. The true remedy for the war spirit is the gospel of our Lord.
XVII. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
God alone is Lord of the conscience, and He has left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are contrary to His word or not contained in it.
XVIII. THE FAMILY
God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. Children, from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord.