What We Believe

We live in shifting times but are rooted in eternal truths, the teachings of Holy Scripture. Here at The Capital Church we are guided by certain foundational beliefs and shaping values.

Statement of Faith

HOLY BIBLE

The Holy Bible, and only the Bible, is the authoritative Word of God. It alone is the final authority in determining all doctrinal truths. In its original writing, it is inspired, infallible and inerrant. (II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20-21; Proverbs 30:5; Romans 16:25-26).

TRINITY

There is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are coequal and co-eternal. (I John 5:7; Genesis 1:26; Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 9:6; Hebrews 3:7-11).

JESUS CHRIST

Jesus Christ is God the Son, the second person of the Trinity. On earth, Jesus was 100% God and 100% man. He is the only man ever to have lived a sinless life. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, died on the cross for mankind and thus, atoned for our sins through the shedding of His blood. He rose from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return again in power and glory. (John 1:1,14, 20:28; I Timothy 3:16; Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 2:5-6; I Timothy 2:5).

VIRGIN BIRTH

Jesus Christ was conceived by God the Father, through the Holy Spirit (the third person of the Trinity) in the virgin Mary's womb; therefore, He is the Son of God. (Matthew 1:18, 25; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:27-35).

REDEMPTION

Man was created good and upright, but by voluntary transgression he fell; his only hope of redemption is in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. (Gen. 1:26-31, 3:1-7; Romans 5:12-21).

REGENERATION

For anyone to know God, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential. (John 6:44, 65; Matthew 19:28; Titus 3:5).

SALVATION

We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ: His death, burial, and resurrection. Salvation is a gift from God, not a result of our good works or of any human efforts. (Ephesians 2:8-9; Galatians 2:16, 3:8; Titus 3:5; Romans 10:9-10; Acts 16:31; Hebrews 9:22).

REPENTANCE

Repentance is the commitment to turn away from sin in every area of our lives and to follow Christ, which allows us to receive His redemption and to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit. Thus, through repentance we receive forgiveness of sins and appropriate salvation. (Acts 2:21, 3:19; I John 1:9).

SANCTIFICATION

Sanctification is the ongoing process of yielding to God’s Word and His Spirit in order to complete the development of Christ's character in us. It is through the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God that the Christian is enabled to live a godly life. (I Thessalonians 4:3, 5:23; II Corinthians 3:18, 6:14-18, II Thessalonians 2:1-3, Romans 8:29, 12:1-2, Hebrews 2:11).

JESUS' BLOOD

The Blood that Jesus Christ shed on the Cross of Calvary was sinless and is 100% sufficient to cleanse mankind of all sin. Jesus allowed Himself to be punished for both our sinfulness and our sins, enabling all those who believe to be free from the penalty of sin, which is death. (I John 1:7; Revelation 1:5, 5:9; Colossians 1:20; Romans 3:10-12, 23, 5:9; John 1:29).

JESUS CHRIST INDWELLS ALL BELIEVERS

Christians are people who have invited the Lord Jesus Christ to come and live inside them by His Holy Spirit. They relinquish the authority of their lives over to him thus making Jesus the Lord of their life as well as Savior. They put their trust in what Jesus accomplished for them when He died, was buried, and rose again from the dead. (John 1:12; John 14:17, 23; John 15:4; Romans 8:11; Revelation 3:20).

BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

Given at Pentecost, it is the promise of the Father, sent by Jesus after His Ascension, to empower the Church to preach the Gospel throughout the whole earth (Joel 2:28-29; Matthew 3:11; Mark 16:17; Acts 1:5,2:1-4, 17, 38-39, 8:14-17, 10:38, 44-47, 11:15-17, 19:1-6).

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Holy Spirit is manifested through a variety of spiritual gifts to build and sanctify the church, demonstrate the validity of the resurrection, and confirm the power of the Gospel. The Bible’s lists of these gifts are not necessarily exhaustive, and the gifts may occur in various combinations. All believers are commanded to earnestly desire the manifestation of the gifts in their lives. These gifts always operate in harmony with the Scriptures and should never be used in violation of Biblical parameters. (Hebrews 2:4; Romans 1:11, 12 :4-8; Ephesians 4:16; I Timothy 4:14; II Timothy 1:6-7; I Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40; I Peter 4:10).

THE CHURCH

The church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of Jesus' Great Commission. Every person who is born of the Spirit is an integral part of the church as a member of the body of believers. There is a spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:22, 2:19-22; Hebrews 12:23; John 17:11, 20-23).

DIVINE HEALING

Healing of the sick is illustrated in the life and ministry of Jesus, and included in the commission of Jesus to His disciples. It is given as a sign, which is to fellow believers. It is also a part of Jesus' work on the Cross and one of the gifts of the Spirit. (Psalm 103:2-3; Isaiah 53:5; Matthew 8:16-17; Mark 16:17-18; Acts 8:6-7; James 5:14-16; I Corinthians 12:9, 28; Romans 11:29).

RESURRECTION

Jesus Christ was physically resurrected from the dead in a glorified body three days after His death on the cross. In addition, both the saved and the lost will be resurrected; they that are saved to the resurrection of life and they that are lost to the resurrection of eternal damnation. (Luke 24:16, 36, 39; John 2:19-21, 20:26-28, 21:4; Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:42, 44; Philippians 1:21-23, 3:21).

HEAVEN

Heaven is the eternal dwelling place for all believers in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (Matthew 5:3, 12, 20, 6:20, 19:21, 25:34; John 17:24; II Corinthians 5:1; Hebrews 11:16; I Peter 1:4).

HELL

After living one life on earth, the unbelievers will be judged by God and sent to Hell where they will be eternally tormented with the Devil and the Fallen Angels. (Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:43-48; Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 14:9-11, 20:12-15, 21:8).

SECOND COMING

Jesus Christ will physically and visibly return to earth for the second time to establish His Kingdom. This will occur at a date undisclosed by the Scriptures (Matthew 24:30, 26:63-64; Acts 1:9-11; I Thessalonians 4:15-17; II Thessalonians 1:7-8; Revelation 1:7)

Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.

Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.

And I believe in one holy catholic (universal) and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

Amen.

Sacraments

Water Baptism:

Following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new convert is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized in water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12, 36-38; 10:47-48).

The Lord's Supper:

A unique time of communion in the presence of God when the elements of bread and grape juice (the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ) are taken in remembrance of Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross. (Matthew 26:26-29; I Corinthians 10:16, 11:23-25).

Marriage:

We believe marriage is defined in the Bible as a covenant, a sacred bond between one man and one woman, instituted by and publicly entered into before God (Matthew 19:4-6).

Other Beliefs

Teaching / Preaching | We value solid biblically based preaching and teaching because we see these as critical tools for discipleship and Christian maturity. We long to cultivate an environment where the truth of the Word is communicated in sensitivity to the Spirit. We believe that this balance is desperately needed in the body of Christ. It is especially necessary at a time when misunderstandings about the nature of Christianity inhibit many from embracing faith. Spirit-empowered truth transforms lives. To that end, we want our message to be firmly grounded in scripture and we want it to be communicated in a relevant way.

Lost People / Evangelism | Because lost people matter to God, they matter to us. We value ministry that reaches outside the community of faith and seeks to help others find life in Christ. We value “come and see,” “go and tell,” and “go and show” forms of evangelism. That is, we want to create space in the life of our church where it is comfortable for those who aren’t already followers of Christ to interact in a non-threatening way. We also want to make full use of our resources to share the gospel in word and deed to our ministry community. We view our community as the city of Garner and the surrounding area, and we also believe we have a responsibility to advance the cause of the gospel through missions efforts abroad.

Worship | We value corporate times of worship because we believe that these experiences encourage and edify believers and expose non-believers to the life-giving power of the Spirit. We want our worship to be marked by sincerity and a genuine openness to God’s empowering presence. We are a Pentecostal and charismatic church and thus we value the gifts of the Spirit. We also recognize that worship is more than an event, it is a lifestyle, and we want our encounters with the Spirit during corporate worship to inspire and cultivate our fruitfulness in the remainder of our lives. We value worship that draws attention to the truth of God’s Word, that focuses on the gospel, and that exalts Christ.

Community | We believe that one of the primary marks of a healthy church is healthy relationships. Jesus said that the world would know we are his disciples by our love for one another. We want to be a community known for our loving and supportive community. We want that community to be part of our common life together. Our hope is that the community fostered here is welcoming and open without being judgmental or critical. We want everyone to feel welcome and valued regardless of his or her race, ethnicity, gender, or lifestyle.

Mobilized Laity / Team Ministry | We believe in the priesthood of all believers. A healthy church is one where every member is a minister. We believe it is the responsibility of the leadership to identify and equip the membership to tap into their God-given talents and abilities for doing the work of the ministry. We believe in a team based approach where we all serve together for the sake of the kingdom.

Giving | We value good stewardship. God has blessed us with resources not available to every church. We want to use those in the right way and for the right reasons. We value generosity for kingdom purposes.

Leadership and Excellence | We believe that doing things to the best of our ability is a good witness to our attitude of service to the Lord. We hope to maintain a high standard of excellence in what we do so as to appropriately represent the kingdom of God in our efforts. We hope this high standard will put us in a place to help train other churches and ministers in Word-based, Spirit-empowered ministry, Gospel-focused, Jesus-exalting ministry.

Creativity and the Arts | We want to use these tools for the advancement of the gospel. God is creative. Our creativity is part of His image within us. Many people within our ministry area could be reached through a creative use of the arts.

Justice | We believe that it is both our responsibility to minister to the spiritual person AND to the physical person. These were not separated in the ministry of Jesus, and we want to keep an appropriate concern on how we can make the world where we live a better place for the sake of the Gospel. We don’t believe that we need to start programs for every area of need. We value developing partnerships with those who do this kind of ministry most effectively. For these partnerships to have meaning, we want to participate in them with our time, treasure, and talent.

Family | We value family relationships and want to help parents know how to raise children in a healthy home environment. We believe that it is the church’s responsibility to help parents be the primary sources of discipleship in their children’s lives. We want to provide high quality experiences for children and youth that will serve as a point of entry into their lives for the parents and church to partner in the work of raising up the next generation.

What a Church Cannot Value

Preserving tradition over reaching the lost
Preferring who is on the inside over who is on the outside
Personal preference over common good
Accepting what’s good over God’s best
Accepting the clean over those marred in sin
Coming to be served over being willing to serve

In essential beliefs, we have Unity.

"There is one Body and one Spirit...there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of us all."

— Ephesians 4:4-6

In non-essential beliefs, we have Liberty.

"Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters...Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls...So then each of us will give an account of himself to God...So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God."

— Romans 14:1, 4, 12, 22

In all our beliefs, we show Love.

"If I hold in my mind not only all human knowledge but also the very secrets of God, and if I have the faith that can move mountains - but have no love, I amount to nothing at all."

—1 Corinthians 13:2

The International Pentecostal Holiness Church

The Capital Church is a member of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church (IPHC) based in Oklahoma City, OK. The denomination is over 110 years old, establishing the first organized congregation bearing the name Pentecostal Holiness in Goldsboro, NC in 1898. Today, the IPHC has over 10,000 congregations and 3 million members worldwide.

The IPHC has a heritage based on the holiness and pentecostal traditions. Holiness is expressed in our intent to live a life separated unto God. We believe that when a person encounters salvation through Jesus Christ they are a new person. Their new relationship with Christ is reflected in their lifestyle, decisions, and priorities. Our pentecostal roots are reflected in the belief that the Holy Spirit will specially anoint believers with the ability to be a witness of God’s grace to the world around us.

For more information about the IPHC visit their website at iphc.org.