There is but one living and true God, the maker and preserver of all things. In the unity of this Godhead there are three persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. God was Himself in Jesus Christ to reconcile man to God. Conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, He joined together the deity of God and the humanity of man. Jesus of Nazareth was God in human flesh, truly God and truly man.
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-equal with God the Father and God the Son. He is our Lord’s ever present self, indwelling, assuring, and enabling the Christian.
The Bible is God’s written word, uniquely inspired by the Holy Spirit. It was written by people at God’s command and through His inspiration. It is the authoritative record of the revelation of God’s acts in creation, in history, in our salvation, and in His Son Jesus Christ.
God created men and women in His own image, innocent, morally free and responsible to choose between good and evil, right and wrong. By the sin of Adam, all human beings are corrupted in their very nature so that from birth they are inclined to sin. People are unable by their own strength and work to restore themselves into a right relationship with God and to merit eternal salvation. God provides all the resources of the Trinity to make it possible for man to respond to His grace through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
Salvation is a gracious gift from God. It is received by faith alone. It cannot be earned by good works. Christ offered once and for all the one perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world when He died on the cross. There is no other way to God or to heaven except through a sure trust and confidence in the work of Christ on our behalf.
The Christian life should be a life of holiness. Our will should be one with the will of our heavenly Father. The Holy Spirit enables Christians to love God with all of their heart, soul, strength and mind, and their neighbor as themselves.
The church is created by God; it is the people of God. Christ Jesus is its Lord and Head; the Holy Spirit is its life and power. Where the Word of God and the sacraments are faithfully practiced among God’s people, the church exists.
Water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are the sacraments of the church commanded by Christ. They are tokens of our professions of Christian faith, and signs of God’s gracious ministry toward us.
The return of Christ is certain and may occur at any moment, although it is not given to us to know the hour. At His return He will triumph over all evil. There will be a bodilyresurrection of both the just and the unjust; the unjust to eternal judgment, and the just to eternal life in the glory of God’s love.
The doctrines of the Free Methodist Church are based upon the Holy Scriptures and are derived from their total Biblical context. The articles stated above are taken in part from the Free Methodist Book of Discipline and are not intended to be exhaustive. For more information, this book is available in the Wesley Church Library.