Ministry Philosophy (Synopsis):
Sheffield Chapel is an Evangelical and Second Advent Christian church that exists to make God supreme by radiating as a L.I.G.H.T. in a dark world in order to bring glory and honor and praise to God our Father, the Spirit our counselor and Jesus Christ our soon and coming king. We exist to…
- Learn the Word with our head (intellectually), heart (emotionally), and with our hands (practically).
- To Invest in each other with a humble attitude that views others as better than ourselves (Phil. 2:3), as we administer God’s grace through our spiritual gifts (1 Peter 4:10) as well as in our community through good works (Eph. 2:10) and the world through evangelism and discipleship (Matt. 28:18-19).
- To be Generous as people who manage the gifts of God expressed through our attitude, our character, our time, our material possessions, and our money (Matt. 25:14-46).
- To be Holy, set apart for God’s use in full obedience and submission to His will (1 Peter 1:16).
- To be Together through jubilation and tribulation.
Reformed Emphasis:
- Sola Scriptura – The Scriptures alone is God’s written revelation which possesses absolute authority over the believer’s life and conscience.
- Sola Fide – The believer is justified (declared not guilty) by means of faith alone.
- Solus Christus – Jesus Christ alone is the only Mediator, Savior and Redeemer of the lost.
- Sola Gratia – It is by God’s grace alone that any are redeemed.
- Soli Deo Gloria – To God alone be all glory.
Denomination:
Sheffield Chapel is a Second Advent Church, “looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Titus 2:13), growing out of the Advent Christian denomination with historic roots in New England. The Advent Christians are full members of NAE (National Association of Evangelicals) and ECFA (Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability). In addition, they rally around the Declaration of Principles as essentially formative to their historic identity.
Sheffield Chapel Doctrinal Statement
Section 1: The Holy Scriptures
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally inspired Word of God, the final authority for faith and life, inerrant in the original writings, infallible and God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16, 17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Matt. 5:18; John 16:12, 13).
Section 2: The Godhead
We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. They are co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, having the same attributes and perfection (Deut. 6:4; 2 Cor. 13:14).
Section 3: The Person and Work of Christ
Paragraph 1: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful man (John 1:1-2, 14; 1 Peter 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5).
Paragraph 2: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through his death on the cross as a representative vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and our justification is made sure by his literal physical resurrection from the dead (Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Peter 2:24; Eph. 1:17; 1 Peter 1:3-5).
Paragraph 3: We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative Intercessor, and Advocate (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 8:1; 7:25; 9:24; Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:12).
Section 4: The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
Paragraph 1: We believe that the Holy Spirit is a Person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, and that He is the supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption (John 16:8-11; 2 Cor. 3:6; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; Rom. 8:9; Eph. 1:13, 14).
Paragraph 2: We believe He is the Divine Teacher Who guides believers into all truth; and that it is the privilege and duty of all saved to be filled with the Holy Spirit (John 16:13; 1 John 2:20, 27; Eph. 5:18).
Section 5: The Total Depravity of Man
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin, the race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and that man is totally depraved, and of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition (Gen. 1:26, 27; Rom. 3:22-5; Eph. 2:1-12).
Section 6: Salvation
We believe that salvation is a gift of God brought to men by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (Eph. 2:8-10; John 1:12; Eph. 1:17; 1 Peter 1:18-19).
Section 7: The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
Paragraph 1: We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:38, 39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Peter 1:5).
Paragraph 2: We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty on an occasion of the flesh (Rom. 13:13-14; gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15).
Section 8: The Two Natures of the Believer
We believe that every saved person possesses two natures with provision made for the victory of the new nature over the old nature, through the power of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; and that all claims to the eradication of the old nature in this life are unscriptural (Rom. 6:13; 8:12-13; Gal. 5:16-25; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:10; 1 Peter 1:14-15; 1 John 3:5-9).
Section 9: Fellowship
Paragraph 1: We believe that all Christians should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God (2 Tim. 3:1-5; Rom. 12:1-2, 14:13; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1).
Paragraph 2: As a church, we want to balance the integrity of the church with the Lord’s desire for unity in His body. Therefore, we will fellowship with any churches and organizations that hold to the authority of the Bible as God’s only Word and which proclaim the Gospel that personal salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
Section 10: Evangelism
We believe that it is the obligation of every Christian to witness by life and by word to the truths of Holy Scripture and to proclaim the Gospel to all mankind (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:19, 20).
Section 11: The Ministry and Spiritual Gifts
Paragraph 1: We believe that God does heal and answer the prayer of faith, in accordance with His own will, for the sick and the afflicted (John 15:7; 1 John 5:14, 15).
Paragraph 2: We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowment of His gifts. We believe that spiritual gifts are given for the common good (1 Cor. 12:7) and the edification of the church (1 Cor. 12:1-5, 12). They are to be exercised in love (1 Cor. 13:1-7) and orderliness (1 Cor. 14:16ff). We also believe that there is much teaching on spiritual gifts which is in error and which is detrimental to unity in the Body of Christ, as well as the spiritual health of individual believers. Therefore, we are in opposition to the following teachings:
- That there are any single gift(s) which are possessed by all believers (1 Cor. 12:29-31).
- That any gift(s) should be more exalted or more celebrated than any other gift(s) (1 Cor. 12:4-11)
- That any person should be esteemed because of any spiritual gift he/she might possess (1 Cor. 4:6).
Paragraph 3: We hold that the 66 books of the Scriptures are our source of authority and that no one today speaks with apostolic authority, as one of the requirements for the office of apostle was that a person had to have seen Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 9:1; Acts 1:21-22; 1 Cor. 15:7-8). We also believe that, while God may sovereignly give prophecies to anyone He chooses at anytime He desires, there is no prophetic office in the Church whereby a person speaks with “THUS – SAITH-THE-LORD” authority (1 Cor. 14:27, 37-38; 1 Thess. 5:19-21). Such authority resides in the Scriptures.
Section 12: The Church
Paragraph 1: We believe that the Church, who is the Body and espoused Bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born-again persons of this present age (Eph. 1:22,23; 5:25-27; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2).
Paragraph 2: We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures (Acts 14:27; 20:17,28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11).
Paragraph 3: We believe in the autonomy of the local church, free of any external authority or control (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom 16:1-4; 1 Cor. 3:9,16; 5:4-7,13; 1 Peter 5:1-4).
Paragraph 4: We recognize the ordinances of water baptism by immersion subsequent to salvation and the Lord’s Supper as a Scriptural means of testimony for the church (Matt 28:19,20; Acts 2:41,42, 18:8; 1 Cor 11:23-36).
Section 13: The Personality of Satan
We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the fall; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire (Job 1:6,7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11, 25:41; Rev, 3:10).
Section 14: The Second Advent of Christ
We believe in that “blessed hope”, the personal, imminent, pre-tribulational and pre-millennial coming of the Lord Jesus Christ for his redeemed ones; and in his subsequent return to earth, with his saints, to establish His Millennial Kingdom (1 Thess. 4:13-18; 2 Thess. 2:7,8; Zech. 14:4-11; Rev 3:10).
Section 15: The Eternal State
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life and glorious immortality and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. All men will appear before the throne of God to be judged by Christ. Scripture teaches that through the death of Christ on the cross, the believer’s sins have been judged, and he has passed from death unto life. Each saint will still be required to give an account before the judgment seat of Christ regarding his works and conduct, but in no case do the redeemed come again into judgment concerning their eternal destiny. Unbelievers, however, will be condemned and banished to eternal punishment with all the enemies of God (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 18:19-26; John 5:28, 29; 11:25, 26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:5, 6, 11-15).
Article 4: Ordinances
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ instituted two ordinances. They are: (1) baptism by immersion and (2) The Lord’s Supper, which is also known as communion.
(1) Baptism:
- We believe that the purpose of baptism by immersion is to publicly declare one’s faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
- We believe that baptism is an outward act that pictures an inward change.
- We believe that a believer is symbolically raised from the water of baptism to a newness of life in the Lord Jesus Christ. (Matt 28:18- 20; Acts 2:38-41; Rom 6:3,4).
(2) The Lord’s Supper:
We believe that the Lord’s Supper speaks of our communion or fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ, hence the name communion. We believe that the main purpose of the Lord’s Supper is to commemorate the death of the Lord Jesus Christ until He comes again for His church. The bread used in the Lord’s Supper symbolizes the body of the Lord Jesus Christ that was given for all believers. The fruit of the vine symbolizes the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ shed for us. (Matt. 26:26-29; Luke 22:19,20; 1 Cor. 10:16).