Statement of Faith

At Saint Giles we teach out of the biblical worldview as expressed in the Westminster Standards, and the Ecumenical historic creeds (Apostles’, Nicene, and the definition of Chalcedon), which we believe represent the historic, orthodox catholic [universal] faith. More definition can be provided upon request.

 

  • We believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin, Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into Hades; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
    We believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic [universal] church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Amen.

  • We 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 Ghost 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 both the living and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end.
    And we 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 worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
    And we believe in one holy catholic [universal] and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

  • Following, then, the holy fathers, we unite in teaching all men to confess the one and same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. This selfsame one is perfect both in deity and in humanity; truly God and truly man, with a rational soul and a body; consubstantial with the Father according to His deity, and consubstantial with us according to the humanity; like us in all respects, sin only excepted. Before the ages He was begotten of the Father, according to the deity, and in these last days, for us and for our salvation, He was born of Mary the virgin, who is Godbearer according to His humanity; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-begotten, to be acknowledged in two natures; without confusing them, without interchanging them, without dividing them, and without separating them; the distinction of natures by no means taken away by the union, but the properties of each nature being preserved, and concurring in one Person and one subsistence; not parted or divided into two persons, but one and the same only-begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as from the beginning the prophets have declared concerning Him, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself has taught us, and the symbol of the fathers has handed down to us.

    Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation; that he also believe faithfully the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess; that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man; God, of the Substance [Essence] of the Father; begotten before the worlds; and Man, of the Substance [Essence] of his Mother, born in the world. Perfect God; and perfect Man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting. Equal to the Father, as touching his Godhead; and inferior to the Father as touching his Manhood. Who although he is God and Man; yet he is not two, but one Christ. One; not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh; but by assumption of the Manhood into God. One altogether; not by confusion of Substance; but by unity of Person. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man; so God and Man is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation; descended into hell; rose again the third day from the dead. He ascended into heaven, he sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from whence he will come to judge the living and the dead. At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies; And shall give account for their own works. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting; and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire. This is the catholic [universal] faith; which except a man believe truly and firmly, he cannot be saved.

We believe

The Bible

We believe that God reveals Himself through the creation, preservation, and government of the universe. We believe that God makes Himself more clearly and fully known through the Scriptures, which are the only inerrant and infallible Word of God, our ultimate and final authoritative rule for faith and practice. These Scriptures are made up of 66 books, from Genesis to Revelation, the authority of which depend not upon the testimony of any man or church, and are all to be received as the Word of God.

God

We believe that there is but one living and true God, eternally existent in three Persons of one power, substance, and eternity—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He is perfectly wise, the overflowing fountain of all good. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. In all things He is limited by nothing other than His own nature and character. We believe the God we serve is holy, righteous, good, loving, and full of mercy. He is the Creator, Sustainer, and Governor of all that has been made and he righteously ordains all that comes to pass.

Christ

We believe in the true deity and full humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ, such that two distinct natures, divine and human, were inseparably joined together in one person, without conversion, composition, or confusion. We believe in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father and in His personal return in power and glory.

 

Man

We believe that Adam was made from the dust of the ground and formed after God’s image and likeness, which was good, righteous, and holy. Because of Adam’s sin all mankind is in a state of rebellion against God. For the salvation of such lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary.

Salvation

We believe that salvation is by grace through faith alone, and that faith without works is dead. We believe that God freely justifies His own, not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins, and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous, for the sake of Jesus Christ alone.

The Holy Spirit

We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life, as the Spirit of Christ within us enables us to do freely and cheerfully what the will of God revealed in Scripture requires to be done. We believe that good works are only those which arise from true faith, conform to God’s Word, and are done for His glory.

 

Last Things

We believe God has appointed a day when He will judge the world in righteousness through Jesus Christ. We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; those who are saved to the resurrection of life, and those who are lost to the resurrection of damnation.

The Universal Church

We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. All who are united to Christ as Head of the Church are united to one another in love, and have communion in each other’s gifts and graces.

The Sanctity of Life

We believe the Bible teaches that no man is intentionally to take the life of another, unless as an authorized representative of God as a magistrate in the administration of justice or in defense of himself or his neighbor (as a private citizen or as a member of the armed forces of his country). Otherwise, a man’s life is to be protected from the moment of conception till the day of death.

 

Male and Female

We believe that God immutably creates each person to reflect His image as male or female.

Marriage

We believe that God defined marriage as the life-long covenant between one biological man and one biological woman, and that all forms of sexual activity outside of marriage are sin.

 

Our Doctrinal Distinctives

 

In addition to our broad evangelical statement of faith, instruction and discussion at Saint Giles is shaped by our commitment to the following.

Creation

We believe in a literal six day interpretation of the creation account in Genesis. God created the world, and all things therein, visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all very good.

 

Optimism

We believe that the gospel will ultimately triumph, and the great commission will be fulfilled.

Sovereignty

We believe in God's exhaustive sovereignty as the Creator and King over all things.

 

Cultural Engagement

We believe that Christians are not to pull away from the world and hide in a bunker. We are the salt of the earth, and we are expected to be the preservative in our communities.

 

On Secondary Doctrine

Saint Giles encourages fruitful discussion and disagreement as an essential part of our classical model, especially when issues are weighty and/or of immediate cultural importance. Parents can expect issues where disagreements exist between Christians to be handled in a way that is respectful to parents and pastors, but
not that such disagreements will be ignored. Presentation of all orthodox views is encouraged. Teachers should encourage students to follow up any questions they have with their parents and pastors.