What we believe

We believe and confess that there is one God, the Creator, Sustainer and Ruler of all things. Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” Eph. 4:6 “There is one God and Father of all, who is over all and in all”. Malachi 2:10 “Have we not all one Father? Did not one God make us?” Job 31:15 “Did not the same God make us…?” Romans 1:19,20 “…what may be known about God is manifest in them, because God showed it to them…His invisible attributes, even his eternal power and divinity, have been clearly seen from the creation of the world, being understood by the things that have been made.” 11:36 “For from him and through him and to him are all things.” Ps. 94:9 “He who planted the ear…formed the eye…” Acts 17:24 “The God who made the world and everything in it, the Lord of heaven and earth.”

In the Bible we discover God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, perfectly one and inseparable in their being. 2Cor. 13:14 “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit…” Matthew 28:19 “…in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…” 1 John 5:7 “For there are three that bear record in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.”

A] God the Father John 6:27 “for the Father, that is, God himself…” 1 Peter 1:2 “…God ​​the Father…” Matthew 11:25 “…Father, Lord of heaven and earth…” Mark 14:36 ​​“…Abba, that is, Father…” Luke 22:42 “Father, if you are willing…” 23:34 “Father, forgive them…” 23:46 “Father, into your hands…” Acts 2:33 “…God…Father…” Rom. 15:6 “…God, the Father, from whom all things come…”

B] God the Son, Jesus Christ Matthew 16:16 “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God…” John 1:1 “…and the Word was God” Luke 1:32 “…the Son of the Most High…” Acts 8:37 “…Jesus Christ is the Son of God” 9:20 “…Jesus is the Son of God” 2 Cor.1:19 “…the Son of God…” 1 John 2:24 “…you will abide in the Son and in the Father” 3:23 “…to believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ…” 4:15 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God…” John 20:31 “…that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God…”

C] God the Holy Spirit John 4:24 “God is a Spirit…” 2 Cor.3:3 “…the Spirit of the living God…” 3:17 “For the Lord is a Spirit; and where is the Spirit of the Lord…” Job 33:4 “The Spirit of God has made me…” Isaiah 48:16 “…the Lord God has sent me with his Spirit…” 1 Cor. 2:10″…God has revealed them to us through his Spirit…” 2:12 “The Spirit who comes from God…” John 15:26 “…the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father…” 14:26 “…the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send…” Luke 11:13″…your heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Acts 5:32 “…the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him…”

We believe and confess that man is created by God. The body of man – the material part – is made of dust, and the spiritual nature of man is from God in the image and likeness of God. Gen. 1: 27 “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created him.” Gen. 2:7 “The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

God made man blameless, perfect, but not perfect, with free will to choose good or evil. Gen. 1:31 “God saw everything he had made, and indeed it was very good” Eccl. 7:29 “God made man blameless…” Gen. 2:17 “You may freely eat from any tree…but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” Ps. 107:17 “…through their sinful conduct they became miserable.” Deut. 30:15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.”

By the fall into sin, man fell under the curse and became incapable of living the will of God. By natural birth, everyone inherits the seed of sin, the inclination to evil, the earthly nature. Rom. 5:12 “through one man sin entered the world…and all sinned…” 5:19 “…through one man’s disobedience many were made sinners…” 7:17 “…sin dwells in me…” 7:18 “I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my earthly nature; for to will is present with me, but ability to do what is good is not found” 7:20 “…what I do not want, I do…” 7:23 “…I see another law in my members…making me a slave to the law of sin.”

Man, being a free being, is responsible before God for all his deeds, words and thoughts. All people must die, and after death comes judgment and eternal reward. Rom. 14:12 “Each of us will give account of himself to God” Matt. 12:36 “…people will give account for every careless word they have spoken.” 2Cor. 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive the reward for what he has done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” Hebrews 9:27 “It is appointed for people to die once, but after this comes judgment.”

We believe and confess that man is created by God in His image and likeness, for His glory and a happy life in Him, was tempted by the devil and became disobedient to God’s command and thus sin and curse entered the world. Sin is the lack of conformity to God’s moral law whether in an action, disposition or attitude. Gen. 3:16 “the woman answered: “The serpent deceived me and I ate of the tree.” 1John 5:17 “all unrighteousness is sin.” Rom. 14:23 “Whatever does not come from faith is sin.” James 4:17 “whoever knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” John 8:34 “whoever lives in sin is a slave to sin.” Rom. 6:13 “Do not offer your members as slaves to sin…” Eccl. 7:29 “God made mankind blameless, but they have gone astray in many ways.” Ps. 51:4 “We have sinned against you and done what is evil in your sight.” Eph. 2:1-3 “…dead in our trespasses and sins…among whom we also were once, when we lived in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh…” Deut. 9:7 “…you have always rebelled against the Lord!” 1 John 3:4 “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.”

The universality of sin: all people are sinners. Rom. 3:23 “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Eccl. 7:20 “There is no one on earth who is blameless, who does good and does not sin.” Job 15:16 “…the man who drinks iniquity like water.” Rom. 5:12 “…and so death passed on all men, for all have sinned.” 1 John 1:8 “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” 1 Kings 8:46 “…for there is no man who does not sin.”

The consequence of sin: spiritual death. Rom. 6:23 “…the wages of sin is death…” 5:12 “death entered through sin…” Gen. 2:17 “…you will surely die.” James 1:15 “…sin, once it has been accomplished, brings death.”

We believe and confess that salvation is the absolution of man from the consequences of breaking divine laws. It has to do with the nature of man and the deeds done by him. Man cannot save himself. He cannot wash away his sins, he cannot excuse himself, nor can he hide from the punishment for sin. Jer.2:22 “Though thou wash thyself with lye, and take much soda, yet thine iniquity is written before me, saith the Lord God.” Rom. 1:20 “…they cannot be excused…” Amos 9:2,3 “Though they dig even into hell, thence shall my hand take them…though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, and there will I command the serpent to bite them.”

Man cannot create merit, through good deeds to cover his guilty past and gain his salvation. Rom. 3:20″…no one by the works of the law.” Is.64:6 “all our good deeds are like filthy rags.” Jer.13:23″…can you do good, you who are accustomed to do evil?”

Salvation is by the grace of God. It is a grace given to us freely, without our deserving it. Good works are the fruits of salvation. Titus 2:11 “the grace of God…brings salvation…” Eph. 2:8,9 “by grace you have been saved…not by works.” Acts 15:11 “…we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus.” Titus 3:5 “He saved us, not by works we have done.”

The means of salvation is the Lord Jesus, who was crucified in our place. There is no other means of salvation [cross, sacraments, saints]. Acts 4:12 “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” 1 John 2:2 “He is the propitiation for our sins…” Is. 53:5 “He was pierced for our sins…” Eph. 1:7 “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins…” 2 Cor. 5:18 “God…has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ.” Rom. 3:24,25 “…being justified…by grace through Jesus Christ…whom God set forth to be a propitiation.”

This salvation accomplished on the cross, which can be received freely, is for all people, regardless of race, nationality or social class. 1 John 2:2 “He is the atoning sacrifice for the sins… of the whole world” Titus 2:11 “grace brings salvation to all men.” 1 Tim.2:4 “God…wills all men to be saved.”

In order for a sinful person to enjoy this salvation, he must fulfill two conditions: repentance and faith. They are always inseparable. – repentance means recognizing sin, feeling sorry for it, abandoning it and confessing it before the Lord, that is, returning to God. [Luke 15:11-24] – faith means the sinner’s acceptance of the divine grace that God offers in Christ, for salvation and eternal life. Mark 1:15 “He said,…repent and believe in the gospel.” Luke 13:5 “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Acts 2:38 “Repent,” Peter said to them, “and be baptized, every one of you.” Acts 17:30 “God overlooks the times of ignorance, but now commands all people everywhere to repent.” Acts 16:31 “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.”

We believe and confess that the new birth is the regeneration of life, endowment with a holy spiritual disposition and attitude; it embraces the whole character: intellect, affection, and will. Thus, every sinner, in order to become a believer, must be born again. John 3:7 “Ye must be born again.”

By his own power man cannot be born again, he cannot change. Jer. 13:23 “Can an Ethiopian change his skin…? So can you do good…?” John 15:5 “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”

Without the new birth, all attempts to do good deeds that God will reward on the day of judgment, to live the will of God, are bankrupt, they cannot give any good result. By natural birth we inherit a sinful nature, which bears the fruits of sin. We are like a forest that cannot bear good fruit. Only grafting is what can change the nature. Matthew 7:16-18 “…a bad tree does not bear good fruit…” Rom. 8:7 “it [the earthly nature] is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” Matt.12:34 “…how can you speak good things when you are evil…?”

The new birth is the divine work that God does in the life of the sinner to conform to His will. For a sinner to be born again he must repent and believe, that is, to receive salvation by grace. Then God does the work of the new birth through His Word and the Holy Spirit. 1 Peter 1:23 “…you have been born again…by the Word of God.” James 1:18 “He…has begotten us…by the Word of truth.” John 3:5 “…unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” Eph. 2:10 “We are His workmanship…”

The new birth is not an improvement of life, but a radical change of life. It is not a change of effect, but of the determining cause; it is not a purification of the external life, but of the internal life. 2 Cor. 5:17 “For if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Rom. 6:4 “…let us walk in newness of life.” Col. 3:9,10 “…put off the old man with his deeds, and put on the new man…”

The new birth gives us the quality of children of God; it makes us sharers in the divine nature, capable of living the will of God. It is the second nature in our life, just as, through grafting, the forest is not uprooted, it continues to exist but without being given the possibility of manifestation, so it is with the new birth: the old nature is crucified – rendered incapable of action – and the new nature grows and bears good fruit. The quality of the graft is completely different from that of the forest: in the essence of the wood, in the leaves and in the fruits. So it is with the one born again: all things must show his quality as a child of God. John 3:6 “that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Gal.5:22-23 “the fruit of the Spirit is…” Matt. 7:17 “a good tree produces good fruit.”

By being born again we become heirs of God. The right to the eternal inheritance is based on our relationship with God. He who is not born again is not a child of God and has no right to the eternal inheritance. Rom. 8:17 “If children, then heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.” John 3:3 “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

We believe and confess that, according to the New Testament, the totality of believers, without distinction of race, nationality or social class, of all times, in heaven and on earth, forms the Church of Christ; the Universal Church. This Church is not a visible earthly organization, but is the living, spiritual organism of the saved, that is, of those who have believed in Christ and have been born again. Heb. 12:23 “…The Church of the firstborn, which are in heaven.” Acts 20:28″…The Church of the Lord, which He purchased with His own blood.” Matt. 16:18 “…On this rock I will build My Church.” Eph. 1:22,23″…The Church, which is His body.”

In Greek, the word for Church [ekklesia] meant an assembly of those called from their homes and businesses to attend to matters of public interest. This word was adapted to designate not only the Universal Church, but also an organized and independent Local Church of Christ’s followers in a locality, who met for worship. The local church, according to the teaching of the New Testament, is the voluntary unity of a group of believers in a locality, born again and baptized on the basis of their personal confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. They unite together for the purpose of worshiping God, of edifying one another spiritually, of preserving the Christian faith and doctrine pure—according to the teaching of the New Testament—and of collaborating in the preaching of the Word of God. At first the Church met in private homes. Matt. 18:20 “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Rom.16:5 “Greet the church that is in their house.” 1 Cor.16:19 “Aquila and Priscilla, with the church that is in their house.” Col.4:15 “Greet Nympha and the church that is in their house.” Acts 8:1 “To the churches which are in Jerusalem…” Gal.1:22 “To the churches which are in Judea which are in Christ.” 1 Cor. 1:2 “To the church of God which is in Corinth.”

The direct leadership of the Church is held by Christ through the Holy Spirit. We do not recognize hierarchical ranks. Those who receive certain assignments are servants of the Church, not masters who command. Col. 1:18 “He [Christ] is the Head of the body, the Church.” Eph. 1:22,23 “And gave him the Headship…of the Church, which is his body.” 5:23 “Christ is the head of the Church.” 1 Peter 5:3 “Pastoral…not as lording it over you.”

Membership in the Church is not inherited, but is received individually through rebirth. Acceptance into the ranks of the members of a local Church is voluntary and personal following baptism, based on the confession of faith in the Lord Jesus. Members, among themselves, call themselves brothers and are equal in rights and duties regardless of race, nationality, social class or educational background. Matt.23:8 “You are all brothers.” Eph.5:30 “We are members of his body.” Acts 2:41 “…they received the preaching, were baptized and…the number of disciples was added to about three thousand souls.”

The organization of the local Church is based on the principle of autonomous democracy. The divine program aims to establish the Kingdom of God in the hearts of people, and the Churches are the means chosen by God to achieve this goal. The purpose of the Churches is to glorify God, to spread the Gospel and through brotherly fellowship to give the necessary spiritual growth to each member. Mark 16:15 “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel.” Eph. 4:11,12 “He gave some…for the building up of the body of Christ.” 1 Cor. 14:4″…he who prophesies edifies the Church.” 1 Cor. 14:5,12″…for the edification of the Church.”

We believe and confess that in the New Testament Churches there were various categories of special workers, but they had only two classes of ministry that directed the spiritual and material affairs of the Church: elders [presbyters, pastors, bishops] and deacons. Philippians 1:1 “To all the saints…which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons.”

1. The titles of bishop, elder, and pastor were given to the highest minister of the Church in the New Testament. All these appointments are for one and the same office: the oversight, shepherding, and spiritual leadership of the Church. Acts 20:17,28 “And Paul sent to Ephesus, and called unto him the elders of the church…and said unto them, Take heed therefore to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of the Lord.”

For someone to be in this office, they must have the qualifications described by Paul in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. The method of election is indicated by the Greek word xeirotonia [appointed] which also means to vote by show of hands. This election is made by the Church assembled for this purpose. Acts 14:23 “They ordained elders in every Church.”

The pastor is also subject to Church discipline when the accusation is well-founded. 1 Tim.5:19 “Against an elder receive not an accusation except at the mouth of two or three witnesses.”

2. Deacons are called to assist the pastor in the administration of the church’s material goods. They are to cultivate the generosity of the members, to inspire philanthropic actions. They must have the qualities shown in 1 Tim.3:8-13. The ordination of both pastors and deacons is done by the laying on of hands. Acts 6:6, 13:3 “…laid their hands on them.” 1 Tim.4:14″…with the laying on of hands by the body of elders.

We believe and confess that the priesthood according to the New Testament does not form a special class, but a quality which every believer has; it is universal. Every believer is a priest. Every one has the right to approach God directly through the Lord Jesus, without any other mediator. Every one has the right to offer church sacrifices. 1 Peter 2:5 “You…are…a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 2:9 “you are…a royal priesthood.” Rev. 1:6 “has made us…priests to God.”

We believe and confess that the Lord’s Day is a Christian ordinance to be kept continually, spent in worship and spiritual contemplation, both in public and in the home. Unlike the old Mosaic covenant, when the seventh day was kept, Christians, as members of the new covenant, are to keep the first day of the week [Sunday] which was sanctified by God through the resurrection of His Son from the dead and the sending of the Holy Spirit.

The early Christians kept it as a day of worship. On it we should rest from carnal things and amusements, perform works of mercy and those that are absolutely necessary.

We do not have holidays dedicated to saints. Mark 16:9 “When Jesus was risen early the first day of the week…” Luke 24:1-6 “On the first day of the week the women…went to the tomb…they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus…two men in shining garments…said to them,…he is risen.” John 20:1 “On the first day of the week…” Acts 2:1-4 “On the day of Pentecost [Sunday] they were all together in one place…and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” Rev. 1:10 “On the Lord’s day we were in the Spirit…” Acts 20:7 “On the first day of the week we came together to break bread.” 1 Cor.16:2 “On the first day of the week each of you shall set aside…” Ps.118:24 “This is the day the Lord has made: let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Leviticus 23:15,16 “From the day after the Sabbath…count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the Lord.”

We believe and confess that prayer is the state of intimate communion with God. It is the sincere expression of our innermost being before the Lord. For this reason we do not have prayer books and we do not urge others to learn prayers by heart. Ps. 62:8 “…pour out your hearts before him!” Ps.142:2 “I pray to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before him, and before him I tell my distress.” Philippians 4:6 “…in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

According to the state of the heart, prayer can be thanksgiving, petition, or intercession. 1 Tim.2:1 “…let prayers, petitions, intercessions, and thanksgiving be made…” Eph.5:20 “give thanks always to God in all things.””

Prayer must be addressed to the Father in the Name of the Lord Jesus. He is the only Mediator between man and God. We believe that prayers addressed to saints are not in accordance with the Holy Scriptures. John 16:23 “…whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give it to you.” 1 Tim.2:5 “…there is only one mediator between God and men: the Man Jesus Christ.”

Prayer is absolutely necessary for spiritual life for growth, strengthening, protection from temptations and victory over the enemy. Lk. 18:1 “Jesus told them a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” 1 Thess. 5:17 “Pray without ceasing.” Matt. 26:41 “…pray that you may not enter into temptation.” Eph. 3:16 “…and I ask Him…to strengthen you with power.”

Private prayer can be done anywhere, and common prayer is done in fellowship with other believers in the Church. Matt.6:6 “When you pray, go into your room…and pray to your Father who is in secret…” Matt.14:23 “…he went up into the mountain to pray.” Matt.26:36,39 “…Jesus came…to Gethsemane…and prayed.” Acts 2:42 “They continued…in prayer.” Acts 12:5 “The church did not cease to pray.”

Prayers for the dead were not practiced in the Christian Church. We believe that they have no value, because the dead have reached their place immediately after death, without the possibility of changing from one place to another. Lk.16:26 “…between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who would pass from there to us cannot.”

We believe and confess that sanctification is the progressive work of God through the Holy Spirit in the life of the saved sinner. It begins at the new birth and through it we are made conformable to His will. 1 Thess. 4:3 “This is the will of God, your sanctification.” 1 Peter 1:16 “Be holy, for I am holy.” 1 Thess. 4:7 “For God did not call us to impurity, but to holiness.”

It means cleansing from sin and setting aside one’s life for God, by separating oneself from the world. The cleansing from sin is done by the blood of the Lord Jesus. 1 John 1:7 “…the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 Cor.6:11″…you have been washed, you have been sanctified…” Heb.13:12″…Jesus that he might sanctify the people with his own blood…”

Separation from the world and setting apart for God is done through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, who empowers us to resist temptation and live His will. John 17:17 “Sanctify them through Your word: Your word is truth.” Acts 2:40 “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 2 Cor.6:17 “Be separate from them, says the Lord.” 1 Pet.1:2 “…through sanctification by the Spirit, for obedience” 2 Cor.3:18 “…we are being transformed into His image from glory to glory, by the Spirit of the Lord.”

Sanctification is a work in which God has His part, and man His. God, through the Holy Spirit, influences our will and gives us power, and man accepts for himself, in everything, the will and power of God. Phil. 2:13 “For God…will give, according to his good pleasure, both to will and to do.” Heb. 13:20,21 “May the God of peace…make you perfect in every good work, to do his will.” Col. 4:12 “…that you may be perfect…in the will of God.” Col. 1:22,23, 2 Thess. 1:11, etc.

We believe and confess that, according to the Holy Scriptures, marriage is ordained of God. Gen.1:27,28 “God created man…male and female. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it.’”

Marriage is the act of free will by which a man and a woman consent to live together for life. A man is permitted to have one wife, and a woman is permitted to have one husband, but if one of the husbands dies, the remaining one may remarry. 1 Cor.7:39, Rom.7:2 “A married woman is bound by the law as long as her husband lives; but if her husband dies, she is free to marry…”

Since marriage is also a civil ordinance, it must first be concluded with documents according to the laws of the state, then the blessing of the Church follows. We hold that those who are Christians should conclude a marriage only in the Lord, that is, only with believers. 2 Cor.6:14 “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers.” 1 Cor.7:39 “…she is free to marry whom she wants, only in the Lord.”

Marriage should not be dissolved by divorce. Divorce is forbidden to believers. Mal.2:16 “For I hate divorce.” Matt.19:6 “Therefore what God has joined together, let no man separate.”

In the case of proven adultery or malicious desertion, we believe that Holy Scripture allows for divorce. Matt.19:9 “Jesus answered them, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, except for fornication, and marries another commits adultery.’” 1 Cor.7:15 “And if the unbelieving one departs, let him depart; the brother or sister is not bound in such a case.”

We believe and confess that, according to the teaching of Holy Scripture and the practice of the early Christians, the members of the Church are morally obligated to contribute from their earthly goods willingly and according to their ability to support the cause of the Gospel. 2 Cor.9:6,7 “Know this: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one should give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Exodus 25:2 “…let them bring Me an offering; from every man who gives with a willing heart you will accept it for Me.” 35:5 “…let everyone bring an offering to the Lord as his heart allows.” 1 Chron.29:5 “whoever is willing, let him bring his offering before the Lord.” Rom. 12:8 “whoever gives, let him give with a cheerful heart.”

1. Supporting those who are in the service of the Gospel so that they do not lack. Philippians 4:16,18 “For you sent to me in Thessalonica…for my needs. I have everything and abound…” Titus 3:13 “See that Zenas the lawgiver and Apollos lack nothing for their journey.” 3 John 6 “You will do well to provide for their journey in a manner worthy of God.” 1 Cor.9:14 “The Lord has ordained that those who preach the Gospel should live from the Gospel.” Matt.10:10 “…the laborer is worthy of his food.” 1 Tim.5:18 “For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle the ox while it treads out the grain, and the laborer is worthy of his wages.”

2. Helping the poor, orphans and widows. Acts 11:29 “The disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.” Rom.15:26 “For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem.” 1 Cor.16:1 “Now concerning the collection for the saints…” John 12:7,8 “Jesus said, …you always have the poor with you…” Matt.25:40 “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Deut.14:29 “…the orphan and the widow…may eat and be satisfied, so that the Lord your God may bless you…” James 1:27 “Pure religion…is to visit the orphan and widow in their affliction…”

3. Building places of worship. Exodus 35:21 “Everyone whose heart was willing and whose spirit was willing came and brought the Lord’s offering for the work of the tabernacle…” 1 Chron.29:1,9 “…the work is great, for this house is not for man but for God. The people rejoiced over the freewill offerings, for with a willing heart they offered to the Lord…” Ezra 2:68,69 “…they brought freewill offerings for the house of God…they gave to the treasury of the work, according to their means…”

We believe and confess that the authority of the state is from God, being clothed with power for the preservation of law, order and the punishment of evildoers, according to the teaching of the Word of God we are obliged to obey the laws, to fulfill our civic duties and to pray for all state authorities. Titus 3:1 “Remind them to be subject to principalities and powers…” Rom. 13:1-7 “Let everyone be subject to the higher powers, for there is no power except from God. And the powers that be have been ordained by God…” 1 Pet.2:13,14 “Be subject to every human power and to the powers…” 1 Tim.2:1-3 “…prayers…for all who are exalted in authority.”