What We Believe - The Basics
Big Lake Baptist
Big Lake (near Craig), Missouri
The Scriptures
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God's
revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine
instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and
truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. Therefore, all
Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. It reveals the principles
by which God judges us, and therefore is, and will remain to the end
of the world the true center of Christian union, and the supreme
standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions
should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is
Himself the focus of divine revelation.

God
There is one and only one living and true God. …The eternal triune
God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, with
distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence,
or being.

God the Father
God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His
creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to
the purposes of His grace. …God is Father in truth to those who
become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

God the Son
Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ,
He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
…He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His
substitutionary death on the cross, He made provision for the
redemption of men from sin.

God the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. …He exalts
Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness and of judgment.
…He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in
worship, evangelism, and service.

Man
Man is the special creation of God, in His own image. He created
them male and female as the crowning work of His creation. …By his
free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human
race. … The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God
created man in His own image, and in that Christ died for man;
therefore every person of every race possesses dignity and is
worthy of respect and Christian love.

Salvation
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered
freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by
His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its
broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, justification,
sanctification, and glorification.

God's Purpose of Grace
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He
regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. …All true
believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ,
and sanctified by His Spirit will never fall away from the state of
grace, but shall persevere to the end.