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OUR HISTORY
The Weidman Baptist Church held its first service on Easter Sunday, April 8, 1958. Marvin Eldridge was the Church’s first Pastor and there were eight people in attendance. The church held services in a rented building the first year. In 1959, property was donated to the church and on September 2nd the first service was held in the basement of the new building. In 1962 the church voted to incorporate. The upstairs of the church was finally finished in April of 1965. Mid to latter part of 1960’s the church voted to affiliate with the Central Michigan Association of Regular Baptist Churches. In 1975 a lot east of the church was purchased for parking. Pastor Marv Eldridge retired in 1995 after 37 years of ministry at Weidman Baptist Church. In May, Pastor Dean Willard was called to be the new pastor. In 1997 the church was accepted into fellowship with the Michigan Association of Regular Baptist Churches and then later with the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches.
OUR BELIEFS
THE BIBLE
We believe that the Bible, consisting of sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, was given by divine inspiration, and is the Word of God (II Timothy 3:16, 17; I Thessalonians 2:13) THE GODHEAD We believe there is only one living and true God, perfect, infinite, and eternal; that He is the maker and ruler of heaven and earth; that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, equal in every way, and executing distinct, but harmonious offices (Genesis 17:1; Genesis 1:1; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1; John 14:16) THE SON We believe that in the fullness of time the Son humbled Himself and assumed man’s nature by being born of the virgin Mary, thus uniting organically and indissolubly the divine and human natures in their completeness in the one unique person of Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:18-25; John 1:14; Hebrews 2:14). By becoming man, He was made of near kin to us, and having a body, He could offer it as a sacrifice for us (Hebrews 10:9, 10). Being God, the sacrifice He made on Calvary was infinite in value (John 1:29). THE HOLY SPIRIT We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the trinity. We believe that the Holy Spirit dwells within every believer (I Corinthians 6:19,20; Romans 8:9). His principal ministry in this dispensation is to reprove or convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgement (John 16:7-11); to restrain the progress of evil until God’s purposes are accomplished (II Thessalonians 2:7); to regenerate those who repent of their sins and exercise faith in Christ (John 3:3-8; Titus 3:5); to instruct , comfort and guide God’s children (John 14:16-18, 26; 16:13) to empower them for life and service (Galatians 5:16-23; Acts 1:8); and to quicken their mortal bodies (Romans 8:11). MAN We believe that man was created by an immediate act of God and not by a process of evolution; that he was created in the image and likeness of God, possessing personality and holiness; that he was endowed with power of rational and responsible choice in view of moral ends; and that the purpose of this creation was to glorify God (Genesis 1:27; Colossians 3:10; Acts 17:24-28). We believe he Bible teaches that marriage is the joining of one man and one woman and that sexual intimacy is to be expressed only within the bonds of a Biblically defined marriage. Any other form of marriage or sexual intimacy is immoral and a perversion of God's gracious will. (Genesis 2:18, 14, 15; Matthew 19:4-6; I Corinthians 6:19-20; Ephesians 5:22-23; Hebrews 13:4)(Effective June 3, 2015) We believe that man was subject to trial in the Garden of Eden, in order to test his loyalty to his maker (Genesis 2:15-17); under trial he lost his holy estate, was alienated from God, and became depraved physically, mentally, morally, and spiritually, by voluntarily transgressing His positive command and yielding to the enticement of Satan. In consequence of this act of disobedience, the entire human race became involved in sin so that in every heart there is by nature that evil disposition which eventually leads to responsible acts of sin (Romans 5:12-21; Ephesians 2:1-3). We believe that God has provided redemption for all men through Christ who voluntarily offered Himself on the Cross as a perfect curse, and tasting death for every man (I Peter 2:24). REGENERATION AND JUSTIFICATION We believe that salvation is wholly of grace, but conditional solely on repentance toward God and acceptance of Christ by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5; Acts 4:12; Acts 16:31). When the sinner has met these requirements, God regenerates and justifies him. Regeneration makes the believer a new creation in Christ Jesus (II Corinthians 5:17). By the operation of the Holy Spirit through the word he is given a disposition to obey God (John 3:3; John 1:12). This experience is witnessed to by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8;16). Justification is a judicial act absolving the punishment and restoring divine favor (Romans 5:1). SANCTIFICATION We believe that every believer at regeneration receives the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9), is sealed by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13), and sanctified by the offering of Christ (Hebrews 10:10, 14). There also is a daily progressive sanctification whereby we daily and progressively set ourselves aside for God’s will (John 17:17). ETERNAL SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER We believe that a person once saved can never be lost, for he is born of incorruptible seed (I Peter 1:23). He is given everlasting life (John 10:27, 28), is sealed unto the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30) and his life is hid with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3). He is assured of no condemnation in Christ (Romans 8:1). THE DEVIL OR SATAN We believe that Satan was once holy and enjoyed heavenly honors, but through pride and ambition to be as the Almighty, fell and drew after him a host of angels; that he is now the prince of the power of the air, and the unholy god of this world. We hold him to be man’s great tempter, the enemy of God and His Christ, the accuser of the saints. He is destined to final defeat at the hands of God’s Son, and to the judgment of an eternal justice in hell, a place prepared for him and his angels (Isaiah 14:12-15; II Peter 2:4; I Peter 5:8; Revelation 12:10; Revelation 20:1-3, 10) THE CHURCH We believe that a church of Christ is a congregation of immersed believers associated by covenant of faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by his laws; and exercising the gifts, rights and privileges invested in them by his Word; that its scripturally designated officers are pastor (elders) and deacons, whose qualifications, claims and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures; we believe that the true mission of the church is found in the great commission: 1) to make individual disciples, 2) to baptize them, 3) to teach them. We hold that the local church has the absolute right of self government, free from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations; and that the one and only superintendent is Christ. We believe that is scriptural for churches to cooperate with each other in contending for the faith and for the furtherance of the gospel; that every church is the sole and only judge of the measure and method of its cooperation. We believe that on all matters of membership, of policy, of government, of discipline, of benevolence, the will of the local church is final (Acts 2:41; Acts 2:42; I Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:22, 23; Ephesians 4:11; I Timothy 3:1-13; Matthew 28:18-20). THE ORDINANCES We believe that Christian ordinances are outward rites not as a means of salvation, but as visible signs of the fact of an inward experience of salvation. 1. Baptism: We believe that baptism by water is the public confession of Christ as Savior and Lord. It is a symbol of one’s union with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection, and therefore is to be administered by immersion to those who are truly born again (Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:41) 2. The Lord’s Supper: We believe that the Lord’s Supper should be observed by all believers in obedience to the command “This do in remembrance of Me”. It consists in partaking of the emblems of bread and grape juice, and symbolizes the death of Christ for the remission of our sins. The Lord’s table should be open to all believers who are in right relationship with God (I Corinthians 11:17-34). It shall be observed the first Sunday of each month. CIVIL GOVERNMENT We believe that civil government is ordained of God for the punishment of evildoers, and for the protection of the good (Romans 13:1-7). We therefore consider it our duty to pray for the rulers (I Timothy 2:1-3), and to be submissive and obedient to their authority, except in things opposed to the will of God. CHRIST’S SECOND COMING We believe in the visible, bodily, pre-tribulational, and pre-millennial return of Christ (John 14:1-3). This will be accomplished in two stages: First the Rapture, Christ’s coming for His own (I Thessalonians 4:14-18); Second the revelation, Christ’s descending with his saints to establish His kingdom at Jerusalem (Revelation 19 and 20). Between these two stages the great tribulation judgments are visited upon the world (Revelation 6 through 19). JUDGMENTS We believe that the believer’s sins are judged in Christ on the cross (II Corinthians 5:21), and that the life that he lives after conversion will be examined and rewarded at the “Judgement Seat of Christ” (II Corinthians 3:8-15; II Corinthians 5:10). We believe that unbelievers will appear before at the Great White Throne after the millennium to be judged and punished forever in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:10-15). THE ETERNAL STATE We believe that Christ rejecters will be cast into a literal place of punishment forever (Revelation 14:9-11; Revelation 20:10-15). After this has been accomplished at the Great White Throne, the present order of things will be dissolved and the New Heaven and New Earth, where in dwelleth righteousness, shall be brought in as the final state in which the righteous shall dwell forever (II Peter 3:10-13; Revelation 21:1-22:7) |
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Weidman Baptist Church Address: 7555 W. Airline Rd., Weidman, MI 48893 Phone: 989-644-3325
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