Beliefs
Trinity Reformed Presbyterian Church
A Christian Ministry Serving The Washington DC Area
The Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America is a branch of the
visible Church of Jesus Christ. Our beliefs all stem from a full
commitment to the authority of the Bible as the inerrant, infallible Word
of God. This means that we believe in the Triune God: Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. We acknowledge our total inability to save ourselves and, in
faith, depend on Christ alone as our Savior. We acknowledge Him as
Covenant Lord in every area of life, and we vow together to advance His
Kingdom on earth.
We believe that God desires His Church to set forth clear statements of
her system of doctrine that can be supported from Scripture. We therefore
accept as our creed, or subordinate standards, The Westminster Confession
of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms. In addition to these
doctrinal statements, we adhere to the Testimony of the Reformed
Presbyterian Church of North America, which is our continuing application
of God's written word to the world and the Church of today.
We believe that God's Word clearly sets forth how He is to be worshiped.
The reading and exposition of the Word of God are the central focus of our
worship. Our musical praise employs God's Word only, thus making use of
divinely inspired Book of Psalms of the Bible. In keep with the New
Testament Church's directive for heart worship, we sing without the aid of
musical instruments.
Reformed Presbyterians have also been referred to historically as
Covenanters because of their identification with public covenanting in
Scotland, beginning in the 16th century. This act was a protest for
Christ's crown rights over the state and the recognition of Christ as King
over the Church without interference from the government. In 1743, the
first Reformed Presbyterian congregation was organized in North America.
In this continent, too, the Kingship of Christ has been maintained as a
foundational principle of our denomination.
We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word
of God and the only infallible rule of faith and life. We accept the Bible
as the inerrant revelation of God given through holy men of differing
skills whom He chose, inspired and infallibly guided by His Holy Spirit to
write His Words. (II Tim. 3:16,17; II Peter 1:20,21) Though the Bible
contains some things that are hard to understand (II Peter 3:16), we
believe that all persons with the help of the Holy Spirit and a sincere
desire to learn, can grasp every essential teaching of this Book, and
therefore we urge everyone to read and study the Scriptures with diligence
and a heart open to God. The faithful teaching of the Bible is a feature
of our weekly worship services.
We believe in the one living and true God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
as He is revealed in the Scriptures. We believe that the three Persons of
the Godhead are the same in substance, equal in power and glory. (Matthew
28:19) We readily acknowledge the mystery involved in this profound
doctrine, yet accept it as the revelation which God has given of Himself
in Scripture, and believe that any alternative ideas of God are false and
in the end idolatrous. For the purpose of working out a plan of redemption
for His people, the Persons of the Godhead adopted role relationships,
whereby the Son became subordinate to the Father, but will be exalted
again when this plan comes to final completion. (Hebrews 2:9; Philippians
2:9-11; I Corinthians 15:24-27)
We believe that God is the One who saves lost and rebellious sinners such
as we all are, and that it is by His grace alone that we can be reconciled
to God. (II Corinthians 5:18,19) God's grace was manifested in sending His
own Son, Jesus Christ to this world, to offer Himself as an atoning
sacrifice for our sins, (Ephesians 2:8,9; I John 2:1,2) and to provide us
with His perfect righteousness to substitute for our failings. (Romans
3:21,22; II Corinthians 5:21) Sinners are commanded to repent of their
sins, (Luke 13:3) acknowledge their need of a Savior, (Psalm 32:5) and
call out to Jesus to save them, transferring their hope of acceptance
before God from themselves and their efforts to Christ and His finished
work. (Romans 10:13; Acts 16:31; John 3:16) God's regeneration and the
working of His Spirit enables us to do that, but the responsibility is
ours nonetheless. We appeal to sinners to come to Christ!
We place a high priority on worship because of the first four of the Ten
Commandments, and because Jesus said that the Father in heaven "seeks
people" who will worship Him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23,24) These
requirements move us, when we worship, to seek to honor and please God
above all else, rather than expecting to make worship some "experience" to
boost and inspire ourselves. We don't believe that God has left us to
figure out, on our own, what worship should be, but rather believe that
the Scriptures give directives to regulate God-pleasing worship. We are
serious in our attempt to follow these Scriptural directives, and we find
great blessing in doing so.
One somewhat unique feature of Scriptural worship is the singing of the
Psalms of the Bible exclusively in praising God. These Biblical songs are
an infallible offering to God as we use them week by week. (Colossians
3:16) They cover every aspect of Christian experience, and express the
full range of the glory of God's attributes. We also follow the pattern of
the churches in the book of Acts in singing A Cappella, and endeavor
always to make melody in our hearts to God. (Ephesians 5:19)
We believe that the Biblical form of church government is Presbyterian,
which means rule by Elders. The Greek word for Elder is "presbyter" which
explains the name. In the nation of Israel (Numbers 11:16,17,25) as well
as in the New Testament Church (Acts 14:23; 15:2,6) elders were chosen to
shepherd and oversee the spiritual welfare of God's flock. (Acts 20:17,28)
Qualifications for the office of Elder, and for the office of Deacon are
specifically given in the New Testament to guide the selection of these
church leaders. (I Timothy 3; Titus 1) God has preserved and protected His
truth through the history of the church by means of the combined wisdom of
qualified elders, meeting together in Sessions, Presbyteries, and Councils
(Synods and General Assemblies).
We believe that following Jesus Christ involves all aspects of a person's
life, and that He is to be acknowledged and exalted as King not only in
one's personal life, but in our homes, on the job, in our schooling, in
our government, in our social and leisure time, everywhere! (I Corinthians
10:31; Colossians 3:23,24) We believe every Christian should, with the
help of the Holy Spirit, grow and develop toward the image and likeness of
Christ, (Romans 8:29) and see his or her gifts increasingly used to the
glory of God, the strengthening of the church, and the advancement of
Christ's Kingdom. (I Peter 4:10,11)