Statement of Faith
THE HOLY SCRIPTURES
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally inspired
Word of God, the final authority for faith and life, inerrant in the original writings, infallible, and
God-breathed. (II Timothy 3:16-1; II Peter 1:20-21; Matthew 5:18; John 14:25; John 16:12-13).
THE GODHEAD
We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deuteronomy 6:4; II Corinthians 13:14).
THE PERSON AND WORK OF CHRIST
(a) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (John 1:1-2; John 1:14; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 7:14; Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 2:5-8; Galatians 4:4-5).
(b) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Romans 3:24-25; I Peter 1:3-5; I Peter 2:24;
Ephesians 1:7).
(c) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Hebrews 9:24; Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1-2).
THE PERSON AND WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
(a) We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them into the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; II Corinthians 3:6; I Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:13-14).
(b) We believe He is the Divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures, and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit. (I John 2:20,27; Ephesians 5:18).
(c) We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses the evangelists and pastor-teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (I Corinthians 12:4-11; I Corinthians 12:28-20; Ephesians 4:7-12; Romans 12:3- 8).
(d) We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gifts of healing, were temporary. We believe that speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit, and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayer of believers for physical healing. (II Corinthians 12:12; I Corinthians 1:22; I Corinthians 13:8; I Corinthians 14:21-22; Hebrews 2:3-4; Mark 16:17-20).
THE TOTAL DEPRAVITY OF MAN
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; and, that man is totally depraved, and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23; Romans 5:12-14; Ephesians 2:1-3,12).
SALVATION
We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. (Ephesians 1:7; Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12; I Peter 1:18- 19).
THE ETERNAL SECURITY AND ASSURANCE OF BELIEVERS
(a) We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40; John 10: 27-30; Romans 8:1; Romans 8:38-39; I Corinthians 1:4-8; I Peter 1:4-5; Jude 1,2). (b) We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word; however, God’s word clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Romans 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15; Hebrews 13:5).
THE CHURCH
(a) We believe that the Church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born-again persons of this present age which started at Pentecost and will end at the Rapture. (Ephesians 1:22-23; Ephesians 5:25-27; I Corinthians 12:12-14; II
Corinthians 11:2).
(b) We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament scriptures. (Acts 14:27; Acts 20:17, 28-32: I Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11).
(c) We believe in the autonomy of the local church, free of any external authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; Acts 15: 19-31; Acts 20:28; Romans 16:1,4: I Corinthians 3:9,16; I Corinthians 5:4-7, 13; I Peter 5:1-4).
(d) We recognize the ordinances of water baptism (single immersion), and the Lord’s Supper as a scriptural means of testimony for the Church in this age. (Matthew 29:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; Acts 18:18; I Corinthians 11:23-26).
SEPARATION
We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord; and, that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God. (II Timothy 3:1-5; Romans 12:1-1; Romans 14:13; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11; II Corinthians 6:14-7:1)
THE SCOND ADVENT OF CHRIST
We believe in that “Blessed Hope”, the personal imminent return of Christ, who will rapture His Church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return, with His saints to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the Nation of Israel. (I Thessalonians 4:13-18; I Thessalonians 1:10; Titus 2:13; Revelation 3:10; Revelation 19:11-16; Zechariah 14:4- 11; Daniel 2:31-45; Psalm 89:3-4).
THE ETERNAL STATE
(a) We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matthew 15:46; John 5:28-29; John 11;25-26; Revelation 20:5-6, 12-23).
(b) We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; Revelation 20:4-6; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; I Thessalonians 4:16-17).
(c) We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious misery until the second resurrection, when the soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment. (Luke 16:19-26; Matthew 25:41-46; Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude
6-7; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 20:11-15).
Statement of Marriage
We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Genesis 2:23–24). The Bible clearly teaches the enduring truth that marriage consists of one man and one woman, and that sexual relationships are explicitly designed for the context of marriage. From Genesis to Revelation, the authority of Scripture witnesses to the nature of biblical marriage as uniquely bound to the complementary nature of man and woman. This truth is not negotiable. The Lord Jesus himself said that marriage is from the beginning (Matthew 19:4-6), so no human institution has the authority to redefine marriage any more than a human institution has the authority to redefine the gospel (the Good News of Jesus Christ), which marriage reflects (Ephesians 5:32).
We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman (Hebrews 13:4).
We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pedophilia, pornography, any attempt to change one’s sex or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God (Leviticus 18:1–30; Matthew 5:28; Romans 1:26–29; 1 Corinthians 5:1, 6:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1–8).
We believe that human life is a sacred gift from God and must be respected from the moment of conception (fertilization) until natural death. We believe that the intentional, willful termination of a pregnancy (“abortion”) at any time after conception constitutes the taking of unborn human life. Accordingly, abortions, including for reasons of birth defects, gender selection, birth control, population control, or even in the tragic instances of rape or incest, and acts of encouraging, facilitating, or paying for abortions, are inconsistent with Scripture and the glory of God (Psalm 139:13–16).
Based on Section 6.05 of the WEO Bylaws, WEO Ministries of PA, Inc. operates on a nondiscriminatory basis in accordance with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) as it applies to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and applicable federal and state laws.
Positions of Membership and Leadership - All positions of leadership are considered
Ministerial and are therefore open to qualified individuals who are Christians of good
character, without regard or reference to race, biological gender, national or ethnic origin, color, age, or disability. WEO Ministries is a religious ministry, permitted to consider a particular religious creed as a qualification for membership and leadership positions. All active members and persons in leadership positions must agree with WEO's mission statement, and they must be willing to conduct their lives in conformity with the statement of faith and with ethical and moral integrity.
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Ministries' churches, schools and orphanages admit without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, or ability; to all rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to its students. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry or gender, in the administration of its educational policies or attendance at church related programs. It does not discriminate on the basis of ability, except when a disability or special need poses a safety hazard to staff and/or other children, or when a specific need is beyond the scope of care.