Damascus Road

As a basic statement of faith, Damascus Road agrees with and holds to The Apostle’s Creed:

[We] believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

[We] believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

[We] believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic [universal] church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

In other words, Damascus affirms the existence of a Creator consisting of three entities in one God - the Father, the Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. The Bible is his special revelation and unerring in every word. The human race is his unique creation, made in his image, and differs from animals in the possession of a rational soul and the possibility of a joyful eternity. Though created perfect, through Adam - the first man, we have all sinned and are subject to a just sentence of eternal death for our defiance of the Creator. Helpless and hopeless, there is nothing good or godly left in us.

God, in his mercy, chose to come through Jesus Christ, adopt the form of a man, be born of virgin, live a sinless life, suffer at human hands, pay the penalty for our rebellion through death on a cross, and rise from the dead on the third day. Through response to the calling and convicting work of the Holy Spirit, acknowledgment of the existence of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit and acceptance of the Son’s death on our behalf we are given a salvation which delivers from death and offers unending life. This same God then empowers us to love and obey him, places us in household with others who also believe, and will receive us to live with him upon earthly death. He is coming to reign over this world and calls all men to either make peace with him through Jesus Christ, or face his eternal wrath.

Damascus affirms this statement of faith in concert with an emphasis on Biblical and sound moral principles. We believe in the nuclear, heterosexual family unit. We joyfully affirm life and recommend abstinence for the single individual and celebratory and pure sexual expression for married couples. Stealing, lying, and fighting are not consistent with the Spirit of Christ. We encourage one another to be at peace and to avoid anger and manipulation as a means of accomplishing any good thing. We affirm the place of government, employers, parents, and other valid authorities within our society and seek to honor and serve them while submitting to Christ through the Scriptures as the final rule for all things.

We believe that Jesus passed on his authority and mission to believers universally in the context of local communities. These communities covenant together to follow the teachings of the Bible, worship Jesus Christ, love and submit to one another, and share their faith with others through good works and evangelism.

Take a look at http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/about/foundation-documents/confessional/ for a more complete statement of faith. For those desiring greater definition, the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (reformed) and the Heidelberg Catechism provide wonderful teaching and study helps for diving deeper into more specific matters of faith and doctrine.

read comments (0)