First Church of God
AI summary — doctrinal positions on this page are inferred by AI from this church's own public statements and may be inaccurate.
Inherited from denomination
What Church of God in Christ teaches
Positions bound by the denomination's confessional standards. This is what the tradition teaches; whether this specific congregation publicly holds each is a separate question — see Statements below.
Affirms
- Believer's BaptismSTRONGBaptist confessions; Pentecostal fundamentals; Anabaptist tradition
- Marriage as one man and one womanSTRONGGenesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4–6; historic universal Christian teaching.
- Permissibility of divorce and remarriagestandardMatthew 19:9 (adultery ground); 1 Corinthians 7:15 (abandonment ground). Practice varies.
Denies
- Apostolic SuccessionstandardCongregational and presbyterian polity reject the necessity of tactile episcopal succession.
- Assumption of MarystandardUniversal Protestant rejection — not attested in Scripture; not received as dogma.
- Homosexual practice and biblical sexual ethicsSTRONGRomans 1:26–27; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10; historic universal Christian teaching.
- Immaculate ConceptionSTRONGUniversal Protestant + Orthodox rejection. Orthodox reject on the grounds that they hold prepurification at the Annunciation, not conception.
- Infant BaptismSTRONGBaptist confessions (New Hampshire; BFM 2000 VII); Anabaptist / Schleitheim; Pentecostal fundamentals
- Perpetual Virginity of MarystandardNatural reading of Matthew 13:55–56 (brothers of Jesus); typical modern Baptist / evangelical position.
- Real PresencestandardMemorialist / Zwinglian view; typical Baptist and Free Church position
- TransubstantiationSTRONGOrthodox reject the Aristotelian metaphysics; Lutherans use 'sacramental union'; 39 Articles Art. XXVIII rejects explicitly; Reformed/Baptist reject substance-change.
Wrestles with
- Pacifism vs. just-warweakDefault just-war framework — usually unwritten. Inheriting at weak confidence.
- Women in pastoral / ordained officeweakACNA no unified position (some dioceses ordain women, others not). GMC restricts by role. COGIC restricts bishop role but ordains women to other ministries.
In their own words
Statements
statement_of_faith
<!DOCTYPE html> About Us | history | First Church of God "> Search Contribution (419) 255-0097 Facebook Icon Instagram Icon Youtube Icon Toggle navigation Menu Home About Ministries Weekly Events Pastoral Search Community Contact Give Contribution About Us Our History Our Beliefs We believe: The Bible is the inspired, authoritative Word of God. That there is only one God, eternally existent in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the deity of Christ, His virgin birth and sinless life, His atoning death, His bodily resurrection, His ascension to the rigSource ↗
beliefs
About Us | history | First Church of God "> Search Contribution (419) 255-0097 Facebook Icon Instagram Icon Youtube Icon Toggle navigation Menu Home About Ministries Weekly Events Pastoral Search Community Contact Give Contribution --> About Us Our History Our Beliefs We believe: The Bible is the inspired, authoritative Word of God. That there is only one God, eternally existent in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the deity of Christ, His virgin birth and sinless life, His atoning death, His bodily resurrection, His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and His eminentSource ↗
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