Wo’iyopastake Ministry

STATEMENT OF FAITH

What we believe:                                    

The Bible – Both the Old and New Testaments are inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, as the only infallible and authoritative rule for faith and practice. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21; Hebrews 4:12)

God – God [Wakan Tanka] is the Creator and the ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God. (Genesis 1:1; Matthew 28:19; 1 Peter1:2; 2 Corinthians 13:14)

Jesus Christ – We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ, His Virgin Birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His atoning death on the Cross, the power of His shed blood to save, heal and deliver, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and His personal second coming to earth again in power and glory. He is fully God and fully man, co-equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and is the sole Mediator between God and man. (Matthew 1:22-23; John 1:1-5; Hebrews 7:26 ; Acts 2:22;   1 Corinthians 15:3; Matthew 28:6;  Acts 2:33)

Holy Spirit – The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He lives within every Christian from the moment of salvation. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved, though the manifestation of these gifts may become evident at a later time. He provides the believer with understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance  for daily living. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily. (John 14:26; John 16:7-8; Acts 10:44-46)

The Condition of Mankind – Man is a created being, made in the likeness and image of God. Through Adam’s transgression, sin entered the world, separating people from the holiness of God. All of mankind is in need of forgiveness and regeneration. (Romans 3:12, 23; 5:12)

Salvation – Salvation is a free gift from God to us, bought with the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus alone paid the penalty for our sin, and none of our own works can “earn” us salvation with God. By grace we are saved through faith. We are cleansed from all unrighteousness. To be saved we must confess with our mouth that Jesus is the Lord of our life, and believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead. (Romans 10:9-10; Ephesians 2:8; 2 Corinthians 5:17)

If a person has been genuinely saved, born again of incorruptible seed, he cannot lose his salvation. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God alone, not by the effort of the believer.  Fellowship with God, on the other hand,  is maintained by the believer’s continual sanctification: the separation from that which is evil, repentance of sins, and dedication unto God. (John 10:29; Hebrews 7:25, 10:14; 1 Peter 1:3-5)

The Gifts and Fruit of the Holy Spirit – The Holy Spirit was poured out on the Day of Pentecost upon the New Testament Church, of which we are still a part today.  We believe in the filling and  empowering of the Holy Spirit for ministry in the world today. (Acts 1:8; 2:4)

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit We believe in the present day operation of the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit, for the edification and equipping of the church for ministry. They are given by the Holy Spirit, and exercised by the believer through faith. (I Corinthians 12:4-11, 28; Romans 12:6-8)

We also believe in the five-fold gift ministries to the church: Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. (Ephesians 4:11- 13)

We do not welcome any practices that are called “supernatural” that are not mandated by scripture.

The Fruit of the Holy Spirit We believe that Christians should show cultivated spiritual fruit as evidence of a Spirit-filled life. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The Church – The Church of Jesus Christ is the universal, spiritual body of believers from every tribe, tongue, kindred and race of peoples, and is indwelt by God through the Holy Spirit and is divinely empowered to carry out the Great Commission on earth. We believe in the need for believers to assemble together for the purpose of growth and discipleship, unity, edification and exhortation, and fellowship with other believers. (Matthew 28:18-20; 2:22; 5:30; John 17:21; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Ephesians 1:22-23; Hebrews 10:25; Revelation 5:9)

We believe in two ordinances for the church: (1) Water Baptism by immersion, after repenting of one’s sins and receiving the gift of salvation. And (2) Holy Communion (the Lord’s Supper) as a symbolic remembrance of Christ’s suffering and death for our salvation. (Matthew 28:18-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

Eternity –  We believe In the resurrection and final judgment of both the saved and the lost. We believe in the ultimate new heaven and new earth. (John 3:16; 17:20-21; Romans 6:23, 8:17-18; Revelation 20:16; 21:1)

Races of people – God created all people in His image, from one blood, and all are equal in value. Racism in all its forms is sin. (Acts 17:26)

Women in Ministry – The gifts and the callings of God are not determined by gender. Both sons and daughters will prophesy: teach, and shepherd the flock. In Christ, that which once divided us—Jew, Gentile; slave, free; male, female—no longer separates us. (Luke 2:36; Acts 2:17; 18:26; 21:9; Colossians 4:15; Gal 3:26-28).

Use of cultural objects & practices – We believe that cultural objects or practices may be utilized, such as for evangelism, IF there is no mixing of any false religion with true Christianity at all, and the matter has been brought before God for His wisdom, and there is no stumbling block placed before a weaker brother. We believe that a Christian can be fully Lakota in culture and fully Christian in faith. (Acts 17: 16-23; 1 Corinthians 8:1-13; 9:1-14; 10:23-31)   * See also, article “The Scriptures and Questions of Cultural Matters”.  Request from wo.iyopastake@gmail.com

Finally…

We can partner with those who have minor belief differences.

We can, and should, have unity around the essential beliefs, but freedom in the non-essential beliefs. We will stand strong on the things which the Bible teaches us with clarity.  Where there is less clarity we are more flexible. The beliefs that unite are more important than what divides us. Jesus Christ is the one that unites us.

“In essential matters, unity. In non-essential matters, diversity. In all matters, charity.” – Augustine