Beliefs

At Huntersville ARP, we are committed to God’s Word—the Bible—the only perfect rule of faith and practice, as our first and final authority. The historic Creeds of the Christian faith, along with the Westminster Confession of Faith, Larger and Shorter Catechisms present in clear terms what we believe the Bible teaches, so we are committed to them as our doctrinal standards.

What is an "ARP"?

We are grateful for the unity all believers enjoy in Christ, but we also treasure the rich heritage of our own denomination. Our legacy in the Associated Reformed Presbyterian Church roots us in a rich Christian tradition that transcends our contemporary evangelical age and connects us to the witness of saints across time and place.

Associate. Reformed. Presbyterian. These are words with roots, reaching down to the rich, fertile soil of 17th Century Scotland, where the Presbyterians faced the ruthless King of England, Charles II, and his efforts to make the Church of Scotland submit to his rule. In the "killing times" of the 1680s, many of these men, women, and children paid the ultimate price for their devotion to Jesus. Further, the Church of Scotland owned the land nearby, rather than with the congregation itself. In contrast, the ARP has always affirmed that the congregation has the right to call their pastor, as approved by Presbytery.

Over the next 100 years after King Charles II, their spiritual children moved to America, settling the middle colonies of the New World with their rugged, determined piety. They formed congregations known as Associate Presbyterian Churches and Reformed Presbyterian Churches. In 1782 in Philadelphia, many of these congregations merged to form a new denomination, the Associate Reformed Church. Today known as the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, we still hold to the supreme headship of Christ in His church on earth, and our denomination is considered perhaps one of the oldest theologically conservative Christian denominations in America. 

What does “Presbyterian” Mean?

Presbyterianism simply means that we believe in leadership by multiple elders, elected and installed by the congregation, overseeing the life of the church. In the everyday life of the church, each member is placed under the spiritual care of an elder. This means that you can expect pastors, elders, and deacons to come alongside you in both moments of joy and of sorrow.

We believe in a connected church, and this begins by elders connecting themselves to the lives of the congregation. The idea of connection also plays into how we relate to other churches. Each individual church is under the care of a Presbytery–a group of pastors and elders in a specific geographical area which comes together a few times a year to worship, pray, and make decisions together. Finally, these Presbyteries come together once a year in June at our General Synod Meeting.

Summary of our Beliefs:

We believe in ONE triune God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - who is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, and truth. 

We believe Jesus Christ is God's incarnate Son, fully Divine and fully man, who died in our place for our sins as our redeemer. We believe He was raised again from the dead on the third day and ascended bodily up into heaven where He now sits as Lord over all at the Father's right hand.

We believe all men are by nature dead in sin and live under the wrath of God. God saves us by His grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

We believe the Bible is the only inerrant and infallible Word of God.

As Christians, our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, endeavoring to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth and to order our hearts and our lives according to His Word.

We believe in the Christian family as the basic building block of the visible Church, and we baptize our children as a sign and a seal of their membership in this covenant community. We believe our children need to put their faith in Jesus and repent of their sins in order to be saved.

We believe the Church is an essential part of God's plan for communicating grace to sinners. Outside this body, there is no ordinary way to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.