Calvary Chapel has been formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Our desire is to know Christ and to be conformed into His image by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not a denominational church. We are not opposed to denominations, but we seek to avoid over-emphasis on the doctrinal differences that have led to the division of the Body of Christ.
The following doctrinal statement of faith governs every aspect of what we do at Calvary Chapel Hamilton
Scripture
We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, which is without error and is the complete authority for faith, salvation and sanctification. We see the Word of God as central to our ministry, and we seek to teach it in a way that its message can be applied to an individual’s life, leading that person to greater maturity in Christ.
God
We believe that the God eternally exists as both one and three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe that He is infallible and that He has foreknowledge of all future decisions and events.
Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. He was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless and miraculous life, provided for the atonement of our sins by His vicarious substitutionary death on the Cross He was physically resurrected in the same body by the power of the Holy Spirit. He ascended back to the right hand of God the Father in heaven and ever lives to make intercession for us.
Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, who seals, indwells, sanctifies, baptizes, teaches, empowers, reveals, and guides the believer into all truth. The Holy Spirit gives gifts to whom He wills, which are valid for today, and ought to be exercised according to scriptural guidelines.
Mankind
We believe that man is created in the image of God; however, after the fall of Adam and Eve, all people are by nature separated from God and responsible for their own sin, but that salvation, redemption, and forgiveness are offered as a free gift by the Lord Jesus Christ to all, based on His grace alone.
Salvation
We believe that salvation was made possible by God through the death of Christ on the cross for our sins and His resurrection from the dead. The salvation Christ offers is available to all and is received freely by grace and through faith in Christ alone.
The Church
We believe that the universal Church is an organic body composed of all believers, both living and dead, who have been sealed by the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. The church has the responsibility to worship the Lord and share the good news of Christ’s death and resurrection to the world, making disciples, baptizing believers, and teaching them to observe sound doctrine and live a morally pure life. The Lord has given the church two ordinances which are to continue until He returns — adult baptism by immersion and Holy Communion.
Worship
We believe worship of God should be spiritual. Therefore, we remain flexible and yielded to the leading of the Holy Spirit to direct our worship. We believe worship of God should be inspirational and intelligent. We give an important place to music in our worship.
Christ’s Return
We await the pretribulation rapture of the church and the second coming of Christ, which will be physical, personal, visible, and premillennial. This motivates us to evangelism, holy living, heart-felt worship, committed service, diligent study of God’s Word, and regular fellowship.
Eternity
We believe that those who are saved by Jesus Christ will spend eternity with Christ in heaven in a conscious state of blessedness, reward, and satisfaction; that those who do not personally receive the finished work of Christ by faith will spend eternity separated from God in a state of conscious torment.
Satan
We believe that there is a real personal devil, who seeks to deceive, tempt, kill, steal and destroy, yet his power is limited by God to only what God permits him to do; that the devil has been defeated positionally at the cross of Christ, and will be defeated practically at Christ’s glorious second coming.
We reject:
- the belief that true Christians can be demon possessed and are helpless against the craft and wiles of the Devil;
- any philosophy or theology which denies that human freewill can be exercised in the receiving of Christ’s free gift of salvation;
- the belief that Jesus’ atonement was limited in its extent, instead, we believe that He died for all unrighteous people and that any perceived limitation rests in one’s free rejection of Christ’s finished work of atonement;
- the assertion that God’s wooing grace cannot be resisted or that He has elected some people to go to hell;
- “positive confession” including the use of visualization techniques (e.g., the Faith Movement, that views faith as a force that can create one’s own reality or that God can be commanded to heal or work miracles according to man’s will and faith);
- any human prophecy that supersedes or is contrary to Scripture;
- any overemphasis on spiritual gifts, experiential signs and wonders to the exclusion of biblical teaching.
- any theory from psychology and philosophy that is contrary to Scripture and is in substance “according to the tradition of men”;
- the “Emergent Church” movement insofar as it departs from the historic orthodox Christian doctrines in favour of postmodernism; and
- elements of the New Apostolic Reformation movement, such as dominion theology, Christian nationalism and activist approaches to spiritual warfare.