What We Believe

The following are the core beliefs of Family Fellowship | Brooklyn, NY based on the foundational truths taught in the bible. All of our teaching and ministry is rooted in and flows out of these biblical doctrines.

We believe that there is only one true, eternal and living God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 44:6,8; 45:6) who is a Spirit (John 4:24), creator of all things (Revelation 4:11), sovereign (Isaiah 46:9,10), holy (Revelation 4:8b), omnipotent (Psalm 115:3), omniscient (Psalm 147:5), omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-17), immutable (Hebrews 13:8), immense (Jeremiah 23:24), immanent (Psalm 23:4a), and transcendent (Job 9:10), who is co-existent, co-equal and co-eternal in three distinct Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit (John 14:26; Mark 1:10,11; John 1:1,14; Acts 5:3,4; Matthew 28:19).

We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, deity that pre-existed His incarnation (John 8:58; Philippians 2:6-11), the Word made flesh who assumed humanity through the Virgin Birth (Luke 1:27-35), so that while on the earth was fully human and fully God, two natures in one Person, divine and human (John 1:14). He is therefore the only Savior, who in reality suffered death on the cross, not only for the primitive transgression (“original sin”), but also for the actual sins of man (Isaiah 53:4-6, II Corinthians 5:21). We also believe in his sinless life (Hebrews 4:15), his miracles (John11:47), his resurrection (Luke 24:46), his ascension (Acts 1:11), and his future second coming in power and great glory (Luke 21:27).

We believe that the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. We accept the original autographs as God-breathed, inerrant, infallible and complete, and therefore hold the sixty-six books of the Bible as the complete and divine revelation of God to man and the final authority for faith and life. The Scriptures are to be interpreted according to their normal grammaticalhistorical meaning. (II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:20-21; Matthew 4:4)

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26,27) but that in Adam’s sin, the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God (Romans 3:22, 23; 5:12; 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-3; 4:17-19). Of himself, man is totally and utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. Forgiveness of sin is only achieved through repentance and from in the shed blood of the resurrected Christ (I Corinthians 15:22; I John 2:2; Romans 3:24-26, 5:9; II Peter 3:9).

We believe in the reality of the Devil and demonic spirits who oppose the work and people of God (Isaiah 14:12; I Peter 5:8; Luke 4:2; 8:12). Christ conquered them through Calvary (I John 3:8; Ephesians 1:20,21; 6:11-12; Colossians 2:14,15; James 4:7), and they will ultimately suffer the punishment of eternal torment in the Lake of Fire with the unsaved who are condemned at the Great White Throne judgement (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:11-15).

We believe that regeneration, or the “new birth” is received through faith in Jesus Christ alone, who was delivered up for our trespasses and was raised for our justification (I Timothy 2:5,6; Romans 3:23-25; 4:25; II Corinthians 5:17). They who are “in Christ” are those redeemed sinners who by means of Christ’s blood have been made “new creatures.” They had been condemned, but in Christ have been justified, are being sanctified, and will ultimately be glorified. (Romans 5:16-18; 8:30; I Corinthians 1:30; 6:11; II Corinthians 5:17).

a) We believe that the Church is the universal “body” and “espoused bride” of Christ, which is solely made up of supernaturally born-again persons throughout the Church Age, of which Christ is the Head, (Romans 12:5; I Corinthians 12:13; John 3:3-7, 29; I Peter 1:23; Ephesians 5:23). b) We believe that the primary 4-fold mission of the Church is to glorify God (Romans 15:6), edify and disciple believers (Ephesians 4:11,12), evangelize the world (Luke 24:47), and to be an enlightenment and restraining force in the world (Matthew 5:13, 14). c) We believe that Jesus Christ left two ordinances for the Church: water baptism and the Lord’s Supper (Communion). We believe in water baptism by single immersion, in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as an outward symbol of the inward work of regeneration accomplished by God in the life of the believer who has placed his/her faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (Matthew 28:19; Romans 6:3,4). We believe in the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper which Jesus commanded his disciples to observe by partaking of the emblems of bread and wine in remembrance of His sacrificial death (Luke 22:19, 20; I Corinthians 11:23-26). d) We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is mandated in New Testament Scriptures (Matthew 28:19, 20; Acts 11:19-26; 16:5; Titus 1:5).

We believe in the baptism with the Holy Spirit as an experience received subsequent to salvation (John 14:17), with tongues as the initial physical evidence of having received the gift (Acts 2:4; 10:45-46; 11:15- 17; 19:6). Jesus Christ is the baptizer (Matthew 3:11) and all believers within the Church Age are eligible to receive this baptism for the purpose of empowerment, witnessing and ministering (Acts 1:8; 2:39).
We believe that all of the gifts of the Holy Spirit enumerated in the New Testament were intended by God to endure throughout the Church Age (I Corinthians 1:7; 12:28). These include the gifts of revelation (word of wisdom), word of knowledge, (discerning of spirits), gifts of power (faith, healing, miracles), and gifts of utterance (prophecy, tongues, interpretation of tongues), (I Corinthians 12:8-10). The purpose of the gifts is for the exhortation, edification and comfort of the Church (I Corinthians 14:26).

a) We believe that those who are born twice (“born again” die once, but those who are born once (unregenerated) die twice (partake in the “second death”). Therefore, we believe there shall be a bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment, (Daniel 12:2; Matthew 25:46; John 5:28, 29). b)We believe that the dead in Christ are absent from the body and present with the Lord, awaiting the First Resurrection after which they, in their glorified bodies, will bypass the Great White Throne judgment and reign in bliss for ever with the Lord, (Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21; I Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 20:4-6; 22:3-5). c) We believe the souls of unbelievers remain, after physical death, separated from God in conscious punishment and torment until the Second Resurrection, after which they will be judged before the Great White Throne and be sentenced to the eternal “second death” in the Lake of Fire, (Matthew 25:4