Church Statement on Doctrinal Affirmations & Church Life and Practice 
 

The doctrinal position of Grace Baptist Church Aberdeen has been the foundation of the establishing and building of our local church. It is the responsibility of the church and especially her leaders to defend and uphold Biblical truth especially as it pertains to clarity about the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. In recent months the doctrine of justification by faith alone has come under attack within our church. In the process of seeking to defend, clarify and uphold this doctrine we faced some significant challenges which involved church members departing from our membership. The clarity of the Gospel, and the centrality of the Gospel within the church and Christian life and practice is essential to the life of our church. We have put together this brief but important church statement to clarify:

-    Our belief about the doctrine of justification by faith alone.
-    The importance of the local church.
-    How and why we engage in practical and cultural issues of our day.

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Justification by Faith Alone
The doctrinal position of our church has been established from the beginning in 2019. Our teaching on justification by faith alone is a core doctrine which is summarised in our confessional position in the London Baptist Confession of Faith. 

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Christ’s Death Secures Both Pardon and Righteousness
We affirm that the death of Jesus Christ accomplished both the forgiveness of sins and the fulfilment of the law on behalf of all who believe. In His life and death, Christ satisfied divine justice, securing both pardon and righteousness. Our sin was imputed to Him, and His righteousness is imputed to us by faith alone (11.1 of 2LBCF).

We deny that justification is conditional upon any human response, effort, or cooperation. Justification is not a reward for faith, repentance, or obedience, but a free and sovereign act of God’s grace. Faith itself is not the ground or cause of justification, but the God-ordained instrument by which we receive Christ and His righteousness. We deny that our salvation was achieved merely or exclusively by the death of Christ without reference to His life of perfect righteousness.

(Scripture Proofs 2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 5:19; Isaiah 53:5–6; Hebrews 10:14; Romans 4:16; Romans 11:6; Ephesians 2:8–9; Titus 3:5; Galatians 2:21)

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Christ’s Righteousness Imputed by Faith Alone
We affirm that justification is a gracious, once for all, judicial act of God, whereby He declares the elect righteous solely on the basis of Christ’s imputed righteousness—His active obedience (fulfilling the law) and passive obedience (dying in our place). Faith is the instrument of justification, not its ground; it unites us to Christ, in whom all righteousness is found (11.3 of 2LBCF).

We deny the notion of initial justification by faith that must be completed or maintained by works; Justification is not a process but a once-for-all-time Judicial verdict. We deny any concept of justification—whether described as initial or final—that is grounded upon sanctification, Spirit-wrought obedience, perseverance, or any works performed by the believer.
At the final judgment, believers will be openly acknowledged and vindicated on the basis of Christ’s righteousness alone, which they receive by faith alone. Good works will serve as the public evidence of a true and living faith, but never as the ground, cause, or instrument of justification.

We deny that any person can believe the biblical Gospel and at the same time reject the apostolic teaching of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. We also deny that there is more than one true Gospel.

(Scripture Proofs Romans 3:28; Galatians 2:16; Philippians 3:9; Romans 5:1; Hebrews 10:14; Galatians 3:3; Galatians 2:21; Galatians 1:6–9; Ephesians 2:8–9; Titus 3:5)

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Good Works as Evidence, Not Grounds
We affirm that good works are the necessary and inevitable fruit of true saving faith. They are evidence of regeneration and the Spirit’s work, but never the basis or instrument of justification. Saving faith results in sanctification—a life increasingly conformed to Christ through the Spirit’s power (16.2 & 16.5 of 2LBCF).

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We deny any teaching that makes good works necessary as the ground, cause, instrument, or condition of justification, whether initial or final.

We deny that any works performed by the believer—whether before or after regeneration—contribute in any way to our justification. This includes Spirit-wrought obedience, sanctification, perseverance, or any other acts of righteousness.
We deny that believers must be inherently righteous by virtue of their cooperation with God’s life-transforming grace before God will declare them justified in Christ. We are justified while we are still sinners.
We deny that we are justified by the righteousness of Christ infused into us or by any righteousness that is thought to inhere within us.
We deny any subtle language that teaches works are not meritorious, yet still “necessary” for “final justification.” Such teaching introduces performance-based conditions into the gospel, redefining justification as a process rather than a once-for-all declaration grounded in Christ’s righteousness alone. It implies that justification is initially by faith but finally completed or confirmed by works of obedience, thereby denying the sufficiency of Christ’s finished work and shifting assurance from Christ to human performance.
We deny that works done by the grace of God through the Holy Spirit—though pleasing to God and necessary as fruit—serve as grounds for “final justification”.

(Scripture Proofs Galatians 5:6; Ephesians 2:8–10; Titus 3:5–7; Romans 3:28; Romans 3:20; Philippians 3:9)

 

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The Importance of the Local Church
The church is often no longer seen as an important authority in the life of a believer, but rather a place for personal preferences to meet felt needs. We have compiled a summary of key teaching about the authority and blessing of the local church.

The church is the bride of Jesus Christ; the people for who Christ suffered, bled and died for. A truly born-again Christian is not detached from the church, which functions in local settings as Christ has instituted. Christ gives the authority to His Apostles to preach the Gospel, make disciples and plant churches. They appoint elders to have oversight over these churches which are to function locally. This is why we affirm that the local church is a spiritual authority where Biblical membership is taught and upheld according to Scripture.

The local church has the responsibility to preach and uphold Biblical truth. Church leaders have the responsibility to shepherd the flock which means investing in the lives of the members for the sake of their souls and the purity and building up of Christ’s bride. Every member has a responsibility to serve the local church; where the member is truly part of a family of believers and is ‘counted in’ that church and ‘counted on’.

Church members can leave a local church for theological or practical reasons, but this is something that is agreed upon by the local church and not at the expense of it. The practice of church discipline is essential in the life of the local church to Biblically address matters of sin for the purity of the church.

We also affirm that the local church should seek to partner with and support other local churches, both locally and more widely. The partnership of local churches is not at the expense of Biblical doctrine but because of it. This is something that we yearn for as a local church in Aberdeen.

(Scripture Proofs Ephesians 5:25 & 32; Matthew 6:18-19; Acts 2:41; Acts 14:23; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:4-5; Matthew 18:15-17; 1 Corinthians 5)

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The Gospel at the centre of engaging in Practical and Cultural Issues
The true Church is referred to by Christ as the light of the world and was a serious influence on culture for hundreds of years. In recent years the church has increasingly abandoned the biblical teaching and practice on such matters. As a church, we have sought to engage in some key contemporary issues of our day; both in proclamation and practice. We believe it is the duty and responsibility of the church to be that ‘prophetic voice’ and to take actions that accord with Scriptural commands. The crucial and central grounds for this is the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, the unity of our church is clarity on the Gospel which is how we go forth with such engagement and practice. We do not unite on cultural issues at the expense of Gospel clarity.

During Covid, our church met secretly and was involved in a judicial challenge of government mandates. This was not because we had a united position on Covid, but because we were united by the essential nature of what the church of Jesus Christ is. Therefore, we affirm that the church is united because of what she believes.

We teach the importance of the distinct roles and calling of men and women in the family with a man’s calling to lead and protect his family, and a wife’s calling to be a homemaker and nurture and care for children where blessed. This is the outworking of marriage which is a picture of Christ’s union with His bride, the church. Marriage and having children are not essential in a Christian’s calling and some people may have the gift of singleness and others may not be blessed to be married or have children. However, we affirm the Biblical blessing of marriage and having children as the Scriptures teach.

In education, we have been involved in setting up two Christian schools in the city. We have preached with clarity about the necessity of a Christian upbringing of children. This is because we want our children protected from evil and raised according to Scripture to know and understand the Gospel without compromise or confusion. Therefore, we affirm the Biblical vision for a Christian education for children.

We seek to increasingly engage in issues such as abortion. Such issues are tackled not by trying to change a culture to speak about Christianity. Rather, it is by the proclamation of Christ that we pray the Spirit of God would shape and change cultures. We affirm the importance of engaging in such issues with Gospel-centred clarity and proclamation.
We therefore believe that the public proclamation of Christ is essential. This is what we actively seek to do in the public square, and why we have been involved in establishing the work of UK Gospel Witness. We affirm that it is essential for the church to engage in the public proclamation of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our desire is to see church members increasingly active in tackling and addressing matters in the life of our society, but to do so as those who are clear about the Gospel, centred upon the Gospel and going forth with the proclamation of the Gospel.

(Scripture Proofs 1 Corinthians 1:10; Matthew 19:4-6; Hebrews 10:24-25; Titus 2:4-5; Ephesians 6:4; Romans 10:14-15; Matthew 6:33; Romans 12:2)