Statement of Faith

The statement of faith adopted by Sound Christian Academy is limited to primary Christian doctrine, which is considered to be central to all Christian denominations, and which sets Protestant Christianity apart from other faiths.

1. We believe the Bible alone to be the word of God, the ultimate and infallible authority for faith and practice.
Micah 6:8; Matthew 4:4, 22:43, I Corinthians 2:13, II Timothy 3:15-17, Hebrews 3:7, I Peter 1:10-21

2. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent.
Genesis 1:1, Exodus 3:14, Deuteronomy 33:27, I Kings 8:27, II Chronicles 20:6, Psalms 139:1-10, 147:5; Isaiah 40:28, 44:24, 46:10 57:15, Daniel 2:20-21, Matthew 28:19, Acts 17:27-28, Romans 11:33, II Cor. 13:14,Colossians 2:2-3, I Timothy 1:17, 2:5, 6:15-16, I Peter 1:1-2

3. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory.  
Matthew 1:25; 28:1-20, Mark 10:45, John 1:1, 8:58, 20:28, II Corinthians 5:21, Philippians 2:5-8, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 1:8, 2:9, 4:15

 4. We believe that, for the salvation of lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary.
Ephesians 4:30; Titus 3:5

5. We believe that salvation is by grace through faith alone.
Romans 3:21-31, 5:1; Galatians 2:15-16; Ephesians 2:1-10

6. We believe that faith without works is dead.
James 2:14-26

7. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
Romans 8:9-11, 26-31, I Corinthians 6:19, Ephesians 1:13–14

8. We believe in the future resurrection of all humans. Those who are saved will be raised to eternal life and fellowship with God and those who are lost will experience eternal separation from God.
Matthew 8:11-12, 13:49-50; I Peter 1:3-4; II Thessalonians 1:8-9; Revelation 21:1-8,  22:3-5

9. We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 12:4-5; I Corinthians 12:12-13; Ephesians 2:14-20, 4:15-16

Per the 2013 & 2016 Statements of Faith and Re-adopted by the Tacoma Baptist Board of Directors May 2020.

BIBLE
We believe that the Bible is God’s revelation, given to men under inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
Matt. 22:43; I Cor. 2:13; Heb. 3:7; I Pet. 1:10-12; II Pet. 1:16-21The Holy Spirit used the knowledge, personality, culture, language, style, vocabulary, and intentions of the human author to convey God’s intended message in a written form understandable to human beings. The Bible is truly the work of human beings and the work of God yet unified in its meaning and message. All Scripture is the inspired Word of God, is authoritative, sufficient, and reliable.
Micah 6:8; Matt. 4:4; II Tim. 3:15-17

It contains only and all of what God intended that it should contain.
Pr. 30:6; Rev. 22:18-19

The whole of Scripture is inspired as well as the words of Scripture. Since the Bible is the inspired Word of God, the Bible is inerrant in the autographs, reliable and without error, according to the intentions and purposes of the text in its historical context.
Ps. 19:7-9; John 10:35, Acts 24:14; II Pet. 1:20-21

The Bible is comprised of sixty-six books. The compilation of these books was providentially superintended through the ecclesiastical recognition of the canon. This canon is properly considered closed.

GOD AND THE TRINITY
We believe that God is the infinite, non-contingent, personal, sovereign, self-existent, spirit-being who is the Creator of the Universe.
Gen. 1:1; Ex. 3:14; Ps. 10:16; Is. 44:24; 66:1; John 4:24; 5:26; Eph. 1:11; I Tim. 1:17; Rev. 4:11

God exists as a single and indivisible spirit.
Dt. 6:4; John 4:24; Eph. 4:6; I Tim. 1:17; 2:5; 6:15-16; Jam. 2:19

While simultaneously existing as one indivisible Spirit, there are three distinct persons who are God: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit.
Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 13:14; I Pet.1:1-2

These Three are coequally, coessentially, and coeternally God, each equally and fully possessing the whole of the essence and attributes of God.
John 1:1-18; 6:27; 20:28; Acts 5:1-4; I Cor. 2:10-11; Heb. 1:8; I Pet. 1:2

God is infinite. He is not limited by time but is without beginning or end.
Dt. 33:27; Ps. 90:2; 102:12, 27; Is. 57:15; I Tim. 1:17

He is not limited by space but fills and transcends it.
I Kings 8:27; Ps. 139: 7-10; Jer. 23:23-24; Acts 17:27-28

He is not limited in power but is all-powerful.
Gen.18:14; II Chr. 20:6; Ps. 147:5; Is.14:27; 43:13; Jer. 32:17; Dan. 4:35; Matt.10:27; Eph. 1:19-20; Tit. 1:2; Jam. 1:13

He is not limited in His knowledge but knows all things past, present, and future and possesses all wisdom.
Ps. 139:1-4; Is. 40:28; 46:10; Dan. 2:20-21; Rom. 11:33; Col. 2:2-3; Heb. 4:13

God is immutable in His nature, essence, and attributes.
Num. 23:19; Ps. 33:11; Ps. 102:27; Heb. 6:17; Jam.1:17

The infinite God of the universe is good. He is holy and does not sin or commit injustice but is morally pure.
Job 34:11; Jam. 1:13

God is just in His laws and in the administration of His laws.
Dt. 7:9-10; Rom. 12:19

God is truthful and is faithful in regards to His promises.
Num. 23:19; I Thess. 5:24; Tit. 1:2; I Pet. 4:19

God is a loving God who loves Himself within the Trinity as well as His creation.
Matt. 3:17; John 3:16; 14:31; Rom. 5:6-10; I John 4:8, 10, 16

God is holy, transcendent and separate from His creation, but immanent, present within, relating to, and active within His creation.
Ex. 15:11; Ps. 113:5-6; Is. 6:1-4; 57:15; Matt. 5:26-30; John 14:23; 15:15; Rev. 4:1-11

We believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God.
Is. 9:6; Matt. 11:27; John 1:1; 8:58; 20:28; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8

As God, He possesses the whole of the divine essence and all of the divine attributes.
Matt. 28:20; John 16:30; Col. 1:16-17

He is coeternal and coequal with the Father and the Holy Spirit in all aspects of deity but distinguished in person.
John 10:29-31; Php. 2:5-6; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:3

He has always existed and has always existed as God.
Is. 9:6; Micah 5:2; John 1:1-3; 8:56-58

JESUS, HIS DEATH, AND RESURRECTION
The Son of God is truly God and truly human.
Philippians. 2:5-8

He is one person, possessing two natures. These natures are united in one person and cannot be separated, but they remain distinct, without a communication of attributes between the natures, a change of either nature’s attributes, or a conflict between the attributes. As a human being, He was human in every aspect essential to humanity. He possessed a human soul, a human body, and a human will.
Matt. 26:12, 38; Mark 2:8; Luke 23:46; John 2:21

His birth was a real birth, His death was a real death and His resurrection was a real human resurrection.
Luke 2:5-7, 23:47; John 19:34; 1 Corinthians 15:12-58

He experienced pain, hunger, sorrow, and joy as other human beings experience them.
Matt. 4:2; John 11:35, 19:38

He learned, grew, and experienced true temptation but without sin.
Matt. 4:1-11; Luke 2:52; Hebrews 4:15; James 1:13

As God, He retained all aspects essential to His deity.
Matt. 9:2, 14:33; John 8:58, 20:28-29

Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, was rejected by His people, was tried by Pilate, was crucified on the cross, rose bodily from the dead three days later, and bodily ascended into heaven.
Matt. 1:25, Heb. 4:15, John 1:11, Mark 15:1-15, Luke 23:33, Matt. 28:1-15, Acts 1:9-11

Christ died in the place of sinners and His substitutionary death is the basis of our salvation.
Mark 10:45; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 2:9

His resurrection defeated death and provides the hope of our future resurrection.
I Cor. 15:12-23

Christ is now exalted to the highest place at the right hand of the Father.
Acts 2:33-36; Eph. 1:20-21; Heb. 10:12-13

He is the head of the Church, intercedes for the elect as our High Priest, and sustains all of creation.
Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:23; Col. 1:17; 1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 5:10; I John 2:1

He will one day return to judge and reign for all of eternity.
Matt. 24:31; 25:31-46; Rev. 20:4, 11-15

HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit, is God. He is coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Son, possessing the whole of the essence of God and all of the attributes pertaining to deity.
Ps. 139:7; Matt. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; I Cor. 2:10-11; II Cor. 13:14; Heb. 9:14; I Pet. 1:1-2

The Holy Spirit is a person, possessing all essential qualities pertaining to personhood, who is distinct in person from the other members of the Trinity.
Luke 12:11-12; Acts 13:2; Rom. 8:26; I Cor. 12:7,11; Eph. 4:30

The Holy Spirit indwells believers and draws us to Himself.
John 16:8–11; Acts 13:48; Rom. 8:9, 26-31, 9:15-23; I Cor. 6:19; Eph. 1:13–14

He regenerates and seals the believer.
Tit. 3:5; Eph. 4:30

The Holy Spirit sanctifies us, molding us into the image and likeness of Christ and helping us to pray.
Rom. 8:26-30

SIN AND DEATH
God’s wrath is upon humans for their sin and they are under sentence of death and bound for eternity in Hell.
Eph. 2:3; Rom. 1:18, 5:9, 6:23

God in His mercy and grace has made provision for our sin problem in the person of Jesus Christ. He did so for His own glory in the revelation of His love and forgiveness.
Eph. 1:4-14

The death of Christ made provision for salvation for all men.
I John 2:2; Tit. 2:11; Rom. 5

The death of Christ is substitutionary; Christ died in the place of sinners and salvation is based upon His merit and provision.
Mark: 10:45; John 10:11; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 2:9; I Pet. 3:18

The death of Christ satisfied God’s wrath, purchased the sinner out of slavery, and reconciled him to God.
Rom. 3:25, I John 2:2, Acts 20:28, Rom. 5:1, 10-11; 2 Cor. 5:18-20

The death of Christ provided for the salvation of believers before and after His death.
Heb. 11:13-16

SALVATION
We are, for our part, saved by faith, apart from our works, in Jesus Christ and His gospel.
Eph. 2:1-10

The essence of the gospel is that Jesus Christ died to save sinners, was buried, conquering death rose again on the third day, ascended into heaven, and appeared to many.
I Cor. 15

To be saved, a man must repent of his sin and rely upon Christ and His work for his salvation. Salvation includes justification, sanctification, and glorification. One is justified and positionally sanctified when he turns from his sin and believes in Christ Jesus.
Gal. 2:26

One is sanctified by the work of the Holy Spirit as he is transformed into Christlikeness.
I Thess. 4:3

One is glorified in the resurrection when he is given a new body and is given a mind like Christ’s.
I Cor. 15:42-58; Col. 1:22; I John 3:2

We believe that the church is the body of which Christ is the head. It is comprised of all those who believe in Jesus Christ and have been genuinely born again.
Rom. 12:4-5; Eph. 2:14-20, 4:15-16; I Cor. 12:12-13

There is a real and future judgment of both lost and saved persons. The one who is in Christ Jesus has no fear of condemnation because of the work of Christ, but his or her work and life upon the earth will be judged.
Rom. 14:10-12; II Cor. 5:10

Believers will spend eternity with Christ in the New Heavens and New Earth.
Matt. 25:46; Rom. 8:19-21; I Pet. 1:3-4; Heb. 12:22-23; Rev 21:1-4, 22:3-5

The lost person will be condemned to Hell for his or her sin. Hell is a real and eternal state where unsaved persons go after the judgment.
Matt. 8:11-12, 13:49-50, 18:8-9, 25:41, 46; II Thess. 1:8-9; Jude 7; Rev. 20:15, 21:8

MARRIAGE, GENDER, AND SEXUALITY
God created human beings in his image, male and female, tasking them with exercising dominion over his creation and filling the earth. Both male and female are good creations of God, and each is necessary to fulfill the creation mandate. Male and female are not human constructs, but God’s intentional and purposeful designs of human bodies. A rejection of God’s design of an individual as male or female is a rejection of God’s good creation of the body. One’s identity as male or female is biologically defined and is immutable.

God is the institutor of marriage. In marriage, a biological man and a biological woman from different families are united to live in a lifelong covenant relationship with one another. Sexual relations have two purposes: they are an expression of unity within the covenantal marriage relationship, and they are how human beings fulfill God’s command to multiply and fill the earth. Thus, a sexual relationship is only in alignment with God’s purpose and design when it is within the bounds of marriage. All sexual relationships and expressions outside of heterosexual, monogamous marriage are not in accordance with God’s design and participation in these acts is sinful.

Biblical Support: Genesis 1:26-31, 2:15-25; Mark 10:1-12; 1 Corinthians 6:9-20; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Timothy 1:8-10.

SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT
Our commitment is to love those students or other persons who struggle with the sin and state of gender dysphoria and /or same sex attraction (Romans 5:8, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). By love we do not mean agree with them, affirm, or enable (1 Peter 3:15, Jude 3, 17-23). We will love those students by listening to, praying with, and speaking from a biblical worldview (1 Peter 3:15). We will do so in hopes of the Holy Spirit drawing them into saving faith through repentance and restoration (John 3:3-8, John 14:6). It is through a relationship with Jesus that the indwelling Holy Spirit confronts sin (John 16:8), empowers us to deny our fallen nature (Romans 6:15-18), and encourages us to live God honoring lives (Romans 6:6, Galatians 5:16-24).

While those struggling deserve our counsel and care, our love for them requires us to teach them that their feelings may never override the revelation of God’s design and purpose for them (Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 13:8).

Acknowledging our own human frailty and dependence upon Jesus, we will strive to love one another as He has loved us.

INTERACTION WITH THOSE WHOM WE DIFFER

We recognize that we live in a world shattered by sin which profoundly affects all aspects of our humanity, including our sexuality. It is a matter only of God’s grace that we can satisfy God’s created purpose for human sexuality, marriage, and gender identity. And yet nearly all of us still struggle with vestiges of sexual brokenness, including lust, promiscuity, and sexual identity.

As such, we believe that every person must be afforded love (John 13:34, Romans 12:9-10), kindness (Ephesians 4:32, Colossians 3:12), respect (Philippians 2:3, 1 Peter 2:17), and dignity, (Matthew 7:12). Hateful (1 John 3:15, 1 John 4:20), and harassing (1 Corinthians 13:4-5, Philippians 2:1-3) behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated (Matthew 5:21-22, James 3:5-9) and are not in accord with Scripture or the doctrinal convictions of Sound Christian Academy.

We will communicate and uphold God’s standard for human sexuality, marriage, and gender identity with grace, mercy, and compassion. Sound Christian Academy will make institutional and policy decisions reflective of these position statements regarding hiring, admissions, athletics, school behavior, and discipline.

1997-98 Doctrinal Statement

2016 Doctrinal Statement (taken from the 2016-17 Employee Handbook)

2013 Statement of Faith created by the Pastor Advisory’s Team

2016 Statement of Faith

2018 Statement of Faith