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TWENTY QUESTIONS TO ASK BEFORE JOINING A CHURCHBefore joining any church, ask for a Statement of Faith and check it carefully. If one is not available, at least speak with the Pastor personally and get answers to the following questions. This concerns YOUR spiritual well-being. You have every right to ask questions. In fact, a genuine Bible-believing Pastor will appreciate you asking doctrinal questions.The answer to every question should be a very definite "Yes." If the answer is "No" or "I’m not sure," then keep looking because there are better churches to join. A "Yes" answer to each question doesn’t guarantee that the church in question will be the best one for you, but it does help you to guard yourself from many of the heresies in our midst.I. Do you believe God has preserved an infallible copy of His word for us today?II. Do you believe the King James Bible is God’s infallible word for the English speaking people?III. Do you believe that God is a Holy Trinity, consisting of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit?IV. Do you believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, without a man being involved, and lived a sinless life for thirty-three years as God manifest in the flesh?V. Do you believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died and paid for our sins on Calvary’s cross through the shedding of His own sinless blood?VI. Do you believe that the Lord Jesus Christ rose physically from the dead for our justification?VII. Do you believe that the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, currently sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest?VIII. Do you believe that the Holy Spirit is Deity and presently convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment?IX. Do you believe that the Holy Spirit is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ?X. Do you believe that the apostolic sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, are not for today, since they were for the purpose of confirming the preached word of God to Israel in the first century?XI. Do you believe that all men are sinners, and that salvation through Christ is needful for all?XII. Do you believe in the eternal security of those who have received Christ as Saviour?XIII. Do you believe that the church is the bride of Christ, consisting of all born-again believers?XIV. Do you believe in the autonomy of the local church?XV. Do you recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church?XVI. Do you agree that the majority of professing Christianity is in apostasy, and that true Christians need to practice Biblical separation from such people?XVII. Do you believe in the literal, physical and visible Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ?XVIII. Do you believe in a literal glorious Heaven for the saved, and in a literal burning Hell for the lost?IXX. Do you believe that Satan is a literal living being who opposes God, and who will be condemned to eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire?XX. Do you believe in the literal word-for-word Genesis account of creation?