What We Believe

At Calvary Chapel we believe in all the fundamental doctrines of the evangelical Protestant church. For example, we believe in the perfection of truth in the Scriptures, that the entire Bible, Old and New Testament, are the inspired, infallible Word of God.

We believe that God eternally exists in three separate persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

We believe that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. We believe that He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, provided for the atonement of our sins by His vicarious death on the Cross. He was bodily resurrected by the power of the Holy Spirit, ascended back to the right hand of God the father, and lives to make intercession for us.

After He ascended to Heaven, Jesus poured out His Holy Spirit on the believers in Jerusalem, enabling them to fulfill His commandment to preach the Gospel to the entire world; a privilege shared by all believers today.

We believe that all people are born into sin and by nature are separated from God. Each individual is responsible for his own sin, but that salvation, redemption, and forgiveness of sin are freely offered to all by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. When a person repents of sin and accepts Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord, trusting Him to save, that person is immediately born again and sealed by the Holy Spirit. All sins are then forgiven, and that person becomes a child of God, and will then spend eternity with the Lord.

At Calvary Chapel, we await the pre-tribulation rapture of the church. Calvary Chapel believes that the church will be raptured before the seven-year tribulation period described in Revelation chapters 6 through 18. We recognize that some believers may hold a different view.

We believe that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ with His believers to rule on the earth will be personal, pre-millennial, and visible. This motivates us to live a life of obedience, heartfelt worship, committed service, the diligent study of God's Word, regular fellowship with other Christians, and participation in both baptism by immersion and in Communion.

Calvary Chapel rejects the teaching of "amillenialism" which spiritualizes Scripture and denies the literal 1000-year reign of Christ on the earth as described in Revelation chapter 20.

We understand worship to be a lifestyle in which we incorporate what we believe in our daily lives. To live in obedience to God by dying daily to our sinful nature is a way to express our appreciation of His love for us. We also worship in song. Much of the music we sing has been written in recent times. We hope it appeals to those who worship with us but, we understand it is impossible to please everyone.

There is no official membership at Calvary Chapel Cobb. We welcome young, old, rich, poor and people of every race to be a part of our fellowship. All modest forms of dress are acceptable; whether suits, jeans, or shorts for the men, or dresses, jeans, or shorts for the ladies. We realize that God is more concerned with the state of our hearts; how we appear on the outside has little meaning to Him. Our common objective is to love Jesus Christ and to know Him more intimately.

Calvary Chapel also differs from some churches in its style of church government. Most denominational churches maintain a congregational form of church government, a Presbyterian form, or an Episcopal form of running their churches.

The congregational form of church government is an American invention and appeals to our American sense of democracy. Basically, the congregation as a whole makes all decisions in these churches by voting on matters of importance and appointing committees from its ranks to run the daily operation of the church. Most Congregational, Baptist, Pentecostal, Brethren, and non-denominational churches are organized in this fashion. The congregation votes on hiring a pastor, votes on how to spend the money, and on anything else of importance. Although democratic people like the idea, congregational forms of church government often wind up at best causing the pastor to be directed by the sheep he is supposed to lead, and at worst reducing the pastor to a hireling.

The Episcopal form of church government, used by Episcopalian, Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, and Methodist churches (to name a few) is controlled by a church hierarchy, which may have different names. Basically, there is a bishop, or someone of similar stature if called by a different name, who oversees the churches, appoints pastors to pulpits, sets policy, and guides the vision of the local congregations. Unfortunately, this style of government, which grew out of European monarchies, leaves little freedom for the local pastor or congregation to follow the leading of the Spirit.

The Presbyterian form of church government, which is typical in Presbyterian and Reformed churches, puts the decisions of the church in the hands of a select group of elders (the "presbytery") who are appointed in various different ways, depending on the church. These elders are over the pastor, who in turn is over the congregation. The problem here too is that this system puts the God-appointed leader, the pastor, under those he is supposed to lead.

Calvary Chapels are organized differently. Church government at Calvary Chapel is very simple. It is not a complex bureaucracy with committees and sub-committees. Basically, at Calvary Chapel we believe that the pastor is responsible for the church, responsible to hear from God, and responsible to feed and love His people faithfully. Elders are appointed in the larger churches to help the pastor care for the spiritual needs of the congregation, as are deacons to help the pastor care for the practical needs of the church.

What We Do Not Believe

At Calvary Chapel, we reject some popular doctrines of various Christian groups because we believe them to be in Biblical error. This does not mean that we think those holding these views are not saved, it simply means that such views are outside the boundaries of what constitutes a Calvary Chapel.

For example, we reject, as we have already mentioned, "amillenniallsm," post-millennialism, as well as a mid- or post-tribulation rapture view. At Calvary Chapel, we are strongly pre-millennialists and pre-tribulation rapturists.

We also reject the belief, held by some believers, that Christians can be demon possessed. The Scripture says "greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world" which makes no sense that a believer can be simultaneously indwelt by both the Holy Spirit and evil spirits. Christians can be attacked by demons, but they cannot be possessed or controlled by them.

In addition, we reject "5-point Calvinism." First, Calvinism teaches that Jesus' atonement on the Cross was limited, that is, that He died only for a chosen group, His "elect," not for the sins of the entire world. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that Jesus died on the cross for the sins of all people, and that anyone who chooses can accept Him as Lord and Savior and be born again. Strict five-point Calvinists believe that only the elect can be saved and that God has elected others to spend eternity in hell.

Secondly, we reject the Calvinistic teaching called "irresistible grace," which is the belief that an "elect" man cannot, even if he wants to, resist the wooing and calling of God to salvation. Instead, at Calvary Chapel we believe that man has a free will and he can resist the call of God if he chooses to do so. Therefore, those who hold to five-point Calvinism are outside of the borders of what defines Calvary Chapel.

At Calvary Chapel, we also reject the teaching of "positive confession" which is the doctrine put forth by the Word Faith movement that teaches we as human beings can have unlimited health and wealth because we, like God, have the ability to create our own reality by the confession of our lips. These people teach that if a person will confess health and wealth consistently, then that is what he will have, and, conversely, the Christian living in sickness or poverty is settling for less than his full inheritance in Christ. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that many believers both in the Bible and in daily life are often afflicted not because their confession is wrong, but simply because we live in a foreign world. We believe that the health and prosperity doctrine is a perversion of Scripture and is often used to financially fleece the flock of God. We do not believe that God can be commanded by man to heal or provide, but that we must always submit to His perfect will even in affliction.

Additionally, we reject the teaching that uses human prophecy to supersede the Word of God. There are some Christian groups claiming to have prophets and apostles of equal validity with those who wrote the Bible. Moreover, they claim that the prophetic utterances from these people take precedence over the Word of God. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that the Bible is the final authority and the complete Word of God for His church today, and that no prophecy or teaching can ever supersede it.

Some churches have incorporated human secular psychology and philosophy into their teaching programs, creating sermons that are based more on secular humanistic theory than on the Word of God. While we respect our fellow believers who work in mental health related fields, we at Calvary Chapel believe that the central mission of the church is to proclaim God's Word to a lost and hurting world. Moreover, it has been our experience that humanistic psychology and philosophy can do more harm than good. We mature spiritually and respond best when God's Word is proclaimed in the power and love of the Holy Spirit. It is God's Word that changes lives for the better. At Calvary Chapels our services remain centered on the teaching of the Bible. This is not to imply that we object to the work of the many dedicated Christian mental health professionals; conversely, we thank God for them. Our point is simply that in our church services, we emphasize the teaching of God's Word.

And finally, as we have mentioned before, Calvary Chapel rejects the over-emphasis of spiritual gifts and experiential signs and wonders to the exclusion of Biblical teaching. Current fads may include activities and terms such as; "being slain in the spirit" and "holy laughter." We believe these are an abuse to the freedom we have as Christians. Again, we are a Bible-based ministry that avoids programs and gimmicks in favor of the simple teaching of the Word of God in love to His people. In our services, we focus on a personal relationship with God through worship, prayer, and the teaching of the Word of God. We do not allow speaking in tongues during services because we do not believe that the Holy Spirit would interrupt Himself.