Statement of Faith

WE BELIEVE that the Holy Scriptures, consisting of Old and New Testaments, were originally given by God, divinely inspired, without error, infallible, and are entirely trustworthy and the supreme authority in all matters of faith and practice.

WE BELIEVE in one God, Creator of all things, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

WE BELIEVE in our Lord Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, His virgin birth, sinless life, divine miracles, vicarious and atoning death on the cross, bodily resurrection, ascension and exaltation, mediatorial work, and personal, imminent, and visible return in power and glory.

WE BELIEVE that Adam and Eve, created in the image of God, were tempted by Satan, the god of this world, and fell; that their sin has passed to all people, who as a result are lost, are unable to save themselves from the wrath of God, and need to be saved.

WE BELIEVE that salvation is a gift of God to those who repent and personally believe in Jesus Christ; that it is accomplished by God’s grace through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and regeneration by the Holy Spirit.

WE BELIEVE in God the Holy Spirit who indwells all believers enabling them to live holy lives, and to witness and work for the Lord Jesus Christ despite opposition from the world, the flesh, and Satan.

WE BELIEVE in the spiritual unity of all true believers, the universal Church, the Body of Christ.

WE BELIEVE in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; they that are saved unto the resurrection of eternal life with God, they that are lost unto the resurrection of eternal condemnation separated from God.

WE BELIEVE that Christ commanded the Church to go into all the world and make disciples of all peoples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teaching those who believe to obey all that Christ commanded.

GUIDING GRACE PRINCIPLES

PIONEERS is an international fellowship comprised of evangelicals drawn from many different churches and backgrounds. Our desire is to work in harmony with our national church partners and Christian colleagues on the basis of essential doctrines as found in our Statement of Faith. These are doctrines on which, historically, there has been general agreement among all true followers of Christ.

In matters not addressed by our Statement of Faith, PIONEERS acknowledges differing points of view provided they are based on the Bible as the supreme authority, and that no interpretation or practice will undermine the work of the gospel or the unity among those with whom we serve. We seek to live, work, and relate to one another in a spirit of love and humility, as outlined in Romans 14, 1 Corinthians 13, and other passages.

Pioneers Statement on Contextualization

(Pioneers International Handbook, section 4.3.6)

Messengers who bring the Good News have the privilege and responsibility to faithfully communicate the biblical Gospel message. They should model and teach obedience to all the Scriptures under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Thus PI workers desire to minister in ways most likely to yield faithful disciples and the reproduction of biblical churches among those with least access to the Gospel. We believe God normally desires new believers to remain connected with their social context (1 Corinthians 7:17-24), while not compromising biblical teaching in their beliefs or practice (e.g. permanently retaining their former non-Christian religious identity). The implications of living out this creative tension and Gospel witness are best worked out by groups of believers, through prayer and diligent study of the Scriptures, informed by the story of God's people throughout history and the global body of Christ.

This affects key issues, including:

Allegiance:

We encourage believers to live in such a way that those around them become increasingly aware of their wholehearted submission to Jesus as Lord. He calls all believers to a process of transformation into the image of Christ (Romans 12:1,2; Colossians 3:10), giving courageous and respectful testimony of Christ's work in us (1 Peter 3:14-16).

Identity:

We want believers to understand their biblical identity in Christ and his church, and to embrace the implications of that identity as active members of a local community of believers (Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:9).

Obedience:

Our passion is to see believers obey all that Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:20). This involves an ongoing process whereby believers are empowered by the Spirit and nurtured through the Scripture (Galatians 5:16-25; 2 Timothy 3:16,17; 1 Peter 2:2,3).

Worldview and Beliefs:

Believers are intentionally discipled in such a way that their worldview and beliefs are increasingly transformed into conformity with Scripture (Romans 12:2; Hebrews 5:14).

Suffering:

God grants us suffering in this world to refine our faith, strengthen his church and bring glory to Christ (Phil 1:29; 3:10; 1 Peter 1:7). Together, we recognize that persecution is not to be feared, and "everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 Timothy 3:12; Matthew 10:28; Hebrews 10:32-34).

Culture:

All cultures reflect elements of God's creative goodness and human sinfulness (Romans 2:14,15; 1 John 2:15-17). We encourage believers to live out biblically sound and culturally appropriate worship, witness, relationships and lifestyles (Ephesians 5:15; 1 Timothy 5:8; 1 Peter 2:11,12,16,17).