Oceanside F.A.Q.

Quickly, who (who not what) is Oceanside?
How can I join Oceanside?
What does Oceanside Believe?
What are Oceanside's practices?
Who is Oceanside affiliated with?
What is the Southern Baptist Convention?



back to top Quick view of Oceanside Church
We are a community of followers of Jesus Christ, committed to preserving real truth and encouraging real change. We welcome people from all walks of life, regardless of where they are in their spiritual journey. Come to Oceanside, and discover real truth and experience real change.

back to top Joining Oceanside Church
There are 4 ways anyone can join Oceanside:

1. By Salvation and Baptism

Once you have asked Jesus Christ into your life to be your Lord (boss) and Savior (for eternal life and forgiveness of sin), tell Pastor Trey or one of the people you see with orange “Lifeguard” badges on that you have made that commitment. They will then share some Bible verses with you, pray with you, and give you some literature to help you in your new relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. We ask people of all denominations to be baptized by immersion after they have asked Christ to be Lord and Savior. We have a class called T.I.D.E. Level 1 that teaches the joys of obedience to Christ in baptism. We would encourage you to attend this inspirational class that will answer any questions you might have.

2. By Letter

This means that you are already a member of a church of “like faith and practice.” We are Baptists and will accept a letter from your church that states that you are a member in good standing of that church. You must have at least been baptized by immersion in your former church.

3. By Statement

This means that you are already a member of a church of “like faith and practice” but it is not possible to get a letter from your church because of extenuating circumstances, ie., records are no longer available because they have been destroyed or because the church is no longer in existence. In that case, Oceanside will accept your statement that you have already asked Christ into your life to be your Lord and Savior and have been baptized by immersion.

4. By Watchcare

This means that you are already a member of a Baptist church, but because you will not live in the local area for long, you come under the watchcare of Oceanside for the short time you would be here. This would allow you to have a local church to care and minister to you while here temporarily, but would not be able to vote in order to make decisions as a full member. We would not encourage this unless you know you will be here less than 4 months.

back to top Oceanside Church's Beliefs
In essential beliefs — we have unity.

‘There is one Body and one Spirit...there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism and one God and Father of us all...” Eph.4:4-6

• In non—essential beliefs — we have liberty.

‘Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable mat­ters... Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls... So then each of us will give an account of himself to God... So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God.” Romans 14:1,4,12,22

• In all our beliefs — we show charity.

“If I hold in my mind not only all human knowledge but also the very secrets of God, and if I have the faith that can move mountains — but have no love,I amount to nothing at all.”

1Cor. 13:2 (Ph)

·          God

God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.

Genesis 1:1,26,27; 3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; 1Peter 1:2,

2Corinthians 13:14
·          Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father and eternal. Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, lived a sinless human life, and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.

Matt. 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14, 15; 1Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; 1Tim. 6:14,15; Titus 2:13.
·          The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit isco-equal with the Father and the Son of God and is eternal. He is present ­in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living and witnessing to the hope that is within (Christ), understanding of spiritual truth, and guid­ance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians we seek to live under His control daily.

2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14:16,17; Acts 1:8; 1Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18.

 ·          The Bible

The Bible is God’s Word to us. It was written by human authors, under the supernaturaI guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of all truth, Christian beliefs, and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is inerrant.

2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20,21; 2 Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:105, 160, 12:6; Proverbs 30:5.
·          Human Beings

People are created in the image of God. People are the supreme object of God’s creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are spiritually dead because of an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin” with which we were born and have practiced. This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.

Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a; Romans 3:23; Isaiah 59:1,2.
·          Salvation 

Salvation is God’s free gift to us but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.

Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 14:6; 1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:26; Romans 5:1
·         Eternal Security

Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the true believer is secure in that salvation for eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot “lose” it. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives us this security.

John 10:28-29; II Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; 10:10,14; I Peter 1:3-5
·          Eternity

People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin in a place of torment called hell, or eternally with God through forgiveness and sal­vation. When we are eternally in uni­on with Him, that is eternal life. Heaven and hell are real places of eternal exis­tence.

John 3:16; John 2:25; John 5:11-13; Romans 6:23; Revelation 20:15; Mat­thew 1:8; Matthew 2:44, 46.

For more details, see The Baptist Faith and Message 2000

back to top  Oceanside's Practices (Our Lifestyle Statement)

Beliefs are not worth much unless they are translated into actions. Based on what the Bible teaches, we feel very strongly about the following seven practices:

Bible as our sole authority.“The whole Bible was given to us by inspiration from God and is useful to teach us what is true and make us realize what is wrong in our lives; it straightens us out and helps us to do what is right.” 2 Tim. 3:15.

Since God’s Word is the only completely reliable and truthful authority, we accept the Bible as our manual for living. Our first question when laced with a decision is ‘What does the Bible say?” We practice daily Bible read­ing, Bible study, and Bible memorization. The Bible is the basis for all we believe.

Autonomy of each local church. “Christ is the head of his Body, the church. He is the source of the Body’s life...” Col. l:18

Christ is the recognized head of our church, not any person, group, or reli­gious organization. While recognizing the value of associating and cooper­ating with other groups of Christians, we believe every local church should be self-governing and independent from any denominational control. When we relate to any “daughter churches” that we would sponsor, we encourage each congregation to determine it’s own strategy, structure, and style.

Priesthood of every believer “Christ loves us, and by his death he has freed us from our sins and made us a kingdom ofpriests to serve God..” Rev. 1:6 (GN)

"You are... the Kings priests… God own people, chosen to proclaim the wonderful acts of God." 1Pet. 2:9 (GN)

The Bible teaches that every Christian is called to “full time” Christian ser­vice, regardless of his or her vocation. We practice the truth that every be­liever is a minister by encouraging every member to find a place of service and ministry. Every believer has direct access to God through prayer Bible reading.

Tithing “A  tithe of everything you produce belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.”

Lev. 26:30

At Oceanside we practice tithing for the support of Christ’s Body, the church, as God commands. We recognize that giving 10% of our income is the biblical standard of giving.

Immersion “For when you were baptized, you were buried with Christ, and in baptism you were also raised with Christ.” Col. 2:12 (GN)

We practice baptism by immersion under water the way Jesus was bap­tized, and the way the Bible commands.

Spirit-led Living (Jesus said) “I am the vine you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; but apart from Me you can do nothing. “John 15:5

We believe the only way possible to live the Christian life is by God’s power within us. So we seek to practice a daily dependence on God’s Spirit to en­able us to do what is right. (Phil. 2:13, Eph. 5:18)

Telling others about Christ "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the rea­son for the hope that you have.” 1 Peter 3:15

It is the responsibility of every Christian to share the Good News with those God brings us into contact with. We practice personal sharing about Christ and inviting friends to church.

back to top Oceanside Affiliations

When Oceanside began, we decided to begin in an affiliation of three different groups that we now are a part of operating and supporting.

·          The Charleston Baptist Association

60+ churches that fellowship together and work together to reach the greater Charleston area.

·          The South Carolina Baptist Convention

Churches that fellowship together with the goal of evangelizing our state.

·          The Southern Baptist Convention

40,000+  churches that cooperate together in a world-wide effort of missions.

These 3 groups are responsible for helping our churches reach the communities in which they serve. There will be times when they will help us with monetary support to do missions in our own community as well as new churches that will need to be started to reach all different types of people.

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