ABE/FEBE

FEBE's Basis of Faith (eng)

Churches affiliated to FEBE subscribe to the following basis of faith:

1
The unity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in the Godhead; their equality in power and glory.

2
The divine inspiration and infallibility of the Scriptures as originally given; their supreme authority in matters of faith and conduct; the definitive character of their revelation which cannot be modified or completed by any other.

3
The universal sinfulness and guilt of human nature since the fall rendering man subject to God' s wrath and condemnation.

4
The incarnation of God in Jesus Christ, the Eternal Son of God, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary; whose humanity is real but perfect and sinless; who humbled himself voluntarily; who died a substitutionary and atoning death for sinners; who rose bodily from the dead; who ascended into heaven and is exalted at the right hand of the Father as the only mediator between God and man; who alone is both Saviour and Lord of the world.

5
Redemption from the guilt, penalty and power of sin only through the sacrificial death as our representative and substitute of Jesus the incarnate Son of God.

6
The necessity of the work of the Holy Spirit to make the death of Christ effective in the individual sinner, granting him repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ; His indwelling and work in every believer.

7
The personal coming in glory of the Lord Jesus Christ; the resurrection of the dead; the judgment of aIl men; everlasting punishment for the impenitent; everlasting happiness for the redeemed; the total renewal of aIl things to the glory of God the Father.

8
Membership of the local church is for those who have accepted the Gospel, testified to their faith by being baptised by immersion, and who live a consistent Christian life.

9
The autonomy and congregational order of the local church under the unique headship of Jesus Christ.

10
The real unity of all believers in the Body of Christ; the necessity of seeking to express this unity among the churches.

11
The obligation of the churches to preach the doctrines of God's grace; to offer the gospel freely to aIl men caIling on them to repent and believe the Gospel and be saved, to observe the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's supper.

12
The maintaining of the purity of the churches in doctrine and life until the personal coming in glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Aims of FEBE (eng)

Aims of FEBE

1
To get to know one another better

Our desire is to encourage deeper fellowship among our churches, and, for that reason, FEBE wishes to offer a structure in which we can learn to know, love and respect one another better.

We come from different horizons, but we share the same faith, and FEBE Conferences give the occasion for fellowship and mutual spiritual enrichment.

2
Study together

We desire to search the Scriptures together and study on a biblical basis subjects of common interest.

Our FEBE Conferences offer the possibility to study important biblical themes according to the richness of our faith and hope, as well as questions on ethics, evangelism and mission.

Sharing our knowledge and our various experiences will strengthen our faith and lead us to a better understanding of the world in which we live and witness for our Lord.

3
Work together

ln several areas of service, we can certainly do more and better in the Lord's work by joining our energies; for example:


— FEBE can set up evangelisation teams to work with churches engaged in a particular effort or to plant a pioneer work in an area where there is little or no Christian testimony.

— FEBE can organise special international youth camps, or encourage the participation of young people from one country in youth camps organised by FEBE churches in another country.

— FEBE can provide information about the work being done by affiliated churches to open up our vision and lead us to pray and support more intelligently.

4
Other services

There are many ways in which we can "by love serve one another"; for example:

— in finding a Christian family for a young person doing language studies in one of our FEBE countries.

— in forming work groups to help with construction or renovation projects in our churches.

— in offering possibilities to exchange homes for holiday periods.

Definition of FEBE (eng)

The Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist churches in Europe (FEBE) is a group of churches committed to the historical Christian faith as set out in the Bible and expressed in the evangelical confessions of faith down the centuries. Affiliated churches seek to express their inherent unity in visible ways.

These churches are evangelical: they are united in a common understanding of the Gospel as central to God's revelation, to their beliefs and their way of life.

These churches are baptist: they practise the baptism of believers only by total immersion.

These churches are european: their fellowship transcends national frontiers, cultures and languages.