Statement of Faith

The full statement of faith of Kappes Chatfield Ministries: what we believe about the Triune God, Scripture, salvation, the gifts of the Spirit, church government, marriage and sexuality, healing, prosperity, and more — with the Scripture it stands on.

The Triune God

Our Position on the Triune God At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, which teaches that there is one God who exists in three distinct persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. These three persons are co-equal and co- eternal, each fully God, yet there is only one God. This belief is foundational to our faith and is supported by numerous passages in Scripture. The Plurality of God in Scripture From the very beginning of the Bible, God refers to Himself in the plural, indicating a complex unity within the Godhead: Genesis 1:26 "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.'" Genesis 3:22 "Then the Lord God said, 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever—'" Isaiah 6:8 "Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I! Send me.'" These references to "Us" and "Our" suggest a plurality within God, which is further revealed in the New Testament as the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as God Scripture clearly teaches that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are each fully God, yet they are distinct persons with different functions within the Godhead: The Father is God: John 6:27 "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." 1 Peter 1:2 "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied." The Son is God: John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 20:28 "And Thomas answered and said to Him, 'My Lord and my God!'" Colossians 2:9 "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." The Holy Spirit is God: Acts 5:3-4 "But Peter said, 'Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.'" 1 Corinthians 3:16 "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" These passages demonstrate that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all recognized as God, fully sharing in the divine nature. Distinct Functions within the Trinity While the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are equal in their divine nature, they have different roles or functions: The Father: The Father is often seen as the source of creation, the one who sends the Son into the world, and the one to whom prayers are directed. 1 Corinthians 8:6 "Yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live." The Son (Jesus Christ): The Son is the one who redeems humanity through His incarnation, life, death, and resurrection. He reveals the Father to us and intercedes on our behalf. John 14:9-10 "Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, "Show us the Father"? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.'" The Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit is the one who regenerates believers, sanctifies them, and empowers them for service. He also convicts the world of sin and guides believers into all truth. John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." Romans 8:26 "Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." These distinct roles show how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work together in perfect unity to accomplish God's will. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we affirm the doctrine of the Trinity as essential to our faith. We believe that the one true God exists eternally in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each of whom is fully God, equal in divine nature, yet distinct in function. This understanding of the triune nature of God is rooted in Scripture and has been a core belief of the Christian faith throughout history. We recognize that the mystery of the Trinity is profound, but it is a mystery that draws us deeper into the love and fellowship of God, who is both one and three. This belief in the triune God shapes our worship, our understanding of salvation, and our daily walk with the Lord.

Salvation Through Faith In Jesus Christ

Christ Our Position on Salvation At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that salvation is received through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. This faith is the only way to receive forgiveness of sins, be restored to a right relationship with God, be born again as a new creation, and secure one's eternal destination in heaven. We affirm that while good works are evidence of genuine faith, they are not the means by which a person is saved. Salvation is by grace through faith alone. Forgiveness of Sins The Bible teaches that all have sinned and are in need of forgiveness. This forgiveness is granted through faith in life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the penalty for our sins when He was crucified: Romans 3:23-24 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 1:7 "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death on the cross is the only means by which we receive forgiveness and are cleansed from our sins. Restored Relationship with God Through faith in Jesus Christ, our broken relationship with God is restored. Jesus is the mediator between God and humanity, reconciling us to the Father: Romans 5:1 "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 "Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation." John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'" Faith in Jesus bridges the gap between us and God, bringing us into a restored relationship with Him. Becoming Born Again (A New Creation) When a person places their faith in Jesus Christ, they are born again, becoming a new creation. This spiritual rebirth is a work of the Holy Spirit, making us new in Christ. We believe that this regenerative work by the power of the Holy Spirit is critical for salvation: John 3:3 "Jesus answered and said to him, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'" 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." Titus 3:5 "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit." Being born again is a transformative work that makes us new in Christ, marking the beginning of a new life in God. Securing Eternal Destination in Heaven Faith in Jesus Christ secures our eternal destiny in heaven. The promise of eternal life is given to all who believe in Him: John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 10:28-29 "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand." 1 John 5:11-13 "And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God." Through faith in Jesus, believers are assured of eternal life and a secure place in heaven with God. Salvation by Faith, Not Works While good works are the evidence of genuine faith, the Bible is clear that salvation is not earned by works but is a gift of God's grace received through faith in Jesus Christ: Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified." Romans 4:5 "But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness." Salvation is a free gift from God, not something we can earn through our own efforts. It is received by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Consequently, in regards to baptism, for example, we believe the work of baptism in and of itself doesn't save, but baptism must be done in obedience to Christ after one has put saving faith in Him. 1 Peter 3:21 "There is also an antitype which now saves us, baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we affirm that salvation is found only in Jesus Christ. It is through faith in His finished work on the cross and His resurrection that we receive forgiveness of sins, are restored to a right relationship with God, are born again as new creations, and secure our eternal destiny in heaven. We reject the notion that works alone can save a person's soul, recognizing that salvation is by grace through faith alone. Our good works are a response to the grace we have received, not a means to earn it. This foundational belief in salvation through faith in Jesus Christ is central to our faith and the message we share with the world. We invite all to place their trust in Jesus, receiving the gift of salvation and the promise of eternal life with God.

The Bible

Our Position on the Bible At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that the Bible is the inerrant, infallible Word of God. We hold that all Scripture is inspired by God and is fully authoritative and trustworthy in all matters of faith and practice. We are committed to teaching the full Word of God from cover to cover and equipping believers to develop a personal relationship with God through daily personal Bible study. The Inerrancy and Inspiration of Scripture We believe that the Bible, in its entirety, is the inspired Word of God. Every word of Scripture is "God-breathed" and without error in the original manuscripts. This belief is grounded in the understanding that the Holy Spirit guided the authors of Scripture to write precisely what God intended: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Peter 1:20-21 "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." Psalm 12:6 "The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times." These passages affirm that the Bible is not merely a collection of human writings but the very Word of God, free from error and fully reliable. The Authority of Scripture Because the Bible is the Word of God, it holds supreme authority over all aspects of our lives. It is the final standard for truth, teaching, and correction, and it is sufficient to guide us in all matters of faith and practice: Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." Isaiah 40:8 "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever." The Bible is unchanging and eternally relevant, providing the foundation for our beliefs, our decisions, and our daily lives. Teaching the Full Counsel of God At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we are committed to teaching the full counsel of God's Word, from Genesis to Revelation. We believe that every part of Scripture is valuable and necessary for understanding God's character, His plan for redemption, and His will for our lives: Acts 20:27 "For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God." Romans 15:4 "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope." We seek to present the entirety of Scripture, ensuring that our teaching is balanced, comprehensive, and rooted in the truth of God's Word. Developing a Personal Relationship with God through Bible Study We believe that the Bible is not only a book to be taught but also a living Word that fosters a personal relationship with God. Daily personal Bible study is essential for spiritual growth and intimacy with God: Joshua 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." We encourage all believers to engage with Scripture daily, allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal God's truth, guide their steps, and deepen their relationship with Him. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we stand firmly on the belief that the Bible is the inerrant, inspired Word of God. It is our ultimate authority for faith and life, and we are committed to teaching its full counsel from cover to cover. We also believe in the importance of personal Bible study as a means of developing a close, personal relationship with God. As we study and live out the truths of Scripture, we are continually transformed into the image of Christ, equipped for every good work, and grounded in the unchanging truth of God's Word.

Worship

Our Position on Worship At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that corporate worship is a vital and necessary part of our faith. It is a time of celebration, praise, and exaltation of our God, where we come together as a community to express our love, gratitude, and reverence for Him. We are convicted to worship passionately, loudly, and with a variety of instruments and voices, as the Bible encourages us to do. We also embrace various expressions of worship, including dancing, shouting, singing, bowing, and lifting holy hands, all of which are deeply rooted in Scripture. The Necessity of Corporate Worship We believe that gathering together for corporate worship is essential for the life of the church. It is a time to unite our hearts and voices in praise, to encourage one another, and to experience the presence of God together: Hebrews 10:24-25 "And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Psalm 95:1-2 "Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms." Corporate worship is a time to celebrate God's goodness, to declare His praises, and to exalt His name together as a body of believers. Worshiping Passionately and Loudly The Bible encourages us to worship God with passion and enthusiasm, using our voices and instruments to declare His greatness. We believe that worship should be an expression of the joy and gratitude we have in our hearts: Psalm 100:1-2 "Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing." Psalm 150:3-6 "Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; praise Him with the lute and harp! Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! Praise Him with loud cymbals; praise Him with clashing cymbals! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!" These scriptures show that worship is meant to be vibrant, expressive, and full of life, involving our voices and instruments in a joyful noise unto the Lord. Passionate Outward Expression During Worship Dancing in Worship We believe that dancing is a biblical expression of worship, a way to physically express our joy and celebration in the presence of God: Psalm 149:3 "Let them praise His name with the dance; let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp." 2 Samuel 6:14 "Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod." Just as King David danced before the Lord with all his might, we too are free to express our worship through dance, celebrating God's presence and His works. Shouting and Singing in Worship Shouting and singing are powerful expressions of worship that declare God's victory and majesty. We believe that our voices should be lifted in praise, proclaiming His goodness: Psalm 47:1 "Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph!" Psalm 98:4 "Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth; break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises." Shouting and singing are integral to our worship, allowing us to express our love for God and our gratitude for His salvation. Bowing, Kneeling and Lifting of Hands in Worship Bowing and lifting our hands are expressions of reverence, surrender, and adoration. These acts of worship reflect our submission to God's authority and our desire to honor Him: Psalm 95:6 "Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker." 1 Timothy 2:8 "I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting." These actions are outward expressions of an inward posture of humility and reverence before God. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we are committed to worshiping God passionately and wholeheartedly, both individually and corporately. We believe that worship is a time of celebration, praise, and exaltation, where we express our love for God with all that we are. The Bible encourages us to worship with a variety of expressions, singing, shouting, dancing, bowing, and lifting our hands, and we embrace these as part of our worship experience. We teach and encourage our congregation to engage in worship with their whole being, knowing that God is glorified when His people worship Him in spirit and in truth. Our worship is not just a ritual but a vibrant, joyful, and reverent response to the greatness of our God, who is worthy of all praise and honor.

Operation of the Gifts of the Spirit

Spirit Our Position on the Gifts of the Spirit At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we firmly believe in the operation of the gifts of the Spirit as described in the New Testament. We do not adhere to cessationist theology, which asserts that the spiritual gifts ceased with the apostolic age. Instead, we hold that these gifts are active and essential for the church today, meant to glorify God and edify the saints. Additionally, we emphasize that the exercise of these gifts must be done in an orderly fashion. Pursuing Spiritual Gifts The Bible is clear that we are to pursue the gifts of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit distributes these gifts to those He chooses, and He can change the gifting in people from season to season according to His will: 1 Corinthians 12:31 "But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way." 1 Corinthians 14:1 "Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy." 1 Corinthians 12:11 "But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills." Biblical Basis for the Continuation of Spiritual Gifts 1. Scriptural Evidence for Gifts. The New Testament provides clear evidence that the gifts of the Spirit were given to the church for its ongoing ministry: 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills." Romans 12:6-8 "Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness." 2. Continuation of Gifts. There is no scriptural basis for the belief that these gifts were intended to cease. On the contrary, the gifts are intended to continue until the return of Christ: 1 Corinthians 13:8-10 "Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." 1 Thessalonians 5:20 "Do not despise prophecies." 1 Corinthians 14:39 "Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues." Orderly Operation of the Gifts We believe that the gifts of the Spirit should be operated in an orderly manner, in accordance with biblical instruction. We also believe that the spirit of those who prophesy is subject to the individual and that Holy Spirit-filled believers are expected to bear the fruit of self-control in their ministry: 1 Corinthians 14:26-33 "How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God. Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints." Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." Love as the Motivation We believe that love must be the foundation and motivation behind the exercise of spiritual gifts. The strategic placement of 1 Corinthians 13, often called the "Love Chapter," between 1 Corinthians 12 and 14 underscores this principle: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing." Yielding to the Holy Spirit We believe in being led by the Holy Spirit at all times and must be willing to yield to His influence whenever believers gather. We do not believe in limiting the power of the Holy Spirit. Wherever the people of God gather in corporate worship, we should be willing to yield to His Spirit and His giftings. This includes our Sunday Worship Encounters, prayer meetings, small group gatherings, and more. Acts 2:17-18 "And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy." Ephesians 5:18-19 "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we embrace the gifts of the Spirit as vital to the life and ministry of the church. We commit to operating these gifts in an orderly manner, ensuring they glorify God and edify the body of Christ. We remain open to the leading of the Holy Spirit in our gatherings, always seeking to yield to His presence and power for His glory and the edification of His people. Above all, we are motivated by love, ensuring that all our actions and operations are grounded in the love of Christ.

Church Government

Our Position on Church Hierarchy and Leadership At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in a biblical church hierarchy that reflects the structure established by the early church, guided by the principles of the New Testament. We affirm the importance of the 5-fold ministry offices, the qualifications for eldership as outlined in Scripture, and the practice of church discipline done in love. We also emphasize that promotion into leadership positions must be prompted by the Holy Spirit and not driven by human ambition or striving. The 5-Fold Ministry Offices We believe that the 5-fold ministry offices are foundational to the leadership and growth of the church. These offices are given by Christ to equip the saints and build up the body of Christ: Ephesians 4:11-12 "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." These five offices, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, serve different functions within the church, working together to ensure that the church is equipped, edified, and unified in the faith. Qualifications for Eldership We believe that the qualifications for eldership, which include pastoral leadership within the church, are clearly outlined in the New Testament. Elders are responsible for shepherding the flock, teaching sound doctrine, and leading by example. The qualifications for eldership are as follows: 1 Timothy 3:1-7 "This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil." Titus 1:5-9 "For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you, if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination. For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self- controlled, holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict." These qualifications ensure that those who lead the church do so with integrity, humility, and a commitment to sound doctrine. Church Discipline and Restoration We believe that church discipline is a necessary practice to maintain the purity and integrity of the church. However, it must be carried out in love and with the primary goal of restoring the individual to fellowship with God and the church: Matthew 18:15-17 "Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.' And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector." Galatians 6:1 "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted." Church discipline is meant to protect the flock from harmful influences while seeking to restore the one who has fallen into sin. It is carried out with a heart of compassion, always aiming for reconciliation and healing. Church discipline is also meant to be done by the leading of the Holy Spirit and not the will of man. Therefore, our eldership will carry out discipline on a case-by- case basis as directed by the Holy Spirit. Promotion and Leadership At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that promotion into leadership positions within the church must be directed by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, not by human ambition or striving. Leadership in the church is a calling, and it is the Holy Spirit who equips and appoints individuals to these roles: Acts 20:28 "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood." 1 Peter 5:2-4 "Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away." We believe that true leadership comes from a heart that is submitted to God and His will, allowing the Holy Spirit to guide and direct the process of raising up leaders in the church. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we affirm a church hierarchy that reflects the biblical model of leadership. We believe in the 5-fold ministry offices as essential to equipping and edifying the body of Christ. We uphold the qualifications for eldership as outlined in 1 Timothy and Titus, ensuring that those who lead do so with integrity and sound doctrine. Church discipline is carried out in love, with the goal of restoration and protection of the flock. Finally, we believe that promotion into leadership must be guided by the Holy Spirit, not by human striving, ensuring that those who lead are called and equipped by God. This structure is designed to maintain the health, unity, and spiritual growth of the church, all while glorifying God and fulfilling His purposes in our community.

Pre-Tribulation Rapture

At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in the Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the church, which is the belief that Christians will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air before the period of tribulation begins on the earth. We hold this position based on several key scriptural insights that indicate God's plan to spare His church from the coming judgment. God's Wrath Poured Out on Jesus We believe that God has already poured out His wrath on His Son, Jesus Christ, on behalf of humanity. As a result, those who are in Christ will not face the same judgment that is reserved for the unbelieving world: Romans 5:9 "Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." 1 Thessalonians 1:10 "And to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come." 1 Thessalonians 5:9 "For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ." Revelation 6:17 "For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?" (Referring to the beginning of the Great Tribulation) Since God has already judged sin through the sacrifice of Jesus, we believe He will not pour out His wrath on Christians in the same way He will on the world during the tribulation. Jesus' Teachings on the Rapture Jesus taught that before the rapture occurs, life will continue as usual, with people engaged in everyday activities, unaware of the imminent return of the Lord. He emphasized the importance of being ready and praying to be worthy to "escape" the coming wrath: Matthew 24:37-39 "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." Luke 21:34-36 "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." These teachings of Jesus underscore the importance of being spiritually vigilant and ready for His return, as the rapture will occur suddenly and without warning. The Pattern of Rescue from the Days of Noah and Lot When Jesus spoke of His return and the rapture of the church, He likened it to the days of Noah and Lot. In both of these scenarios, God spared the righteous from the judgment that came upon the wicked: Luke 17:26-30 "And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." We believe that just as Noah and Lot were spared from the destruction that came upon the earth, so too will the church be spared from the wrath of the tribulation. The Restrainer in Thessalonians In the book of 2 Thessalonians, Paul speaks of the "restrainer" who holds back the revelation of the Antichrist until the proper time. We believe this restrainer is the Holy Spirit working through the church. Once the church is removed through the rapture, the Antichrist will be revealed: 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 "And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming." This passage supports our belief that the church will be taken out of the world before the tribulation, allowing the Antichrist to be revealed and the period of judgment to begin. Paul's Comfort to the Church in Thessalonica In his letters to the Thessalonians, Paul sought to comfort the believers who were troubled by a false letter claiming they had missed the rapture and were already in the Day of the Lord. Paul assured them that they had not missed the rapture and reminded them of the events that would occur before the Day of the Lord: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 "Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come." 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." Paul's letters were intended to reassure the Thessalonian believers that they had not missed the rapture and that they should not be deceived by false reports. He encouraged them to stand firm in their faith, knowing that the rapture would occur before the tribulation. Historical Context of Pre-Tribulation Doctrine Some critics of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture argue that this theology began with John Darby in the 19th century. However, historical evidence suggests that the doctrine of a Pre-Tribulation Rapture was taught in the early church long before Darby. Early Christian writings indicate a belief in the imminent return of Christ and the deliverance of the church from coming judgment: Irenaeus (130 A.D. to 202 A.D.): Irenaeus was a Bishop of the Church in Lyons, France. He was an eyewitness to the Apostle John (who wrote the Book of Revelation) and a disciple of Polycarp (the first of the Apostle John's disciples). He stated, "And therefore, when in the end the Church shall be suddenly caught up from this, it is said, 'There shall be tribulation such as has not been since the beginning, neither shall be.'" (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 5.29) The Shepherd of Hermas (2nd century A.D.): This early Christian text also contains references to the church being delivered from the coming tribulation. Ephraim the Syrian (4th century A.D.): In his sermon On the Last Times, the Antichrist, and the End of the World, Ephraim wrote, "For all the saints and Elect of God are gathered, prior to the tribulation that is to come, and are taken to the Lord lest they see the confusion that is to overwhelm the world because of our sins." Eusebius (4th century A.D.): Eusebius, known as the Father of Church History, wrote: "The cataclysm of the destruction of the ungodly shall not happen before those men who were found of God at that time are gathered into the ark and saved according to the pattern of Noah. All the righteous and godly are to be separated from the ungodly and gathered into the Heavenly Ark of God." (Eusebius, The History of the Church) These historical references demonstrate that the idea of a pre-tribulation rapture existed well before John Darby, showing that this doctrine is rooted in early Christian thought. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we hold to the belief in a Pre-Tribulation Rapture based on the understanding that God, having already poured out His wrath on Jesus, will not judge Christians in the same manner as the world. We believe that, as in the days of Noah and Lot, God will spare His church from the coming judgment. Additionally, we believe that the rapture will occur before the Antichrist is revealed, as the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit through the church will be removed. We also understand that some believers hold to a Post-Tribulation Rapture view, believing that the church will go through the tribulation before being caught up with Christ. While we do not share this conviction, we recognize that this is a non- salvific doctrine, meaning it does not pertain to the core essentials of salvation. Therefore, we approach this topic with grace and respect for those who hold different views, understanding that our shared hope in Christ's return unites us as believers. This belief in the Pre-Tribulation Rapture is a source of hope and encouragement for us, as we look forward to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together with Him before the tribulation begins.

God's Sovereignty v. Man's Free Will

Will Our Position on Free Will and Sovereignty At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in both the sovereignty of God and the free will of man. We acknowledge that these two concepts, often seen as opposing views in Calvinism and Arminianism, coexist in Scripture without contradiction. We believe that God is sovereign over all creation, yet He grants humanity free will to choose or reject Him. While God's will is perfect and all- encompassing, He allows for human freedom and the consequences that come with it, including sin, suffering, and eternal damnation. This understanding allows us to embrace the tension between God's sovereignty and human responsibility. God's Sovereignty and Election Scripture clearly teaches that God is sovereign and that He exercises His will over all creation, including the election of those who will be saved: Ephesians 1:4-5 "Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will." Romans 8:29-30 "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified." Isaiah 46:10 "Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.'" These passages affirm that God, in His sovereignty, elects and predestines individuals according to His purpose and will. Human Free Will and Responsibility While God is sovereign, the Bible also emphasizes human responsibility. People are accountable for their actions and decisions, including the choice to accept or reject God's offer of salvation: Deuteronomy 30:19 "I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live." Joshua 24:15 "And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Romans 14:12 "So then each of us shall give account of himself to God." These verses highlight the reality of human choice and the responsibility each person has to respond to God. God's Perfect Will vs. Permissible Will Not everything that occurs on earth is in line with God's perfect will. Scripture shows that while God is sovereign, He allows certain things to happen within His permissible will, including sin, suffering, and even people's rejection of Him: 2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matthew 23:37 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" These scriptures show that although God desires all to come to repentance and be saved, He allows people the freedom to reject Him, leading to their own destruction. The Mysterious Coexistence of Sovereignty and Free Will At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we accept that God's sovereignty and human free will can coexist without contradiction. God, in His sovereignty, has made provision for human freedom. He orchestrates His divine plan while respecting the free will He has given to humanity: Philippians 2:12-13 "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Romans 9:16 "So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy." These verses demonstrate that while we are called to respond to God's grace, it is ultimately God who works in us, guiding our will and actions according to His purpose. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we embrace the tension between God's sovereignty and human free will. We believe that God, in His sovereignty, elects and predestines according to His perfect will, while also allowing humans the freedom to choose or reject Him. This dual reality reflects the complexity of God's nature and His relationship with humanity. We affirm that truly loving God is only possible with the gift of free will, which allows us to choose Him out of genuine love and not compulsion. We hold that both the sovereignty of God and the free will of man are biblical truths that coexist in the mystery of God's divine plan. In His infinite wisdom, God makes provision for these truths to work together, ultimately fulfilling His purpose while allowing us the freedom to choose Him.

Benevolence

Our Position on Benevolence At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that part of our calling as followers of Christ is to steward our resources to bless those in need. We are committed to being a generous and compassionate community, prioritizing the care of those within our local church while also extending help to others as the Lord leads. Our approach to benevolence is guided by Scripture and prayerfully considered on a case-by-case basis. Prioritizing the Needs of Our Local Church Scripture teaches us to care for those within our own community of believers, placing a special emphasis on meeting the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ: Galatians 6:10 "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith." Acts 4:34-35 "Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles' feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need." These verses emphasize the importance of ensuring that the needs of our local church family are met. At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we prioritize helping those who are part of our congregation, recognizing that our responsibility begins at home. Stewarding Resources Wisely We believe that the resources God has entrusted to us must be stewarded with wisdom and care. This means that our benevolence efforts are not just about giving, but about giving wisely, ensuring that our support is effective and aligned with God's will: 1 Peter 4:10 "As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." Proverbs 21:20 "There is desirable treasure, and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man squanders it." We strive to be faithful stewards of the resources God has provided, seeking to use them in ways that bring glory to Him and genuinely help those in need. Prayerfully Considering Benevolence Opportunities At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we recognize that not every need presented to us is one that God is calling us to meet directly. We believe in the importance of prayerfully discerning each benevolence opportunity, considering it on a case-by- case basis: James 1:5 "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him." We seek God's guidance in all our benevolence efforts, asking for His wisdom to make decisions that align with His purposes and reflect His heart for those in need. Extending Help Beyond Our Local Church While our first priority is to care for those within our church community, we also recognize the call to be a light to the world and to extend help to those outside our immediate fellowship: Matthew 25:35-36 "For I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me." Proverbs 19:17 "He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given." We are committed to being a generous and compassionate church that reflects God's love to those in need, both within and beyond our congregation. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in the importance of benevolence as a reflection of God's love and compassion. We prioritize helping those within our local church, recognizing our responsibility to care for our own community. However, we also extend our generosity beyond our congregation as the Lord leads. All benevolence efforts are prayerfully considered on a case-by-case basis, ensuring that we steward our resources wisely and in alignment with God's will. Our commitment to benevolence is rooted in our desire to honor God by meeting the needs of others, serving as His hands and feet in the world. Through thoughtful, prayerful giving, we aim to make a meaningful impact in the lives of those we serve, demonstrating the love of Christ in tangible ways.

Women in Ministry

Our Position on Women in Ministry At Love Church, we uphold a soft-complementarian view of women's roles in ministry. Soft-complementarianism means that we emphasize the need for male headship as established in Scripture, while also honoring and valuing the significant contributions women make in leadership and communication roles within the church. Biblical Hierarchy and Order We believe that God established a specific hierarchical order between man and woman, which transcends cultural norms: Creation Order: In Genesis 2:18-24, God created woman as a helper comparable to man, forming a complementary partnership. Headship: 1 Corinthians 11:3 "But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." Apostolic Teaching: In 1 Timothy 2:12-14, Paul emphasizes that a woman should not have authority over a man, referencing the order of creation and the fall. Household Order: Ephesians 5:22-24 "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything." It's also important to note that, although God has clearly created distinct differences in roles between man and woman, they are created equal in value. In no way do we use the familial hierarchy as a tool for men to lord over women. In fact, at Love Church we emphasize God's heart shown throughout the Bible that a man's headship is a responsibility which is to be used to serve his wife. As it says in Ephesians 5:25, 28-29 "Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for her... So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church." Roles and Functions in Ministry While maintaining this hierarchical structure, we also recognize the significant roles women played in the early church, as seen in the book of Acts and other New Testament writings: Prophesying and Teaching: Acts 21:9 mentions Philip's four virgin daughters who prophesied, demonstrating that women can have roles in speaking God's word. Leadership in Ministry: Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila, instructed Apollos in Acts 18:26, showing that women can instruct and guide under appropriate circumstances. Deaconess: Romans 16:1-2 refers to Phoebe as a servant (often understood as deacon) of the church in Cenchrea, highlighting her significant role in the church. Fellow Workers: Philippians 4:3 mentions women who labored with Paul in the Gospel, indicating their active involvement in ministry. "Among The Apostles": In Romans 16:7, Paul mentions Junia, a woman, who is "among note of the apostles", suggesting that she was not only doing ministry alongside the apostles but also was, perhaps, an apostle. Understanding Paul's Exhortation in 1 Timothy 2:12 Paul's instruction that he does "not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man" (1 Timothy 2:12) must be understood within its cultural and historical context. Context of the Ephesian Church. Paul was writing to Timothy, who was pastoring in Ephesus, a city heavily influenced by the worship of Artemis, a goddess whose temple was led by female priestesses. It is likely that Paul was addressing specific cultural issues in that church to correct disorder and false teaching. The Principle of Creation. Paul references the order of creation in 1 Timothy 2:13- 14, reinforcing a foundational truth about God's design. However, as seen in other cultural applications (such as his instructions about head coverings in 1 Corinthians 11 or braided hair in 1 Timothy 2:9), Paul often gives contextual prescriptions for particular church settings while upholding timeless theological principles. Paul's Affirmation of Women in Ministry. Despite this instruction, Paul consistently worked alongside women in ministry and commended them for their leadership. His letters acknowledge female deacons, prophets, and apostles, demonstrating that his directive was not a universal prohibition but a situational guideline for order within a particular church. Use of the Title "Pastor" for Women We acknowledge that the Bible does not provide specific regulations on the use of the title "pastor" as a formality for identifying the key leaders of the house of God. Therefore, we believe there should be charity and understanding around this conviction as it differs across denominations and has differed throughout Church history. However, to avoid confusion and to maintain clarity in our leadership structure: We do not use the term "pastor" as a formal title for women in leadership roles within our church, yet we do recognize God's call and gifting in women to serve, speak, and even lead in the local church. This decision aligns with our interpretation of biblical headship and ensures that our terminology reflects our theological stance. Our Conclusion Based on these scriptural principles, we conclude that: Authority in the Church: Women should not hold positions of authority over men in matters of church discipline and doctrinal teaching. These roles are reserved for men to reflect the headship established by God. Roles of Leadership and Preaching: Women can serve in leadership roles and preach the word of God, provided they do so under the covering of male headship in the church and in partnership with their husbands in ministry. We believe that God calls and equips both men and women for ministry according to His purpose. While we honor the biblical principle of spiritual order within the Church and the home, we recognize that the Holy Spirit empowers all believers, both male and female, to teach, lead, prophesy, and disciple others for the advancement of God's Kingdom. We affirm the full participation of women in the life and ministry of the Church, including teaching, preaching, leadership, and pastoral roles, as long as they operate in biblical alignment with God's order, character, and calling. This approach allows us to honor the biblical order while fully engaging the gifts and callings of women in the church.

The People and Land of Israel

Our Position on Israel At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that God's covenant with Israel is everlasting and has never been revoked. We believe Israel refers both to a people and to a land, that the Church has not replaced Israel, and that the Christian's calling toward the Jewish people is prayer, blessing, and a longing to see them come to their Messiah. We hold these convictions from Scripture rather than from politics, and we believe this is a biblical issue that the Church has wrongly allowed the world to turn into a political one. God's Covenant With Israel Stands God made an everlasting covenant with Abraham and his descendants: Genesis 17:7 "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you." We take the word everlasting at face value. It means eternal. It means it does not end. When God speaks plainly, we do not manipulate His words to make them more comfortable: Proverbs 30:5-6 "Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar." Romans 11:29 "For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." The context of Romans 11 is not personal giftings. The entire chapter is about God refusing to reject His own people. Israel Is a People Israel refers first to the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: Romans 9:4-5 "who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen." Jesus Christ came as a Jew, to the Jews, as their Messiah. The Messiah of the world came through the bloodline God covenanted with. Israel Is Also a Land, and That Land Still Matters to God The same passage that promises God to Abraham's descendants promises them a place: Genesis 17:8 "Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." Ezekiel 36:24 "For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land." Amos 9:15 "I will plant them in their land, And no longer shall they be pulled up From the land I have given them." We believe the regathering of the Jewish people and the reestablishment of the nation of Israel in 1948 fulfills prophetic Scripture rather than contradicting it: Isaiah 66:8 "Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children." A nation born in a single day, immediately following the attempted extermination of the Jewish people, is not a coincidence of history. We therefore do not treat modern Israel as a separate entity or a distant relative of the Israel of Scripture. We believe it is the same people, in the same covenant, restored to the same land God promised them. The Church Has Not Replaced Israel We reject replacement theology. Gentile believers are grafted into a covenant that was always Israel's. We enter their promises. We do not inherit them at Israel's expense: Romans 11:17-18 "And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you." Paul writes this as a direct rebuke to Gentile arrogance. The warning is plain. Branches were broken off, and branches can be broken off again. We are the wild olive branch. We are not the root. 1 Corinthians 10:18 "Observe Israel after the flesh: Are not those who eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?" Scripture still makes an ethnic distinction. We are united in Christ, and Israel retains a distinct role in God's redemptive plan. We also recognize the distinction Scripture draws between adoption and natural birth. Adopted children are loved no less than biological children, and Gentile believers are fully and equally loved by the Father. That does not erase the fact that God had a covenant relationship with a specific people first, and that He has not walked away from it. Israel's Blindness Is Partial and Temporary, Not Final Romans 11:25-26 "For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: 'The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob.'" Romans 11:1 "I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin." When Elijah complained that he alone was left of the faithful, God corrected him. Seven thousand had not bowed to Baal. God sees a remnant where we see none, and God looks for occasion to show mercy rather than occasion to execute judgment. Anyone claiming there is no one righteous left in Israel is repeating Elijah's error. Standing With Israel Does Not Mean Endorsing Everything Israel Does We distinguish covenantal love for a people from political approval of any government, policy, or action. We do not partner with sin and we do not co-sign injustice. We also refuse to abandon a people God has promised to keep. A person can contend for someone's welfare without approving of everything they do. If a family member walks away from God and lives destructively, love does not require you to endorse their choices. It requires you to keep praying, keep reaching, and refuse to abandon them. Zechariah 2:8 "For thus says the Lord of hosts: 'He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye.'" Genesis 12:2-3 "I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Note the final clause. The blessing that flows through Abraham's line reaches all the families of the earth. This is not a narrow ethnic favoritism. It is the mechanism through which God blesses the world. This position is not a call to rally any government behind any policy. It is a call for the Church to know its own role, which is prayer and blessing rather than political enforcement. Answering Common Objections "This belief comes from the Scofield Reference Bible and is a modern dispensationalist invention." The covenant texts in Genesis, Ezekiel, Amos, Isaiah, and Romans predate any study Bible by thousands of years. Paul's argument in Romans 9 through 11 does not depend on Scofield, Darby, or any nineteenth-century system. A person can reject dispensationalism as a theological framework and still be required to answer Romans 11. Attacking the reputation of a publisher does not answer the text. We hold this position because of what Scripture plainly says, not because of who annotated it. "Israel commits atrocities, therefore they cannot be God's covenant people." This objection misunderstands the Gospel itself. The entire Bible is the story of God's relentless faithfulness to a people who were repeatedly faithless, idolatrous, and adulterous toward Him. If a people's sin disqualified them from God's covenant, no one would remain, including us: 2 Timothy 2:13 "If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself." Romans 11:30-32 "For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all." The argument that sin voids the covenant is the argument of self-righteousness, and it is the position Jesus warned about when He said many would appeal to their own correctness and hear that He never knew them. "The Jews rejected Jesus, so God rejected them." Paul answers this directly. They are enemies concerning the gospel, and beloved concerning the election: Romans 11:28 "Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers." Both are true at once. Jesus was a Jew, He came to the Jews first, and He intends to save them. "Genesis 12 refers to ancient Israel, not the modern state." The covenant was made with a people, and that people still exists. God's promise attached to Abraham's descendants, not to a particular era of statehood. The land promise and the people promise appear in the same breath in Genesis 17, and Scripture explicitly anticipates a regathering after dispersion. Why Christians Should Still Care John 4:22 "You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews." That is Jesus speaking. Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek." Psalm 122:6 "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May they prosper who love you.'" Jesus cares about Israel, so we care about Israel. Our primary calling toward the Jewish people is prayer, blessing, and living in such a way that provokes a holy jealousy that draws them to their Messiah. We Do Not Let Politics Shape Our Theology We form our convictions about Israel from Scripture rather than from news cycles, political commentary, podcasters, or partisan alignment. The pressure to take a side is enormous, and it comes from every direction. We hold these convictions with humility toward believers who read the prophetic texts differently, and we refuse to let cultural pressure of any kind determine what we believe God has said. The Prodigal Son and the Older Brother We believe the parable of the prodigal son illuminates what is happening in much of the Church today. A younger son took his father's inheritance and squandered it in reckless living. When he came home, the father ran to meet him, restored him, and threw a celebration. The older brother, who had worked faithfully the entire time, was indignant. He had done everything right. Why should this one be celebrated? Why should he share what he had earned? The father's answer was that everything he had was already the older brother's, and that a brother returning home is cause for joy rather than resentment. We see this pattern in Christians who argue that Israel should be abandoned, that the Jewish people forfeited their promises, and that the Church alone deserves the inheritance. The posture underneath that argument is the older brother's. It says: we have been faithful, so the promises belong to us and not to them. Notice that the father never endorsed the younger son's lifestyle. He never joined him in it. He simply refused to revoke what he had given, and he never stopped watching the road. We want to be a people who watch the road with the Father. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God keeps His promises. His covenant with Israel is everlasting, His gifts and calling are irrevocable, and His plan for the Jewish people is not finished. We were grafted in by grace into a promise that was never ours to begin with, and the right posture of a grafted-in branch is gratitude rather than arrogance. We do not treat this as a political position, a partisan alignment, or an endorsement of any government's conduct. We treat it as a matter of who God is. So we pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We bless the Jewish people. We contend for their protection. We long for them to encounter Jesus as their Messiah and receive the fullness of the inheritance God has kept for them. And we take comfort in this: the same God who refuses to break covenant with a people who broke faith with Him is the same God who will not break covenant with us.

God's Will for Government

Our Position on Government At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that civil government is God's idea, that all governing authority is derived and delegated rather than self-generated, and that God has always placed His people inside governing systems they did not build in order to preserve life, administer justice, and bear witness to His character. We believe Christians are called to submit to governing authority, to obey God above any human command, to pray for those in power, and to participate in the public life of their nation with wisdom, integrity, and mercy. We hold that this is a discipleship issue rather than a partisan one, and we refuse to let political allegiance of any kind sit where allegiance to Christ belongs. Government Is God's Idea Government is not a human invention that God tolerates. It is an institution He established: Romans 13:1-2 "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves." Scripture is clear that God moves over nations and their leaders: Daniel 2:20-21 "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding." Jesus said the same thing to the man who held the legal power to execute Him: John 19:11 "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above." Every authority a ruler holds is on loan. No governing power is ultimate, and every governing power will give an account. What Government Is Assigned to Do God gave government a defined function. It exists to restrain evil, protect the innocent, and uphold justice: Romans 13:3-4 "For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil... For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil." Jeremiah 22:3 "Thus says the Lord: 'Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.'" Proverbs 16:12 "It is an abomination for kings to commit wickedness, For a throne is established by righteousness." When a government does these things, it is functioning as God's servant, whether or not the people running it acknowledge Him. When it fails to do these things, it is failing at the one job God assigned it. Righteousness Exalts a Nation We believe Scripture teaches that nations rise and fall according to their alignment with God's design. This is not a promise attached to any single country. It is a principle that has governed every civilization in history: Proverbs 14:34 "Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people." Proverbs 29:2 "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan." Proverbs 28:12 "When the righteous rejoice, there is great glory; But when the wicked arise, men hide themselves." Because of this, we believe righteous leadership is a mercy to a nation and wicked leadership is a judgment on it. We do not treat the moral condition of a country's leadership as a spiritually neutral matter, and we do not pretend that policy has no moral weight. God Places His People Inside Systems They Did Not Build The consistent biblical pattern is not that God's people seize governments. It is that God positions faithful people inside existing governments, often pagan ones, and uses their character and competence to preserve life and reveal His wisdom. Joseph in Egypt. Sold by his brothers, imprisoned unjustly, then elevated to administer the food supply of a superpower during famine. Genesis 41:39-40 "Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and wise as you. You shall be over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you." Daniel in Babylon. Taken captive as a young man into the government of the empire that destroyed his homeland, and promoted repeatedly across multiple regimes. Daniel 6:3 "Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm." Notice what elevated Daniel. Not political maneuvering. An excellent spirit. His enemies searched his record for corruption and found nothing. Esther in Persia. Placed in the palace before anyone understood why, and positioned to intervene at the exact moment her people faced extermination. Esther 4:14 "Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" Nehemiah in the court of Artaxerxes. A cupbearer to a foreign king who was released and resourced to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. In every case, God's servant operated with excellence inside a system that did not share their faith, refused to compromise their convictions, and was promoted by God rather than by ambition. That is our model. We are also instructed to actively seek the good of the place we live, even when we did not choose it: Jeremiah 29:7 "And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace." Romans 12:21 "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Submission, and Where Submission Ends We teach genuine submission to governing authority. This is not a grudging concession. It is a command, and it is part of our witness: Titus 3:1 "Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work." 1 Peter 2:13-15 "Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men." Matthew 22:21 "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." That submission has a limit. When a government commands what God forbids, or forbids what God commands, the believer obeys God: Acts 5:29 "We ought to obey God rather than men." Scripture gives us the pattern. The Hebrew midwives defied Pharaoh's order to kill infants. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego refused to bow, without any guarantee of rescue: Daniel 3:17-18 "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up." Daniel kept praying with his windows open when prayer was made illegal. In every case the disobedience was narrow, specific, non-violent, and accepted the legal consequence. It was not rebellion. It was worship. We therefore reject two errors. The first is a passivity that calls every compromise submission. The second is a rebellious spirit that dresses personal grievance in spiritual language. Christians should be the most law-abiding people in any nation, right up to the line where obedience to man becomes disobedience to God. The Church's Response Whatever is happening politically, the Church's assignment does not change. We teach five responses: Rejoice in righteousness. When justice is done and evil is restrained, we are glad, regardless of who gets the credit. Psalm 97:10 "You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked." Pray. For leaders, for the Church, and for the people directly affected by every decision. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence." Listen. Take the time to hear people's actual stories before forming a verdict about them. James 1:19 "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath." Serve. Ordinary, tangible, unglamorous acts of care for the people in front of us. Micah 6:8 "He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?" Preach. Tell people about the perfect King and His perfect Kingdom. 1 Corinthians 2:2 "For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." We also speak for those who have no voice in the process: Proverbs 31:8-9 "Open your mouth for the speechless, In the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, And plead the cause of the poor and needy." Justice and Mercy Are Not Opposites We believe justice and mercy operate at the same time, because that is exactly what happened at the cross. God did not suspend justice in order to show mercy. He satisfied justice in order to extend mercy. This means a Christian can affirm that a law is righteous and simultaneously grieve with the person who is bearing its consequence. We can support the restraint of evil and still weep with those who weep: Romans 12:15 "Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep." We also recognize that there is such a thing as unsanctified mercy, a compassion that feels generous but calls evil good and leaves the vulnerable unprotected: Isaiah 5:20 "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness." Wisdom holds both. We refuse to choose between being just and being kind. What We Are Not Saying We want to be precise here, because this subject is easily distorted in both directions. We do not believe any earthly nation is the Kingdom of God. No country is the new Israel, no flag is holy, and no political movement is the Church. Philippians 3:20 "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." We do not believe the Church is the political arm of any party, and we do not bind the conscience of any believer to a candidate, a platform, or a voting bloc. We do not believe the advance of God's Kingdom depends on winning elections, nor do we believe political power can produce the change that only the Gospel produces. A nation cannot be legislated into righteousness. We do not believe love of country is sinful. Honoring the place God set you is good, and gratitude for a nation's blessings is appropriate. We simply refuse to confuse patriotism with worship. We do not believe Christians should withdraw from public life. Retreat is not holiness. Joseph, Daniel, Esther, and Nehemiah did not withdraw. Christ Is the True and Final Government Every human government is temporary and every human government is flawed, including the best of them. Our hope has never been in an administration: Isaiah 9:6-7 "For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder... Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end." Revelation 11:15 "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" There is one government that will never be corrupt, never be voted out, and never fail its people. We work for the good of the nation we live in while we wait for the Kingdom that is coming. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God instituted government, delegates all governing authority, and holds every ruler accountable for how it is used. We believe righteousness exalts a nation and wickedness disgraces it. We believe God has always placed His people inside systems they did not build, and that the way forward is the way of Joseph, Daniel, Esther, and Nehemiah: excellence, integrity, uncompromised conviction, and promotion that comes from God rather than ambition. We submit to governing authority, and we obey God when the two conflict. We pray for leaders we did not vote for. We rejoice when justice is done and we grieve with those who suffer. We speak for the voiceless. We refuse to hand our allegiance to any party or nation, and we refuse to hide from public life. We are citizens of a Kingdom that is not in danger, serving in a nation that needs us to be faithful.

The Greatest Commandment

Our Position on the Greatest Commandment At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, the foundation of everything we do is built on the Greatest Commandment, which Jesus taught in the Gospels: Matthew 22:37-39 "Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" We believe these two commandments, loving God and loving people, are the heart of the Gospel and the mission of everything we build. We express this through our calling to love God supremely and love people supernaturally. Loving God Supremely Our first and foremost desire is to love God with all of our being, heart, soul, mind, and strength. This means living a life of devotion, worship, and surrender. Everything we do flows out of this relationship with our Creator, and our greatest joy comes from knowing and loving Him: Deuteronomy 6:5 "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength." 1 John 4:19 "We love Him because He first loved us." Our love for God motivates everything: our worship, our service, our obedience, and our mission. Loving People Supernaturally Loving God also means loving people. Jesus made clear that the two cannot be separated. To truly love God, we must love others selflessly, unconditionally, and sacrificially. We call this loving people supernaturally, because we love others with the love that comes from God rather than through our own strength: John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." 1 John 4:7-8 "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love." This love reaches beyond human limitation, allowing us to care for, forgive, and serve others as Jesus did. Love Is the Heart Behind Our Beliefs The driving force behind all of our beliefs and teaching is love. Knowledge of theology, eschatology, and ecclesiology matters, and Scripture also warns that knowledge without love is destructive: 1 Corinthians 8:1 "Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies." If our theology becomes a means to judge or separate ourselves from others rather than to love and serve them, we have missed the point entirely: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing." This statement of faith is not a weapon to divide. It is a guidepost to love others more fully and live out God's truth more faithfully. Our Conclusion Every conviction that follows in this document sits underneath this one. We can hold every doctrine correctly and still fail completely if we hold them without love. We can also be so afraid of offending that we abandon truth, which is its own failure of love. We refuse both. We aim to be a people of conviction and compassion at the same time, because that is who Jesus was. In all things, love is our guide, our motive, and our mission.

Man and Sin

Our Position on Man and Sin At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that every human being is created in the image of God and carries inherent, unassailable dignity. We also believe that every human being has inherited a sinful nature through the fall, is separated from God apart from Christ, and is personally responsible for their own sin. These two truths are held together. Human beings are simultaneously the crown of God's creation and desperately in need of a Savior. Created in the Image of God Humanity did not evolve into significance. God assigned it: Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." Psalm 139:13-14 "For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well." Because of this, we affirm the sacred worth of every person regardless of age, ability, ethnicity, background, or condition. This includes the unborn, the elderly, the disabled, the imprisoned, and the person who opposes everything we believe: James 3:9 "With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God." The image of God in a person is not erased by their sin. This is why we can hold firm convictions about behavior while refusing to treat any human being with contempt. The Fall and the Sin Nature The entrance of sin into the world was not a design flaw. It was a rebellion, and its consequences reached every human being who followed: Romans 5:12 "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned." Psalm 51:5 "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me." We believe sin is not merely a series of bad decisions. It is a condition of the heart that produces those decisions: Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?" Universal Guilt and Personal Responsibility No one is exempt, and no one can plead ignorance or circumstance as a defense: Romans 3:10-12 "There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one." Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." We reject the idea that sin is only the product of environment, trauma, or systems, though we recognize those things are real and shape people profoundly. Every person will give an account for their own life: Romans 14:12 "So then each of us shall give account of himself to God." The Consequences of Sin Sin does three things. It separates us from God, it enslaves us, and it kills us: Isaiah 59:2 "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear." John 8:34 "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Ephesians 2:1-3 "And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience." Apart from Christ, a person is not merely sick. Scripture says they are dead. This is why self-improvement cannot save anyone. A dead man does not need coaching. He needs resurrection. Why This Doctrine Matters We teach this plainly because a small view of sin always produces a small view of the cross. If humanity's problem is minor, then Christ's death was an overreaction. The severity of the remedy reveals the severity of the disease. Ephesians 2:4-5 "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)." We also teach it because it levels every person who walks through the door. There is no hierarchy of sinners at the foot of the cross. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe humanity is glorious and fallen at the same time. Every person bears God's image and deserves to be treated accordingly. Every person has also inherited a sinful nature, stands guilty before a holy God, and cannot fix that condition through effort, sincerity, or religion. We do not soften this because we do not want anyone to miss the good news that follows it. The diagnosis is severe precisely because the cure is complete.

Sanctification

Our Position on Sanctification At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that salvation is instantaneous and sanctification is progressive. The moment a person places faith in Jesus Christ, they are declared righteous. From that moment forward, the Holy Spirit begins the lifelong work of conforming that person into the actual likeness of Christ. We believe holiness is both a gift we receive and a pursuit we participate in, and that God finishes what He starts. Set Apart at the Moment of Salvation Sanctification begins with a completed act. Believers are set apart by God before they have improved at anything: 1 Corinthians 6:11 "And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God." Hebrews 10:10 "By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." We never grow into acceptance with God. We grow from it. The Ongoing Work of Transformation At the same time, Scripture describes sanctification as a process that unfolds across an entire life: 2 Corinthians 3:18 "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." Romans 12:1-2 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Transformation happens through a renewed mind, not through willpower alone. What a person believes determines how a person lives. God's Work and Our Participation We reject both passivity and self-effort. Sanctification is neither something we accomplish nor something that happens to us without our involvement: Philippians 2:12-13 "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Titus 2:11-12 "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age." Grace is not permission to remain unchanged. Grace is the power that changes us. The Pursuit of Holiness Holiness is not optional or reserved for a spiritual elite. It is the normal Christian life: Hebrews 12:14 "Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord." 1 Peter 1:15-16 "But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'" Romans 6:11-12 "Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts." The Evidence of Sanctification We measure spiritual maturity by fruit rather than by gifting, platform, or knowledge: Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." Matthew 7:16 "You will know them by their fruits." A person can operate in remarkable spiritual gifts and remain deeply immature in character. We do not confuse anointing with maturity. Grace for the Process We reject perfectionism. Believers still sin, and God has made provision for that reality: 1 John 1:8-9 "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Proverbs 24:16 "For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again." We also reject the opposite error, which treats ongoing, unrepentant sin as acceptable because grace covers it. Confession assumes the intention to turn. Completion Sanctification will be finished, and God Himself takes responsibility for finishing it: 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." 1 John 3:2 "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe every believer is set apart the moment they come to Christ and is then being changed for the rest of their life. We pursue holiness seriously without pretending we have arrived. We extend grace to people in process without lowering the standard. God is not disappointed in your progress. He is committed to your completion.

Satan and Demonology

Our Position on Satan and the Demonic At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe Satan is a real, personal, created being who rebelled against God, that demons are real spiritual entities operating under his authority, and that spiritual warfare is an actual conflict rather than a metaphor. We also believe Satan is a defeated enemy, that Jesus stripped him of authority at the cross, and that every believer has been given delegated authority over the power of the enemy. We hold both realities without exaggeration in either direction. We do not dismiss the demonic, and we do not attribute everything to it. Satan Is a Created Being, Not God's Equal Satan is not the dark counterpart to God. He is a creature who rebelled against his Creator: Luke 10:18 "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven." Isaiah 14:13-15 "For you have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God... I will be like the Most High.' Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit." There is no cosmic dualism in Scripture. God has no rival. Satan is limited, created, and headed for judgment. His Nature and Methods Jesus described the enemy's character plainly: John 8:44 "He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy." 1 Peter 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." His primary weapon is deception rather than force, and he rarely announces himself: 2 Corinthians 11:14 "For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light." 2 Corinthians 4:4 "Whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them." The Reality of Demons and Spiritual Structures Demons are real, they are intelligent, and Scripture describes them as organized rather than random: Ephesians 6:12 "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." Daniel's encounter with the messenger delayed by the prince of Persia demonstrates that spiritual opposition can operate over regions and can interfere with the affairs of nations: Daniel 10:12-13 "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days." We also believe Scripture connects some physical affliction to direct demonic activity, without teaching that all sickness is demonic: Acts 10:38 "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him." Luke 13:16 "So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound, think of it, for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?" The Enemy Is Already Defeated This is the center of our position. Everything above is true, and none of it is the last word: Colossians 2:15 "Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it." 1 John 3:8 "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil." Hebrews 2:14 "That through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil." 1 John 4:4 "You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world." The war is not undecided. The outcome was settled at the cross and the empty tomb. The Authority of the Believer Jesus did not tell His followers to hide from the enemy. He gave them authority over him: Luke 10:19 "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Mark 16:17 "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons." James 4:7 "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Notice the order in James. Submission to God precedes resistance to the devil. Authority is delegated, never independent. How We Fight Our weapons are not natural, and our warfare is not against people: 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ." Ephesians 6:11 "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." We fight through the blood of Jesus, the authority of His name, the Word of God, prayer, fasting, worship, obedience, and the testimony of what God has done. We practice deliverance ministry as a normal part of the ministry of Jesus, carried out with compassion, order, and confidentiality rather than spectacle. Believers and Demonic Influence We believe a person who belongs to Jesus Christ is owned by Him and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and cannot be possessed in the sense of being owned by the enemy: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price." We also believe a believer can be harassed, oppressed, tormented, and given ground through unrepented sin, unforgiveness, generational patterns, trauma, or occult involvement, and that such ground can and should be reclaimed. Paul warned believers not to give the devil a foothold: Ephesians 4:26-27 "Do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil." Boundaries We Hold We reject an unhealthy fixation on the demonic. Believers are called to be aware of the enemy's schemes, not obsessed with them: 2 Corinthians 2:11 "Lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices." We do not blame every hardship, illness, conflict, or personal failure on demonic activity. Scripture also teaches that people sin because of their own desire: James 1:14 "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed." We also do not replace personal responsibility, wise counsel, medical care, or repentance with deliverance. And we do not glorify the enemy by giving him more attention than we give to Jesus. The believer's focus is meant to be on Christ, and the enemy flees from the presence of God, not from our fascination with him. His Final End Satan's future is already written: Revelation 20:10 "The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Romans 16:20 "And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly." Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we take the enemy seriously and we do not fear him. He is real, he is active, he is intelligent, and he is already defeated. We believe in deliverance, we believe in the authority of the believer, and we believe the Church has been equipped to enforce the victory Jesus already won. We walk in vigilance without paranoia, authority without arrogance, and confidence without carelessness. The enemy has power. Jesus has all authority. That is not a close contest.

Hell and Final Judgment

Our Position on Hell and Final Judgment At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that every human being will die once and then face the judgment of God, that this judgment is real, personal, and final, and that the destinies it determines are eternal. We believe in a literal heaven and a literal hell. We teach this doctrine plainly, soberly, and without relish, because we believe it is true and because we believe the urgency of the Gospel depends on it. Judgment Is Certain Death is not the end of the story, and no one negotiates their way past what follows: Hebrews 9:27 "And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment." 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad." Acts 17:31 "Because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained." Jesus Christ Is the Judge The One who died for the world is the One who will judge it: John 5:22 "For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son." This matters. The Judge is not a distant authority applying an arbitrary standard. He is the One who took the penalty Himself and offered it freely to anyone who would receive it. The Great White Throne Revelation 20:11-15 "Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away... And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books... And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." The deciding factor is whether a person's name is written in the Book of Life. Works are recorded and works are real, and no accumulation of them substitutes for being known by Christ. The Reality of Hell We do not soften what Jesus said. He spoke about hell more than anyone else in Scripture: Matthew 25:46 "And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." Mark 9:47-48 "It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire, where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'" 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 "In flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power." We believe the central horror of hell is separation from God. It is the removal of every good thing that His presence provides, permanently. We affirm that the same word Jesus used for eternal life in Matthew 25:46 is the word He used for punishment in the same sentence. We therefore hold to conscious, eternal separation rather than annihilation or universal reconciliation. God Takes No Pleasure in It This doctrine is never to be preached with satisfaction. God's own posture toward the lost is grief and pursuit: Ezekiel 33:11 "As I live,' says the Lord God, 'I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?'" 2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." 1 Timothy 2:4 "Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." Hell exists, and God is not eager to send anyone there. He went to the cross to keep people out of it. The Judgment Seat of Christ for Believers Believers do not face condemnation, and believers do face an accounting: Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." 1 Corinthians 3:13-15 "Each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." This is a judgment of reward and stewardship rather than salvation. Our eternity is secure in Christ. What we did with the life, resources, gifts, and assignments He entrusted to us will be examined. The Hope on the Other Side Final judgment is not where the story ends. It clears the way for what God has always intended: Revelation 21:3-4 "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Why We Teach This We teach hell because Jesus did, because a Gospel with no stakes is not good news about anything, and because love does not withhold a warning. John 3:16-17 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." The word perish in that verse is doing real work. The alternative to everlasting life is not neutrality. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe judgment is certain, hell is real, and eternity is at stake for every person alive. We also believe God has done everything necessary to rescue anyone who will come to Him, and that no one who calls on the name of the Lord will be turned away. We hold this doctrine with sobriety rather than fear, and with urgency rather than cruelty. If we believed this less, we would evangelize less. That is exactly why we refuse to stop believing it.

Marriage, Sexuality, and Gender

Our Position on Marriage, Sexuality, and Gender At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God created humanity male and female, that this distinction is a feature of His design rather than a social construct, and that marriage is a covenant union between one man and one woman for life. We believe sexual intimacy is a gift God placed inside that covenant and that all sexual expression outside of it falls short of His design. We also believe every person is made in the image of God and is to be treated with genuine dignity, honesty, and compassion, regardless of how they identify or what they have done. We hold conviction and care together, because Jesus did. Male and Female by Design Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." Jesus affirmed this as the starting point for every conversation about human sexuality: Mark 10:6 "But from the beginning of the creation, God 'made them male and female.'" We believe biological sex is given by God rather than assigned by culture or chosen by the individual, and that it is good. The distinction between male and female is not a limitation to be overcome. It is part of what makes the union of marriage meaningful and the image of God fully displayed. Marriage as Covenant Genesis 2:24 "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Matthew 19:4-6 "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." Marriage is not primarily a contract, a social arrangement, or a means of personal fulfillment. It is a covenant, and Scripture says it exists to display something larger than itself: Ephesians 5:31-32 "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church." This is why we take marriage so seriously. Every marriage is a living picture of Christ's covenant faithfulness to His people. Sexual Intimacy Inside the Covenant We believe God is not against sex. He invented it, and He placed it inside a covenant to protect it: Hebrews 13:4 "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge." 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God." We therefore hold that sexual activity outside of the marriage covenant, including premarital sex, adultery, pornography, and same-sex sexual activity, falls outside God's design. We list all of these together deliberately. The Church has too often treated some sexual sin as scandalous and other sexual sin as normal. Scripture does not. Singleness We reject the assumption that marriage is required for a full life. Jesus was single. Paul was single, and he described singleness as a gift rather than a deficiency: 1 Corinthians 7:7-8 "For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that." A single person is a whole person, and the local church is family. How We Treat People We refuse to hold this doctrine in a way that dehumanizes anyone. We believe every person experiencing same-sex attraction, gender dysphoria, sexual brokenness, or any form of sexual struggle is loved by God, welcome among us, and worthy of respect. We do not consider anyone's attraction, temptation, or internal experience to be a disqualification from the presence of God's people. Temptation is not sin. We reject mockery, cruelty, and the treatment of any group of people as a punchline or a political prop. We recognize that many people carrying these struggles have been wounded by churches, and we grieve that. We also refuse the false compassion that affirms whatever a person wants in order to avoid discomfort. Real love tells the truth, and it stays. Jesus modeled both: John 8:10-11 "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?' She said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said to her, 'Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.'" He defended her from her accusers and He did not redefine her sin. Both halves of that sentence are the Gospel. Nobody Is Beyond Change We reject the idea that anyone is defined permanently by their sexual history or struggle. Paul listed sexual sin alongside greed, drunkenness, theft, and slander, and then wrote this: 1 Corinthians 6:11 "And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God." Were. That word is the hope of this entire section. The early church was full of people who had been every one of those things. We also acknowledge that transformation is often slow, that faithful believers can struggle in this area for years, and that struggle is not the same as rebellion. We walk with people over time rather than demanding instant change: Galatians 6:1 "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted." Our Own House First We hold ourselves to this standard before we say a word about anyone else. Leaders in this ministry are accountable for their sexual integrity, their marriages, and their private lives. Divorce, pornography, and infidelity inside the Church are not lesser issues than the ones outside it. Matthew 7:5 "First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God made us male and female, that marriage is a lifelong covenant between one man and one woman, and that sexuality is a gift meant to be expressed within it. We believe this because we believe Scripture teaches it plainly and Jesus affirmed it directly. We also believe that no one has ever been argued, shamed, or legislated into the Kingdom. People are drawn by the kindness of God. So we hold the line and we hold the door open. Anyone is welcome here, exactly as they are, and no one is left as they are, including us.

Healing

Our Position on Healing At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that God's will is to heal people of physical and spiritual sickness, that healing was purchased in the atonement, that Jesus commissioned His followers to heal the sick, and that this commission has never been withdrawn. We believe God still heals today, supernaturally and often. We also believe that many faithful believers contend for healing and have not yet seen breakthrough, and we refuse to add shame to their suffering. God's Will Is Not Unclear We believe Scripture presents God's disposition toward sickness consistently. Jesus healed everyone who came to Him: Matthew 4:23 "And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people." Acts 10:38 "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him." The only place Scripture records Jesus doing few miracles, the obstacle named is unbelief rather than God's unwillingness: Mark 6:5-6 "Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He marveled because of their unbelief." Jesus is the exact representation of the Father. What He did reveals what God wants. Healing Was Purchased in the Atonement Isaiah 53:4-5 "Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed." Matthew explicitly applies this prophecy to Jesus' healing ministry rather than only to spiritual salvation: Matthew 8:16-17 "He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 'He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.'" Believers Are Commissioned and Authorized to Heal Healing was never meant to be limited to Jesus or to the apostles: Luke 9:1-2 "Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick." Mark 16:17-18 "And these signs will follow those who believe... they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." James 5:14-15 "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up." Sickness Was Never Part of God's World and Will Not Survive It There was no sickness in the Garden before the fall. There is no sickness in heaven now. There will be no sickness when King Jesus establishes His Kingdom fully: Revelation 21:4 "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Sickness is an intruder. It appears with the curse and disappears with its removal. To pray as Jesus taught us is therefore to refuse to make peace with it: Matthew 6:10 "Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven." The Enemy's Hand in Affliction Scripture shows that some sickness is direct demonic affliction: Luke 13:16 "So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound, think of it, for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond?" John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." 1 John 3:8 "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil." We do not teach that all sickness is demonic. We do teach that some of it is, and that believers have authority in those cases. For Those Still Contending We recognize that many faithful believers pray, believe, fast, and stand for years without seeing breakthrough. We do not treat a delay as a verdict on that person's faith, and we refuse to add shame to suffering. When the father in Mark 9 brought his son to Jesus, his faith was visibly imperfect: Mark 9:24 "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" Jesus healed his son anyway. We also acknowledge the honest tension the whole creation lives in right now: Romans 8:23 "Even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body." Every believer's complete healing is guaranteed at the resurrection, even where it has not yet come in this life. We stand with those still contending, we keep praying, and we hold the promise open. Medicine and Wisdom We do not believe faith and medical care are opposites. Luke was a physician. Paul told Timothy to take something for his stomach. We honor doctors, treatment, and medicine as gifts of God's common grace, and we never counsel anyone to abandon medical care as a demonstration of faith. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God heals, that healing belongs to the finished work of the cross, and that the Church has been commissioned to pray for the sick and expect results. We contend for healing rather than resign to sickness. We hold that conviction with tenderness toward everyone still waiting. Faith that cannot sit with the suffering is not faith. It is pressure. We will keep believing God for miracles, and we will keep loving the people who have not received theirs yet.

Financial Prosperity

Our Position on Financial Prosperity At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God desires to prosper His people, and that this prosperity is not limited to spiritual reward. It includes material and financial provision and increase. We also believe Scripture warns severely against the love of money, against chasing wealth, and against any teaching that treats God as a mechanism for personal enrichment. We hold both. God gives His people the power to create wealth, and He gives it for a purpose beyond their own comfort. God Gives the Power to Create Wealth Deuteronomy 8:18 "And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day." Notice the purpose clause. God gives wealth-building capacity in order to establish His covenant. Provision is tied to assignment. Psalm 112:1-3 "Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, Who delights greatly in His commandments... Wealth and riches will be in his house, And his righteousness endures forever." Psalm 35:27 "Let the Lord be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant." 3 John 2 "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." Proverbs 10:22 "The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with it." Prosperity Follows Alignment, Not Formula Scripture consistently ties prosperity to obedience, meditation on God's Word, and integrity rather than to a transaction: Joshua 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." Psalm 1:3 "He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper." Matthew 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." The Purpose of Increase We believe God prospers His people so they can fund His work, provide for their families, leave a generational inheritance, and demonstrate His goodness to a watching world: Genesis 12:2 "I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing." 2 Corinthians 9:8 "And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work." Proverbs 13:22 "A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children." The blessing terminates in others. A believer who is blessed and hoards it has misunderstood the covenant. What We Reject We want to be explicit here, because this doctrine has been widely abused. We reject the teaching that giving is a transaction that obligates God to produce a specific financial return. God is not a vending machine and faith is not currency. We reject the practice of pressuring people, particularly poor people, to give money they do not have on the promise of a guaranteed harvest. We reject the idea that wealth is proof of God's favor or that poverty is proof of sin or weak faith. Job was righteous and lost everything. Paul learned contentment in abundance and in need. Jesus had nowhere to lay His head. We reject any teaching that makes financial increase the point of the Gospel. The point of the Gospel is Jesus. 1 Timothy 6:10 "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." 1 Timothy 6:17-19 "Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share." Note that Paul does not tell wealthy believers to divest. He tells them where to place their trust and what to do with what they have. Poverty Is Not Holiness We also reject the opposite error. Scripture never presents poverty as a spiritual virtue or as evidence of humility. A poverty mindset is not the same thing as contentment, and lack does not make a person more sanctified. God is not honored by His people being unable to fund what He assigned them. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God desires to prosper His people materially and financially, that He gives the power to create wealth, and that He does it to establish His covenant and bless the world through them. We also believe money is a terrible master and that the love of it has destroyed many. We teach people to build, to earn, to steward, and to give, while keeping their trust in God rather than in what God provides. Prosperity is not the goal. It is a tool. The goal is the Kingdom.

Giving and Financial Stewardship

Stewardship Our Position on Giving At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe that all of our finances come from God and belong to God, that we honor Him with the biblical tithe, and that offerings above the tithe flow from gratitude rather than obligation. We believe God responds to generosity, that He invites His people to test Him in this, and that He delights in a cheerful giver rather than a pressured one. It All Belongs to God Stewardship begins with ownership. We are managers rather than owners: Psalm 24:1 "The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein." 1 Chronicles 29:14 "But who am I, and who are my people, That we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, And of Your own we have given You." The Tithe We honor God with the biblical tithe, meaning returning the first and best ten percent of all our income to the local storehouse or to a higher ministry. The tithe predates the Law. Abraham tithed to Melchizedek and Jacob vowed a tenth long before Sinai: Genesis 14:20 "And he gave him a tithe of all." Jesus affirmed the practice while correcting the heart behind it: Matthew 23:23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone." We honor God with the first portion rather than the leftover: Proverbs 3:9-10 "Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase; So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine." God Invites Us to Test Him This is the only place in Scripture where God tells His people to put Him to the test: Malachi 3:10 "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,' Says the Lord of hosts, 'If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.'" We believe Jesus' promise regarding the measure of our giving: Luke 6:38 "Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." We believe you cannot out-give God, and we invite people to prove Him in this as He Himself commands. Cheerful Giving, Never Coerced We do not manipulate, guilt, shame, or pressure anyone into giving. Scripture is direct about the posture God is after: 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." Giving that is extracted is not giving. Offerings above the tithe are an overflow of gratitude for God's salvation and provision, given in faith and joy. Acts 20:35 "It is more blessed to give than to receive." Funding the Work of the Gospel Giving is not abstract. It pays for the advance of the Kingdom, supports those who labor in the Word, and meets real needs: 1 Corinthians 9:14 "Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel." Philippians 4:17 "Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account." Paul's language matters. He was not after their money. He was after what generosity produced in them. Integrity on Our End Because we ask people to give, we hold ourselves to a standard of financial transparency, accountability, and honesty. We handle what is entrusted to us as money that belongs to God and to the people who sacrificed to give it. 2 Corinthians 8:20-21 "Avoiding this: that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which is administered by us, providing honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men." A ministry that teaches generosity and practices sloppiness with money has disqualified its own message. Debt, Saving, and Wisdom Stewardship extends past giving. We teach believers to live below their means, to avoid unnecessary debt, to save, to plan, and to build: Proverbs 22:7 "The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender." Proverbs 21:20 "There is desirable treasure, and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man squanders it." Luke 14:28 "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it?" Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe everything we have is God's, that the tithe is the starting line rather than the finish line of generosity, and that God honors those who honor Him with their finances. We believe He invites us to test Him and that He has never failed anyone who did. We also believe giving must be free, joyful, and uncoerced, and that those who receive it are accountable to God for every dollar. We give because He gave first.

Online v. In-Person Worship

Our Position on Online and In-Person Gathering At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe God's people should not neglect gathering together, and that in-person gathering is the highest standard for corporate worship. We also believe the power of God's Word cannot be confined to a geographic location, and we celebrate and use the advancements of technology that allow the Word of God to reach the world. We hold these together. Digital ministry is a genuine extension of the Church's reach. It is not a replacement for the Church's life together. The Command to Gather Gathering is not a preference or a personality type. Scripture commands it: Hebrews 10:24-25 "And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Acts 2:42 "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers." There are things God does in a room full of His people that He does not do through a screen. Communion, the laying on of hands, corporate worship, accountability, being known, and being missed all require presence. Matthew 18:20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." Why We Build Online Anyway The commission Jesus gave was global, and He gave it before the technology existed to fulfill it at scale: Mark 16:15 "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Acts 1:8 "And you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Romans 10:14 "How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?" We believe every generation of the Church has used the communication tools of its era. Paul used letters and Roman roads. The Reformation used the printing press. We use the internet, and we believe refusing to is disobedience dressed as reverence. The Word Does Not Lose Power in Transmission Isaiah 55:11 "So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it." The Holy Spirit is not limited by bandwidth. People are genuinely saved, healed, delivered, and discipled through content, streams, and digital gatherings. We have seen it, and we refuse to minimize it. Who Online Ministry Serves We also recognize that online access is not always a convenience. It is a lifeline for the homebound, the chronically ill, the immunocompromised, the deployed, the incarcerated, believers in nations where gathering is dangerous or illegal, and people exploring faith who are not yet ready to walk into a building. We refuse to shame any of them. Where We Draw the Line We do not believe watching a service replaces belonging to a church. Consuming content is not the same as being planted, submitted, known, and serving. Our aim with every digital touchpoint is to move people toward real relationship, real accountability, and real local community, whether that is with us or with a faithful church near them. Online ministry that only produces an audience has failed. Online ministry that produces disciples who get planted has succeeded. Our Conclusion At Kappes Chatfield Ministries, we believe in-person gathering is the standard and that technology is a gift to be stewarded aggressively for the Kingdom. We use every available tool to administer the Word of God globally, to connect believers internationally in real time for worship, prayer, teaching, and mutual edification, and to reach people no building could hold. We are taking back media from the devil and revealing the glory of God on every glowing screen, and we are doing it while calling people into the local church rather than away from it.