The overall purpose of this church is to teach and train every believer (through a verse by verse explanation of the Scriptures) in biblical knowledge, personal growth and in biblical application of life – “to equip the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12). We believe that as each individual grows and lives the Christian life, he or she will not only become obedient to the Word of God, but will also want to share it with family, friends and neighbors.

The equipping of the saints is a life long process which beings at salvation when a person trusts Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior. Then as a disciple, he is taught a life of obedience through the Word of God and to the best of his abilities, will teach others to observe all that he has been taught (Matt. 28:18-20).

When the body of Christ is built up, it will function in a two-fold way:
1) The gospel of Jesus Christ will be spread as individual members live a lifestyle of obedience and engage in personal evangelism; and 2) the local body will reproduce itself as people are trained to equip others.

The ministry of the church endeavors to reach:
The multitudes – “any who hear.” Those who desire to learn more and be obedient to God and His word – “be equipped.” Those who seek to minister – “able to teach others.” We pray that you will find this information helpful as you learn to know your brothers and sisters in Christ. Use it to pray daily for one another.

We covet your prayers for us.

The Peru Grace Brethren Church, believing the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible to be our infallible rule of faith and of practice, and feeling our responsibility to make known the divine message of the Bible,  present the following articles as a state of those basic truths taught in the Bible which are common to our Christian faith and practice:

1. THE BIBLE: the Word of God, the sixty-six books of the old and New Testaments, verbally inspired in all parts, and therefore wholly without error as originally given of God (II Tim. 3:16, II Peter 1:21).

2. THE ONE TRUE GOD: existing eternally as three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22, Matt. 28:19, II Cor. 13:14).

3. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST: His preexistence and deity (John 1:1-3), incarnation by virgin birth (John 1:14, Matt. 1:18-23), sinless life (Heb. 4:15), substitutionary death (II Cor. 5:21), bodily resurrection (Luke 24:36-43), ascension into heaven and present ministry (Heb. 4:14-16), and coming again (Acts 1:11).

4. THE HOLY SPIRIT: His personality (John 16:7-15), and deity (Acts 5:3-4), and His work in each believer, baptism and indwelling at the moment of regeneration (I Cor. 12:13, Rom. 8:9), and filling (Eph. 3:16, Acts 1:8, Gal. 5:22-23).

5. MAN: his direct creation in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-28), his subsequent fall into sin resulting in spiritual death (Gen. 3:1-24, Rom. 5:12), and the necessity of the new birth for his salvation (John 3:3-5).

6. SALVATION: a complete and eternal salvation by God’s grace alone, received as a gift of God through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work (Eph. 2:8-9, Titus 3:5-7, I Peter 1:18-19).

7. THE CHURCH: one true Church, the body and bride of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23, 5:25-32), composed of all true believers of the present age (I Cor. 12:12-13) and the organization of its member in local churches for worship, for edification of believers, and for worldwide gospel witness, each local church being autonomous but cooperating in fellowship and work (Eph. 4:11-16).

8. CHRISTIAN LIFE: a life of righteousness, good works, and separation unto God from the evil ways of the world (Rom. 12:1-2), manifested by speaking the truth (James 5:12), maintaining the sanctity of the home (Eph. 5:22-6:4), settling differences between Christians in accordance with the Word of God (I Cor. 6:1-8), not engaging in carnal strife but showing a Christ-like attitude toward all men (Rom. 12:17-21), exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23) and maintaining a life of prayer (Eph. 6:18, Phil. 4:6), including the privilege, when sick, of calling for the elders of the church to pray and to anoint with oil in the name of the Lord Jesus (James 5:13-18).

9. ORDINANCES: the Christian should observe the ordinances of our Lord Jesus Christ, which are (1) baptism of believers by triune immersion (Matt. 28:19) and (2) the threefold communion service, consisting of the washing of the saints’feet (John 13:1-17), the Lord’s Supper (I Cor. 11:20-22, 33-34, Jude 12), and the communion of the bread and the cup (I Cor. 11:23-26).

10. SATAN: his existence and personality as the great adversary of God and His people (Rev. 12:1-10), his judgment (John 12:31), and final doom (Rev. 20:10).

11. SECOND COMING: the personal, visible, and imminent return of Christ to remove His church from the earth (I Thess. 4:16-17), before the tribulation (I Thess. 1:10, Rev. 3:10), and afterward to descend with the Church to establish His millennial kingdom upon the earth (Rev. 19:11-20:6).

12. FUTURE LIFE: the conscious existence of the dead (Phil. 1:21-23, Luke 16:19-31), the resurrection of the body (John 5:28-29), the judgment and reward of believers (Rom. 14:10-12, II Cor. 5:10), and judgment and condemnation of unbelievers (Rev. 20:11-15), the eternal life of the saved (John 3:16), and the eternal punishment of the lost (Matt. 25:45, Rev. 20:15).