The mission of Wayside Bible Baptist Church…
is to “do all to the glory of God” in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, by evangelizing the lost in our community, edifying believers in our church, and equipping servants for the ministry in the world.
Welcoming
Come as you are. We’re about teaching the scripture with integrity and thoughtfulness, not about a dress code. If you want to learn and grow, we would love to have you at Wayside.
Genuine
We’re all on the same journey and nobody is perfect. What you’ll find at Wayside is a family of believers that are growing in their faith and understanding, and picking each other up when we fall.
Impactful
As an extension of our local ministry in Maine, we support missions around the globe. Help us share the gospel and ease suffering in the world.
Find answers to some of life’s most challenging questions.
What we believe.
Our Doctrinal Statement of Faith.
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God in the words of the original autographs. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed, and therefore are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21)
The Holy Scriptures
We believe that the Scriptures interpreted in their natural, literal sense reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. We hold to the following dispensations: 1) Innocency; 2) Conscience; 3) Civil Government; 4) Promise; 5) Law; 6) Grace; 7) Millennium Kingdom. Three of these dispensations—the law, grace, and the kingdom—are the subjects of detailed revelation in Scripture. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)
Dispensationalism
The Godhead
We believe in one Triune God, infinitely holy, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, immutable, eternally existent, maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26)
The Person and Work of God the Father
We believe that God the Father is the author of the decrees or plan of God (Ps 2:7-9). He loves us so much He sent His Son into the world to save the world from its sin (Jn 3:16; Jn 5:37). The Father is the disciplinarian of His children (Heb 12:9).
1. We believe in the absolute deity of the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ; that He is God, existing from all eternity and co-equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He is the creator of the universe, and by Him all things hold together. He never ceased to be God, and His humiliation in His incarnation and crucifixion did not consist in laying aside His deity. (John 1:1-3; Matthew 1:20,23; Luke 1:26-38; John 5:18; John 8:58; Hebrews 1:8; Colossians 1:15-19; Hebrews 1:1-3; Isaiah 7:14; Isaiah 9:6; John 17:5; Philippians 2:6-11; I Timothy 3:16; Titus 2:13)
2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)
3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice; and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
4. We believe that our redemption has been accomplished solely by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, for without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. His blood provides for our atonement and is the propitiation of our sins. (Lev 17:11; Matt 26:28; Rom 5:5,9; Eph 1:7; Heb 9:12-14; I Peter 1:18-19; I John 2:2; Rev 1:5
5. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)
The Person and Work of Christ
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person, equal with God the Father and God the Son in nature and attributes; that He was active in the creation of the world; that in His relation to the unbelieving world, He restrains the evil one until God’s purpose is fulfilled; who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation whereby the believing person is taken out of his old position in Adam and placed into a new position in Christ. He is hence placed into the body of Christ and becomes part of the family of God being indwelt and sealed unto the day of redemption.(John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
2. We believe that He is the Divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit. However, the filling of the Spirit comes only to those who fully submit themselves to Him, and as many times as they do the same. (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)
3. We believe that God the Spirit is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer, special gifts by which believers can faithfully serve the Lord Jesus Christ. These gifts are given at the moment of salvation and are to be exercised and developed by continual use. (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:1-13; 13:8-12; 14:20-25; Eph. 4:7-12; Heb 2:3,4; II Cor 12:12
4. We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues, the gift of healing, prophecy, and interpretation of tongues were temporary. (They played a key role in the beginning of the early church until the completion of New Testament Scriptures, and at that time they ceased. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing according to His will. (1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22; James 5:13-16; Matt 7:7)
5. We believe in the Priesthood of the believer, that is to say, that all born again believers being
thereby indwelt by the Holy Spirit, are equally capable of coming by prayer directly into the presence of God in the name of Jesus Christ, and that no other human priest, bishop, or mediator is necessary. (I Peter 2:5,6; Heb 4:14-16; I Tim 2:5
6. We believe that sanctification is the process by which, according to the will of God, we are made partakers of His holiness; that it is a progressive work; that it is begun in regeneration; that it is carried on in the hearts of the believers by the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit, the Sealer and Comforter, in the continual use of the Word of God, self examination, self denial, watchfulness, and prayer. (Phil 2:12-13; 3:12-16; I Thess 5:23; I John 2:29)
7. We believe that repentance and faith are sacred duties, and also inseparable graces, wrought in our souls by the regenerating Spirit of God; whereby, being deeply convinced of our guilt and helplessness, danger, and of the way of salvation by Christ, we turn to God with contrition, confession, and supplication for mercy; at the same time receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as the only and all sufficient Saviour.
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
The Total Depravity of Man
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that in Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved, dead in His sins, and of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19)
We believe that salvation is the free gift of God brought to man by grace without works or human merit, and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Matt. 12:31-32; 1 John 1:9)
Salvation
1. We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in
Christ forever. The believer is given eternal life, he shall never perish, no one is able to pluck him out of the Savior’s hand, and, he is sealed unto the day of their redemption. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; Eph 4:30; 1 Pet. 1:4-5)
2. We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation
through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Rom 6:1-2; Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)
The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers
1. We believe that the church is made up of all those, and only those, who are born again during the
Church age, who are members of the invisible Church which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ. The Local church is solely made up of born-again, immersed believers, associated by covenant of faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by the New Testament; and exercising the gifts and privileges invested in them by His Word; that its officers are pastors and deacons, whose qualifications and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures. (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27)
2. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined
in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)
3. We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control.
(Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)
4. We recognize water baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. We believe that baptism is the immersion of the believer in water in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Baptism plays no part in our salvation but is a question of obedience after salvation as a public testimony of our faith in the crucified, buried and risen Savior and of our death to sin and resurrection to a new life, and that it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership. We believe that the Lord’s supper is symbolic of our Lord’s body and His shed blood as He suffered for us on the cross, in memory of Him and his death until He comes, and always should be preceded by solemn self-examination. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)
5. Gathering on Sunday. We believe that a local church is a group of born again believers, in one locality, who join together on the first day of the week for purposes of worship, fellowship, instruction and carrying out the great commission. (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 20:7; I Cor 16:2)
The Church
Separation
We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations. (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11; Lev. 19:28; 1 Cor. 6:19-20)
We believe in the Pre-Tribulational and the Pre-Millennial view of the coming of Jesus Christ. We believe in that “blessed hope,” the personal, imminent return of Christ who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel. This Kingdom will endure on earth one thousand years before the New Heaven and the New Earth. (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6)
The Second Advent of Christ
1. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13)
2. We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where they consciously await their bodily resurrection when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)
3. We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess.1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15)
The Eternal State
The Personality of Satan
We believe that Satan is a created angelic being who because of pride wanted to be like God and as a result was cast out of heaven. He is the unholy god of this age and the prince of all the powers of darkness; he and his demons (angels who fell from heaven with him) are the open and declared enemy of God and man; and he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. (Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10)
We believe that the Triune God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin. (Gen. 1-2; Ex. 20:11)
Creation
We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14)
Civil Government
1. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between one naturally born man and one naturally born woman. We believe that any form of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery and pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s gender by surgery or appearance. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen. 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1: 26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)
2. We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one naturally born man and one naturally born woman for life. We also believe that polygamy is not condoned in the Scriptures. (Gen. 2:24; Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor. 7:10; Eph. 5:22-23)
Human Sexuality
1. We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:18; 1 Tim. 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)
2. We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to the headship of Christ. Children are an heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values and leading them through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. (Gen. 1:26-28; Ex. 20:12; Deut. 6:4-9; Ps. 127:3-5; Prov. 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mk. 10:6-12; I Cor. 7:1-16; Eph. 5:21-33; 6:1-4, Col. 3:18-21; Heb. 13:4; I Pet. 3:1-7)
Family Relationships
Divorce and Remarriage
We believe that God disapproves of and forbids divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Although divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service, they may not be considered for the offices of pastor or deacon. (Mal. 2:14-17; Matt. 19:3-12; Rom. 7:1-3; 1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)
We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the physical or mental well being of the mother are acceptable. (Job 3:16; Ps. 51:5; 139:14-16; Isa. 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jer. 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)
Abortion
We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward both those who are not believers and those who oppose us. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or the use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions. (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Rom. 12:9-10; 17-21; 13:8-10; Phil. 2:2-4; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; 1 John 3:17-18)
Love
We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (1 Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)
Lawsuits Between Believers
We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go to all people of all nations and not wait for them to come to us. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20)
Missions
We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially. We believe that God has established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made. (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; 1 Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)