Our Personality
Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel is a truly unique church in the greater Hartford-Springfield area. The uniqueness of our church stems from many things, but the main reason is its zeal for the worship of the Holy and Living God. At Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel our love of the Holy and Living God is done in accordance with biblical principles and in line with historic Christian perspectives.
Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel fits into the long religious history of New England. It realizes that in the early days of the founding of the Massachusetts colony one principle was foremost in the hearts and minds of the early settlers—the freedom to worship God in compliance with His revealed will. This principle we hold highly, for it is this zeal for true religion that made America the greatest civilization in history and raised it far above the level of feudalistic monarchies. Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel stirs up the spirit of historic New England, because it is involved in a revival of the first religious ideals of the founding fathers.
Our Precepts
We are historic Baptists.
Historic Baptists are not to be confused with many of the modern-day Baptists. We wholeheartedly subscribe to the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith as our doctrinal statement. Copies of this document are freely available to you from the church.
We are broad and vigorous in our evangelism.
We believe in the power of God’s Word when applied to the souls of men through the Holy Spirit. His Word and Spirit can bring about the radical transformation of life and character which modern man so desperately needs.
Our evangelism seeks to be God centered. We wish to declare God in His fullness and glory. We are persuaded that men will never believe in a God of whom they know nothing. Our evangelism shuns cheap gimmicks and man-made methods for gaining converts. If men are to be saved it will be by the power of Almighty God and by the soul conquering display of His free grace.
Our evangelism biblically emphasizes the centrality of preaching. It is rare nowadays when you can hear a sermon and says, “I’ve heard a message from Heaven.” We want every sermon to be just such a message. God has something to say to all of us straight from His Word.
We are Reformed or “Calvinistic” in our doctrinal persuasion.
We do not believe that man is independent from God and capable of saving himself by His own efforts. Works, prayers, or religious deeds do not save a man, but Christ alone. All men stand before Holy God and will either be saved by His sovereign initiative or will remain in the dreadful state of sin and disobedience to Him.
We believe that the grace of God is freely offered to all men through Christ, but that it saves believers alone. We believe that Jesus’ death is sufficient for all men, but that only believers are included in its efficacy.
Our People
There is one peculiar mark of the people of Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel, and that is their love for their Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer. True you will probably find hypocrites in our church as in many others, but as a rule you will sense a deep honesty concerning spiritual realities among most. You can always tell of a peoples love for God by their willingness to be conformed to His will in all things.
Here are a people who are not just outwardly friendly, but who are deeply concerned about eternal realities and about the destiny of human souls. They want you to know and love the same God whom they love. Hence, they are anxious to help you with any spiritual question or need.
Our Purpose
Pioneer Valley Baptist Chapel does not exist for its own glory, it exists that God might be glorified. We are living in an age when God is either totally forgotten or is associated with some form of Sunday-go-to-church ritualism. In such a decadent age it is of tantamount importance for God’s people to bind themselves together to worship and fellowship in spirit and in truth. Thus, behind all of our activities, social events, Bible studies, fellowship meetings, women’s and youth activities, and recreational events lies a deep-seated zeal for God and His glory.
Our purpose includes seeking to revive in our day the principles of historic Christianity. The doctrines of the past are still fresh today. The truths that Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Whitefield, Edwards, and Spurgeon declared in the past days break forth upon the polluted philosophies of our age and come as a breath of fresh air. God is right now reviving the good old doctrines of free grace. Men are hearing once again the gospel of God’s kingdom of grace. Individuals, preachers, and churches are being awakened to the truth that men cannot save themselves –but our once crucified, now ascended Lord Jesus can! Unless God reach forth and renew them with His scepter of grace they will forever perish. Sinners are being confronted with the reality of their depraved nature and with the plight of their spiritual bondage. Many have never heard this gospel message. Many are hearing for the first time and are having their consciences wrought upon mightily. Oh, that they would repent and believe on Christ!