There are great Christian Doctrines which we must surely hold and firmly believe. All religious belief rests upon the revealed word of God perceived and tested by the enlightened conscience of people. What we believe grows up out of life and the character of the God in whom we believe. The final tests of validity is are to be found in most areas of life where people strive and stumble and sin only to rise again and yield themselves to the arms of an ever-loving and forgiving God. The verities we hold are shared by the main bodies of the Protestant believers. It is our glory that we are in the central stream of Christian thought throughout the world. All of this reinforces the validity of faith and emphasizes the broad acceptability of our confession. It is appropriate that we should attempt to state succinctly but clearly the main elements of what the African Methodist Episcopal Church believes.
  1. We believe that all people are sinners.
  2. We believe that God the father loves all people and hates all sin.
  3. We believe that Jesus Christ died for all persons, to make possible their salvation from sin, and to make sure the salvation of all who believe in him.
  4. We believe that the Holy Spirit is given to all persons, to enlighten and to incline to repent of their sins and to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
  5. We believe that all who repent of their sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ receive the forgiveness of sin.
  6. We believe that all who receive the forgiveness of sin are at the same time made “new creatures” in Christ Jesus.
  7. We believe that all who are made “new creatures” in Christ Jesus are accepted as the children of God.
  8. We believe that a human being, born of God, is consecrated and set apart for divine service, and that the process of growth begins and is followed by degrees of development, ever having for its goal entire sanctification of Christian perfection.
  9. We believe that all who are accepted as children of God may receive the inward assurance of the Holy Spirit to that fact.
  10. We believe that all who truly desire and seek it may love God with all their heart and soul, mind and strength, and their neighbors as themselves.