Westfort Baptist Church - Thunder Bay

Who Are We?

Westfort Baptist Church is is a body of believers desiring to know the Lord Jesus Christ, and to make Him known in our city, our nation, our world, and most specifically in our lives.

We seek to encourage and equip people to walk with God daily, to build authentic community, and to reach others intentionally.

We invite you to get to know us, and to join us.

What We Don't Believe

(clearing up some common misconceptions)

1. Christians are better than other people.
2. Christianity is about being good.
3. No one can know for sure they're going to heaven. There are no absolutes.
4. The Bible was written by men and therefore contains errors.
5. Jesus was a great moral teacher, but not divine.
6. Faith is believing what you know isn't true.
7. Bible-based human "dominion" caused environmental degradation.
8. The Bible is "anti-sex."
9. Becoming a Christian will make your life easier.
10. Christianity is a private matter.

1. Christians are better than other people.

We do not believe that Christians are better than other people. Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners (Mark 2:17)." A true Christian is one who recognizes and confesses his sin and his need for a saviour. As the Apostle John wrote, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives (1John 5:8-10)." Christians are not better than other people... Christians are simply better off. As Jesus explained, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3)."

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2. Christianity is about being good.

Christianity is not about people trying to be good. Christianity is about God and His great goodness. It is about Christ's perfect life and his sacrificial death on our behalf. The Bible says that our righteous acts can never satisfy God because, "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. (Isaiah 64:6)"

The Apostle Paul put it clearly, "there is no one who does good, not even one... for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:12, 23)" "Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law (3:20)."

"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. (3:21-22)" "You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (5:6-8)"

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3. No one can know for sure they're going to heaven. There are no absolutes.

To those who claim there are no absolutes, we must ask, "Are you absolutely sure there are no absolutes?" You see, such a claim is self-defeating. It is as non-sensical as stating, "Sentences do not exist." or, "I do not know five words of English." It is surprising how many people make such self-defeating statements. Consider the following:

A. "Truth is relative."
B. "Moralizing is wrong."
C. "No one can know anything for sure."

Do you see how each of these statements is self-defeating?

1. If truth is relative, then there is no reason to believe statement A.
2. If moralizing is wrong... then so is making statement B.
3. If no one can know anything for sure... then no one can actually know statement C.

We have already seen (above) that to have personal assurance of one's salvation is not hubris... because no one earns or deserves salvation. To those who claim a person cannot know they are going to heaven, we ask, "Why not?" What makes such information "unknowable"? (Of course, if one assumes it is unknowable, then one will also conclude it is unknowable... but such an argument is hardly convincing.)

As much as a person can know what something smells like... as much as a person can know what they did yesterday... so also a person can know things which have been revealed by God to be received by faith. Such knowledge is what we call, "properly basic" and needs no empirical proof. For more on this subject, see Alvin Plantinga's, "Warranted Christian Belief" (2000).

To the thief on the cross, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise (Luke 23: 43)." In doing so, Jesus gave the thief his personal assurance that he would be with Jesus in heaven.

In John 10, Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me- just as the Father knows me and I know the Father- and I lay down my life for the sheep (vs. 14-15)... [and to the Jewish leaders:] "The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand (vs. 25-28)."

The Apostle John concluded, regarding assurance, "This is the testimony: 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. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life (1 John 5:11-13)."

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