…independent. There is no outside organization, conference, association or convention dictating to this congregation how it is to be run or where our missionary dollars should be sent or with whom we should be affiliated. We are dependent upon the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word but independent of outside control.

…fundamental. That word should get your attention and probably strikes you negatively. Why? Because of media propaganda and the prevalent association liberals like to give it with murderous cults and false religions. We unapologetically call ourselves Bible “fundamentalists” because we stand for the inspiration and infallibility of the Word of God, preach it in its entirety, defend it, and resolve to obey it.

…separated. Truth must be taught but error is self-perpetuating. To make error attractive its purveyors will most often present it as truth. For example in Matthew 7:15 Jesus says, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” The Biblical response to error is to expose it, denounce it, and separate from it and those who espouse it. The most dangerous form of error is not blatant error, but truth mixed with error. For purity and protection the Bible teaches separation…

…from the world. The believer must recognize the evil character of the world system and stand firmly against it (II Corinthians 6:14-17; I John 2:15-17; James 4:4) in speech, dress, music, etc. In opposing the world, however, the believer must not isolate himself from it (John 17:14-17). His involvement in the lives of the unsaved must be with the goal of bringing them to Christ (Matthew 5:13; Acts 1:8).

…from false teachers and preachers. These are not those who merely hold different convictions than we do but, rather, they are those who teach against the clear teaching of God’s Word. The one who preaches “another gospel” must be exposed, denounced and avoided (Galatians 1:8-9; II Peter 2; II John 7-11).

…disobedient Christians. This is the Christian who knows what is right but refuses to do it. If he refuses to heed attempts of restoration (Matthew 18:15-17), the obedient believer must separate from him to prevent corruption of himself and to hopefully see his brother restored as a result of this drastic measure (I Corinthians 5:1-13; II Thessalonians 3:6).

Westside Baptist Church cares more about growing people than growing a crowd. Sure we would like to see the size of our congregation grow, but not at the expense seeing individuals grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. We believe God has called us to feed the sheep, not to entertain the goats.