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Our Denomination

First Presbyterian Church of Biloxi is a congregation of The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), the largest Reformed, evangelical Presbyterian denomination in the English-speaking world. In December 1973, delegates from 260 Presbyterian congregations gathered at Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama to organize what would become the PCA. Our denomination has since grown to include over 1,700 churches with over 340,000 members across the United States and Canada.

The PCA is an evangelical, Reformed, Presbyterian fellowship of churches.

By Evangelical, we mean that we emphasize the gospel. In other words, we believe Scripture teaches that a person’s salvation is by grace alone, received only through faith in Jesus Christ, and the power to live the Christian life is by continual repentance and faith in the gospel. We also affirming other orthodox Christian doctrines and holding to the inerrancy of Scripture.

By Reformed, we mean that we are connected to the teachings of the historic church and the doctrinal beliefs recovered by the Reformation. A summary of our beliefs is included in The Westminster Confession of Faith and The Westminster Shorter and Larger Catechisms. All officers of the PCA must personally subscribe to and uphold the teachings of the Westminster Standards.

By Presbyterian, we describe our representative form of church government. Local churches are governed by a “Session” of “presbyters” (elders), elected by the members of the congregation. Representatives of local churches within a geographical area compose a “Presbytery.” Representatives of presbyteries meet annually at “General Assembly.” Thus, we are held accountable, equipped, and encouraged to be “faithful to Scripture, true to the Reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission.” This implies the following commitments:

  • We are committed to the Scriptures and the historic Westminster Standards based firmly on a biblical theology that answers the questions and issues of each culture and people to which we minister.
  • We are committed to worship that practices the presence and power of God within the church to the transformation of the surrounding culture through biblical application in population centers around the world.
  • We are committed to the winning of new converts and their incorporation into the church through the ministry of the Word and to significant ministry to the needy through deeds of mercy and service.
  • We are committed to the freedom of every member to minister through spiritual gifts and also to the responsibility to do so under spiritual authority and loving discipline.
  • We are committed to dynamic, prophetic confrontation on non-Christian thought forms and behavior and also to the demonstration of the truth through the practice of holiness and love in Christian fellowship.
  • We are committed to guarding and strengthening the biblical family and also to a ministry to the broken family forms such as the divorced, the widowed and the unwed parent.
  • We are committed to teaching and discipling men and women in the whole counsel of God and also to ministering to the needs of the whole person.

    • You can learn more by checking out the “Our Beliefs” section or the PCA website at www.pcanet.org/beliefs.