About

Welcome

Thank you for taking time to visit our website. The purpose of our site is to better acquaint you with our church, and to assist you in finding the right place where you and your family can know God in a more personal and life changing way.

Royal River Baptist Church is a conservative church in the Yarmouth area which preaches the timeless truths of the Bible. We believe God loves you and has a purpose for your life. It is our desire to help you recognize and enjoy the special relationship God seeks to have with you.

You may be hurting, confused, frustrated with life, tired of empty religion, empty promises, and empty relationships. Perhaps you feel that life is meaningless, hopeless and not worth living. Or, maybe you’re just looking for somewhere that you can learn more about God, meet some likeminded friends, and be involved in serving the Savior. Regardless of your circumstances and needs, you’re why God has called us here. Our great desire is to provide you with real hope and real solutions to life’s most important questions and challenges.

We’re not here to entertain or impress. We are real people, in a real world, with real problems just like everyone else. However, we know the One who forgives sin, and helps us overcome the world with all its temptations, problems, and heartaches. Our aim is simply to exalt our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We seek to know Him intimately, and to make Him known.

We would count it a great honor to help you know God in a deeper, more life changing way.

Sincerely,

Pastor Brooks Suttle

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Our Pastor

Brooks and Tricia were both raised in Christian homes in Western North Carolina. Brooks grew up in Swannanoa, NC and Tricia in Sylva, NC. Brooks made a profession of faith at the age of 8 years old. However, as he got older and began to study the Bible, he began to question if he understood the gospel when he was 8. He struggled under this burden for many years until the Lord showed him that if he would trust him completely for the forgiveness of his sins, he could know for sure he had eternal life. Brooks took God at is Word and fully trusted him for the salvation of his soul. Tricia was saved at the age of 13 at her Grandpa's house after hearing her parents discuss the Second Coming of Christ.

Brooks graduated from C.D. Owen High School in Black Mountain, NC. After graduation, at the age of 18, he knew God was calling him to preach his Word. October 1, 1986 he preached his first message. Tricia graduated from Victory Christian School in Sylva, NC. They both attended Tabernacle Baptist College where they met and were married in 1990. Brooks went on to graduate from TBC with a Bachelor of Theology Degree in Bible.

The Suttle Family has served the Lord in various capacities over the years. Brooks has served as Pastor, participated in various mission trips at home and abroad, served as Song Leader, Sunday School Teacher, Master's Club Coordinator; and has been actively involved in nursing home and evangelistic outreach. Tricia has served as Pastor's wife, pianist, organist, Sunday School Teacher, Master's Club worker, and has been engaged over the years in evangelistic outreach.

The Lord has blessed Brooks and Tricia with five wonderful boys. They have each made a profession of faith in Christ, (except for their youngest child), and are a blessing to their ministry. Their two oldest sons are married and live in SC.

The Suttle family moved to Maine in December 2014 to start the Royal River Baptist Church in Yarmouth, ME. The church is located in the Yarmouth Marketplace where they are holding weekly services on Sunday mornings, Sunday evenings, and on Wednesday evenings. The Suttle Family is commissioned by the Swannanoa Heights Baptist Church in Swannanoa, NC where they actively served the Lord for over twenty years.

What We Believe

The Holy Scriptures

The Holy Scriptures. We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary-inspired Word of God and are accurately preserved in the King James Version. The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, and God-breathed, therefore, the sole and final authority for faith and practice. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament are the complete and divine revelation of God to Man. The Scriptures shall be interpreted according to their literal, normal, grammatical-historical meaning. The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by Royal River Baptist Church. (Ps. 119:160; Prov. 30:5-6; Matt. 5:18; Jn. 17:17; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 1 Pet. 1:22-25; 2 Pet. 1:19-21)

Dispensationalism

Dispensationalism. We believe that the Scriptures, interpreted according to their normal grammatical-historical meaning, reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life that define man’s responsibilities in successive ages. Understanding these distinctions helps us rightly divide and understand the Bible. These dispensations are not ways of salvation but divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Three dispensations – the law, the church, and the kingdom – are the subjects of detailed revelation in Scripture. We reject all forms of hyperdispensationalism and ultradispensationalism. (Gen. 1:28; Rom. 4:1-25; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; II Tim. 2:15, 3:16-17; Rev. 20:2-6)

The Godhead

The Godhead. We believe in one triune God, eternally existing in three persons-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each being co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, coequal in power and glory, equal in every divine perfection, and executing distinct but harmonious offices in every divine work, which includes, but is not limited, to the work of redemption. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; John 14:10, 26; 2 Cor. 13:14)

The Person and Work of the Heavenly Father

The Person and Work of the Heavenly Father. We believe that God the Father is Father only to those who receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior; that He is perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power; that he concerns Himself in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer; that He is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent; and that He is the object of our worship and praise. (Gen. 17:1, Ps. 65:2, Ps. 90:2, Ps. 139:1-24, Ps. 147:5, Isa. 6:3, Mal. 3:6, Matt. 5:45, Matt. 6:24-34, 1 John 4:8, 16)

The Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ

The Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; Jn. 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption by shedding his precious blood and dying on the cross as a representative, vicarious sacrifice; and, that our justification is made sure by his literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:3-5)

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate. (Acts 1:9; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; 1 Jn. 2:1-2)

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit. We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who reproves the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. (Jn. 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)

We believe the Holy Spirit is the divine Teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the Scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit. (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 Jn. 2:20, 27)

We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (Rom. 12;3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12)

We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues, and the gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit, and that the ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. (1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22)

The Total Depravity of Man

The Total Depravity of Man. We believe that man is created in the image and likeness of God. We believe through Adam’s sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition; but possesses the free will to accept or reject God’s call to salvation. (Gen.1:26-27; Jn. 3:14-21; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23 10:8-17; I Cor. 11:7; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19; James 3:9)

Salvation

Salvation. We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace, and received by repentance toward God and personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins; and that it is not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. We reject all points and tenets of Calvinism. (Jn. 1:12; 3:14-17; Rom. 10:8-17; Eph. 1:7; 2:1-22; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; 2 Pet. 3:9; 1 Jn. 1:9)

The Believer

The Believer. We believe that all the saved have eternal life, and are kept by God’s power and not their works, and are thus secure in Christ forever. (Jn. 5:24; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1, 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Pet. 1:4-5)

We believe that it is the privilege of all believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)

We believe that each believer can come directly to God through Christ Jesus without any other human or saintly intervention. (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 Peter 2:5-10; 1 John 1:9)

The Church

The Church. We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27)

We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)

We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)

We recognize water baptism by immersion, of believers only, and the Lord’s Supper as the Scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

We believe only local, New Testament churches have the authority to administer the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

We believe only a man, biologically born and remaining a male, is qualified to hold the office of pastor or deacon.

Separation

Separation. We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations; and to refrain from all inappropriate and ungodly speech, from all immodest, inappropriate and immoderate appearances. (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 Jn. 2:15-17; 2 Jn. 9-11; Lev. 19:28; 1 Cor. 6:19-20)

The Second Advent of Christ

The Second Advent of Christ. We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ, who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with his saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which, was promised to the nation of Israel. (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; 4:13-18; Tit. 2:13; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6)

The Eternal State

The Eternal State. We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28-29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13)

We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 2:5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)

We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with the spirit, soul, and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matt. 25:41-46; Mk 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15)

The Personality of Satan

Creation

Civil Government

Civil Government. We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by his Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; I Peter 2:13-14)

We believe that every individual should have the right to worship God in accord with his own understanding of the Scripture and without coercion, as far as it does not infringe upon the God-given rights of others. (John 21:22; Rom. 14:5-12, 21; Acts 15:39; Acts 4:1-7, 13-23, 33; Acts 17:10-12; Acts 5:12-34, 38-42)

Human Sexuality

Human Sexuality. We believe that the only type of marriage that God sanctions is the joining of one man, biologically born and remaining a male, and one woman, biologically born and remaining a female, in an exclusive covenantal union for their joint lifetimes as delineated by Scripture. Accordingly, we believe the church, its pastors, staff, and members are prohibited from conducting wedding ceremonies for same-sex unions, same-sex marriages, polygamous unions, polygamous marriages, marriage to another person while their previously wedded spouse is still living, or any other union or marriage that is contrary to the Holy Scriptures, and this church’s statement of faith and bylaws. Neither shall the Royal River Baptist Church’s property or resources be used for such purposes. Religious wedding ceremonies should be viewed as an act of worship of the Creator for the blessing of marriage. Therefore, wedding services should rightfully be referred to as worship services. Whenever there is a conflict between the church’s position and any new legal standard for marriage, the church’s statement of faith, doctrines, and biblical positions will govern. (Gen. 2:24; 18:22; Prov. 19:14; Malachi 2:14; Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor. 7:10; Eph. 5:22-23).

We believe that God has commanded that no sexual activity, including verbal, visual, or physical stimulus, should be engaged in outside of marriage. We believe that any other type of sexual activity, identity, or expression that lies outside the scriptural definition of marriage, including those that are becoming more acceptable in the culture and the courts, are contradictory to God’s natural design and purpose for sexual activity are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. We believe that premarital cohabitation, prenuptial agreements, and common law marriage violate God’s marriage design and are thus sinful practices. We believe God disapproves of and forbids any attempt to alter one’s biological gender at birth by surgery, medication, or appearance. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5, 13; Gen. 26:8-9; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1:26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)

We believe that God creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, unchangeable genders together reflect the image and nature of God, and the rejection of one's biological gender is a rejection of the image of God within that person. (Genesis 1:26-27)

Family Relationships

Family Relationships. We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God, but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the church’s leaders (pastors and deacons). Accordingly, only men, biologically born and remaining male, in both gender and appearance, are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:18; 1 Tim. 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)

We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love the wife as Christ loved the church. The wife is to submit herself to the scriptural leadership of her husband in all things, as the church is commanded to submit to the headship of Christ. Children are a heritage from the Lord and are commanded by the Scriptures to honor and obey their parents. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values and training them through consistent lifestyle, examples, and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. (Gen. 1:26-28; Ex. 20:12; Deut. 6:4-9; Ps. 127:3-5; Prov. 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mk. 10:6-12; 1 Cor. 7:1-16; Eph. 5:21-33; 6:1-4; Col. 3:18-21; Heb. 13:4; I Pet. 3:1-7)

Divorce and Remarriage

Divorce and Remarriage. We believe that God hates divorce and intends marriage between a man, biologically born and remaining a male, and a woman, biologically born and remaining a female, to last until one of the spouses dies. Although we believe God recognizes such marriages, we do not believe He sanctions them. We believe marriage to another person while the previous spouse is still living is regarded in the Scripture as adultery. We believe that a divorced man or a man married to a divorced spouse is not eligible to hold the office of pastor or deacon. (Mal. 2:14-17; Matt. 5:32; Matt. 19:3-9; Luke 16:18; Rom. 7:1-3; 1 Cor. 7:1-11; I Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)

Abortion

Abortion. We believe that human life begins at conception (fertilization) and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion (the elective man-made death, ejection, or removal of the living unborn child from the womb) constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder by any means, whether surgical, chemical, physical injury, or deliberate conduct to terminate a pregnancy. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancy due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selections, birth population control, or the mother’s mental well-being are acceptable. (Ex. 21:22-25; Job 3:16; Ps. 51:5; 139:14-16; Isa. 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jer. 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)

Protection of Children

Euthanasia

Euthanasia. The direct taking of an innocent human life is a moral evil, regardless of the intention. Life is a gift of God and must be respected from conception until natural death. Thus we believe that an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder contrary to the will of God. Discontinuing medical procedures that are extraordinary or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be a legitimate refusal of over-zealous treatment (Exodus 20:13, 23:7; Matthew 5:21; Acts 17:28).

Love

Love. We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward those who are not believers, and those who oppose us. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict, or obtaining personal justice. Although, God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in sinful actions. (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Rom. 12:9-10; 17-21; 13:8-10; Phil. 2:2-4; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; 1 John 3:17-18)

Lawsuits Between Believers.

Lawsuits Between Believers. We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christian members, or against local church bodies themselves, to resolve personal disputes. We believe the local church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company, as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (I Cor. 6:1-8; Eph. 4:31-32)

Missions

Missions. We believe that God has given the local church a commission to preach the gospel to every individual in the world, to baptize believers, to establish churches, and to teach the whole counsel of God so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ, every believer is responsible to exercise their spiritual gifts and utilize every scriptural method to strengthen their local church and reach the world with the gospel. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:20). The method employed by Royal River Baptist Church to financially support missionary outreach is through the voluntary contributions over and above the scripturally prescribed tithes and offerings. This method of supporting missionary outreach is known as Grace Giving, and when a personal financial commitment is attached to Grace Giving, it is known as Faith Promise Giving. (2 Corinthians chapters 8-9)

Giving

Giving. As a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, we believe every Christian is obligated to financially support his local church. We believe that God has established the tithe (10% of gross income) as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully for the support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that any person making a financial contribution to the church relinquishes all rights to direct the use of their tithe or offering once the gift has been made. (Gen. 14:20; Prov. 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:6-7; Gal. 6:6; Eph. 4:28; 1 Tim. 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)