What We Believe
ABOUT SCRIPTURE
We believe that God has revealed His grand story in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, a collection of 66 books we know as the Bible. We believe that the entire Bible is God-breathed, infallible, without error in the original writings, and is the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and life.
2 Peter 1:20-21; 1 Corinthians 2:13; Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:16-17
ABOUT GOD
We believe there is only one God, eternally existing in community with Himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – one God in three persons, distinguishable but indivisible – co-eternal and co-equal in power and glory, altogether holy, loving and just.
ABOUT HUMANITY
We believe that God created human beings, male and female, in His own image and likeness, to care for, manage and have dominion over all creation and live in perfect fellowship with Him. We believe that through Adam’s sin, humanity fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. We believe that as a result of the fall, man is totally depraved and utterly incapable of rescuing himself and regaining fellowship with God through his own efforts.
Genesis 1:26-28; Romans 5:12; Romans 3:22-23; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12
ABOUT THE PERSON AND WORK OF CHRIST
We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the second member of the Trinity. We believe He became man without ceasing to be God. We believe He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary. We believe He came and made His dwelling among us on a mission to reveal God the Father to a lost world and save mankind.
We believe that Jesus Christ, fully God yet fully human, did what man could not do. We believe that He lived a perfect, sinless life, and then showed his greatest love for us through his obedient sacrifice on the cross, becoming our substitute, paying the penalty for our sin, making us right with God, freeing us to draw near to Him and to live the right way. We believe that after three days, Jesus resurrected from the dead, conquering sin and defeating hell. We believe that Jesus Christ physically ascended into heaven to appear before God as our Advocate, and sits at the right hand of God the Father where He reigns as head of the church and intercedes for us always. We believe He is coming again, in bodily form, to judge the living and the dead.
ABOUT THE PERSON AND WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit, promised by Jesus, convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. We believe that the Holy Spirit supernaturally works in the hearts of humanity, helping us, instructing us, guiding us, drawing us close to Jesus and transforming us into His likeness. We believe that He lives within us, secures our salvation, empowers us with spiritual gifts, and enables us to live and serve just as Jesus did.
ABOUT SALVATION
We believe that salvation, with its forgiveness of sin, impartation of a new nature, and eternal life with God, is made possible only by God’s saving grace in the person and work of Jesus Christ. We believe that salvation is a gift, and cannot be earned. We believe that it is received only through simple, personal faith in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood that was shed on the cross provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sin.
Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12; Romans 10:9-10; Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 1:18-19
ABOUT THE CHURCH
We believe that the church is the body of Christ, the Bride of Christ, God’s household, made up of those who have, by grace, put their trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ. We believe that God has laid upon the church the primary task of giving the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world.We believe that just as one body has many parts and functions, churches all over the world that are united in Christ will often differ in their expressions of church. We believe however that a genuine church is recognized ultimately by her gospel message and by her love for God and her members’ love for one another and for the world. We practice two ordinances in the church instituted by Christ Himself: water baptism and Holy Communion.
ABOUT GOOD WORKS AND THE KINGDOM OF GOD
We believe that genuine followers of Christ will no longer live for themselves but for God, pursuing a life rich in good works through the power of the Holy Spirit. We believe that good works, although not a means to salvation, make up vital evidence of saving grace. Moreover, we believe that Christ-followers are salt and light in a dark and decaying world, called not to retreat from the world but to engage it and bring change to it for the glory of God and the advancement of His Kingdom on earth.
