THE BIBLE
We believe that the Scriptures, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament, are “breathed out” by God and are the inspired, authoritative, living, eternally reliable written Word of God. The Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of God’s will for the salvation of mankind, and the final authority for all Christian faith and life.
(Matthew 5:18; John 10:35, 17:17; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
THE TRINITY
We believe in one true God who exists eternally in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who are equal in essence, deity, and power. All three are uncreated and execute distinct but harmonious offices and roles.
(Deuteronomy 33:27; Psalm 90:2; Psalm 102:27; 1 Timothy 1:17; John 1:1-2, 8:58; Hebrews 1:8, 9:14;
1 John 1:2; Revelation 1:8)
GOD THE FATHER
We believe that God is the loving creator of all things, both visible and invisible, and now upholds, sustains, governs, and providentially directs all that exists and that He will bring all things to their proper consummation in Christ Jesus to the glory of His name. God is distinct from His creation yet everywhere present, omniscient over all time, and wholly sovereign. He is the everlasting King who reigns over the nations and whose Kingdom endures from generation to generation.
(Colossians 1:15-16; Jeremiah 10:10; Daniel 4:34; Psalm 47:7-8)
JESUS THE SON
We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, who is God incarnate, fully God and fully man. He existed before time, was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and offered himself as a substitutionary sacrifice for our sins through His death on the cross. By the blood of His cross He displayed the relentless and fierce love of God, satisfied the justice and wrath of God, obtained for us eternal redemption, the forgiveness of all our sins, spiritual adoption as sons and daughters, life everlasting, and defeated Satan and the powers of darkness. Jesus was physically raised from the dead on the third day as prophesied, ascended to the right hand of the Father, intercedes for the saints as the sole mediator between God and man. He will return visibly to the earth, establish His eternal Kingdom, whereby every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
(Isaiah 53:1-12; Matthew 1:18-25; John 1:1-18; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:1-28;
2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:10-14; Ephesians 1:7; Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 1:15-23, 2:15; Hebrews 7:25, 9:13-15, 10:19; 1 Peter 2:21-25; 1 John 2:1-2, 3:8)
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit is fully God, equal with the Father and Son whose primary ministry is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit also convicts unbelievers of their need for Christ and imparts spiritual life to all who believe in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit indwells every true believer as a guarantee of their future inheritance, guides and leads them, imparts spiritual gifts, anoints and empowers believers to be witnesses for Jesus Christ and to minister to one another, and transforms the lives of all believers into the image of Jesus.
(Matthew 3:11; John 1:12-13, 3:1-15, 15:26-27, 16:7-15; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:4-13; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22;
Ephesians 1:13-14, 5:18; Galatians 5:22-23)
MAN & SALVATION
We believe that Adam and Eve were created by a direct and immediate act of God and in the image of God, righteous and without sin. We believe that man by transgression fell from a state of righteousness and holiness in which he was first created into total spiritual depravity. Therefore, all people are born in a state of death in their trespasses and sins, objects of God’s divine wrath, condemned as sinners by nature and by choice, a slave to sin and an enemy of God. As such, mankind is unable to save themselves or to contribute in any way by their own efforts but must be redeemed and delivered by the power of the gospel.
(Genesis 1:26-27, 2:4; Romans 3:10-13, 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Ephesians 2:1-3)
We believe that the gospel is the good news of what God has accomplished for sinners through the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. The gospel is centered on Christ's work on the cross. Salvation is given by God’s grace, mercy, and love, and received solely by repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. We believe “it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). When a person becomes a follower of Jesus, they are redeemed, declared wholly righteous, born again, made alive in Christ as a new creature, reconciled to God, adopted as a child of God, and filled with the fullness of the Holy Spirit through whom they are empowered for a life of obedience.
We further believe that the emphasis for a continuous walk in grace should be ongoing through demonstrating righteousness and purity of heart, believing in the keeping power of God, walking after the Spirit and not after the flesh, living a lifestyle that demonstrates the character, standards and convictions of Jesus Christ, and not being conformed to the world.
(Jude 24; Romans 8:25; Galatians 5:16-25; Romans 4:1-5, 12:1-2)
THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit baptizes all believers in the Body of Christ and is the permanent indwelling presence of God in every believer of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is our abiding Helper, Teacher, and Comforter. We also believe in the filling or the empowering of the Holy Spirit, often a conscious experience, for ministry today. We believe in the present ministry of the Spirit and in the exercise of all of the Biblical gifts of the Spirit for spiritual growth, effective ministry, and for the proclamation and demonstration of the gospel. The gifts of the Spirit are to be eagerly desired, faithfully developed, and lovingly exercised according to biblical guidelines.
(John 14:12; Acts 2:14-21, 4:29-30; Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, 12:28-31, 14:1-33; Galatians 3:1-5)
THE CHURCH
We believe that the universal Church is the Bride of Christ and is comprised of all true disciples of Jesus Christ in every age. Jesus is the head of His church. The local expression of the church is comprised of disciples gifted for the work of ministry and building up the body of Christ, living in unity, bound together by love. The Church is also God's primary instrument through which He is fulfilling His redemptive purposes in the earth. While different local expressions may have different emphases, we believe that God has called the Church to preach the gospel to all nations, and especially to remember the poor and to minister to their needs through sacrificial giving and practical service. We also affirm the priesthood of all believers and the importance of every Christian being joined with and actively involved in a local community of the saints.
(Isaiah 58:6-12, 61:1; Matthew 16:17-19, 28:18-20; Luke 4:18, 21:1-4; Acts 2:17-18, 42; Galatians 2:10; Ephesians 3:14-21, 4:11-16; 1 Timothy 6:8; Hebrews 10:23-25; 1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-10)
We believe that water baptism and communion are the two ordinances of the church to be observed until the time of Christ's return. They are visible signs representing spiritual truths; that is, they are not a means of salvation but are channels of experiencing God's sanctifying grace and blessing. Baptism symbolizes a believer’s conversion and that they have died to their old life and have been raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in which the power of sin is broken. Communion is the present proclamation of Christ’s atoning death, and looks forward to his return.
(Matthew 26:26-29, 28:19; Romans 6:3-11; 1 Corinthians 11:23-34; 1 Peter 3:21)
THE KINGDOM OF GOD
We believe that the Kingdom of God has come in the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ and that it continues to come in the ministry of the Holy Spirit through the Church. The Kingdom will be consummated in the glorious, visible and triumphant appearing of Jesus when He returns to the earth as the true King. The mission of every believer is to partner with the Holy Spirit to extend the Kingdom of God upon the earth for the glory of God.
(Matthew 4:23, 12:2, 28:19-20; Acts 1:1-8, 2:14-39; Romans 14:17-18; Mark 13:26)
SATAN & THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS
We believe that Satan, originally a great and good angel, rebelled against God, taking a multitude of angels with him. He was cast out of God's presence and is actively at work with his demonic hosts to establish a counter-kingdom of darkness and evil on the earth in opposition to God’s Kingdom. Satan is the enemy of the church and wars against followers of Jesus through corrupt power, lies, condemnation, temptation, and bondage. He comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. Satan was judged and defeated at the cross of Christ and will, at the end of the age, be cast forever into the lake of fire which has been prepared for him and his angels.
(Matthew 12:25-29, 25:41; John 12:31, 16:11; Ephesians 6:10-20; Colossians 2:15; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6;
Revelation 12:7-9, 20:10)
THE RETURN OF JESUS & THE FINAL JUDGEMENT
We believe in the visible return of Jesus in which He will bring about the ultimate defeat of Satan, the resurrection of the dead, and the final judgment. At the final judgment, the unrepentant are raised to be judged by God in which they will receive an eternal, conscious punishment and separation from the presence of God in the Lake of Fire. For believers, they will receive their glorified bodies, give an account of their lives to receive their eternal rewards, and enter into joy of the everlasting, personal presence of God in His kingdom. At that time, the Kingdom of God will be completely fulfilled in the new heavens and the new earth, in which righteousness dwells and in which He will be worshipped forever. This is the hope for which we long, which helps to motivate us now toward godly living, and which propels us to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with a lost and dying world.
(1 Corinthians 15:20-28, 50-58; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11; 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12;
Revelation 19:1-21)