Statement Of Beliefs.
01. The Bible.
We believe that God has perfectly revealed who he is and what he commands in the Bible. That both the Old Testament and the New Testament are the infallible Word of God in all matters of life and doctrine; that the Bible is completely relevant today for every area of the human experience because it is living and active; that the Bible is the exclusive and only authority for faith and lifestyle; and that the original autographs are without error. It is to be believed, practiced, trusted, and hoped in.
(1 Cor. 2:13; 2 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 4:12; 2 Pet. 1:21)
02. The Trinity.
We believe that there is One true God, the eternally self- existing “I AM”, who has revealed himself to us in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that the persons of the Trinity are co-eternal, co-equal, and yet with unique function.
(Ex. 3:14; Deut. 6:4; Isa. 43:10, 11; Matt. 28; Jn. 8:58; 2 Cor. 13:14).
03. Jesus Christ.
We believe in a Chalcedonian Christology of the Second Person of the Trinity. He is a distinct person from the Father and the Holy Spirit, yet of the same substance, two natures in One person (divine and human). We believe that Jesus Christ is God of God, the Son of God, who was incarnated as a human, was born of a virgin, was crucified, was buried, was resurrected, and is seated at the right hand of God on high.
(Mt. 1:20; Mk. 16:19; Jn. 1:1, 14; 3:16; 20:1-2; 1 Cor. 15:3-5; Hebrews 2:17; Gal. 4:4 Phil. 2:8; 1 Pet. 3:22)
04. The Holy Spirit.
We believe that the Holy Spirit is fully God. He is a distinct person from the Father and the Son, God of God, sent by the Father to equip the Body of Christ with grace for work. In all he does, he glorifies Christ. He convicts the world of sin, regenerates sinners, and in him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted into the family of God. The Holy Spirit is received at salvation, and assists us in our weaknesses by enabling us to live victorious, bold, Christlike lives.
(Jn. 14:16-26; Rom. 8:9, 26; Eph. 4:30; 1 Cor. 12:7-11; Heb. 10:29)
05. Sin and the Fall of Humanity.
We believe that humankind was created in the image of God but voluntarily sinned when tempted by Satan and fell short of God’s righteousness. Sin is willful transgression of the law of God and deserves death. At the fall, humankind incurred physical death and spiritual death, which is separation from God. All human beings are in union with Adam and are sinners by nature and by choice. Sin has alienated humankind from God and subjected it to his wrath.
(Ge. 1:26, 27; 2:17; 3:6; Rom. 5:12-19)
06. Salvation and the Work of Christ.
Fallen humankind’s hope of redemption is only possible through the shed blood of Jesus Christ and his work on the cross. The redemption offered to humankind through the work of Christ must be received by repentance toward God and faith in Christ who shed his blood. Those who receive God’s offer of grace by faith are born again, justified, regenerated, adopted into the family of God, made heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit, and are partakers of eternal life to come.
(John 3:3; Acts 4:12; Eph. 1:7; Rom. 5:10; 8:14-17; 10:9-10; Titus 3:5-6).
07. The Church.
We believe that the Church is the Body of Jesus Christ, who is its Head. The Church is comprised of all those who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. The Church is manifest in local churches, whose membership should be only believers. The Church is being built up and made into the Bride of Christ, fully matured and presentable at Jesus’s Second Coming. We believe the Church is a pillar of truth to the world because of the abiding story and presence of Jesus as mediated by the Holy Spirit.
(Mt. 16:18; 1 Cor. 12:13; Rom. 5:1, 5; Eph. 1:22-23; 4:11-17; 5:27; Rev. 2-3)
08. Christ’s Return and the Eternal Perfect State.
We believe in the personal, bodily, and glorious return of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that Jesus will return to both restore creation and judge the living and the dead. We believe that God is creating a New Heavens and a New Earth where humans will dwell forever with God. The imminent coming of Christ should inspire godly living and commitment to the mission of the Gospel
(Isa. 65:17; Mt. 24:30; Acts 1:11; 1 Cor. 15:50-54; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 19:11-22:21)
09. Heaven & Hell
We believe that followers of Jesus will spend eternity with Jesus in his kingdom. Everyone who rejects Jesus will be punished with eternal separation from the presence of God.
(Mt. 25:46; Mark 9:43-48; Rev. 20:11-15)
10. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
We believe in the continuation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and that the charismata did not cease after the Apostolic age. The purpose of the gifts is to equip the Church to carry out its mission until Christ returns, as well as to be a foretaste of the life to come. Believers should seek God in prayer for the gifts of the Spirit to operate in their own lives and ministries and should not only agree to them theoretically but practice them outwardly as the Spirit leads.
(Rom. 1:11; 1 Cor. 1:5, 7; 12:1, 31; 1 Cor. 14:12; 2 Tim. 1:6-7; Heb. 6:5)