[This scripture is written] that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
John 20:31
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What We Believe
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[This scripture is written] that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
John 20:31
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T H E S C R I P T U R E S
We believe that all scripture is given by inspiration of God (2 Timothy 3:16), given to holy men who were guided by the Spirit of God (2 Peter 1:21) to record His message. We believe that this guidance and inspiration extends to all of scripture in its original manuscript and is therefore inerrant. The promise of eternal life and redemption was given before time began (Titus 1:2), therefore the plan of Jesus Christ's vicarious sacrifice was set in motion before creation. As a result, all of scripture, which reveals to us God's plan to reconcile us to him, should point to Jesus Christ. Any complete understanding of scripture should return us to the central gospel of Christ. (Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11).
O U R G O D
We believe in one, true, living God who is the Creator, our Redeemer, and real definition of Love. Though he is magnificently indescribable, we acknowledge that he is infinite, unchangeable, and holy.
And he is revealed to us as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Father--Our heavenly Father is perfect and we are encouraged to emulate him (Matthew 5:48). By his omnipotence, omniscience, and his all-encompassing love he adopts his fallen creation back into his family by seeing the blood of Christ when he views us (Romans 5:9).
The Son--In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Moreover, the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the Father
(John 1:1;14).
The Son was born to the virgin known as Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit is God.
His manifestation in the flesh made him fully man, even as he maintained complete deity.
His ministry on earth culminated with his obedient death on the Christ, his resurrection from the grave with authority over death,
and his ascension to heaven. By his vicarious sacrifice he freed all of those who believe and love him from the chains and
debt of sin by making us "the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus"
(Romans 6).
Jesus will return and assert his kingship and reign as Lord of Lords.
The Holy Spirit--Also called the "Spirit of God", the Holy Spirit is a promise to all believers of Jesus Christ
(Acts 2:33).
Believers are immersed in the Spirit of God, literally being baptized by the Spirit
(Mark 1:8).
Believers are also the temple of the Holy Spirit and are sanctified by the presence of God in their daily lives
(1 Peter 1:2).
"Holy" connotes that the Spirit of God cannot dwell in impurity, thus the Spirit of God also acts as a conscience for
believers, convicting them of wrongdoing and encouraging the fulfillment of the fruits bore of righteous living
(e.g., love, joy, and peace) (1 Corinthians 2:10-13,
Galatians 5:22-25).
C R E A T I O N
We believe in the act of creation by the direct mandate of God's words and actions. We believe his creation came with intent purpose in its design, by divine ordination (Genesis 1, Psalms 102:25, Jeremiah 10:12, 1 Corinthians 8:6).
T H E E N E M Y
We believe in the existence of Satan, but also in his promised fate in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10). Though he now works against believers, seeking to devour humanity and cause it to share his fate, he is a defeated foe who should always be resisted (2 Corinthians 4:4, James 4:7).
H U M A N I T Y
We believe that man was created in the image of God, made from the dust of the ground to be friends of God (Genesis 1:26-27;2:7). By the disobedience of one man, sin entered into the world and corrupted God?s creation. Humanity, unable to redeem itself by the very nature of its imperfection, must depend and believe on the redemptive work of Christ and the sanctification of the Holy Spirit to present us blameless before the throne of God. This sanctification can be referred to as being "born again"--a requirement for any sinner, which encompasses all of humanity, to ever be reconciled to God and trade the debt of sin (death) for the gift of God (eternal life) (John 3:1-17, Romans 6, Romans 5:12-20).
S A L V A T I O N
We believe that man can be "saved by God's unmerited favor through persistent faith" in the redeeming work of Jesus Christ
(Ephesians 2:8-9,
Romans 10:9-10).
How can we be saved?
Romans 10: 8-10 tells us that by confessing with our mouth that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Savior and believing with our heart that God has raised him from the dead then we shall be saved.
Why?
Romans 3:23 alerts us that every person has sinned and fallen short of God's glory. The very nature of God's perfection means he does not tolerate the presence of sin.
Romans 6:23 lets us know that the debt we owe because of our sin is death, but God offers us eternal life in its stead. This offering of eternal life comes only through Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:8 reveals that God's great love for us is that while we were still in our sins, God commended his love toward us by dying on the cross for our sins.
Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us by God's grace (undeserved favor) are we saved through faith and that there is nothing that we can do in our own power that can save us.
John 14:6 tells us that the only way to have a relationship with God and to be reconciled to our purpose in creation is through Jesus Christ.
Galatians 3:26 tells us that we are the children of God, If we have Faith in Jesus Christ.
When?
Revelation 3:20 tells us that Jesus is standing at the door of your heart and is knocking on it. If you hear his Voice and open the door to him, he will come into your heart and be with you.
Hebrews 3:15 warns us that when we hear God's Voice, do not harden our hearts.
Today is a great day for you to be saved!
T H E L I F E O F T H E C H R I S T I A N
We believe that a Christian's life should progress towards reflecting the character of God through the work of the Holy Spirit and in the fellowship of other believers (Hebrews 10:25). We believe that the Christian is required to love God and to love all of humanity. If love is engaged, the practices of sin (also referred to as "the works of the flesh") cannot abound and the fruits of the Spirit will be cultivated properly. God is love, and any Christian should mirror that truth (Romans 13:8, Galatians 5:22-25, 1 John 4:10-20; 5:3). By practicing true love we can practice true holiness by fulfilling God's greatest command.
T H E B E L I E V E R ' S C O M M I S S I O N
We believe that it is the Christian's responsibility to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and proclaim God's fame and love. This is achievable by the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8).