What We Believe
WHAT WE BELIEVE
These core beliefs reflect our understanding of God, people, and our influence on the world we live in.
There is only one God. God exists and has always existed as three Persons: Father, Son, and Spirit. The Father, Son, and Spirit are not merely three manifestations or roles of one Person, but are three eternally-coexistent and eternally-distinct Persons. Yet each Person shares the same nature, essence, or being; in other words, each is God. Among God’s attributes are complete power, complete knowledge of all things (including knowledge of all future occurrences), and the ability to immediately affect His will.
Genesis 1:1, 26-27 & 3:22; Psalms 90:2; Matthew 28:19; I Peter 1:2; II Corinthians 13:14; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:1-5, Isaiah 46:9-10
God the Father
The Father created and reigns over all that is seen and unseen. He is God. He is spirit, not physical; therefore, does not have a body. He is the Father of all who have faith in Jesus Christ.
Genesis 1:1, 26-27 & 3:22; Col 1:3-14; Galatians 4:6; John 14:1-17God the Son
Jesus Christ is the only and eternal Son of God. All things were created through Him. He is God. He is eternally begotten of the Father. He is not created but is coeternal with the Father and the Spirit. He was born of the Virgin Mary, thereby becoming fully human in both body and soul while remaining fully God, giving up none of His divine attributes. Thus, He has both a sinless and complete human nature and a complete divine nature, and yet He is one person. Untainted by the sin of Adam, He lived a life without sin. His death on the Cross was as a substitution and a payment for the sins of the world. He was buried, and on the third day after His death, He was resurrected in a physical yet glorified body. He ascended into Heaven and will return again to judge the living and the dead.
Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5 & 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14-15; I Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 1:3-4; Acts 1:9-11; I Timothy 6:14-15; Titus 2:13
God the Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the eternal Spirit of God. He is God. He is not created but is coeternal with the Father and the Son. He indwells all who have faith in Jesus Christ. In addition to drawing believers to the faith, He cultivates Christian character in their lives and indwells the Church, granting spiritual gifts to believers for the Church’s growth.
II Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13 & 14:16-17; Acts 1:8; I Corinthians 2:12 & 3:16; Ephesians 1:13 & 5:18; Galatians 5:25
The Bible is the self-revelation of God to humankind and is the Word of God. It was written by human authors under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Both the Old and New Testament point to Jesus Christ and are true without any mixture of error. The canon of protestant scripture is accepted to be the completed Bible.
II Timothy 1:13 & 3:16; II Peter 1:20-21 & 3:16; Psalms 119:105, 160 & 12:6; Proverbs 30:5; Luke 24:25-27
Humanity is the highest creation of God, the object of His love. God made humanity in His own image and gave them dominion over creation. Humans were created by God without sin, yet fell into sin because of Adam’s rebellion. As a result of Adam’s sin, humans inherit a nature that is (1) guilty of Adam’s original sin (2) unable and unwilling to come to God, and (3) guilty of personal sins, which are the fruit of this depraved nature. Thus, all of fallen humanity is guilty before God. A person’s fallen condition is remedied only by the Holy Spirit’s drawing that person to faith in Jesus Christ. Those who have faith in Jesus Christ are forgiven and adopted as children of God and will spend eternity with Him.
Genesis 1:27; Psalms 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6 & 59:1-2; Romans 3:23 & 5:12-21
Salvation is God’s redemption of a person from sin. It is offered to humankind through Jesus Christ. Salvation is the free gift of God. It is through faith in Jesus Christ (which is a genuine turning from sin and trusting in Christ’s completed work on the Cross as the only sufficient payment for sin). Salvation includes (1) the work of the Holy Spirit to draw a person to Jesus Christ, (2) one being forgiven and given the positive righteousness of Christ, (3) the lifelong process by which the Holy Spirit transforms one’s character to be like Christ’s, and (4) glorification, which will be brought about when believers are bodily-resurrected to be forever with God. Those who do not receive salvation through faith in Jesus Christ will be eternally separated from God in Hell. Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the believer is secure in his/her salvation for eternity. Salvation cannot be lost. It is maintained by the grace and power of God, not man.
The transformation of salvation is the first step into God’s story for your life. The transformation impacts the way we live, which influences the world as we share the love we first received from Christ.
Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 14:6 & 1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:26; Romans 5:1; John 10:29; II Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25 & 10:10, 14; I Peter 1:3-5; John 3:16, 2:25 & 5:11-13; Romans 6:23; Revelation 20:15; I Corinthians 15:35-55; Daniel 12:2