What We Believe
1. The Word of God – We believe that the Bible, comprising of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament, is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in original manuscripts, written by men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men, and that it has supreme and final authority in all matters of Christian faith and conduct.
(2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21; 1 Thessalonians 2:13)
2. The Trinity – We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and redemption.
(Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1-4; John 14:16-17; John 15:26; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 2:13, 18; Hebrews 9:14; Jude 20-21)
3. God the Father – We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of the human race, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.
(Exodus 3:14; Isaiah 57:15; Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 12:29-30; John 3:16; John 4:24; Acts 5:30-31; Ephesians 1:17-23)
4. Jesus Christ – We believe in Jesus Christ, the Word became flesh, fully God and fully human being, one Person in two natures, God’s only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, and teachings. We also believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people at the right hand of God, and personal, visible return to earth.
(Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-4, 14; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; 2 Corinthians 5:18-21; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 7:25-27)
5. The Holy Spirit – We believe in the Holy Spirit who is sent by the Father and the Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, and to regenerate, baptize, unite, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ for Christ-like living and service. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells and seals every believer in Christ as the down payment of the promised inheritance, and that He is an abiding helper, teacher, and guide. He also equips, intercedes for and sovereignly distributes gifts to all believers.
(Matthew 28:19; John 1:33; John 14:16-17; John 16:7-15, 26; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:9, 11, 14, 16, 26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 1 Corinthians 12:7-13; Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 2:18; Titus 3:5-7; Hebrews 9:14; 1 John 4:13)
6. The Human Condition — We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, without sin, but that in Adam’s sin the race fell. As a result, all people are sinful by nature and by choice, alienated from God, under condemnation, and totally unable to remedy their lost condition.
(Genesis 1:26-27; Genesis 3:1-24; Romans 3:10-12, 23; Romans 5:14; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12; 1 John 1:8, 10)
7. Salvation - We believe that all those who repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior receive God’s gracious gift of salvation and eternal life. Through this faith in Christ alone they are united with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection, and they are fully forgiven, having been reconciled to God through the shedding of Christ’s blood on the cross. We believe that salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be saved.
(John 1:12-13; John 3:3-5; John 3:16, 18, 36; John 5:24; John 14:6; Romans 3:9-26; Romans 5:8; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:1; Romans 10:8-13; Acts 4:12; Ephesians 1:7; Ephesians 2:4-22; Titus 3:5-6; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 5:11-12)
8. The Church – We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body which is comprised of all who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. We believe in the local church, whose membership should be composed only of those who are believers in Jesus Christ.
(Matthew 16:16-18; Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 24:46-49; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:37-47; Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:22-23; Ephesians 4: 3-16; Ephesians 5:25-33; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 3:1-15; Titus 1:5-9)
9. Christian Conduct – We believe that a Christian should live for the glory of God and the well being of his fellow man, that his conduct should be blameless before the world, that he should be a faithful steward of his possessions, and that he should seek to realize for himself and others the full stature of maturity in Christ.
(1 Corinthians 1:8; 1 Corinthians 10:31-33; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7; 2 Corinthians 9:6-8; Ephesians 4:11-15; Philippians 2:12-15; Philippians 3:7-16; Philippians 4:1; 1 Peter 2:1-12; 2 Peter 3:14, 18)
10. The Ordinances – We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church which visibly and tangibly express the gospel: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ as a memorial and proclamation of His death, resurrecting power, and coming return. We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.
(Matthew 3:16; Matthew 26:26-29; Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 22:15-20; John 4:1-2; Acts 2:37-41; Acts 8:36-39; Acts 22:16; Romans 6:1-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Ephesians 4:3-5; Colossians 1:11-12; Titus 3:3-8)
11. The Last Things – We believe in the personal, visible, and imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the eternal blessedness of the righteous, and the endless suffering of the wicked.
(Isaiah 13:9-11; Daniel 12:1-3; Malachi 4:1-3; Matthew 24:15-28; Luke 12:35-40; Luke 17:26-30; Luke 24:43; John 14:1-4; Acts 1:9-11; Acts 15:14-18; 1 Corinthians 15:35-58; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 21:1-8)
