Our Beliefs
"In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity."
There will always be peripheral doctrines upon which sincere and committed Christians disagree. We welcome dialogue on many issues related to Christian doctrine, and encourage all to reason and think critically on these things. However, we recognize the importance of having a framework around which we grow in maturity and relate to one another as a community of believers, and we hold the following essentials to be at the core of who we are and what we believe:
God
We believe that there is one God, eternally present in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
(Genesis 1:26; Matthew 3:16-17; John 1:1-4)
Jesus Christ
Jesus is the eternal Son of God. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, worked miracles, and gave us an example to follow. Fully God and fully man, He died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin that separated us from God and rose from the dead to reconcile us to our Creator and to free us to have a new life in Him. Now, He sits at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us.
(Matthew 1:22-23, John 1:1-5, & 14:10-30, Acts 1:9-11, Hebrews 4:14-15)
The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells all believers, and through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, believers are empowered for Christian service and gifted for this service. The Holy Spirit also enables believers to live a Christ-like life exhibiting Godly character.
(Luke 11:13; Acts 1:8, 2:1-4, 8:17, 10:44-46, & 19:6; Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Corinthians 12)
The Bible
We believe the Holy Bible to be the inspired, infallible, and authoritative source of Christian faith and practice. As our supreme revelation from God, it is superior to conscience and reason, though not contrary to reason.
(2 Timothy 3:16- 17)
Salvation
We believe that in order to be born again, one must respond to the Holy Spirit’s conviction by repenting of and turning away from sin, by faith receiving the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross as being a sufficient basis for God’s forgiveness and must surrender his or her life to Christ.
(John 3:3; Luke 18:13; Ephesians 2:8-9)
Church
We believe that God intends for believers to unite together in local churches to worship, be accountable to one another, be instructed in the faith by mature Elders, observe the Christian sacraments of baptism, and communion, and serve the spiritual and temporal needs of the community.
(Hebrews 10:25; Ephesians 4:11-12)
Lifestyles
We believe that believers are to be baptized, attend church, worship, pray, study the Bible, tithe and give, and share their faith with those who don’t know the Lord.
(Acts 2:38, 41-42 & 5:42)
Family
We believe that family is the primary institution God uses to promote social order and structure and is to be respected, protected, and strengthened by the church.
(Ephesians 5:22, 25 & 6:1)
About The Future
We believe that eternal life in heaven is the reward of all who believe and received Christ as their Lord. “For God so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Those who do not put their faith in Jesus will spend eternity apart from Him, “but the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars: their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death”. (Revelation 21:8)