Our Beliefs
“If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed” - 1 Timothy 4:6
Statement of Faith
THE BIBLE
We believe in the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as verbally inspired by God and inerrant in the original writing and that they are of supreme and final authority in faith and life (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
GOD
We believe in one holy, all-powerful God, Creator of all things, who is self-existent, eternally unchanging, sovereign, infinitely perfect, good, gracious, just, and loving; that He knows all things, even our thoughts, past, present and future; and that He eternally exists in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 8:6, Isaiah 6:3; 40:26; Ephesians 1:19-21; Revelation 4:11; Exodus 3:14; Malachi 3:6; Isaiah 46:10; Psalm 18:30; Exodus 33:19; 34:6; Deuteronomy 32:4; 1 John 4:10,16; Psalm 139:4; Isaiah 45:21; Matthew 28:19).
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:1), in His virgin birth (Matthew 1:18,23), in His sinless life (2 Corinthians 5:21), in His miracles (John 3:2), in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood (1 Peter 2:24-25); In His bodily resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) and in His ascension (Acts 1:9-11) to the right hand of the Father (Hebrews 1:3), where He now is our High Priest (Hebrews 4:14) and Advocate (1 John 2:1).
MAN
We believe that man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27); that he sinned, and thereby incurred, not only physical death (Romans 5:12); but also spiritual death which is separation from God (Romans 6:23); and that all human beings are born with a sinful nature (Romans 3:10,23), and who, when reaching moral responsibility, become sinners in thought, word, and deed (Ephesians 2:2-3).
SALVATION
We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ and His resurrection provide the only ground for justification and salvation for all who believe (Romans 3:24-25; Hebrews 9:22), and those who receive Jesus Christ are born of the Holy Spirit, and thus become children of God (John 1:12-13).
THE CHURCH
We believe that the Church, according to Scripture, is composed of all persons who, through saving faith in Jesus Christ, have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are thus united together in the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-13) of which He is the Head (Ephesians 1:22-23).
HUMAN SEXUALITY
We believe that God created humanity male and female; that we are created to reflect God's glory in our sexuality either through self-control in celibate singleness, or fidelity to the lifelong covenantal union of one man and one woman in marriage; and that all forms of sexual immorality are sin from which we, as individual believers and as the church, the bride of Christ, are called to abstain (Genesis 1:27; Mark 10:6, 1 Corinthians 6:13-20; Matthew 19:3-6; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8; Romans 1:18-32; Leviticus 18:20-23; Matthew 5:27-28; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; 1 Peter 2:11; Revelation 2:18-29).
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:14), and to indwell (1 Corinthians 3:16), guide (Romans 8:14), instruct (John 14:26), and empower the believer for Godly living and service (2 Corinthians 9:8).
THE GOSPEL
We believe in the command of our Lord Jesus Christ that the Gospel be preached to all the world (Mark 16:15).
THE LORD’S RETURN
We believe in “that blessed hope” (Titus 2:13), the personal (1 Thessalonians 4:16), premillennial (Revelation 20:6), and imminent return (Matthew 24:42,44) of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
THE RESURRECTION
We believe in the resurrection of both the just (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18) and the unjust (Acts 24:15); they that are saved unto the resurrection of life (1 Corinthians 15:52-53); and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation (Revelation 20:6,14-15).
Further Convictions
BIBLICAL JUSTICE
We believe that all people are created in the image and likeness of God, and are worthy of mutual respect (Genesis 1:26-27).
Due to humanity’s propensity to sin and the manifestation of pride, individuals are prone to demonstrate injustice toward others. The only way to escape the sin of prejudice is through the regenerative work of Christ (John 1:12-13; Galatians 1:19-20). As redeemed people, Christ calls His disciples to a higher standard, the standard of love (Mark 10:35-45).
Scripture requires that we are to be impartial in our dealings with others (Deuteronomy 1:17; Micah 6:8), that we weigh in on matters of justice fairly (Deuteronomy 16:19), and that we favor neither the rich nor the poor, nor any one group of people over another (Exodus 23:3,6).
Therefore, we will seek to counter injustices of any kind by showing the love of Christ in practical ways (Matthew 5:16). Through daily acts of love and human kindness we believe we will be able to make the greatest positive impact upon our culture.
WORSHIP PHILOSOPHY
When we gather as His people to worship the Triune God, exalting His Name and His Word, we desire to encounter and respond to Him so that we are transformed more into the likeness of Christ (Psalms 138:2; John 1:14; Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:16-18).
Just as all believers should worship the Lord in every part of our lives, we encourage all believers to participate in corporate worship and to use their spiritual gifts for the building up of the body of Christ regardless of age. As we grow in obedience to Christ, we aspire to increase the offerings of our time, talents and treasure as acts of worship to Him (1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, John 14:15, Philippians 4:18).
Through music and song, we exalt the name of the Lord, sing His praises, give Him thanks, tell of His mighty works, and lift up prayers to God. God calls us to sing to Him, to each other, and across all generations. Scripture calls us to sing both time-tested and new songs and, if possible, to commit songs and Scripture to memory. With the help of our music directors, choirs, musicians, song leaders and other volunteers, we sing a variety of music, including psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, to edify each other and exalt the name of the Risen Savior, Jesus Christ (1 Chronicles 16:8-11, Psalm 95, Psalm 98, Matthew 26:30, Acts 16:25, Psalm 33:3, 89:1, Colossians 3:16-17, Revelation 5:8-14).